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SYTYCDC 3 – Who Will Be in the TOP 20?!

As we all (should) know, the reveal of which Canadian dancers will be in Season 3’s Top 20 will be revealed tonight at 9PM ET on CTV. I haven’t been able to watch the Montreal auditions yet but I do recognize some Montreal dancers who tried out previously who deserve to make it into the Top 20 this year. I have also seen the Finals Week episode, so hopefully that reinforced my predictions. Once again – these are just PREDICTIONS – NOT the actual Top 20.

PREDICTIONS

Top 10 Males
Jera Wolfe
Jonathan Arsenault
Jesse Weafer
Andrew “Pyro” Chung
Sebastian Mersch
Shavar “Caution” Blackwood
Kevin Howe
Jeff Mortensen
Justin (Tap)
Dennis (Ballroom)

Top 10 Females
Alexandra Crenian
Geisha Chin
Danielle Gardner
Jenny Dailey
Breanne Wasylenko
Kirsten Wicklund
Natalie Heath
Chloe Peers
Amanda Cleghorn
Yana (Ballroom)

August 22, 2010 I Written By

SYTYCDC 3 – Stand Outs & BG Info – Vancouver

Vancouver! I’ve been there last year and I couldn’t agree more with the dancer who said that it’s best place for inspiration. The distinct scenery is absolutely breathtaking mixed with its rapidly growing urban environment. Let’s not waste any time and just jump into the stand-out auditions/dancers from the West Coast!

Kirsten Wicklund, 19, Vancouver: Amazing lines and technique. What stood out to me was her effortless grace and sensuality. Her moves are very feminine but can be explosive and strong when needed. She has great control. I believe she is Top 20 material.

Juliana Semenova, 19, Vancouver: She exudes sex appeal. Her technique is not bad, but can be more refined and stronger. She can impress with burlesque on the show too, which I’m sure a lot of (heterosexual) male viewers would be interested in. I think she has a better chance at making the Top 20 than her friend Daniela Dib. Unfortunately, I don’t think she will make it all the way.

Jeff Mortensen, 21, Edmonton AB: How amazing is he?! His audition was so breathtaking and exciting to watch. This is the only audition in Vancouver that actually gave me shivers! Jean-Marc commented on his potential being “endless”, and I couldn’t agree more! His amazing technique, flexibility, and control will take him far. He exudes athlete, dancer, and ultimately, performer. Top 20 material. He almost made it last year, but I feel like this year will be his lucky year.

Jonathan Arsenault, 25, Kitchener ON: I saw potential in him last season and I thought he was almost a sure in to make the Top 20. I believe he was cut right before? But I hope (do see) that this year will be his lucky year too. I’m so glad his health is much better too (the judges seem to be quite fond of this improvement)! This is Jon’s attempt at doing Hip Hop (I’m not sure if he was serious about this – it’s not that good TBH! But it’s funny and he’s charismatic):

“Spandy Andy” Rimer, 22, Red Deer AB: He definitely has improved! I actually see some star potential in him. He’s got great showmanship, as the judges noted, and I think if he had trained at an earlier age, he might have a chance at this competition. He should take this more seriously, but for now, it’s great to have him around. His “relationship” with Blake on the show is priceless! TBH, I think he would be a good candidate for break dancing!

Chelsea Hilbert, 21, Victoria: I had NO idea what her style was in the beginning. Hip Hop? …Jazz? Jazz Funk? I think she would be great for voguing (she’s got the look too). But other than that, this might sound a bit cruel, I think she only made it to the choreography round do to her story…Her moves could be a tad more energetic and sharper. I believe with much more training, she could improve. She does have good lines though. She needs to build her Jazz and Ballet vocabulary a lot more.

Sasha Kovac, 25, North Battleford SK: I haven’t ever really seen anybody quite like him, nor any dancer with his looks. I’ve been trying to do some research/background info on him but I actually can’t seem to find anything! WHO IS THIS MYSTERY MAN?! He’s very energetic but he needs to work on his control more. He seems like he could bring a lot of personality to the show too. I would actually LOVE to see him in the Top 20, to see him grow. And also to find out more about his background…

A general comment about Blake McGrath’s choreography to Meet Me Halfway by the Black Eyed Peas: IT’S INTENSE. How much harder can it get?! Don’t answer that – I’m scared now. Unfortunately, I missed the Montreal auditions on TV, so I won’t be able to post about that yet. I am planning to do a round up of all the contestants I believe will be a part of the Top 20 after Finals – which I believe airs tonight? This is an incredibly busy week! See you all next time (tomorrow?)!

August 19, 2010 I Written By

SYTYCDC 3 – Stand Outs and BG Info from Calgary/Halifax Auditions

It surely looks like an incredibly busy week! I am back with more (significant) background information that viewers should know about the stand out dancers from the Calgary & Halifax auditions. Somebody mentioned to me before (I forgot who) that it is so much better if we knew more about the dancers, individually beforehand, so that we have a clearer understanding of why they dance the way they dance, how much training they actually have, and ultimately, who we should vote for. I couldn’t agree more.

CALGARY AUDITIONS

Jo Roy 18 Edmonton > Amazing blend of styles. She has this uniqueness about her that really makes her stand out. Love her technique and she has undeniable talent. I would like to see her krump it out!

Kevin Howe 21 Ottawa, ON > Auditioned in Season 1 but cut in Ballroom round during Finals. He is obviously a competition dancer and is very technically trained. He seems to be quite popular in the dance world (Canadian one, at least) already.

Jera Wolfe 19 NS > SO AMAZING. My new favourite already. 😀 Has an amazing repetoire of styles to dance from. He blends styles almost effortlessly. I believe he will be a sure in for the Top 20. He is auditioning with one of his own pieces in the video below (in which he looks like an amazing dancing vampire HAHA):

Julia Harnett 25 Calgary > Auditioned with partner Rufino Rodriguez (23). Her ethnicity is already of interest to me. She is trained in ballet AND ballroom – she will definitely be a force to  be reckoned with, if she makes the Top 20, in which I believe she will.

HALIFAX AUDITIONS (“Haligonians” … Teehee!)

Yuliya Zavadska & Sharone Lewit ? Vaughan ON > Love that they’re showing how multicultural and welcoming Canada is. I don’t live far from Vaughan at all, but I’ve never heard of this duo. The Internet has a lot of search results for Yuliya though. She seems to be very good. Top 20 material, if they wanted a ballroom girl.

Alexandra Crenian ? Mississauga ON > Now, her audition wasn’t shown, but she was briefly shown during the “shaking/nervous” scene and also when they showed who made it to the Finals. She is Miles Faber (SYTYCDC 1)’s girlfriend. I’m not kidding. She’s a gorgeous and talented one. I briefly ‘met’ her at the iDance 2010 convention in Mississauga and she says she teaches in Mississauga most of the time. She was Miles’ assistant and this girl is amazing at hip-hop. I think she will be a part of the Top 20, TBH!

Curtis Jean 21 Halifax > At first, I thought he was a bit underrated. Yes, not overrated. And then I realized his moves were quite sloppy and he acted as if he was superior to everyone else. And then he had some  muscle spasms and pain. And then he quit. And then I was like – okay no more love for this guy. Sorry!

SO THERE WE HAVE IT! Calgary & Halifax auditions! I think they cut out the Saint John auditions this year? Correct me if I’m wrong. I actually missed the Vancouver auditions tonight believing they would air at 9PM, but in reality, they aired at 8PM. Poo. See you all next time! Enjoy!

August 17, 2010 I Written By

SYTYCDC 3 – Judges, Background Info, and More! – Toronto Auditions

Hey everyone! We’re FINALLY back fueled by an exciting, brand spanking new premiere of So You Think You Can Dance Canada – Season 3! This season promises to be even more amazing than ever before – that seems to be tough to fathom at the moment, but Canada hardly ever fails to rise to the occasion! Today, I will be introducing the judges to all of our new (and returning) viewers.

Judges

Jean-Marc Généreux: Executive producer, and permanent judge. Ballroom champion (in the 80s, retired in 1998) with partner and wife France Mousseau. Has two children (Jean-Francis & Francesca). Choreographer on American version of SYTYCD. Appeared in Dance With Me (1998) & Shall We Dance (2004). Recently appeared on an episode of Degrassi: The Next Generation (2010).

Tré Armstrong: Permanent judge. Noted for her choreography, dance, and acting. Appeared on Canadian Idol, BET (Black Entertainment Television)’s 106 & Park, and MTV’s Video Music Awards, just to name a few. Has worked internationally. Featured in critically-acclaimed documentary “Breakin’ In: The Making of a Hip Hop Dancer”.

Luther Brown: Permanent judge. Born in Kingston, Jamaica. Recognized by him wearing his shades most of the time. 😀 Renowned Canadian choreographer and a star in the Toronto dance community. Founder of Do Dat Entertainment and co-owner of OIP Dance Centre in Toronto. Has own music record label, “Apathamusic”.

Audition Stand-Outs & Background Info About Them

This is when I review some of my favourites, some stand outs, and then talk about their background information not discussed on the show. Before I begin, I just want to make it clear that some of these dancers are competition-styled dancers and have trained in more than their own genre of dance, have many more connections in the dance world than others, and are usually more versatile.

Shavar “Caution” Blackwood, 24, Toronto: Brother of Leon Blackwood (who auditioned before, I think, and teaches at OIP Dance Centre). He teaches at City Dance Corps in Toronto. Loved that he did a more fluid style of hip hop, and took ballet lessons with his friend Rodrigo to strengthen his foundation. I predict that he will make it to the Top 20.

Kirstie Keenan, 18, Bolton: Mother is diagnosed with lupus and grandmother recently passed away. Her dancing is inspirational. I find her movement and the way she carries herself quite masculine. 2nd place Top Mark Soloist for Dancefest Canada 2009. I predict that she will make it to the Top 40?

Charlene Hart, 22: Great blend of styles in her audition. Luther Brown said that she looks like she works on a cruise ship. HOW DOES ONESELF KNOW THAT?!

Jesse Weafer, 24, Aurora: Very technically trained dancer. Great energy, musicality, and portrays emotion well. I love that he used a Florence + The Machine song. 🙂 He is one of my favourites so far, and he is just SO So You Think You Can Dance. He played “IQ” in Hairspray. Went to Unionville High School (Markham, ON) where he did the Arts York program (very prestigious high school and program). You can watch some of his dance videos from a while back on his YouTube channel: http://www.youtube.com/user/jweafer21 Watch the video to see what he thought about his role in Hairspray:

Jennifer Abbey, 23, Etobicoke (listed as Toronto): Love this girl SFM! Reminds me of Comfort Fedoke. Great image and charisma. Used to be in a girl group called Cookie Couture.

Andrew “Pyro” Chung: I think he was a tad overrated, to be completely honest. It seems that there is a lot of comparison between him and the other Asian b-boy who made it straight to the Finals (Christian “Cee”). I don’t think he should’ve made it straight to the Finals – but he does have skill and technique. (EDIT: I just realized I actually know who this guy is. He teaches at VybE Dance Studio and I actually see him all the time! Don’t kill me.)

Adam Sergison, 21?, Toronto: His audition clip was briefly shown, but he is a stand out to me because I know him! We used to go to the same studio (but not at the same time). He has taught me classes before. Has previously auditioned in Season 1 but did not make it to the Top 20. Casted in Camp Rock and We Will Rock You musical. Great technique.

Lineen Doung (pronounced Linen, like the fabric), 24, Toronto: His audition clip wasn’t even shown, but I caught glimpses of him, and they said his name as part of the dancers who made it to the Blake Boot Camp round! I know Lineen as well. I just took a class from him less than a week ago. He teaches regularly at Gotta Dance Studio and sometimes at OIP Dance Centre as well. He is a recent graduate from McMaster University, where he double majored in Physics and Finance/Economics. His YouTube channel: http://www.youtube.com/user/BLaZeX20

THIS SEASON IS EXCITING ALREADY! I can’t wait for some more auditions and familiar faces! 🙂

August 16, 2010 I Written By

SYTYCD Canada Final 4 Commentary

Thousands applied. 200 were invited to Toronto. 20 made it on to the show. 8 grueling weeks of choreography, superb dancing, and a nation wide of votes. 4 contestants remain vying to become Canada’s newest Favourite Dancer. In only 1 week, we will be finding out who the grand winner will be…Who will it be? Will it be…

Vincent Desjardins

Vincent, 20, is a Ballroom dancer hailing from the small city of Trois-Rivières, QC. His charismatic personality and seemingly permanent smile have definitely dazzled the audience. Not to boast, but his slick moves and effortless “spring” legs have just guided him to the Final 4. With a rocky start in the beginning, Vincent suffered in the bottom 3 couples 3 weeks prior to the announcement of the Top 10. Although I am sure he was very nervous, he delivered week after week. He has truly shown that he is willing to learn, has a competitive side, and is not about to step down. He mentions that if it was not for his sister, he would never have thought twice about joining the world of dance. Look at where he is now! Vincent has grown on me so much, and especially after seeing him live in a recent taping. I believe that whatever he does, and wherever he goes, he will be a star to be reckoned with.
Cons: His solos seem to be a little repetitive. Also, seeing that he is a Ballroom dancer after all, he would feel most comfortable dancing with a partner. How will he cope with a solo career?

Everett Smith

Everett, 25, is from Glen Morris, ON, and is the only Tap dancer to have ever made it onto the So You Think You Can Dance Canada Top 20. With a poor and troubling past, Everett uses his perseverance and mixes it with his passion for dance, and puts on quite a show! His feet seem to be automatic when he does his own thing. To me, he has improved the most. With Ballroom as the style he has done for so many consecutive weeks in the beginning of the competition, he rocked them all, proving that he will be a keeper. Everett shows no signs of backing down and I am sure all the ladies love him! Can he show Canada that as a Tap dancer, he deserves to be Canada’s first Tap dancing winner? We will just have to wait and see.
Cons: To me, I feel like his personality does not come across as too memorable or charming. Honestly, I have never thought of him making the Top 10, let alone Top 4! He is a surprise.

Tara-Jean Popowich

Tara-Jean, 20, hails from Lethbridge, Alberta. As the sole Albertan left in the competition, can she win over a province of votes, and possibly more? Tara-Jean is one of the best Contemporary dancers on the show with her technique, versatility of Contemporary dancing, and ability to portray a character. Whether it be Ballroom, Krump, or House, she always goes above and beyond expectations and constantly shows Canada why she made it in the Top 20 in the first place. Her bubbly personality and girl-next-door looks seem to be working to her advantage. She seems to be able to do anything! I have never seen her as part of the Top 4, but I am sure she will rock the finale and do a kickass solo as well. Currently, I think she will be the winner…and if not, at least the runner-up!
Cons: Her look and genre is a bit common in the industry. However, I am sure her versatility will carry her far. (Personally, I also happen to like Jayme Rae a lot more and I never really liked TJ. :P)

Jayme Rae Dailey

Jayme, 21, is a Contemporary dancer from Montréal, QC. She boasts some of the most intriguing and powerful solos I have seen from a Contemporary dancer. She also outshone her twin sister which is hard to do as they are both amongst the same level. Jayme Rae is definitely a force to be reckoned with. Week after week, she seems to be able to do anything. Her dancing is captivating, new, and inspiring. I feel like these are the most necessary qualities in a performer. Jayme Rae certainly answers the question as to who my favourite female dancer has been through out the entire competition. I have high hopes for her and I will be devastated if she does not take home the title. She deserves it, Canada! Vive le Canada!
Cons: She has ended up in the bottom 2 times in a row. I believe this is just caused by a few haters out there who may be jealous! 😛 Jayme Rae, to me, is the strongest dancer remaining.

No matter who wins, I just have to say, this has been a season worth producing and watching. The Top 20 was extremely hard to narrow down to already, and now we are left with 4, after a very tearful elimination of Emanuel and Melanie (who both obviously did NOT deserve to go home…but again, none of them did!). This will be SYTYCD Canada’s hardest decision yet. With the Top 4 finale performances less than a week away, be ready to be blown away, and of course…to VOTE VOTE VOTE!

October 15, 2009 I Written By

Attending a Live Taping of SYTYCD Canada!

Hey guys! I JUST got back after a great mission venturing down to Showline, Harbourside Studios, Toronto, ON, where they filmed So You Think You Can Dance Canada Season 2. I attended the most recent performance episode taping, for the Top 6 remaining dancers (Everett, Vincent, Emanuel, Jayme Rae, Melanie, & Tara-Jean). Let me just start by saying – this is an experience that I will never forget! It was definitely memorable and something I’m thankful for on this lovely Thanksgiving day! Happy Thanksgiving everybody!

I posted up some photos on my Facebook, I’ll give you a link to the album: CLICK! These are just photos I got to take with the Top 6 after the show. I have SO much to talk about, but it is past midnight right now and my writing skills are obviously worse than ever before, but I will try my best! Here goes…

The day started getting off at Pape Station, in Toronto, at around 3 30PM. We reached 915 Lake Shore Boulevard East (kind of hard to find but we managed with some luck) at around 3 50. The line up was relatively long but we were already moving as soon as we got there (we as in my friend, Joyce, and I — Hi Joyce! :P) We were then checked for any cameras, sharp objects, or dangerous objects that could pose a threat. Heading to the Will Call Desk, I started to get quite anxious.

We signed in and met up with some others and got into Studio 7K, where the audience was held before the taping started. In the room, there was a corner full of chairs and two TV’s where they aired none other than SYTYCDC 2! In that corner, we witnessed previously designed posters for the contestants on the show and there was also a “poster making station” underneath all the posters, where children and their parents crowded around. To the side, there was the Joe Fresh wall where audiences members could show off their own moves. On TV, we are to see this before a commercial break, however, this was all filmed before anything else, as they gathered a group of courageous people to the corner to dance. They got some soloists to come out and do their thing, and then people ended up getting into a conga line. Off to the other corner, was the coat check. Everybody was required to check in ALL their belongings, including coats, purses, bags, drinks, cell phones, and of course cameras. The volunteers (paid or not, I was not too sure) were quite friendly and helpful. All in all, I felt like the entire thing made the audience their priority which was extraordinary for me, because tickets to the taping are FREE! Yes, did you know that?! 🙂

We had to wait for another 30 – 40 minutes because of all the dress rehearsals they had to run through and because of that, we were a tad behind schedule. When it was finally 6PM or so, everybody rushed to line up where we all were to proceed single file to fill the taping studio! To my surprise, my first reaction was that it seemed much smaller than I had anticipated! TV magic! The lights did not seem to be over shining or too annoying. The sound was actually not as loud as I had expected (I thought it was going to be like a rock concert, but I was…obviously off). Unfortunately, we did not get to stand at the front, but we were in the Moshpit/Standing area in the middle. Fair enough. Behind us were actually seats and people who had “yellow tickets” had assigned seating. Now, I am not sure as to where these people got these special tickets from and whether or not they had to buy them, but some of them seemed like VIPs. Melanie Mah’s boyfriend was there, that I know! The whole studio, seemed like an IMAX theatre, in a way! There was a starry covering of the ceiling made up of LED lights. There were the arches in the background, which, to my surprise again, were separated and not stuck together as one big piece. Off to the sides were the walls with the screens on them. Then, above the walls was the runway which connected the towers. People stood on the runways and the dancers and Leah Miller (who was constantly referred to as Leah Miller-Green…much more about Leah on the way…) stood at the towers where they delivered their lines or smiled for the camera. On the left runways, we saw a group of ladies who each had a letter that spelled out E-V-E-R-E-T-T, obviously rooting for Melanie. I mean Everett. Off to the side a little, were Austin Di Iulio and Cody Bonnell!!! I was so ecstatic to see them and I just wanted to meet them. However, they were too far away and I could not catch them in the audience holding room (studio 7K) afterwards neither!

What was interesting was the personnel. I must start off with the lighting mechanics. They were up on top of the lighting sets near the ceiling the whole way through! They got up with a roped ladder and it seemed like a job I never wanted to do, ever, in my whole life. There was also a very talkative, energetic, and somewhat flamboyant-seeming “time-filler guy” who worked with the stage manager, named Josh. Josh was such a personality. He mentioned that he went to med school but now he is in broadcasting. I love him! He was hilarious. He would invite people up to the stage to dance (like Jayme Rae’s younger brother Jordan, who may be on the show in a few seasons, and his friends Mike and Jonathan [I believe those were the names];Jordan and Mike do hip hop, Jonathan does contemporary). Whomever danced (or made a fool out of themselves) got to earn themselves a t-shirt and what Josh called “gold stars”! He would also pick out individuals from the crowd who laughed at him. What a guy he was! The stage manager lady’s funniest moment was when she mentioned Jean-Marc Genereux touched her unexpectedly! The whole crowd was laughing. She held her own with leadership and making the audience a priority also. They really drilled it to us to have energy by reinforcing positivity. Also, they would allow us to sit every once in a while between dances or “hiccups” (cleaning up the stage ridding of props) so that the judges and Leah could have their make-up and hair freshened up.

Now what was interesting was that the show was filmed in somewhat of a random order. The order and timing between each filming period was not consistent. We started off with the Top 3 girls’ Contemporary piece choreographer by Mia Michaels. I am to keep things confidential so that’s about all the detail I can give you about the dance and I do not think I can tell you about the judges’ comments? All I can say is that sometimes they had to film the comments (one of two lines) twice for grammatical errors or random hiccups. We were then told to film something at the tower which took long because of technical difficulties. Afterwards, we applauded for the packages and sponsors. We were filmed some audience shots all in one take. What else was interesting is that the signs people made, were not the signs the same people held later, as they were collected, and then distributed randomly. So we filmed that with much enthusiasm! I was happy to know that the dances themselves were not filmed in segments and that it was all one take. I thought they were going to edit the dance and pick the best edits to combine into one in order to show on TV. This was not the case as they had about 10 cameras for many angles, but they all filmed at once. After a couple of Top 6 performances and solos and the filming of their “TO VOTE FOR MELANIE, DIAL #”, they filmed the opening sequence where Leah would introduce the dancers remaining (always starting with Tara-Jean, I still wonder why). I am not sure what else I can tell you, but here are the groupings: Tara-Jean was partnered with Vincent again because she had partnered with everyone else before, Melanie with Everett (who were amazing!), and last but not least, Jayme Rae with Emanuel (who were also stars that night!)

They filmed the judges coming out separately and in the middle of the whole experience. It was quite odd because they had to act as if they had just come out when they had already seen about 2-3 dances. The two guest judges were Rex Harrington (who was HILARIOUS and FABULOUS as always), and Mary Murphy (who managed to put in a couple of screams here and there!) Their comments were actually shorter than I thought (not 10 minutes in length each). Tre was actually less arrogant and prissy than I thought she would’ve been! Her hair was also very nice! Oh, and I was delighted to know that the choreographers were actually present and quite close to where I was standing when they are shown and acknowledged after every dance.

Let’s talk about Mrs. Leah Miller-Green! Our lovely host seems to have such a difficult job, especially with 32 million people watching her right? I’d love to be in her place. One, her wardrobe is always extravagant and she always wears flashy 6-inch heels to accentuate her actual height. Two, she seemed quite lost and almost drunk to me. Three, she specifically told the audience that she did not have much to do. And finally, she reads directly from a teleprompter. I do not think she memorizes any scripts at all. She seems to get placed on stage and her sole duty is just to look good standing on stage, hugging the contestants, and assuring that she reads with her twitchy head movements and fake high-pitched voice, with lines delivered from a teleprompter. What’s worse is that she sometimes has to do her lines over again! How hard can it be…? I also believe she happened to tell the audience that if we were hungry or thirsty, we could just call her, and she would give us water or food, and especially her own fruits! Now, if she was joking or not, I was not sure, but I’m going to stop criticising her because I do not know how much goes on behind THE “behind the scenes”!

I’d have to say that seeing things live for yourselves is different than seeing the “same” thing on TV. When it comes to dancing, it is different. You get different perspectives, and skewed ones at that too. My favourite male dancer is now Vincent, by far. Everett has a great personality (he is not boring, sorry about that!), and I can totally see him in the finale with Vincent. Vincent has such a charm and natural talent to him. When he dances, you cannot keep your eyes off of him. I also feel like he’s so relate-able and I am sure everybody would love to dance with him! As for Emanuel, he is hilarious (and he has great abs), but I don’t think he will go any further. As for the girls, it is such a tough decision. I truly want Jayme Rae and Melanie to be in the finale (and I think it will be between them two). My perceptions for the girls did not change much, but my respect for Tara-Jean did increase just a tad. She seems very friendly and also has great technique.

Finally, after the show we were told that we could line up for an autograph session with the Top 6. Obviously I rushed there after receiving my cell phone (with a camera) and everything else back from the coat check. We were given free Aquafina+ water, yay! Blackberry grape tastes strange, euk. Yeah. We also received free 8.5×11″ posters of SYTYCDC 6 Top 6. Vincent signed mine first and he seemed happy after I said “Bonjour!” to him. We took a photo together even though the volunteers told us it was “not encouraged”. Next up was Tara-Jean with her jazzy hat. Then, we got up to Everett, who has nice eyes. Ha! We then scooted over to Melanie who told me she RECOGNIZED ME in the audience (“who else could that Asian kid be?!”) and from her studio! The best part was that she told me I was a good dancer. I was thrilled, truly! We took a photo together and moved on to Emanuel after wishing her the best of luck. Emanuel said something funny, I don’t quite remember what. He has a nice signature (and abs – ha!) Last was Jayme Rae, who spoke French to an elderly woman (possibly her grandmother?) She seemed nice too but she did not say much, only asking us how the show went. After all that, we were just so ecstatic and wanted to fly home after a great, great night. My friend did some goofy things that I shall not speak of. You know what Joyce! 😉 By the time we got home, it was 12AM Thanksgiving Monday.

Now it is almost 2AM, and I must leave everything at that. Today was one of the best days this year, to be honest. I am thankful for this and just for all those who have supported me in my endeavours (including this blog). Most importantly, I am thankful for my family and friends. Without them, I would never have lived to see this day! I am stripped of all my vigour so I must recharge now. I cannot think of anything else that is probably of much importance right now, but I hope this post enlightened viewers in some way. Until next time, goodnight and I hope you all enjoyed a Happy Thanksgiving Day too!

October 11, 2009 I Written By

SYTYCDC 2 Top 8 Results Commentary

Wow! It seems like I have not posted since the last Ice Age. I hope we’re all doing very well. I have been so caught up (and fed up) with all the work that’s going into the last year of high school so that I can get my butt off to a good university, and just seriously ignite my life!

To start, I have to say that I am utterly gutted by who the eliminees were tonight. Cody & Kim were my favourite hip hop dancers ever on the show.

I believe that Kim should not have went home (for one – this is her first time in the bottom 2 anyway). It seemed so premature, although I know the competition is actually coming to a very quick finish in a mere matter of weeks. Kim definitely became my favourite dancer of the competition every since the Top 14 or so. Almost always begging for more, I never wanted to see her leave; I wanted to see her take the title. Her sexiness and hip hop skill almost seemed like it came effortless. To start, when it comes to professional female hip hop dancers, we are all very stunned and entertained due to the lack or low publicity of them. I insist like she is definitely one of the best. Kim shone through for me especially after she did the memorable Contemporary routine with Emanuel and the sepia lighting, choreographed by Stacey Tookey. Her individuality and fluidity in the piece was one of the best that night. Next, she stood out for me again when she was given the lead part in the Top 12 Hip-Hop group number choreographed by Luther Brown. Every performance after that, I watched my admiration grow for her more and more, until it surpassed Melanie’s! I was quite surprised as I almost felt guilty that I was not rooting for Melanie the most! I am happy to see her still in the running though! I knew she was going to go far for sure.

Cody was always a popular one. His natural charm came from his smooth moves and boy-next-door looks. Personally, his hip hop style actually seems easier to do for me, although it requires you to be exceptional at filling in the whole count and all the music (you probably have no idea what I’m talking about…hip hop dancers – do you understand? xD). I knew he was going to be eliminated very soon as he has been in the bottom for many consecutive weeks recently. I was surprised to see Vincent and Everett making it this far. To me, I still do not see anything that special about Everett, at least more than what I see unique about Cody.

All in all, I think tonight was a very emotional and shocking elimination. I would have to say that neither of these two deserved to go home tonight, and to be even more critical, I would never have had Melanie, Kim, Cody, and Everett in the bottom four tonight. For me, the Top 6 is seriously a tad disappointing. If the decision was up to me, Vincent and Tara-Jean should have been eliminated. It is definitely NOT an easy choice as all of the dancers are quite unique and amazing in whatever they do. Vincent & Tara-Jean have both actually improved a lot more than some other dancers (as the others just seem to have a more natural ability about them to either catch on new styles, or that they basically know the style already). Why do I not want them here anymore? Vincent has just been in the bottom so many times before and I feel like his solos are so repetitive. His personality is sweet but I just don’t see him as “Canada’s Favourite Dancer”. I don’t think he has a chance of winning, in my opinion. Tara-Jean, compared to the other girls in the competition is one of the weaker. I also don’t see the “it-factor” and the star quality that comes from her. She is a little bland sometimes. That is just my honest, blunt opinion!

Canadians showed immense amounts of talent and originality this season. We definitely showed our “buc” and wild sides. Hopefully, in the future, we can expect even more from our Top 6. Let’s make the Top 4 finale the best that the series has ever had – so PLEASE…vote (for Melanie)! 😛

Finally, I’d just like to point out, if you haven’t noticed yet, YouTube has taken down ALL of the SYTYCDC videos and performances due to copyright reasons. You can still catch the episodes, however, by adding the person who uploaded all of the videos, on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=1062553854&ref=ts. His name is Clarence Barber; He also uploads SYTYCD Season 6 videos.

October 7, 2009 I Written By

Rhythm Dance 2009: Melanie Mah Dances to "Werewolf"

I was looking through some YouTube videos trying to see if I could fish out any dance videos on the SYTYCDC 2 contestants. I came across Melanie Mah in her Rhythm Dance 2009 competition dancing to “Werewolf” by Cocorosie. Her accents are so strong but when she doesn’t, she is so fluent with her movement. Her arms trace the aura of talent around her! 😛 Also, I was delighted to find out that my Contemporary dance teacher is Victoria M., who was a finalist on SYTYCDC 2. She was eliminated during the ballroom round, I believe. She is definitely amazing (as seen in the second video below), and is so nice!

Melanie Mah

I also believe she used some of the choreography in this video (noticeably at 2:07 – 2:13) for her audition routine to Santigold’s “You’ll Find a Way (Remix)”.

Victoria Marshman, 3-4 years ago

September 22, 2009 I Written By

SYTYCDC 2 Top 16 Performance Music Review

Hi guys. This is a new segment devoted to the music used on the show. I know we’ve posted up the song titles but we haven’t really got in depth as to how the music contributes (or not) to the choreography and how important the music is to So You Think You Can Dance Canada. I am going to go one-by-one through each of the routines and comment on the music used. This is for all you huge music lovers out there. 🙂

Kim & Emanuel – Jazz
Ciara ft. Justin Timberlake – Love, Sex, & Magic Ciara - Love Sex Magic (feat. Justin Timberlake) - Single - Love Sex Magic
Wow! Let me just start by saying – what an exhilarating piece. Blake was right when he said it was going to be sexy and hard-hitting. I felt the boom’s and the ka’s and the sha’s – they were all hit in the right place. I love that Blake actually incorporated magic into the number. Since the song’s debut, it has been a song used in dances related to sexiness and just showing off what you got. It has got a nice, steady jazzy beat, perfect for the dance style. Also, the lyrics are quite simple – they are enough to show what the song is talking about – and it isn’t that hard to figure out. My favourite part was when Emanuel had to lick Kim’s boots when the song was actually talking about boots! It surely got the crowd going – perfect for an opening number. Ciara herself is a great performer. I loved that they used this song for a jazz routine but I can also see it used as a hip hop routine, as Ciara is an R&B singer.

Amy & Vincent – Hip Hop
Black Eyed Peas – Boom Boom Pow Black Eyed Peas - The E.N.D. (The Energy Never Dies) - Boom Boom Pow
Personally, I am not a huge fan of BEP’s newest album, The E.N.D. Their older songs like “Where Is The Love?”, “Don’t Phunk With My Heart”, & “Dum Diddley” were used greatly on past SYTYCD America seasons. The BEP seem to be a big hit with SYTYCD. However, their new songs have a good beat but I don’t think they are as developed and mature as I’ve seen their music in the past. Now it all seems to be about making singles or “great” tracks with great beats. If you turn off the music and just watch them two dance, the whole thing seems a bit mediocre, and a little childish. Amy also seems to be hitting the moves harder than Vincent, but still not as hard as I’d like them to hit it. The music really helps a lot.

Corynne & Austin – Contemporary
The Fray – Never Say Never The Fray - The Fray - Never Say Never
I am going to be a little biased here because I absolutely LOVE this song and The Fray. I do feel like this is the perfect song to be used for the piece. It always gets me during the “Don’t let me go, don’t let me go…” chorus because the repetition and emphasis is just so powerful – especially when the story of the piece actually relates to the lyrics. I must say – it somewhat disappointed me. There did not seem to be enough synchronization, fluidity and chemistry that I’d like to have seen. Corynne’s expression also seemed very forced and fake. The song calls for a mellow and desperate mood, but due to the dancers’ expressions and the choreography, I don’t think the song’s melody and tempo was used to it’s full potential. However, it was still very good.

Melanie & Cody – Mambo
Michi Sarmiento – Suena Ahora Michi Sarmiento - Salsa Latin Party, Vol. 1 - Suena Ahora
This was a good song to use for the beach setting. However, I don’t think it had enough energy to carry off the repetitive and very juvenile choreography that was set for the two. Quite frankly, I thought this was the weakest of the performances that night, as much as I LOVE this duo. For the music, I would’ve used something funkier and something with more personality. “Jungle Drum” by Emiliana Torrini seems like a good song. It may not be your typical mambo music but it does have some tropical feel to it.

TJ & Everett – Quickstep
Hot Rolls Ragtime Band – Chicago Overture
Why have they been given 3 ballroom dances in a row?! I am surprised that they haven’t been in the bottom 3 couples yet! I have a feeling that Tara-Jean will go far, but that’s beside the point. Anyway, I was surprised when they said the song was originally used for a certain brutal violent time that happened in Chicago in the past? The song was just so uplifting. The repeated Charleston’s that they did actually fit the trumpets in the song. Not a huge fan, but it fit well, I guess.

Jayme Rae & Daniel – Hip Hop
Ciara – Pucker Up Ciara - Fantasy Ride (Deluxe Version) - Pucker Up
I don’t know this song very well but I feel like the choreography was pretty funky, just like the song. I actually would’ve preferred “Sweet Dreams” by Beyoncé in one of their hip hop dances. Sweet Dreams just has such a catchy upbeat rhythm and intense vocals. It drives your soul, literally. This was danced and choreography actually more fluid than I would’ve preferred it. Using Sweet Dreams would’ve fit it more, and the tempo and beat also seems to fit too.

Jenna Lynn & Nicolas – Hustle
Jamiroquai – Canned Heat Jamiroquai - Center Stage - Canned Heat
When I imagined a one last dance for the end of the world, this is actually a song I would love to dance to. It fit the style and it fit the mood. More importantly, the choreography fit well with the song altogether. One of the songs that was better used.

Natalie & Danny – Rhumba
Perez Prado – Historia de un Amor Perez Prado Orchestra - King of Mambo - Historia de un Amor
You lost me here. Was I supposed to believe that they were in love since the song is called “History of a Loved One”? It seemed like two nervous dancers forced to dance the rhumba to me! It was not passionate and it seemed like Danny wanted to eat Natalie. Anyway, enough with the dancers themselves. If this was supposed to be a dance of love and that rhumba is considered the “ballet of ballroom”, should it not be more technical, precise, elegant, and slower? I am not a huge expert on rhumba, but this to me looked so much better and had much better music than the one they used.

From the time Natalie started doing her little wiggles on stage, I was wondering…corny. When they broke apart from each other back-to-back and the beat started coming in, it did not seem to follow the music at all. The song’s cymbals and horns were also just so annoying. 🙁

There’s my first ever take on the show’s music! What did you think of the music used?

September 11, 2009 I Written By

SYTYCDC 2 Top 16 Performance Videos

In case you missed it and have no idea what we’ve been yakking about, watch the Top 16 performance episode here:

Most favourite routine of the week: I couldn’t really decide this week! It wasn’t because they were bad, but none really stood out for me. If I truly had to pick, it would’ve been a three-way tie between Kim & Emanuel’s, Corynne & Austin’s, and the Hustle (unfortunately they were eliminated…why?!)
Least favourite routine of the week: Unfortunately, and surprisingly, I’m going to have to say Melanie & Cody’s. 🙁 Although I’m a huge fan of both, you have to admit, it was not just sloppy at times, but it looked awkward and juvenile through out the entire routine. I’m not going to say anymore! But thank goodness they’re both safe!
Most improved: Kim & Emanuel. I always used to think they were forgettable, but definitely not this week.
Couple to watch out for: Jayme Rae & Daniel. Jayme Rae is one of the best, if not THE best, female competitor in the Top 20. She is partnered with Daniel who can pretty much do everything also. To me, they are like Brandon & Janette of SYTYCD 5. I was not very fond of the pairing and them individually in the beginning, but as time went on, Brandon & Janette showed that they could rock ANY style and still have so much energy left and an uplifting smile that radiated across the stage. Jayme Rae & Daniel are similar. They are silent (somewhat) but surely deadly!
Style(s) I do not want to see more of: Contrary to styles I want to see, I do not want to see anymore Quicksteps, Foxtrots, and Jive routines…It seems like I don’t enjoy Standard International ballroom dance styles very much.
Least favourite dancer left: I’m sorry for being so negative this post, but they’ve got rid of too much good talent already. I do not understand why Everett is still there. I realize that he IS the only tap dancer part of the Top 20 but he just seems so bland. His dancing is often not memorable. To me, the only reason why he’s still there is because of Tara-Jean. 🙁

September 10, 2009 I Written By