Welcome to Pure So You Think You Can Dance

Note from John: I just wanted to welcome Max to Pure SYTYCD. This is his first writeup about an episode of SYTYCD. He makes some good points about tonight’s show. I’m glad to have his help on the site and I hope you’ll all give him a nice welcome (yes, that means lots of comments with your opinions).

Tonight’s Top 16  elimination show was a bittersweet way to say goodbye to two dancers. The bottom 3 tonight was hardly a surprise, until it came time to reveal the final couple nominated for elimination. Before that, however, the evening contained a well thought out balance of entertainment and reality, full of fun and quirky surprises. All in all, however, tonight’s final curtain for two dancers was a suspenseful hour full of distractions from the real world.

Hip-Hop Group Dance; Top 16; A wonderfully quirky hip hop routine choreographed by Dimitry Chaplin, Tabitha and Napoleon. Besides the insane camera angles provided by the show, this routine was lively, exciting and well danced by all, in my opinion. I felt that everyone was in sync, and really seemed to enjoy themselves. While hip-hop is not my favorite style in the least bit, Napoleon and Tabitha’s routines never let me down, and I always find myself wonderfully immersed in them, and the stories they convey to us.

The Judges; Nigel’s beginning speech was a big buzzkill for me, especially after a dance like that. Nonetheless,  Nigel was feeling pain, and I thought it sweet and humble of him to pay homage to his friends the way he did. It felt more like a eulogy at a funeral more than a reality TV show, let alone a dance show such as this one.

Still, it doesn’t make me like his awful, dreadful hair any more. R.I.P Farrah, MJ, and Ed McMahon.

Toni Basil, the guest judge this week, really rubbed me the wrong way on last night’s show. She came off as very old-fashioned to me, and not as ‘with-it’ as the other judges seemed to be. However, she redeemed herself in my eyes after her humble commentary tonight. She refused to call out and humiliate specific dancers, which I found quite admirable.

On to the real stufff now…

Dance School (The Rage Boys Crew): This was fun. The kids here were obviously VERY talented, because the routine and choreography were complex, and everyone had great lines, as well as posture and attitude. I couldn’t find anybody in this dance that was incapable, or even weak. I was blown away by the incredible talent on that stage. And some of those kids were cute, but I think Ms. Deeley made more than it was out of it, as always.

Bottom Three: The bottom 3 this week didn’t surprise me until the very end. Aside from those first 2 couples, all the other ones were extremely strong, with some of the best dancing so far.

I don’t think any of us were surprised to see Asuka and Vitolio in the bottom. Asuka being eliminated was not a shock in the least, and I think that it was even anticipated by many. Her solo was just too mushy containing little substance, and just felt like a lot of glorified movement. From the moment she started out on stage tonight, she was doomed, especially competing with the likes of Karla and Caitlin, two amazingly strong dancers.

I think the only reason Vitolio was saved was due to his background story, and the judges raving comments about his sincerity last week, although truthfully, I didn’t see it. Even so, Jonathan’s performance was weak last night, and his solo was grasping, throwing in a ton and a half of flashy moves and gymnastics out of desperation. It was his time to go. He just was not diverse enough in his dancing skills, and didn’t have the range of movements the others possess.

Finally, I was extremely relieved they kept Karla, as she is quickly rising to the top of my list of favorite dancers this week. I’m happy that Jonathan won’t be weighing her down anymore, but I’m anxious to see if Vitolio will do the same. Still loving Jason and Caitlin, glad they weren’t too harshly judged.  A great week, week 3, eager for our top 10!

Pure SYTYCD is trying out a new thing for this season of SYTYCD. We’ve had a friend of ours create some t-shirt designs that we think fans of SYTYCD will like. We’re just getting started, but you can see our store of SYTYCD merchandise and see what we’re up to. Also, I’ll put a widget below that shows you some of the designs we’ve uploaded already.

We’re also just getting started with this. If you would like a certain design, phrase or other suggestion, let us know in the comments and we’ll see what we can do to accommodate you. Let us know what you think of the designs.

Most people already know that Lacey Schwimmer was on last season’s Dancing with the Stars. In fact, Lacey Schwimmer did really well last year making it to the final 3 with star Lance Bass as her partner. Lacey did an excellent job full of edgy routines and her signature semi-rebellious style.

This year, Lacey Schwimmer will be back again on Dancing with the Stars and this season she’ll be paired with Steve-O. Yes, it is indeed that Steve-O. This should be really interesting to see. I’m sure the producers of the show saw the irony of the “bad girl” being paired with Steve-O. This should be interesting to see what Steve-O is like on the prim and proper ballroom dance floor.

This season of Dancing with the Stars also announced Chelise Hightower and Dmitry Chaplin joining the show as professional dancers. They’ll both be part of a main storyline of couples since they’re dancing with married couple Ty Murray and Jewel respectively. This should be interesting for Chelsie and Dmitry. Of course, who wouldn’t want to watch Dmitry Chaplin dancing beside Jewel? Sounds like a match made in heaven. Plus, I think we’re certain to see more of shirtless Dmitry as well.

Check out my introduction of Chelsie and Dmitry to Dancing with the Stars fans. It’s kind of fun to see the cross over between the 2 shows. Like I heard Nigel say, “these kids have got to work.”

Brandon Norris was a huge feature on the SYTYCD 3 tryouts and then performed in the finale of SYTYCD is now a member of the Dynamic Edition crew on America’s Best Dance Crew. I could only find a couple of videos of Brandon Norris and his harem of ladies on ABDC, but it’s pretty cool that they’re able to bring a crew as unique as there’s to ABDC. Too bad he couldn’t make it on SYTYCD.

Dynamic Edition on Week 1 of ABDC

Dynamic Edition on Week 2 of ABDC

Also, check out Dynamic Edition’s appearance on the always funny Ellen DeGeneres show.

SYTYCD season 1’s Ryan Conferido and SYTYCD season 3’s Hok Konishi and Dominic Sandoval are all apart of the Quest Crew on ABDC on MTV. This crew has been tearing it up. I personally think they were by far the best crew the first week of ABDC and they haven’t let up all season.

In case you missed the videos, check out Quest Crew on ABDC.

Quest Crew on ABDC week 1

Quest Crew on ABDC week 2

Quest Crew on ABDC week 3

Quest Crew on ABDC week 4

Man I’ve been meaning to post this for a while, and just never got around to it. Hopefully you’ll forgive me. Anyway, has anyone noticed all the past members of So You Think You Can Dance on the ABDC stage? SYTYCD season 1’s Ryan Conferido and SYTYCD season 3’s Hok Konishi and Dominic Sandoval are all apart of the Quest Crew. The names Hok and Dominic should be familiar to you. Dominic and Cat’s interaction is one of my favorite SYTYCD storylines ever.

Someone who many people might not recognize is Brandon Norris of Dynamic Edition who was heavily featured during the season 3 try-outs of SYTYCD and performed at the season finale. A killer tapper that really surprised me when I saw him on ABDC. Talk about a ladies man. I’m certain he’s made hundreds of guys want to tap. Talk about numbers.

Of course, we all know that Shane Sparks is also from SYTYCD and is a judge on ABDC.

So Far Quest Crew and Dynamic Edition have done really well on the show. However, now the competition is getting much harder. Should be fun to watch them. I know that Hok and Dominic are 2 of the best performers that have ever graced the SYTYCD stage.

Over the next couple days I’ll try and find and post the videos from Quest and Dynamic Edition for all to enjoy the SYTYCD Alum.

I just read an interview with Shane Sparks on Zap2It where he’s asked if he’s going to be back on the next season of So You Think You Can Dance. Here’s the question and Shane Spark’s response:

Now that this season is happening separately from when So You Think You Can Dance is airing, are you gonna be able to do some work with them this season?
We’re working on it right now, trying to get me in more this season, get me on camera for some of the show.

Judging?
Yeah.

It’s unfortunate that Shane won’t be doing choreography for the show. I’d much rather have him doing choreography than judging, but if he’s able to replace Mary Murphy at the judges table, then I’ll be happy.

I’m not sure there’s much argument that Robert Muraine had to be one of, if not the best So You Think You Can Dance audition ever. It was creative, it was unique it was hilarious and was truly incredible to watch.

Watching him dance makes you wonder how many other dancers like him are left out there in the world that people know nothing about.

A big thanks to Selly from Dance Outlook for sending us the following writeup about the So You Think You Can Dance Tour visit to Kansas City. If you have been to a different city and have pictures, videos or want to write about your experience, then let us know. About one more month left for the So You Think You Can Dance tour and there are still tickets available for future tour stops.

Without further ado, here’s Selly’s experience and pictures from the So You Think You Can Dance Kansas City tour stop:
On Wednesday night, I attended the 2008 SYTYCD Tour at Sprint Center in Kansas City. I had amazing seats (thanks to presale) in the 5th row. I actually enjoyed the show more than I expected to. This has been my least favorite season, but I had a lot of fun seeing all of the dances live. I didn’t take notes, so this isn’t going to be a formal review by any means, but just some general notes/comments.

Kherington needs to close her mouth. Instead of smiling at inappropriate times like she did on the show, most of her facial expressions are approximately :O This was actually one of the first things I noticed during the show.

After the requisite video montage of Nigel’s Top 5 “memorable” (aka bad) auditions, the dancers came out and performed Shane Sparks’s Elevator group number.

The dancers were introduced and did mini-solos. They then re-introduced themselves live. Katee then said that she would not be performing at all that night due to injury. I knew she had hurt her back, but I still had hope for at least the Will/Katee Complexions Pas De Deux or at least No Air.

Twitchington performed first with their “We’re Escaped Convicts” hip hop by Napoleon and Tabitha. Among other dances, they did a “world tour” of dance styles from around the world featuring Thayne and Chelsie’s Cha Cha, Josh and Twitch’s Trepak which Gev introduced in Russian (and a dress), Courtney and Mark’s Viennese Waltz (once again, Gev wore a dress), and the group Bollywood number.

Some of the highlights of the night for me were Bleeding Love, Five Guys Named Moe, The Garden, The Dance, Twitchington’s “Bed” contemporary (which I have rose petals from in my purse), Money Money, and pretty much anything involving Chelsea H., Courtney, or Mark.

Despite the odd facial expression, I was actually really impressed by Kherington. Because all of the dances involving Katee except for group numbers were cut, some “emergency backup dances” were added in addition to the ones on the normal set list. These included Courtney and Josh’s Frankenstein hip hop (which I have no recollection of ever seeing before), Courtney and Gev’s Rumba, Jessica and Will’s “Shirt” contemporary, Marksie’s Kiss Kiss jazz and Twitchington’s Too Darn Hot Broadway.

I think there were a coupe other Courtney dances added, too. Because Katee did not perform, Jessica King did her solo which I was not at all impressed with. I know there’s a lot I haven’t talked about, but it’s really hard to remember everything. However, if you have any specific questions, it would probably make it a lot easier for me to come up with an answer than to post every single little detail that I can dredge up.

At one of the merchandise stands, I bought a tour t-shirt (just the regular one, not anything dancer-specific), leggings, and a program, all of which were ridiculously overpriced, but super cute. People were going crazy with grabbing fake money, rose petals, and confetti when they swept the stage off. I managed to grab some rose petals and ended up with a random lost bobby pin from the stage in an attempt to get confetti.

I took a lot of pictures before intermission, when my camera
conveniently died, but I’m fairly sure my camera is broken. They all
turned out massively blurry and most of them had weird lines across
them. I tried to pick out some of the better ones though.

Stay on your toes,

Selly from Dance Outlook

I believe that this quite possibly could be the most popular and most technical dance ever performed on So You Think You Can Dance. Benji and Heidi are just so refined, so technical and so precise in this dance. It’s like they’ve been doing it since they were kids. Oh that’s right, they have been.

Enjoy the Black Mambo sung by Angel and the Mambokats by Benji Schwimmer and Heidi Groskreutz

Disclaimer: I have a huge Heidi fan, so anything I say will certainly be biased when it comes to Heidi.