Part 2 the SYTYCD Tour Meet and Greet

If you are going to the tour hang out after the show because the dancers come out to meet the fans. I recommend a spot next to a young fan…they stop longer for the little ones. I was actually able to ask some questions…I’m guessing not too many people in Atlanta wanted to wait out in the cold. I was standing next to a first grader who had four favorites and she told each one of them too. Her favorites were Phillip, Kayla, Brandon and Jeanine. Each one of them gave her a hug and took a picture with her but it was Brandon who surprised me. I couldn’t hear what she said to him but he decided that he wanted to have a picture of the two of them so he pulled out his phone and got one, such a cute moment.

While Brandon was around me someone asked him if he thought Mia’s comments to him during Vegas week were real or were they just said for the show. He said he really didn’t know because it is in their contracts that they cannot talk to the judges about any critiques that are given. He said they have to wait a few months after the show is over before they can talk about it. Also the ladies next to me asked everyone what it was like to be on Ellen…for the most part they all enjoyed it.

I did get to talk to a few of them myself. I asked Kupono if he thought he might go into maybe starting his on clothing/costume line. He said that he might somewhere down the line, it something that he is interested in. In the program he said that he is designing everyone’s Halloween costumes. Caitlin was next I asked about her sister, if she auditioned for season 6. She said yeah but she was cut during Vegas week. I asked mainly because I didn’t see her or I just missed her or something. When Melissa and Ade came by I had to tell them what the breast cancer piece meant to me. Ade really is a sweet guy; I wish I could have had a longer conversation with him. I commented on the difference of seeing that particular dance live. He agreed by saying he had been hearing that a lot. He seemed somewhat surprised by this but then he said that they (producers) will show what they want to show.

While waiting for some of the dancers to make it down to where I was…some of us were talking to a guy that travels with them on tour. That is how I found out Janette was sick and if fact most of them were getting over being sick. He has worked on the American Idol tours and the SYTYCD tour since season 3. He said that all the dancers that he has met have been great with the fans will try to sign everything that they can. This is where he said there was only one dancer that had a diva type attitude. Of course he couldn’t tell us, but he did give us a hint and we took a guess. All of us guess correctly on the first try…hmm I would like to see who you guys think he was talking about. So leave a guess on the comments below and I post the answer later in the week. (John I already told you who it was so you can’t say anything)

The Five Alive Tour…

…AKA the season five tour of SYTYCD. This made the fourth tour I’ve attended and naturally I already had an idea of what to expect. This season didn’t disappoint. Due to circumstances beyond my control I barely made it in time to see the opening of the show…thank goodness they started fifteen minutes late. Then it was the start to a night full of dance starting with disco. What I didn’t know is that Janette was sick, but I wouldn’t have known until someone mentioned it later that night. That was followed by Phillip and Jeanine’s hip hop to “Mad”. I almost wish the first two numbers were switched. Then came the butt dance…I love this dance. It’s cute and quirky and a sure to be another Mia classic.

When it came time for the Bollywood dance, this is where the on going joke about Jeanine and Phillip’s Russian routine. I have to admit whoever came up with this idea was brilliant. I know Emilie mentioned that at one point that Phillip and Jeanine were in disguise. Earlier in the night the prop guys brought out a chair for Evan and Melissa Broadway routine wearing top hats and tux jackets. I myself have done a Russian folk dance before so I felt their pain when the judges didn’t care for it on the show…I found myself wanting to see them dance that number. So they are so determine to do this dance and the audience is with them Jeanine actually shushed us so they wouldn’t get caught. Then the twist came, everyone joined them on stage to dance with them and well if you read Emilie’s post you know what happens next. I love the new parts to the dance. This wasn’t the only skit that had me laughing. Like Melissa telling a scary story to intro the Zombie hip hop and getting interrupted a lot by the guys being “scared”. Plus there is Kupono’s DVD advertisement and him picking on Randi about the one time she wore a wig on the show.

This time around they didn’t do as many group numbers compared to the past seasons. Calle Ocho took the show to intermission. They have the whole set up water and all. Though I thought the whole water thing looked better on television. One kicked of the second half of the show. This one brings back memories for me…yes I have been in “A Chorus Line” not a major role but Mia’s version was so much better. They closed the show with one of my favorite group numbers, Tyce’s Brand New Day. I had a feeling they would either open or close the show with this number. Also this was the first year that the tour didn’t end with and number to “You Can’t Stop the Beat” from Hairspray. Though up until now the past three seasons have had a connection to Hairspray, for season two it was Benji and Donyelle. Season 3 was when the movie hit theatres and Adam Shankman choreographed a routine for the dancers. Well as for season 4 Twitch was in the movie…you can spot him and the end of the movie.

Now on to the solos…Cat does intro the dancers plus they show footage of their journey on the show. When Phillip hit the stage I had to get that one on video. He also received the first standing ovation of the night and quite possibly the biggest one too. This really isn’t all that surprising to me, since he has been around since season two. Jeanine’s solo was great too she had the rose and all but it fell apart on stage while she was dancing. Brandon also got a standing ovation for his solo too…spoiler alert it the same as his original audition…okay there are quite a few repeats of solos.

I was happy to know that many of my favorites had made it into the show. I’ll post a link to my pictures that I took…I tried to get a few from each routine but when you cant use a flash some didn’t work out. I also have video of the Zombie hip hop…I actually like many of Kayla’s numbers. It was Brandon and Kayla that had the most dances in the show. It’s hard to pick an absolute favorite but there is one or two that were better live. Evan and Melissa’s Broadway was one of those…it’s fun and light hearted, not to mention Janette started rambling on in Spanish while introducing the number. Also the breast cancer piece is better live…it still didn’t make me want to cry but to see Melissa and Ade dance with so much heart was definitely a great thing to see. Okay I really could go on and on but then this post would be really long. So check out all my pictures and video and get and see what other dances made the tour. I recommend buying a program it has a Q&A with the top ten. So those who haven’t been to the tour yet, you are in for a great night of dancing. For those of you that haven’t been to one yet, you are missing out. Enjoy the links below for video and pictures from the show.

http://www.youtube.com/dancestar516

http://www.flickr.com/photos/dancestar516/sets/72157622648404156/