SYTYCD Top 14, Week 5—Going For the Gold

Well, we’re back from the Olympic break and it’s Mia Michaels Night. And now I know why….

Guest judges: Michael Nunn and Billy Trevitt, the “Ballet Boys.” Also known as Mia’s co-conspirators on the Ovation channel show A Chance To Dance. This new reality competition had them forming a company from the contestants—who “coincidentally” performed at the Dizzy Feet gala on National Dance Weekend.

I do dig that I have the opportunity to recognize the pieces before they are recreated and predict what the new spins will do to them. Plus anyone who has watched the original incarnations of these Mia numbers at least knows the general story behind the dance—a slight disadvantage to any new viewers but enough is put into the pre-package for them to get the gist. I got a semblance of a fresh look at all of these, since aside from the Gravity encore—and maybe Koop Island Blues?—in Season 5’s finale, all of the revisited dances were first performed on the old stage (which to some degree I still like better than the new arena, but the place is growing on me). Also cute that Cat channeled Mia’s “Angel” routine (Top 5 girls of Season 4) in her outfit, right down to the braided hair.

The running commentary as the show played out:

Top 14 group:
Hanging On: Really dark piece—yet another in Mia’s stable of love/rejection pieces. Aerial arts play in here (I’m sure to Miss Eliana’s delight, though the boys had the more complex maneuvers). As usual, a lot to take in at one time—a blend of grandeur and Gothic, like a Twilight book cover come to life.

Cyrus and Eliana:
Mercy! Big shoes to fill here following Twitch and Katee’s Season 4 performance. Cyrus stepped up but Eliana tanked herself from the beginning, talking herself out of her own brilliance. She was quite technically good—definitely not Katee, but I expected way more force in her energy. She pulled back in a lot of places where she should have been trying to take off Cyrus’s head. I got more “maneater” out of that ballet from the Meet The Top 20 show. The judges were impressed with her, though. Cyrus was pretty funny, and he got really lucky getting this piece that was closest to his wheelhouse. There is still a lack of fluidity in his movement that continues to limit his development, but he’s got charm and character down. The greatest thing about him being in this competition is the exposure to all of dance styles, experts and techniques to help him grow further and have greater career opportunities, and I’m glad he got the opportunity. Whether he takes the title or not, this in itself is the biggest win for him.

George and Tiffany:
Hometown Glory here (first performed by Joshua and Katee in Season 4)…I like their interpretation of this. And I have to say, my first real glimpse of the toughness everyone else is seeing in Tiffany. The double-contemporary background made the piece a bit controlled for me but there was a good bit of angst and tension in their performance. I would have liked a little more connection in their disconnection—less dancing in unison and more dancing “together,” if you can follow that. But still quite impressive.

Will and Amelia:
Koop Island Blues: Can you DO the butt dance without actually having a butt? This should prove interesting as the height dynamic is reversed this time (Will is, shall we say, significantly taller than Evan, and Amelia is not quite as thick as Randi). The quirk factor may help….and it did. Will is so doggone silly it works. Amelia didn’t have the aloof, unattached air needed for that character, and Nigel agreed. Her technique was really good, though. Mary thought Will overdid it—mayhaps there was a touch over-the-top where it seems cartoonish rather than hypnotic, but I think for Will that was the perfect personification. I almost expected his eyes to pop out of his head Bugs Bunny style with the “AH-OOOGA!” horn sounds in the background.

Dareian and Janelle:
Dreaming With A Broken Heart: the “bed” dance—recreating this “Twitchington” moment should be fascinating with a male contemporary dancer and a belly dancer as the female lead. Janelle did get through Vegas to the show, so she must have shown something in the contemporary arena.

Wowzers. Dareian had some great moments—and now they’re ragging on his feet again. Janelle pulled some good emotion this time (having some personal issues helped a little). The judges are cracking on her hair detracting from her performance, but I think that’s a bit unfair—her hair’s way longer than Kherrington’s (and less moussed to look like “bed head”) so of course her hair’s going to hide her face. Perhaps a well-placed rake of the hair might have helped for the judges, but I think she nailed the passion despite having very little choreography to sell. I will say that her performance felt less like she was a figment of Dareian’s imagination or nightmares and more like a manifested memory…like this was an actual fight or a very vivid recollection. (On re-watching and comparing to the original, it seems to me that the bed Twitch and Kherrington used was wider and at a slightly lower angle, putting Janelle and Dareian at a bit of a disadvantage with the spacing and the momentum needed to jump over the back of that bed. Not to mention Kherrington’s pajama shirt was more open and looser, giving her more material to virtually rend in frustration than was afforded to Janelle.)

Matthew and Audrey:
Time: Bold move pulling the flower dance back out. That’s a hard one to begin with, and the amazing performance Lacey and Neil put out is difficult to match. (If you’ve never had the privilege to see this in concert, it’s even more amazing). Two contemporary dancers performing tonight….

OK. *wipes tear* It did lose some of the organics but I liked the feel. As the judges noted, they did focus a lot on the choreography as opposed to creating a moment—this is NOT a piece you want to screw up, so I understand that from them. I think they put a good bit of whimsy into the piece, though. I don’t know how fair it was for Nigel to quiz them on the stage about the character background, especially since I KNOW not even the viewers were treated to that little tidbit the first time around. I’ve been watching since Day 1, and even I didn’t know Mia’s dad was a song and dance man. This should be a teachable moment for future contestants, though—quiz your choreographers about their motivations for the piece you’re dancing. It may help you connect better AND win you points with the judges if you ever get called out on it.

Chehon and Witney:
Calling You: The park bench routine—another ballroom girl, but a ballet dancer in the male role this time.

(Side note: dagger in my heart when Witney said she watched this when she was 12. Excuse me while I go and be OLD now….)

The only number to make me actually applaud. DEFINITELY not Travis and Heidi, but that’s not necessarily a bad thing. Chehon was extremely perfect in his technique, which with any luck we will continue to break him of…but he was really good overall. His characterization skills are really progressing. Witney didn’t seem to have as many walls to break down as Heidi did, and what I could focus on from her was a really good effort. The first version flowed like water, so it’s not on equal par. But then again, the Travis/Heidi redo for the 100th episode had a choppier flow to it as well, so it clearly comes down to the magic of that specific moment. I thought Chehon and Witney did a great job. Hearing the backstory on THIS one (unrequited love from a gay friend) gives Travis’s turn a whole new meaning, particularly after watching that first episode of All The Right Moves and finding out about his relationship with Season 3’s Jaimie. But I digress….

Cole and Lindsay:
Gravity: Well, if you were going to give the addiction dance to ANYBODY in this season, I’d have picked Cole. Having a ballroom girl in the contemporary role should prove interesting, especially following Witney, who I think is stronger than her anyway.

And if ONE MORE OF THESE CHILDREN comes on saying they watched this when they were 12……

What the *BLEEP* did I just watch?!? Cole was so empty, cold and emotionless…which is a complete 180 from the oily, snake oil salesman touch Kupono put on it. This shouldn’t have worked…whoa. It takes a whole lot of passion and commitment to read THAT passionless. It was nearly robotic—like Hok in Wade Robson’s Chairman piece robotic (the hummingbird and the flower from Season 3). I felt like I was being assimilated by the Borg. I really tried to watch Lindsay—what I did see was a lot more loosening than she’s done in the past. Plus I did see the emotional struggle in her face despite HER hair being in her face (but nobody noticed it that time, I suppose). But Cole was simply RIVETING. The first pass with Kayla and Kupono had you wrapped up in the addict’s struggle; this one has you absorbed in the addiction. I already knew Cole was getting to this tour—I think, barring any really out-there choreography choice in future weeks, I can be bold enough to put him in Top 4…with a VERY strong chance of winning. The girls are really lucky there will be two winners this year.

Now for the part I don’t want to know:

Bottom 6:
George (saved)
Amelia
Janelle
Dareian
Matthew
Lindsay (saved)

All got to dance their solos, which I believe was by design, as there were no performance guests for this episode. Wise move, especially at this critical stage in the competition.

I tell you—that stage was gonna burn DOWN if George hadn’t made the Top 10. I have not voted up to now mainly because I seldom watch in real time, but if George survived to Top 8 I’m on it next week (i.e., tonight). I think he deserves a better chance than he’s gotten.

So the Top 10 is set:
Eliana
Cyrus
Cole
Lindsay
Chehon
Witney
Tiffany
George
Audrey
Will

Predicted swings for the tour:
Amelia
though I think it would be a wasted opportunity to NOT pull a bellydancer onto the Tour stage
Matthew (just because of the feet)
truthfully, I’d like to see Dareian

If Nigel’s beeline post-show is any indication, I think I may be right. It is an amazing testament to the level of talent on tonight’s stage that ALL of the judges and Mia went onstage after the show to speak to all of the dancers. These kids will definitely be working SOMEWHERE in the foreseeable future. I’m not even trying to predict what’s showing up on the tour….

The fan swell for Audrey, Tiffany and Cx3 will probably guarantee that George and Will fight it out for the guys next week and Lindsay, Witney and Eliana duke it out for the last saved girl spots. I won’t even try to call it on performance level.

We split into new couples and get our All-Star partners next week, and the full vote shifts to America at this point. Stalwart All-Stars have been Allison Holker, Robert Roldan, Ade Obayomi, and the Laurens (Lo-Gott and Lo-Fro); who I would LOVE to see show up from last season is Sasha, Marko (with or without hair), Missy or Ricky. Truthfully, there are not many All-Stars I would mind seeing…can I cross everything on my body that Alex Wong has run out of tendons and body parts to snap or break? 😀

P.S. Cole, darling…that was NOT your cue to injure your foot. I hope all goes well for you.

So You Think You Can Dance’s Top 20 Dish on Last Week’s Show | TheInsider.com

 

(Since we have a 2 week hiatus, aside from my show review I thought you might be interested in this look at the contestants’ reactions to their first competitive shows. Enjoy!)

So You Think You Can Dance’s Top 20 Dish on Last Week’s Show | TheInsider.com.

 

SYTYCD Season 9—Play It Again, Nigel

So FOX’s solution to surrendering the fight against the television juggernaut that is the Summer Olympics is to re-run the two competition shows that will lead into the new broadcast on August 15 (which apparently, will be another 4 contestant bloodbath, leading us straight into the Top 10).  The re-run of my commentary on that episode can be found here.

We just came out of National Dance Day weekend where a few of our favorite dancers performed for the Dizzy Feet Foundation’s benefit gala.  Quite a few names from this season were on the program, including current contestant Chehon Wespi-Tchopp (who is a social media devotee and takes great pains to communicate with all of his Facebook and Twitter fans).  Also on the bill, to my surprise and delight, was Hampton Williams.  Fans of this season will recognize him as the “exorcist” dancer—I must say that I, like Nigel and probably most of America, dismissed him immediately as a kook.  Every season’s gotta have one in the spotlight and I’m guessing the producers figured they had a gold mine in this one.  What nobody counted on was the energy, focus and outright dedication Hampton had committed to perfecting and performing this style.  From the opening strains of the Evanescence tune My Immortal, he completely interpreted and embodied the words of the song—I for one could almost see the lyrics coming out of his body.  His two renditions for both the Dallas auditions and the Vegas Week intro left four seasoned professionals in or close to tears and the rest moved and amazed.  Nigel proclaimed him a genius at the auditions and guaranteed him a trip to Las Vegas “even if I have to pay for it myself.”  While I think the nature of this competition would have eaten him up, I would have loved to have seen him go through the process, and was saddened to see him bow out at the first round (though I did understand).  It does my heart good to see his talent recognized and appreciated, and makes me wish I’d had the money and vacation time to be in attendance.

I wondered what else all of the contestants would be up to in their time off.  Naturally, I took the opportunity to troll Facebook pages.  I first took the opportunity to count fans on everyone to see if I could get a better handle on the voting:

Facebook page numbers by contestant (as of 8/7/2012):

Chehon Wespi-Tchopp:  2,164
Witney Carson: 1, 899
Eliana Girard: 1,584
Cyrus Spencer:  2,661
Cole Horibe:  2,344
Lindsay Arnold:  1,370
Audrey Case: 2,186
Matthew Kazmierczak: 1,614
George Lawrence II: 657
Tiffany Maher: 2,583
Janelle Issis: 1,975
Dareian Kujawa: 868 (982 on his non-SYTYCD fan page)
Amelia Lowe: 1,456
Will Thomas: 1,745

Amber Jackson: 458
Brandon Mitchell: 986
Janaya French: 699
Nick Bloxsom-Carter: 534
Daniel Baker: 1,323
Alexa Anderson: 2,097

Judging from those numbers it seems that Daniel and Alexa were victims of choreography and the game setup, because they clearly had the FB fan support at the very least. The low numbers on George puzzle me–he’s cute and talented. His innate shyness may work to his disadvantage, so I really hope he’s given good enough material to keep him in the Top 10. Some of the contestants took the time to personalize their official pages a little with non-network graphic cover photos and some fan interaction; while their main focus is definitely perfecting their performances, maximizing their electronic outreach is just as important. And from what I’ve observed, there’s none better than the dynamic duo of NinjaBalletFusion–Cole Horibe and Chehon Wespi-Tchopp. Between fan appeals, article and blog links, pics and YouTube videos, these two are definitely making their names and faces known. Most, if not all of the contestants have taken advantage of their time off to recharge at home and especially at their home studios getting some dance time in. There’s also been some focus on formulating solos and finding the best music for both dancer and audience to connect to…and prompt more positive judge and audience response. They may be getting back into rehearsals as we speak, but from the looks of things online, everyone has gotten the best use out of their unexpected vacation.

With any luck I’ll be able to find a way to check out All The Right Moves, the new Oxygen reality show featuring Travis Wall (and other familiar faces, I’m told) and his attempts to form a dance company, and give my impressions on it until competition resumes on the 15th.

SYTYCD, Top 16, Week 3–Now Comes the Hard Part

courtesy 19 Entertainment and Dick Clark Productions

The Top 16 took the stage last week for the third competitive week, and I’ve included my real-airtime reactions coupled with my observations from watching it several more times to make sure I didn’t miss anything:

Top 16 – Contemporary (Tyce Diorio)

I said that was either Mia or Tyce….the darker side of Charlie Chaplin is how they billed it. I’m still trying to figure out how they shot that—the group number HAS to be done well before the live broadcast, especially to pull off the lone red umbrella in all that black and white.

Guest judge: Christina Applegate. If she hadn’t done Sweet Charity on Broadway, the Kelly Bundy dance episode of Married…With Children would have convinced me she’s qualified. Plus this isn’t her first time at this rodeo.

Tiffany/George – Hip-Hop (Nappytabs)
That explains the ugly hot pink hoodie on George…cute and they stayed together. Nigel loved Tiffany and cracked the whip on George for looking tired toward the end.

Amber/Brandon – Jazz (Ray Leeper)
Very nice! Amber’s spotlight but Brandon hung with her. Chemistry was off the charts.

Janelle/Dareian – Cha-Cha (Pasha Kovalev)
Dareian channeled a little Pasha there…and I’m really impressed with that crazy lift. Mary trashed their form A LOT. I could see some difficulty in the transitions but it was decent. All three judges were unduly hard on Dareian about his non-working arm—though Christina was kinder (and closer) about the placement issues and took possible choreographer’s choice into account. Janelle’s performance level was a lot better this week.

Lindsay/Cole – Contemporary (Mandy Moore)
OK, Cole is clearly going to be on the tour. He’s been holding out on us regarding his training background—I know he’s had some dance but I think HIS definition of “some” is way different from ours. I will be bold enough to say he may be channeling Alex Wong. Lindsay did well in this style, but again I think Cole was the star of this duo. The overall look reminded me of the Season 6 piece “Two Steps Away” with Katherine and Legend.

Amelia/Will – Jazz (Mandy Moore)
LOVE Amelia’s hair tonight. I really dig Will—dream team is quite accurate, Christina. I kept getting a dancing David Byrne vibe from him. He is really dancing down his height. I can see shades of Robert Roldan coming out….

Audrey/Matthew – Salsa (Liz Lira)
Nice try, kids. So awkward…the feet were not good and, as Mary said, they looked uncomfortable doing it. Needed to be more fluid and it just wasn’t. I’ll give them a gold star for that last flip, though—plus Audrey was selling the salsa energy much harder than Matthew was (I’m still not totally sold on the girl but I will give credit when it’s due). They’re safe tonight but fan votes will be necessary to save them next week.

Witney/Chehon – Contemporary (Stacey Tookie)
The technique was very good and the judges really loved the piece. Witney is still too young, in my opinion, to channel that kind of emotion—even though the whole romantic/sultry thing is a requirement in ballroom, there’s a different nuance she needs to add to this contemporary that goes along with getting your heart stomped on, and I don’t think she’s there yet. Chehon, on the other hand—I totally bought it. And he had the right balance of control and abandon needed. I think we can look forward to #ninjaballetfusion on the tour if America didn’t stick this pair in the bottom again.

Eliana/Cyrus – Hip-Hop (Nappytabs)
Not a bad job for a ballerina. I think they hit the moves they were taught to hit but their sync was a little off. Even with the hip-hop brought down to Cyrus’s wheelhouse, I’m not sure he nailed this as well as he should have. Those neck isolations were SICK, though—expected, of course, from Cyrus, but Eliana matched him on that.

Bottom 6 for this week:

Amber*
Lindsay (saved)
Eliana* (saved)
George (saved)
Brandon*
Dareian* (saved)

*picked for solos by the judges

Amber
Soft and angular all at the same time, and I thought well done.
Brandon
First urban gospel piece I’ve heard on this show, and the first time I’ve seen stepping done to it. Solo had its moments—stepping is not an easy thing to flow together especially when you’re trying to throw all manner of tricks in within 30 seconds.
Eliana
Please. This shouldn’t even have been a debate. America is stupid.
Dareian
He has clearly been working on his feet, plus the transitions were inspired. Lots of joy there.

Alvin Ailey’s “The Hunt”—SYTYCD, THIS is how you put men in culottes…in the character of the dance without looking less than manly. I kind of wish it had just been shot straight on because the various camera angles didn’t convey all of the nuances in the choreography. Oh well, guess I’ll have to go see Ailey live again. What a hardship.

I’m upset with Amber’s elimination because of the three, it should have been Lindsay, even though her contemporary performance was more believable than Witney’s. Amber did a great solo but pitted against Eliana’s she was doomed from the start. Brandon was kind of obvious of the three called; don’t know WHAT America was smoking putting George in the bottom, and like Nigel said, Dareian pulled out everything and threw it on the floor for that solo.

We get a 2 week reprieve for (I assume) the Olympics, so the projected Bottom 6 when we come back are:

Audrey
Matthew
Lindsay
Dareian and/or Cyrus
Janelle or Eliana

Don’t worry, kiddos–I’ll find something to amuse you with for the next two Wednesdays. Maybe I’ll gush about Travis and crew if I can get to Oxygen somehow….

SYTYCD Top 20, Week 2–The Eliminations Begin

courtesy of 19 Entertainment and Dick Clark Production

For this week’s show I typed my commentary as I watched, so with only a few minor edits, these are my actual, in-the-moment comments on the show.

Top 20 – Character (Tabitha and Napoleon Dumo)
It looked like a Mia Michaels piece, to tell you the truth—I don’t know if Nappytabs had assistance or if they’re branching out into contemporary, but I liked it. Showcasing Cyrus was pretty much a given considering the theme and the music—at this stage he’s much less trained than Twitch was on entering this competition, but as noticed and mentioned by many, he is the consummate student, and the opportunity of this show is going to do wonders for his career future.

Guest judge: Adam Shankman, who just happens to be the producer of “Step Up Revolution,” opening in theaters the following week.

Lindsay/Cole – Hip-Hop (Christopher Scott)
She’d have been hotter in a black skintight catsuit, and Cole as nerd scares me. Nigel commented on Lindsay playing to the audience rather to the vampish character; Mary agreed and so do I. She looks a lot like Lo-Fro (Lauren Frodeman, Season 7’s champion), and if SHE could pull it off Lindsay has a great chance if she works at it. Cole has a future in entertainment even if he never dances again.

Amelia/Will – Contemporary (Sonya Tayeh)
Wow. Will is really good at contemporary. I no longer question his presence. Amelia was her usual engaging quirky, but definitely at home in her own style. Adam commented on not noticing the size difference between the pair—I have to agree with that, too. See all that bending and melding you did, Will? That there is what Nigel was talking about. More of that, please.

Amber/Nick – Tango (Miriam Larici and Leonardo Barrionuevo)
Amber looks mean and Nick’s coat is not only too big, but wholly unnecessary. He does look a lot sexier tonight but they’re still hesitant with each other. Should have been a little more push and pull between the two of them. Nigel and Mary were quite impressed with Amber, though. (On a second look, some of her solo performance persona in that was really well done.) Nick is an excellent partner, no doubt—the problem is that in THIS competition, stars win.

Audrey/Matthew – Jazz (Sonya Tayeh)
Girlie’s got dance skills, but I’m just not believing the whole tough, strong woman bit from her. FYI—if you want somebody that little and innocent looking to be a warrior, the French braid ponytail is NOT the way to go. Matthew’s really good. Almost reminded me of Baryshnikov for a hot second…although I still need some more power out of him. Maybe Daniel can give him some pointers….

Janelle/Dareian – Lyrical Hip-Hop (Christopher Scott)
Awwwww……that was cute. And they’re both really good at it. Got lukewarm reception from the judges, and they may have something there. Dareian did have a performance edge over Janelle—he was definitely living the piece, while she was simply dancing it.

Janaya/Brandon – Broadway (Sean Cheesman)
Eh. Well danced, I’ll give them that. I really liked that last lift. Janaya was definitely in character. But I’mma need Cat Deeley to NEVER utter the words “cray-cray” AGAIN. Well received by the judges.

Eliana/Cyrus – Jive (Melanie LaPatin and Tony Meredith)
Valiant effort by Cyrus, but this one was ALL Eliana. He was telegraphing too many transitions, his feet were horrible but he held the swag in the poses—and he did get the speed in some of those unison moves. I also have to commend him on the lifts. But this was Eliana’s spotlight tonight! I daresay she about matched up to Melanie’s competitive days with Tony on the ballroom floor.

Alexa/Daniel – Contemporary (Dee Caspary)
Damn. Veddy interestink……don’t really get the bathtub part of the story but OK. The judges connected with the technical but not the emotional/audience connection. I have to agree. Alexa ought to be tired of hearing this by now. (Although now that I get that she was supposed to be water, I’ll cut her a small break. Personifying water would be difficult for emotive experts.)

Tiffany/George – Foxtrot (Melanie LaPatin and Tony Meredith)
I could so see George at the Cotton Club. His ballroom form wasn’t perfect but it was very good for just learning it. Almost makes you want to give him the last name Nicholas. (Dance history, kiddies—look it up.) Tiffany has finally impressed me, though. In-freakin’-credible indeed, Adam.

Witney/Chehon – Bollywood (Nakul Dev Mahajan)
WHAT. THE. BLEEP?!? This Latin ballroom dancer and contemporary ballet dancer just did the HELL out of Bollywood. That was awesome—on par with Season 4’s Katee and Joshua (Dhoom Taana) and Season 5’s Caitlin and Jason (Jai Ho). I think some of Chehon’s energy flagged at the end of that, but Nakul’s pieces are never cute as far as the fast pace goes, so that’s not only understandable but forgivable.

Now for the elimination section:

Janaya
Alexa
Witney (saved)
Nick
Daniel
Chehon (saved)

courtesy 19 Entertainment and Dick Clark Productions

I pretty much called the first four but can’t understand the lack of fan votes for Witney and Chehon. Even considering that the votes were based on the so-so samba, there were numbers from that previous week’s show that were not nearly as strong as that one. The judges did not need to see a “dance for your life”—I don’t appreciate that or them padding the extra time with a full-on “Step Up Revolution” promo blitz. I don’t care if a bunch of my favorite alums were in the number; those kids should have had that opportunity.

Of the four, I’m sorriest to see Daniel go—he had great potential and I liked his performance energy. It was just too much for America to keep two male ballet dancers in the running. Janaya fell victim to that invisibility factor I mentioned in the first blog, and Alexa and Nick just never fully ignited between technique and performance. I am surprised to see the split between the Janaya/Brandon and Amber/Nick partnerships. We’ll see what comes of the new Amber/Brandon partnership in the next episode.

Next week’s projected Bottom 6 (trying to do this while blocking out the tvline.com review spoilers):

Janelle
Dareian
Lindsay
Matthew
Audrey
Brandon or Cyrus (though I really believe Cyrus’s fan base is going to drag him up to the Top 10)

Based on last week’s votes, I fear Witney and Chehon will be in the bottom again…but hopefully that kick-ass Bollywood performance will keep them safe.

I know we’re going to be subjected to more stunt promotion given that it’s Step Up Revolution opening weekend AND National Dance Day weekend, but with any luck that will die off a little as the weeks go on. I will go on record as saying the choreography was much better this week. Let’s hope the content keeps getting better.

SYTYCD Season 9, Week 1–Coming Out of the Gate

photo courtesy 19 Entertainment and Dick Clark Productions

We go into Week 2 tonight as the new results show-less competition moves forward. Tonight is the second week of competition with the ominous spectre of America’s vote looming–and will result in 4 dancers (2 guys and 2 girls) leaving at the end of this evening. I’m assuming the “dance for your life” portion of the show is still being employed, though it was dropped during Season 6 when there were fewer episodes to air. Overall, the dancers are doing a great job performing, but some of the choreographers are a little less than inspired this year. They are adding so many abstract concepts and themes in the numbers that I don’t think are necessarily translating well to the audience–which in turn may detract votes from the contestants due to a lack of connection with the number. Here’s my look at last week’s show:

Witney/Chehon –Samba (Louis van Amstel)
Good effort: Witney, of course, thrived in her own style, and Chehon gave a very good effort. He got good hip and upper body action going considering his rigid ballet training, but you could visibly see him trying. Mary mentioned something about his feet (which I didn’t see but as the ballroom expert I’ll take her word for it), so he has some definite work ahead molding himself to the outside styles. But he’s cute and engaging so he should be fine this week.

Tiffany/George – Contemporary (Sonya Tayeh)
Another lucky pair to land smack their own style. While I didn’t get as much of the intense energy from George I got in the first performance show, he and Tiffany did execute the choreography and the softer tone of Sonya’s vision extremely well. I think America liked them well enough to save them.

Janaya/Brandon – Hip Hop (Tabitha and Napoleon Dumo)
Message hip-hop is always tricky. Overall I think Janaya and Brandon did exactly what they were taught and did well for their individual abilities. But the emotion wasn’t as believable as it should have been. They guys may be in trouble tonight.

Alexa/Daniel – Jazz (Sean Cheesman)
Possible targets tonight–perfect example of great performance of mediocre and confusing choreography. The difficulty level was obvious and appreciated, but whatever theme or story was supposed to conveyed did not come across…through no fault of the dancers, who worked their butts off. While I’m not overly crazy about Alexa, I hope she doesn’t shake out because of this number.

Amber/Nick – Viennese Waltz (Jason Gilkison)
The dance was very dreamy, although I wasn’t fond of the color combo they put Amber in. Maybe if the shoes had matched the dress? (I know, picky. But ballroom is just as aesthetically appealing visually through the costuming as through the choreography.) Amber, like Chehon, also had foot troubles outside of her style but coped extremely well. I still need more energy out of Nick, though. His choreographer even said that he needed to push harder in his given style. Possible bottom 6 candidates only because the number was good but not in-your-face memorable, and their fan bases (or potential lacks thereof).

Amelia/Will – Hip-Hop “Character Pop” (Tabitha and Napoleon Dumo)
This was too stinkin’ cute! Amelia was very minxish in her “bad kitty” role, and Will did a remarkable job of playing smitten. The choreography moved with ease and you could almost hear Amelia purr. This might have been my third favorite couples number. I hope Will’s fan base doesn’t let him down–depending on the numbers, he could be in danger despite such a good performance.

Janelle/Dareian – African Jazz (Sean Cheesman)
This pair did a remarkable job with this number, though the intensity of performance we saw from Janelle at the beginning of Vegas week was sadly missing. I have to admit she has set a high standard of performance that she hasn’t yet matched on the show. Of course, she HAS only performed ON the show once due to some unfortunate injuries, so I’m hoping America gives her a second shake. Dareian is great. Nigel praised his turns in the opening Christopher Scott number–which I DID notice and is one of the singular snapshots of that number for me. And his turn in this African jazz was well executed, too. We should be seeing him for another week.

Eliana/Cyrus – Broadway (Tyce Diorio)
One of two standouts of the night–Cyrus really did steal the show, though Eliana was a perfect complement. When Kenny Ortega said he could see that performance being on a Broadway stage I did a mental fist pump. I saw Seaweed, not Cyrus, in that Hairspray-inspired number, and while Eliana didn’t draw major focus, she kept up the energy and the feel. These two are staying for another week–run and tell that!

Audrey/Matthew – Contemporary (Travis Wall)
That darn Travis–what a sentimental mush. The last lucky lotto draws, Audry and Matthew performs their given style with great abandon and exquisite skill. Granted, it wasn’t Melanie and Neil “Total Eclipse of the Heart” intense, but that Audrey’s got no fear. Very believable–I think they’re safe.

Lindsay/Cole – Paso Doble (Jason Gilkison)
The second of the two standouts of this show, and an electrifying way to close the show. Lindsay being amazing was expected; COLE being amazing was astounding. I guess the fighting nature of the dance lent itself well to Cole’s martial arts foundation, but the intense energy could’ve powered half of Broadway. Nigel said he thought Cole was the best boy performer of the paso doble EVER. High praise…though I could recall several quite excellent performances over the nine seasons (Heidi/Travis, Sabra/Neil, Joshua/Katee, Jeanine/Brandon). But if we qualify that statement by noting that this was Cole’s first competitive performance in a style that wasn’t his own, then I can fully agree. If either of these two wind up on the bottom there will be a vote recount, because the phone will HAVE to have been broken for America not to respond to THAT.

This season still hasn’t matched the excitement level of last season, but the dancers are really talented. I’m anxious to see what happens next. Tune in tonight!

SYTYCD Season 9: Handicapping the contestants

courtesy 19 Entertainment/Dick Clark Productions

I figure Nigel and the “professional” dance critics are going to rip these kids up enough, so I will do my best to not be a jerk in my observations. But after watching them in the Vegas and Top 20 shows, here are my predictions as to who might take home the titles.

Alexa Anderson
19, from Chandler, AZ
Contemporary

Overhyped in my opinion. She may well have the talent and tenacity to go all the way to the end, but I need to see more. Her rough journey through this year’s Vegas week doesn’t help with my perceptions, either. Ryan edged her out last season, and I’m seeing why they paired them for the final selection–they’re about the same brand of OK. We’ll see what lighting the competition fire under her feet does, though….

Amber Jackson
21, from Atlanta, GA
Contemporary

Third time’s the charm (and blond hair is clearly the talisman). Solid performer, reminiscent of Season 2’s Martha. Every girl dancer of color is going to pin their hopes on her to make it to the top–I hope she does at least make the tour.

Amelia Lowe
18, from Butler, NJ
Contemporary

Cute, quirky and capable. That will only carry her so far with the judges. I hope she’s working on her non-contemporary repertoire. I do like her, though.

Audrey Case
18, from Edmund, OK
Jazz

Janaya French
20, from Aurora, CO
Lyrical Contemporary

Tiffany Maher
19, from Plantation, FL
Jazz

One of the “Invisible Three.” Not any disparagement on their talents, but of the 20 dancers, they are the three most likely to blend into a group number interchangeably. Not distinctive enough yet to say who is who. The only reason I could find Janaya was because she was in the contemporary number with Amelia—Audrey and Tiffany looked like twins. I did give a lot of leeway to first-time nerves and consciously re-watched the performance, focusing on each girl individually…and to be fair, I did detect a slight technical edge in one and a slight performance edge in the other. Problem is, I couldn’t tell you which girl displayed which skill. How they blossom remains to be seen….

Brandon Mitchell
27, from Kansas City, KS
Stepping

The Top 20 “old-head,” the last upper age contestants to get close to the top were Melissa (Top 6, Season 5) and Ashley and Ryan Di Lello (Top 6, Season 6). Adapted pretty well to Cole and Cyrus’s styles in the Christopher Scott group number, but the rest—particularly posture-heavy stuff like ballroom—remains to be seen. He looks determined, though. Sentimental favorite, being an “old fart” dancer myself (and way past the show’s age limit).

Chehon Wespi-Tschopp
23, from Zurich, Switzerland
Ballet

Clearly hungry to expand outside of his own genre. Didn’t explode in Vegas until the end, but he and Daniel Baker (more on him later) are putting the viewing public on notice: don’t sleep on the ballet dancers.

Cory Horibe
26, from Honolulu, HI
Martial Arts Fusion

His nimble and agile movement looks like it will translate well to contemporary, and the discipline practiced from his martial arts may help with the more formal styles. We shall see.

Cyrus “Glitch” Spencer
22, from Atlanta, GA
Animation, Popping and Robotics

Personal favorite, though I really don’t think America is going to vote him to the top. But two things may affect that—1) His hunger to learn. Even Lil C noted that as a master in his own style, he still embraced every round with new eagerness and determination. The best quote I’ve ever heard from this show came from Cyrus: “Apparently there’s a whole other level of hard I ain’t working, and I need to get there.” And number 2? I said the exact same thing about Russell in Season 6.

Daniel Baker
24, from Newcastle, Australia
Ballet

Consistent performance throughout Vegas week and, like Chehon, is itching to expand beyond his ballet horizons. I want to see where he takes that.

Dareian Kujawa
20, from St. Paul, MN
Contemporary

He had GOT to work on those feet–something I can definitely relate to, but I’m not the one competing. If he can get past that, dedication to the new styles should be a snap.

Eliana Girard
21, from West Palm Beach, FL
Ballet (Contemporary Ballet)

The girl IS. A. BEAST. She is an aerial artist. She studied with Joffrey and Ailey. She can do ballet and contemporary flawlessly. And she transfixes me like Melanie and Joshua did. My money’s on her to take Top Girl.

George Lawrence II
19, from Atlanta, GA
Contemporary

I’m looking for him to be at least in the Top 3. One of the better technically polished dancers on the show—and he performs SO BIG for such a small guy. My favorite for Top Guy, but we’ll see what the fans say and what the season throws at him.

Janelle Issis
24, from Vestavia Hills, AL
Bellydancing

Dancers of unusual styles have to have that extra special something to get on—and succeed at this show. Melissa was the first ballerina to crack Top 10 (Jessica Fernandez of Season 2 was the first Top 20 ballerina but didn’t make Top 10, though fellow contestant Ryan Rankine (who was more contemporary, IMO) did make Top 8), Russell was the first (and as yet only) krumper on the show, and Bianca, Phillip and Peter cracked the tap barrier in Season 6 for the first time since Season 1’s Sandra Colton. And though we’ve seen many a belly dancer in the audition shows, NONE made it to Vegas before Miss Janelle Issis. I took belly dancing for three months—that is NO easy skill. And she adds scarves and flags flawlessly without missing a beat—everything just flows. Her performance aura reminds me of Season 5’s Janette, so I’m thinking if she’s got a similar vibe, taking to newer styles should be a breeze. Even if she has to work at the choreography, the performance level is going to be off the charts. Don’t dismiss her because she doesn’t have a traditional specialty. You know that acronym GRITS (Girls Raised In The South)? That’s not just a name label—we HAVE grit, too.

Matthew Kazmierczak
21, from Peoria, AZ
Contemporary

Tall cutie-pie with good technique. But the last tall Matt didn’t fare too well. Gotta see him in competition.

Will Thomas
19, from Troy, MI
Contemporary

Like Matthew from Season 5, Will is tall. But Will is also big. He does move well, but I agree with Nigel’s assessment that he needs to get down lower to match his vertically challenged fellow contestants. He simply has to do more to be outstanding. Not at all fair to the non-typical body type, but it is what it is. What Will does with that critique will make the difference between Top 20 and Top 10.

Lindsay Arnold
18, from Provo, UT
Latin Ballroom

Nick Bloxsom-Carter
20, from Oak Park, CA
Ballroom

Witney Carson
18, from American Park, UT
Latin Ballroom

The “Meet the Top 20” ballroom did not impress me at all. As I mentioned in my previous blog, the girls swallowed Nick up whole. A ballroom trio is hard to properly execute with the right balance of technical skill and sizzling charisma, and these kids unfortunately had the shadow of the Season 5 number to overcome. (You KNOW it’s a bitchin’ performance when you pause your TV to take a phone pic of the final pose for your wallpaper. They were THAT good.) I see their individual strengths, though, after watching their bio vids. Witney’s got some fire that come could out and surprise; I have to assume it’s there in Lindsey and Nick. Nick reminds me of a dancing Clay Aiken (who until Celebrity Apprentice seemed a little under-assertive to me). So far, my initial impressions of Clay’s persona are what I’m seeing in Nick. Ballroom boy or not, I just can’t get that mental picture of him as a paso doble toreador. He may surprise me, though. As may Lindsey—she got some really good lines and a little other dance experience in her back pocket. Who knows–we may well have another Chelsie Hightower on our hands.