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SYTYCD: Top 4 Finale Performance

As usual the performance part of the finale was a night full of dancing. I did love the opening number from Mandy Moore, that was inspired by the musical/movie Cats. The final four were paired up in every way possible…which turned out to be four dances each plus a solo. I think they all were fantastic but I have a feeling who is the fan favorite. 

I loved that we got to see a switch up with the partners and they got difficult styles to perform.

Mariah & Gino: I don’t remember the last time we saw a quick step but I know it has been awhile. Sharna and Artem created a fun but difficult quick step. Side note DWTS is crazy to let these two go. I thought Mariah and Gino did this dance justice. It may not have been perfect technique wise but the performance quality made up for it.

Sophie & Bailey: They had a Bollywood routine. This style always seems somewhat difficult because of the details, like the placement of the hands. I have to disagree with Nigel, I really enjoyed they dance and thought they danced it well. 

The performance of the night for me was the contemporary that Sophie and all-star Marco performed. I hope that Talia will nominated for an Emmy next year. The lifts were breathtaking…especially that first one. Sophie just completely let go and trusted Marco and danced from her heart.

Overall, I enjoyed all the dances. Now who will win and as cliché as it sounds they all could win. There was some chanting going on in the studio audience for one dancer…Bailey…based on that alone, I think he will win. We will have to wait till next week to find out.

September 10, 2019 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: Top 6 to Top 4

I will say this about Monday night, I was not all surprised about who was in the final four. I did find interesting that the judges still had a say, but they chose to stick with how America voted. The all stars returned to the stage to perform with one of the Top 6. Each of the Top 6 also had solo, performed with their partners, and in a group number.

Bailey & Koine: Broadway; Here’s what I really liked about that dance it showed how much Bailey has grown as a dancer. He is not just a b-boy anymore…that spilt leap kinda blew my mind.

Gino & Comfort: Hip hop; A big improvement compared to the last time he had hip hop and Gino showed off a few tricks that he had up his sleeve. I have to agree with Laurieann, Gino finally got out of his own way and just danced. He didn’t over think it.

Sophie & Kika: Samba; Anyone else excited to see Pasha back? I normally rely on Mary’s opinion when it comes to the ballroom numbers. However, this time I saw that her Samba rolls still needed some work. Other than that Sophie could pass for a professional ballroom dancer.

Mariah & FikShun: Hip hop; Working with props can be difficult but I imagine working with magic props are even trickier. Props to FikShun for kick the hat out of the way and somehow making it look like part of the dance. Nigel seemed to be the only one that seemed to be on the fence about this dance. I honestly think Mariah could win this show.

Gino & Sophie: Broadway; Now this is what I expect out of a Broadway routine. It fun, fast, and entertaining. I feel like these two should have been paired from the beginning and they make it hard to figure out who might win.

Bailey & Mariah: Jazz; I can’t say I had the same reaction as the everyone in the studio because seeing things in person is so different compared to watching on tv. That being said, they definitely are fighting for being the top couple. It would not surprise me to see them as the top 2 dancers.

Groups: I thought both the boy and girls has amazing routines. Though I think the guys edged them out but not by much.

Unfortunately we had to say goodbye to Ezra and Madison. They both had a great night but they just didn’t get the votes.

 

 

September 4, 2019 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: Top 8 to Top 6

Finally, the first two-hour show of the season and they gave all the dancer a challenge. Two dances with their partner, a group dance, a solo, and they had six days to prepare for show day. I’m really glad that Dominic pointed this out because I think it probably forgotten by some how little time they have to make sure their performance is as close to perfect as they can get it.

Bailey & Mariah: I think for most part they are still the couple to beat and unless they completely bomb next week, we will see them in the top four. Their contemporary was good and fun to see how Mandy and Elizabeth incorporated a big stage prop in their choreography. Their cha-cha was good to but you could tell that Bailey did struggle with the lifts.

Gino & Sophie: They were a new pairing and they also had a the two new choreographers Monday night. Gino and Sophie are my other pick to make the final four. I loved the contemporary by KC Monnie, it was beautifully danced by Sophie and Gino but I do wish Gino wasn’t on the props as much as he was. The jazz was fun and a nice throw back to Elvis, Gino seemed to be able to channel his inner Elvis.

Ezra & Madison: Hands down these two had the hardest dance of the night with the Argentine Tango and they managed to pull it off with flying colors. Which makes me happy their hip hop was first, and it was nice to see the fun light-hearted side of Madison. For whatever reason these two aren’t connecting with the audience, which is why we saw them in the bottom two this week

Benjamin & Anna: I feel like I understand why they were the ones to go home Monday night. For whatever reason both of their dances left me wanting more. Like Nigel, I found myself comparing their Tahitian dance to one for a past season. The broadway on the other hand was good but I think it was too understated for a top 8 performance.

Now that we are getting down to the last few episodes of the season there is a good chance that the top 4 will be solely based on the viewers votes.

August 28, 2019 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: Top 10 Perform

It was the first live show of the season and I thought surely we would get a two-hour show, but I was wrong. The opening dance was a fun way to introduce the dancers and probably time-saving as well. Essential each of the dancers had three chances to prove themselves: the opening dance, the dance with their partner, and the group dances. As always these are just my opinions on the dances please feel free to tell me you favorite dance of the night.

Bailey & Mariah: Jazz, Mandy Moore

It might have been somewhat of an obvious pairing due to Bailey’s height but it was a great one. I love the song choice (which I have danced to in the past). I loved the beach theme…though I might have put Mariah in red. Overall it was a fun and sassy to watch. I have a feeling these two will go far.

Gino & Stephanie: Hip hop, Luther Brown

Honestly I had to watch this one twice because I missed what the concept was about. It fell a bit flat for me, it was danced well but I felt like something was missing. Even the Judges had mixed reactions.

Anna & Benjamin: Cha Cha, Emma Slater & Sasha Farber

Let me say I loved the fact the first thing they did was come up with a team name. Second, Emma and Sasha prove again that they are amazing teachers. I love the dance and they seemed to be having fun themselves. Agree that Anna needs to point her feet.

Madison & Ezra: Contemporary, Talia Favia

Talia created a beautiful piece that Madison was able to connect to and we got to see her softer side. I was Dominic’s favorite dance of the night. Ezra, was great too and prove that he is not only a good partner but also quick thinking. He was able to take a little mistake and make it seem like it was part of the dance.

Eddie & Sophie: Jazz, Brian Friedman 

Brian style tends to require the dancers to have to infuse a personality to match the choreography of the dance. Again it was danced well but felt bad for Eddie, Sophie out shined him in the dance.

Travis Wall and Luther Brown gave us great group dances and all the dancer seemed to dance well. There wasn’t anytime for Judges comments but I do feel like some of the dancers might have redeemed themselves in this round. However, will the home viewers take that in to the consideration when they voted. I hope so…I not looking forward to losing people next week.

August 14, 2019 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: Academy Week, Part One

Well that first Academy episode went by a little to fast and I had to re watch just to make sure I didn’t miss anything. Now this is a personal opinion, I feel like the network has done this show a disservice shortening the length of the show by limiting the number of episode. It really doesn’t allow the viewers to connect with the dancers, unless they were featured in the first round of auditions. That being said, the first episode of the Academy didn’t disappoint with very challenging rounds for the dancers to take on. Nigel was probably the toughest judge that we saw during the show. The first three rounds were featured in this episode: Hip hop with Luther Brown, Ballroom with Emma Slater and Sasha Farber, and Contemporary with Talia Favia. 

Round One: Hip Hop (79 Dancers)

Luther gave us a hard-hitting routine that allows the dancers to inject their own personalities into the performance. I also agree with him when it comes to talking while he is trying to teach. The dancers have 90 minutes to learn these routines…I would be paying attention as closely as I could to each choreographer.

The only hip hop girls to make the academy were up first and one of them seemed to get a little bit flustered but they were given a second chance. The second chance was much better.

It’s really hard to see those struggle with picking up the choreo and that includes dancers from all styles. However it is also great to see the dancers succeed as well, like Jay Jackson being part of the best group. Sophie Pittman seemed to be worried while learning but shined when it came time to perform.

Laurieann’s reaction to Nigel being a bit harsh was amusing “You made it, run for your lives before he changes his mind…” By the end of day one a total of 10 dancers were cut.

Round Two: Ballroom

I love that Emma and Sasha are back and that they want to show the dancers what they created first. Wow…what a cha-cha. I was really cute to even see the ballroom dancers react to that last trick. Which was probably an optional thing due to the potential injuries if the trick went wrong.

The was a lot of debate after the first group to which D-Trix commented that when they did that his season, that it scared him. The entire group made it through but I understood their critiques.

The ballroom round turned out to be the end of the road for many dancers including  a few of my favorites (like Smac) from the first auditions.

Round Three: Contemporary

I feel like Talia created a piece that sums up this week of auditions. The dancers are at “war” fighting and crawling your way to the top 10. With not much time left in the episode we only saw a few clips of this round.

Unfortunately Jay Jackson, even though he had improved since last year, it wasn’t quite good enough. It had to sting a bit when Nigel said we will see you again. He quickly said that they wouldn’t because he is 30 and that is the cut off age for this show. 

The best group of the night was Bailey and John John, a b-boy and a hip hop dancer. They put their whole heart into that performance and show more emotion than some of the contemporary dancers.

Next episode will feature the group round with Mandy Moore and the Top 20 that will make it to the final cut to create the top 10 for the live shows.

July 17, 2019 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: Finale Performance Thoughts

Monday night’s performance finale might have been one of the best I’ve seen in a while. I say that because I feel like everyone had a great night, the top 4 were prepared to do what it takes to win. Only problem with everyone having a great night is trying to figure out who will be the last dancer standing. As usual it is a busy night for the top 4, dancing with each other, an all-star, and their solo. Melanie, Jonathan, FikShun, and Robert were the all-stars that danced last night. The judges seemed to be playing it nice, but Twitch provided me with my favorite judges moments of the season. Due to wedding festivities that happened over the weekend, Twitch was loosing his voice. After Hannahlei & Genessy’s performance, he felt like he couldn’t true express how he felt about that number…so he asked Mary to do it for him and she did.

Out of all the dances…my top 3 of the night were:

Jensen & Robert: Contemporary (Mandy Moore)
This was absolutely beautiful, and I love the partnership between Robert and Jensen. I look forward to seeing tis number on the tour.
Hannahlei & Slavik: Afro Jazz (Sean Cheesman)
Happy that we had another amazing African Jazz this season. The tricks were amazing and glad they took out that on lift where Hannahlei fell in rehearsal.
Genessy & Hannahlei: Contemporary (Talia Favia)
The synchronicity of this routine is what made it so good. I also love the strength of these two ladies throughout the dance.

Final thoughts on the top 4

Hannahlie: What I like about Hannahlei is that she is a little power house. I love that she is able to become a different person the moment she steps on that stage to perform. I truly think she will be in the top 2. She hasn’t had any miss steps in the competition and has been consistently good.

Jensen: I love Jensen’s personality and she does reminds me of her sister. Even though she does reminds Lindsay, I feel like Jensen has made a name for herself. Honestly, I just love watching her dance. I wouldn’t mind seeing all of the Arnold sisters dance together. Jensen had been my favorite this season and I would love to see her win.

Genessy: Genessy may have started off as the dark horse this season, but she has really turned out to be a contender. I feel like I under estimated her at the beginning of the live show. Also, I think that we are just scratching the surface of how great of a dancer Genessy really is.

Slavik: The wildcard…I call him that because I think he might have a bigger fan base that votes. What I have loved have loved about Slavik is that he has absolutely put the effort to do the best he can. I really hope we will see him back next season as an all-star.

Looking forward to seeing who will win next week.

September 5, 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.

SYTYCD: Top 10 Thoughts

Finally caught up on the first live episode of season 15, after being out of town for a few days. Overall, I enjoyed the show and didn’t think there was one bad dance. I like that they paired the dancers with each other rather than with an all-star. It really goes back to the roots of SYTYCD and creating partnerships you want to root for.

Twitch, also returned as a judge for the live shows. He is such a breath of fresh air, especially since he has been in their shoes. I enjoyed his positivity and willing to uplift a dancer if they did’t do so well. Judging from comments on social media it seems like many fans were upset over how Chelsea was treated by 3 of the judge when it came to the tap routine with Evan. More on that in later…but first my thoughts on the pairings and my favorite routines of the night.

I think that the dancers were paired up well together and as far as chemistry is concerned I think that Jay Jay & Jensen as well as Slavik & Genessy have it. Though I believe Cole & Hannalie might be the best as far as technique is concerned.

My Favorites of the Night

Slavik & Genessy: Luther Brown, Hip Hop
These two are definitely the dark horses/underdogs this season, and the both gave it their all in both routines. The hip hop thought was my favorite, I loved watching Slavik perform and his chemistry with Genessy it part of the reason this dance was great. I really hope these two stick around next week.

Cole & Hannalie: Tyce Diorio, Contemporary
It was a beautiful dance…and if they can connect with each other more they will go far in this competition. Though I do wish the judges would at least mention that Cole has obviously trained in other the styles other than ballroom

Back to the Tap dance. It is the first time in probably the show’s history that they have asked someone with only a little bit of tap experience(compared to Evan) to learn a hard tap routine. I thought Chelsea did a respectable job and loved that Twitch was the only one that recognized that and said something about it. Nigel seem to take the same road as Twitch until he said he can’t wait to see even dance with Gaby. I felt that was unnecessary to say and it was disrespect to Chelsea.

As I said, I enjoyed the episode and I’m not really sure who will be in danger of going home next week but I am looking forward to next weeks live show.

August 8, 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.

SYTYCD: Top 9 to Top 8 Thoughts

I hope everyone on the east coast set their dvr to record 30 mins over due to the Presidential interruption at 9. I case you missed something the routines are usually posted on youtube quickly. Spoilers ahead.

Logan & Allison: Jive – Emma & Sasha
So much fun…I finally saw Logan’s personality tonight. I thought he pretty much nailed the choreography that Emma and Sasha gave them. I can see what Allison was saying how he needs to reign in his flexibility for the Jive.

Koine & Marko: Hip Hop – Dave Scott
Seeing how pumped Dave was just after rehearsals, made me excited for the dance. Enjoyed see Koine attack not on the choreography but also the character. I love everything about this piece especially the song choice.

Dassy & FikShun: Jazz – Ray Leeper
Interesting to hear Cat say that this partnership is like the new version of Amy and FikShun. I don’t quite see it that way but I do like Dassy and FikShun paired together. I enjoy watch how Dassy transforms from rehearsal to performance. Also, like getting to see more of her sassy side.

Mark & Comfort: Contemporary – Talia Favia
Wow…that was intense…both Mark and Comfort were 100% invested in the piece emotionally. I agree with Nigel I love the fact that Mark is completely up for any challenge that is thrown his way. I don’t normally comment on the all-star’s dancing but seeing how much Comfort has grown as a dancer, reminds me why I love this show.

Lex & Gaby: Broadway – Warren Carlyle
Anyone else tired from just watching that? I think this might have been the most fun we have seen Lex have so far. Even the tricks Lex pulled off kind of gave me whiplash cause they happened so fast.

Kaylee & Cyrus: Jazz – Spencer Liff
I agree with Nigel that Spencer seemed to find a quirky style of Jazz that suited Kaylee very well. I really enjoyed watching this but there were times that camera work completely cut Cyrus out…which kind of took away from the dance for me.

Taylor & Robert: Samba – Jean Marc Genereux
Taylor may have slipped out of the top spot tonight, but only a little. For someone who hasn’t done much ballroom to have to learn the hardest of the Latin dances in a week is a tall order. I thought that Taylor did a great job (I personally liked the samba rolls) but it could have been better. I think the chemistry was lacking probably she was more focused on getting the steps right.

Kiki & Jenna: Contemporary – Mandy Moore
I loved seeing Mandy really push them during rehearsal. Okay so this might have been this best dance Kiki has done on the show so far. Mandy found a way to bring out Kiki’s emotions.

Bottom 3: Mark, Dassy, and Sydney

Sydney unfortunately was sent home. Looking forward to seeing her on the tour…blog about that coming soon.

So will be our bottom 3 next week?

August 21, 2017 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.

Top 16 to Top 14 Thoughts

In my opinion, tonight’s show was pretty good from start to finish. There was also an injury that happened this week. Derek strained a muscle in his back and was advised not to dance this week. Also, Team Street is catching up to Team Stage when it comes to the percentage of votes, it was almost 50-50 this week.

1) Hailee & Jaja: Ray Leeper (Jazz)                                                                                                                         Love these two dancers and agree both are power houses and are easy favorites in this competition. I know they classified this as jazz but it had a modern dance type of feel.

2) Alexia & Neptune: Dave Scott                                                                                                                                       This is a great example of why I love Dave Scott, just a crazy cooky concept. According to Cat there were 7 men holding that padded wall in place. Again thought both dancers were great.

3) JJ & Derek: Miriam & Leonardo (Argentine Tango)                                                                                       Stepping in for the injured Derek was Leonardo. This meant JJ had to be on her game. All I can say is wow…JJ held her own dancing with Leonardo and I agree with Nigel, JJ would have been on the hot tamale train.

4) Jim & Ariana: Sean Cheesman (Contemporary)                                                                                                    Love the Lorde version of this song. I knew Jim would be amazing but I felt like Ariana had proven why the judges have saved her last week.

5) Gaby & Virgil: Al Blackstone (Broadway)                                                                                                              Such a fun routine. However, I think sometimes the Broadway numbers tend to either you like them or you don’t. Even if the taps were prerecorded it was nice to see that Gaby have a little bit of tap in the number. Virgil’s Broadway experience paid off tonight.

6) Kate & Asaf: Sean Cheesman (Jazz)                                                                                                                         This one fell flat for me, but it wasn’t a train wreck. I think Kate is a fantastic dancer but there is something that is not coming through the screen. Asaf had a better week and was able to pull of the list.

7) Marissa & Yurellis: Chris Scott                                                                                                                             This was a great routine and felt like we finally saw Marissa in a different light. I thought both girls were great. The only thing I would have changed was the beanie that Yurellis was wearing.

8) Edson & Megz: Talia Favia (Contemporary)                                                                                                     Beginning to think that Megz can do just about anything. She isn’t going anywhere anytime soon. Finally we get to see Edson in his element and I hope he continues to shine.

Bottom 6

Team Stage: Kate, Marissa, and Derek. Team Street: Asaf, JJ, and Arianna

Twitter Save: JJ and Derek

Judges Save: Arianna and Kate

Going Home: Asaf and Marissa

 

August 3, 2015 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.