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SYTYCD: Top 4 Thoughts

After a busy two days, I was finally able to get caught up with this weeks episode. I enjoyed Mia’s opening number but not my favorite of hers…I think my arms were tired from just watching them spin the fabric around their hands. The all-stars also return this week with a bit of requirement(well not really). All the participated in Monday’s episode, finished in the top 4 in their respective seasons. I was excited to see JaJa back, because if my memory is right, she is the only female hip hop dancer to make it to the top 4.

Also, it a few all-stars first time to choreograph for a live show, Jenna, Robert, and Comfort. I have to say enjoyed all of their dances and I hope we get to see them choreograph again for the show. If had to pick a favorite of the three, Robert’s piece that Marko and Hannahlie performed was my favorite.

Other Favorites

Jay Jay & Lauren: Mandy delivered a great jazz number, that was entertaining to watch. It reminded of the type of jazz dance that I am used to seeing.

Hannahlie & Darius: These two definitely were able to find a connection with each other quickly after losing their partner last week. It’s a good thing the did, because I don’t think that the Argentine Tango would have worked as well as it did.

Both group dances were good this week but the girls may have edged out to the guys for me but not by much.

The fan vote surprised this week in the top 4 reveal…in the sense that it wasn’t the top 2 guy and top 2 girls. Jensen, Hannahlie, Genessey, and Slavik are this seasons top 4. Sad to see Jay Jay and Darius go…I did’t not see that coming. I thought Jay Jay would have been in the top 4.

Next week will be the performance part of the finale and vote from this week and next week will determine the winner of this season.

August 29, 2018 I Written By

Dance is one of my biggest passions. I grew up dancing at Augusta West Dance Studio (the same studio that Kathryn McCormick). I have a BFA in theatre/dance from Valdosta State University. Tap is my favorite style of dance.

All Stars for The Next Generation

The Academy starts next week and the All Stars are introduced. Also, Maddie from Dance Moms is introduced as on of the judges. Each of the 100 dancers get a chance to audition for the All Stars. Each All Star has to pick five dancers to be on their team and mentor them throughout the week. Eventually, they have to narrow it down to one dancer that they will be dancing with during the entire competition. I’m sure the details will be a little clearer next week. Until then here are the All Stars for Season 13.

Joshua Allen: Winner of season 4. Happy to seem him back as an all-star. I’m sure many will ask why not Twitch and while I don’t know that answer but I think he will enjoy the time to spend with his family.

Comfort Fedoke: Another season 4 alum who I have enjoyed watching grow into an even better dancer.

Jonathan Platero: I’ll admit I had to look up to see what season he was on. He was on season 5 and was eliminated in the third week. Jonathan has choreographed for the show the last few seasons.

Kathryn McCormick: Season 6’s top finishing female dancer. Yes…she’s still my favorite.

Robert Roldan: Season 7, Robert is one of my favorite guys to compete on the show and I still get tears in my eyes whenever I watch “Medicine” the dance he did with Tucker in season 10.

Sasha Mallory: Season 8 runner-up. I want to say this is her first time being an all-star.

Fik-Shun Stegall: Season 10 co-champion with Amy. He has always been a fan favorite and I think he will work well with the younger dancers.

Jenna Johnson: Jenna was the Judge’s favorite of season 10. For whatever reason I couldn’t connect with her…until she dance with Mark. Now I love watching Jenna dance on DWTS as a troupe member.

Paul Karmiryan: While he placed 6th on season 10, he won the Armenian version of the show before competing in the States.

Gaby Diaz: The reigning champion on SYTYCD and the first tap dancer to win the show.

June 13, 2016 I Written By

Dance is one of my biggest passions. I grew up dancing at Augusta West Dance Studio (the same studio that Kathryn McCormick). I have a BFA in theatre/dance from Valdosta State University. Tap is my favorite style of dance.

SYTYCD scheduled airings changed due to the Olympics

UPDATE: Now that they had eliminated four contestants as opposed to two… below is an updated supposition of how the remainder of the schedule is going to pan out.

Well, we all knew it was too good to be true. When So You Think You Can Dance first released the airing schedule it seemed to be rather clear cut and steady, but then seem to have forgotten the monkey wrench in the situation: The Olympics.

Due to the Olympics airing on NBC for a little over two weeks (from 27 July to 12 August 2012), most of FOX’s programming will be going on temporary hiatus and be on repeats for that duration. According to BuddyTV.com the new scheduling will force the current season of So You Think You Can Dance from ending on Wednesday, September 5th and instead end on Tuesday, September 18th. Not only that, but the final two weeks would be on a Tuesday as opposed to the usual Wednesday spot from during the summer due to the overlap with X-Factor.

As of right now this is what the season is shaping up to be:
– Wednesday, May 24: Dallas / New York Auditions
– Wednesday, May 30: Los Angeles Auditions
– Wednesday, June 6: Atlanta Auditions
– Wednesday, June 13: Salt Lake City Auditions
– Wednesday, June 20: Las Vegas Callbacks
– Wednesday, June 27: Top 20 Revealed/Meet the Top 20 Performances (200th Episode)
– Wednesday, July 4: Preemption – July 4th Holiday
– Wednesday, July 11: First Performance Show (Top 20)
– Wednesday, July 18: Performance and First Results Show (Top 20)
– Wednesday, July 25: Top 18 16 Performance and Results
– Wednesday, August 1: Preemption – Olympics
– Wednesday, August 8: Preemption – Olympics
– Wednesday, August 15: Top 16 14 Performance and Results
– Wednesday, August 22: Top 14 12 Performance and Results
– Wednesday, August 29: Top 12 10 Performance and Results
– Wednesday, September 5: Top 10 8 Performance and Results
– Tuesday, September 11: Top 8 6 Performance and Results
– Tuesday, September 18: Finale

If this was planned better I would have suggested the following:
– Wednesday, May 24: Dallas / New York Auditions
– Wednesday, May 30: Los Angeles / Atlanta Auditions
– Wednesday, June 6: Salt Lake City Auditions
– Wednesday, June 13: Las Vegas Callbacks
– Wednesday, June 20: Top 20 Revealed/Top 20 First Performance Show (200th Episode)
– Wednesday, June 27: Top 20 Performance and First Results Show (Top 20)
– Wednesday, July 4: Preemption – July 4th Holiday
– Wednesday, July 11: Top 18 Performance and Results
– Wednesday, July 18: Top 16 Performance and Results
– Wednesday, July 25: Top 14 Performance and Results
– Wednesday, August 1: Preemption – Olympics
– Wednesday, August 8: Preemption – Olympics
– Wednesday, August 15: Top 12 Performance and Results
– Wednesday, August 22: Top 10 Performance and Results
– Wednesday, August 29: Top 8 Performance and Results
– Wednesday, September 5: Top 6 Performance and Results
– Tuesday, September 11: Top 4 Performance and Results
– Tuesday, September 18: Finale / Final Results Show
Sure I eliminated the “Meet the Top 20” performances and condensed the city auditions, but really a lot of people I know just want to get to Vegas Callbacks already because they find themselves getting bored with the city auditions. In this scenario we get a final results show with all the toots and whistles and favorite dancers and what not. What I also did was placed the breaks strategically so after the first two times the Top 20 dancers have danced they get a “break” to get their minds in the game.

Also the second break happens at a time where in previous seasons the dancers are expected to dance two dances as opposed to one as a couple so the additional break would get them that chance leading into the Top 12 performances and subsequent results. Anyway… I digress.

This is just another reason that I am worried in the longevity of SYTYCD beyond Season 9… but that’s just me and I’m the eternal pessimist.

July 23, 2012 I Written By

My life can be summed up in the following two quotes: 1) "I am married to engineering and am its faithful wife by day, but at night my wanderlust takes hold and the arts becomes my jealous paramour." and... 2) "Engineering is my safety net. Writing is my passion. Acting is my escape when the other two become too much." So where does dancing fit in? Pretty much anywhere at this point... =)

Season 9 Premiere of So You Think You Can Dance

Here we are! The Season 9 Premiere of So You Think You Can Dance. After a few seasons of the evolution of the show:
– Season 5: moving the So You Think You Can Dance stage to the Kodak Theatre
– Season 6: first (and only) Fall season of So You Think You Can Dance at the Kodak Theatre
– Season 7: reduction of the Top 20 to an Top 11 and introduction of the All-Stars
– Season 8: bringing back of the Top 20 and bringing in the All-Stars for the Top 10
As for Season 9 there is the elimination of the “Results Show” and the re-arranging of the “Performance Show” to include an elimination.

What is also “new” this season is the inclusion that as opposed to having just one winner of the season, there will be two winners: one male dancer and one female dancer. The reason I say “new” in quotes is simply because the producers of So You Think You Can Dance have given a cash award to not only the top male dancer in a season, but also to the top female dancer back in Season 4 where Joshua Allen won the season, but Katee Shean was the top female dancer and was given a cash award as well.

But enough of that… tonight (Thursday) brings us to the first auditions from Dallas and New York for a two-hour event. Then starting next week, the show will move to the regular spot of Wednesday nights with auditions continuing in Los Angeles (Wednesday, May 30), Atlanta (Wednesday, June 6) and Salt Lake City (Wednesday, June 13) all two-hour episodes.

The dancers that caught the judges’ interest during the individual city auditions will be brought back for the Las Vegas callback which would air on Wednesday, June 20. For the celebration of the 200th episode of So You Think You Can Dance, Season 9 will introduce the Top 20 finalists who will perform in their own specialties so that America can get to know more about them and their individual talents.

After a one-week break (due to the July 4th holiday) America would get a chance to watch the Top 20 finalists for the first time as they are paired up to perform together. After America votes in their choices for their favorite dances and the most at-risk couples will be asked to perform solo routines the following week. If a couple is split apart, the individual dancers will form a new couple.

Then taking on the changes from Season 7 and 8, once the Top 20 has been wittled down to a Top 10, the finalists will be paired up with a So You Think You Can Dance All-Star dancer from a variety of styles: ballroom, ballet, hip-hop, contemporary, jazz.

For those of you that got lost in all the writing above… here is a quick breakdown of what is going to happen in the summer:
– Thursday, May 24 (8:00-10:00 PM ET/PT): Dallas and New York Auditions
– Wednesday, May 30 (8:00-10:00 PM ET/PT): Los Angeles Auditions
– Wednesday, June 6 (8:00-10:00 PM ET/PT): Atlanta Auditions
– Wednesday, June 13 (8:00-10:00 PM ET/PT): Salt Lake City Auditions
– Wednesday, June 20 (8:00-10:00 PM ET/PT): Las Vegas Callbacks
– Wednesday, June 27 (8:00-10:00 PM ET/PT): Top 20 Revealed/Meet the Top 20 Performances (200th Episode)
– Wednesday, July 4: Preemption
– Wednesday, July 11 (8:00-10:00 PM ET/PT): First Performance Show
– Wednesday, July 18 (8:00-10:00 PM ET/PT): Performance and First Results Show

May 24, 2012 I Written By

My life can be summed up in the following two quotes: 1) "I am married to engineering and am its faithful wife by day, but at night my wanderlust takes hold and the arts becomes my jealous paramour." and... 2) "Engineering is my safety net. Writing is my passion. Acting is my escape when the other two become too much." So where does dancing fit in? Pretty much anywhere at this point... =)

Top 8 Performance Thoughts and Discussion

Even though I’m running late tonight, I wanted to be sure I posted this so you have a place for all your thoughts and any discussion that comes up during the episode. I’ll add my thoughts in later, when I get a chance, so for now, this is YOUR space!

UPDATE:
I’ve only seen half the show at this point, but I’ll go ahead and throw some of my thoughts out.

-I really loved Sasha’s quickstep with Pasha (“easy to remember!”).

-Wish I loved Caitlynn’s hip hop with Ivan. It was really cute, but not my favorite routine and that sucks cause I love her and love him and thought they were really cute together.

-Wonder what it was like with Allison and Ivan both backstage. 🙂

-Jordan is really not good at connecting with her partners. I think she had her best chemistry yet with Ade (Ade! How can you not have chemistry with Ade?! *I* had chemistry with Ade the two times I met him during on tour!), but she was still glamming for the camera. Just not digging it. I can see that she’s athletic and gorgeous and a talented dancer, but I’m getting sick of her getting raved about for being sexy since she’s sexy all on her own. I don’t know that she knows how to build chemistry with a partner at all.

-Melanie and Neil’s Mandy Moore was hands down my favorite of the night, one of my favorites of the season. I love all the components, so how could I not love it. Love Melanie, looooove Neil, love Mandy Moore. That leap! And Rob Marshall was right about her acting at the end. And I looooved that Cat asked if we wanted to see the move again and Melanie leaped into Neil’s arms back stage. I’ve never wanted to be backstage more in my life than when Cat said they were still smooching back there. Another SYTYCD cross-season couple, hmmm? (I’ve watched this routine like a dozen times now and I still want more!)

-I thought Rickey’s was one of the better jives we’ve seen on the shows and he was great with Anya. But I actually thought the quickstep was better, had more flare and life.

That’s as far as I’ve gotten at the moment! I haven’t been reading your comments till I can see the show, but please continue the conversation! Power Rankings will be delayed till tomorrow, but I can definitely give you a poll in the meantime. Maybe you’d like to give power rankings a go yourselves?

UPDATE:

-So I just watched Tadd’s heist routine with LoFro. It was really entertaining and I can totally see the MJ references. And I agree that I was really proud of Tadd for dealing with lost hat and the accidental face punch and keeping going. It was a lot of fun.

-I was really surprised and pleased with Jess’s performance with Lauren G. I thought it would be a disaster when I saw they were dancing together, but he really stepped up to her. There weren’t any lifts of course, but he matched her really well and I think he worked on having a connection with her and the intention of the piece. He didn’t overplay it, I agree.

-LOVED the Marko/Allison routine. He does really well when partnered with technical girls and I think Allison was the perfect match for him. She brought out a lot in him, but also they were must well-matched.

-This is a good time for me to say I’m generally liking Lady Gaga as a judge. Sometimes I think he reactions are a bit contrived, but I’m usually in agreement with them anyway, so that’s okay. And she’s being calmer and quieter than I expected and really respectful of the judges, which is really good.

-I hated the Jess/Jordan rhumba. Jordan’s pursed lips and “sexy” faces were pissing me off the whole time. I thought Jess did an alright jobs, though he occasionally had a crazy “sexy” face too. They had that one great lift, but I couldn’t help wishing it were different dancers. Agree with Nigel that there was no chemistry between them.

-Really loved Caitlynn and Tadd’s foxtrot. Rob Marshall was right to call it “sparkling.” They had the right attitude the whole way through and looked so classy and gorgeous the whole way through. It really made me miss the old stage, though. This big stage swallows up some routines, like this one.

-The Marko/Rickey hip hop was cute, but not as good as I would’ve liked. I have to agree that Marko carried it better than Rickey did unfortunately. Tabitha looked really worried when they cut to her and Napoleon right after the routine.

-Lady Gaga kinda dissed the props on both of Nappytabs’s routines. Anybody else notice that?

-I liked the Melanie/Sasha jazz, but I actually didn’t think it was as good as it could’ve been. I was THRILLED to see these two were dancing together and they’re pretty well matched, I think. My disconnect with the routine was more the music (blech) and the choreography – it felt kinda empty and unfulfilled. Whenever the girls made connection, it seemed kinda pointless. They could have actually done lifts, both of them, so I wanted that instead of the weird unnecessary assists. I don’t think it was the best choreography that Sonya’s done – I disagree. But then, I’m not a dancer or a choreographer. But I did agree that it reminded me of the “Two Princes” routine, which I liked. AND, I wouldn’t be surprised if the Final 2 came down to these girls

Here’s another poll:

July 27, 2011 I Written By

introducing the all-stars week 2

Happy Monday! Thought I’d put up some videos of our week 2 all-stars, since A. it’s fun to look back at some great routines and B. younger viewers of the show may not know about some of the all stars from seasons 2 and 3.

let’s go by season 🙂

season 2: IVAN
Ivan and Allison were the youngest pair in the top 20, and they definitely sometimes acted like it. But when they did “Why”, choreographed by Tyce in week 3, they suddenly grew up. A hip hop dancer, Ivan’s skills were definitely unusual and really really cool, but what I think held him in the competition so long (until top 6) was his personality, he just seems like someone who would be a blast to hang out with, and he’s a fabulous partner.

here’s his contemporary w/ Allison

hip hop w/ Allison (choreographed by Shane Sparks)

season 3: LAUREN GOTTLIEB, NEIL HASKELL, JAIMIE GOODWIN, ANYA GARNIS, PASHA KOVALEV

These 5 actually have a number of routines they did together, so I’m going to combine a few b/c they are some fun numbers. Pasha and Anya are just such spectacular ballroom dancers, and Pasha especially had a lot of success outside of his genre, part of the reason he and Lauren Gottlieb made it to top 6. Also, he’s just so darn hot!! 🙂

Anya/Pasha’s audition season 3

Pasha and Lacey’s hip hop-he just oozes personality and his hip hop was pretty darn good too!

Anya and Danny’s foxtrot

Neil, obviously, was an All-Star last year, and his charisma, incredible talent, partnering skills and just all-around All-American hotness definitely carried him to the top 4 during season 3. He was part of some of the best routines from last season so I’m quite excited he’s back.

Neil and Sabra’s ’80s power lunch (emmy nomination came for Mandy Moore)

Neil and Lauren’s “Night of the Dancing Flame”

Lauren has been assisting for Tyce, even before she was on the show, as well as a lot afterwards. Quite excited to have her as an All-Star again. She partnered both Neil (her original partner) and Pasha on the show and was really strong in both.

Jaimie was another of the very strong group of top 5 girls from season 3 (Lacey, Sabra, Lauren, Sara, Jaimie, not bad!!). She’s a stunning contemporary dancer, and spent a lot of time as Travis Wall’s dance partner bc her dance teacher was Travis’s mom. Just a personal opinion, I think she got dealt kind of a rough hand on the show, being partnered with Hok, who is unbelievable in his style but struggled somewhat in other styles. With the Hummingbird & the Flower (embedded below), though, Wade was able to meld their 2 styles into an Emmy-winning routine.

season 5: ADE
another returning All-Star, fans were pretty bummed not to see the supremely talented Ade in the season 5 finale (though I’m thinking that if Jess keeps in the competition, we might see Evan at some point). Ade is just so strong and consistent, he and Melissa (a partnership I think was one of the best ever made by the show) were so good at everything!! I’m embedding their first routine on the show, “Right Here Waiting” choreographed by Mandy Moore because I think it’s a great representation of the trust they had in each other and Ade’s incredible strength and gentleness as a partner.

season 7: LOFRO
Our first All-Star former winner!! Maybe poor Jess will actually get a partner closer to his height!! I’m really excited to see her back, Lauren really grew over the course of the season. Thinking back to her week 1 dance w/ Ade, it was pretty terrible and I totally thought she was going to get cut early. She really grew on me, especially because of the commitment she put into each of her routines. Though I was personally rooting for Robert in the finale, it was nice to see another girl win!

Lauren and Dominic’s lyrical hip hop (week 2)
a week after falling apart in her dance with Ade, Lauren redeemed herself in a BIG way with this number. She was totally committed and present, and she and Dom had a fabulous partnership (good thing now, since they’re dating!) It’s an emotional number done incredibly well.

July 25, 2011 I Written By