S11.E06: First Live Performance Show; Meet the Top 20 Performances

[waving feather]

There are different schools fo tap right?  Zack seemed so much more upright than Valerie who seems to be a looking down/forward leaner. But I've seen that before and I am not sure if it's a style or a form break. Anyone?

 

I'm not a tap expert by any means, so I've no idea but as a personal preference, I always like the upright tap dancing more than the leaning forward type. It's more in the style of Gene Kelly and Donald O'Connor. More elegant and graceful, imo.

 

The girl tapper from last season was also always leaning forward like Valerie. Was not a fan.

Edited July 3, 2014 by waving feather

[bosawks]

Tappers! I know I should say more but Tappers!

 

That and I'm tempted to vote for Marcquet just because I went to Marquette....

 

Tappers!

[Haleth]

I was surprised that I liked most of the routines and the dancers.  Not being an expert by any means the only one I thought was off was one of the ballerinas.  (Man, they look so much alike I'll never figure out who is who.)  I enjoyed everyone else and thought Ricky and Jessica were outstanding even before the judges weighed in.  (Lost count of the number of times I said "wow!")  Rudy was better than I expected.  Loved the tappers and appreciate how difficult that routine was.  Marcquet is still one of my favorites.

 

Again, not an expert but were the guys generally better than the girls?  (At least I can remember most of them.  The girls all blend together.)  And is it customary in ballroom for the dancers to mug so much to the audience?  I was put off by Tanisha and Nick because they spent more time looking at the audience than each other.

 

Just watched Ricky and Jessica again and am still blown away by how beautiful that routine was.  I noticed a little shakiness this time, but how hard were some of those poses to hold?  Wow.

Edited July 3, 2014 by Haleth

[waving feather]

Out of the 6 ballroom dancers, I was only impressed by Nick and Malene. Nick was so strong and smooth and there wasn't a wrong move and Malene has maturity in her dancing that the other ballroom girls did not have.

[NextIteration]

There are different schools fo tap right?  Zack seemed so much more upright than Valerie who seems to be a looking down/forward leaner. But I've seen that before and I am not sure if it's a style or a form break. Anyone?

 

Yup, the upright style, generally speaking is the Broadway Style, the earthy into the floor style is labeled a few ways, but it is the Rhythm Style. 

[MizArk]

I still don't have any real favorite, but I'm leaning hard toward Zach. He had such an ease and a "coolness" in his dancing (as opposed to Valerie, who looked a bit more frantic) that I thought he was a pleasure to watch. Stanley has beautiful lines and is so light on his feet, Emilio radiates joy in movement, Jessica was very good (though she's still on my side-eye list, mostly because of pervy Nigel) - the rest sort of blended in for me, some looking better than others. I agree with everyone that dressing the two ballerinas alike was a major disservice to them both. I couldn't tell you which was which even now. All in all, good start to the season, I think, with the usual caveat of Shut. Up. Mary. (and get a full-length mirror, Cat -- panties should not show through "sexy" slits!)

[SistaLadybug]

As well-choreographed as the hip-hop routine was, I couldn't get into it because it was set to "Night Shift", the song written for Marvin Gaye after his father murdered him. Seemed off-putting to me to see the song's title taken so literally.

It felt disrespectful to me.  That's a song of grief and love.  It was weird and took me right out of the dance which was well done by both dancers.

[marriedaniac]

Zack is so dang adorable and is SO good.

Ricky, wow he really dance 'tall', doesn't he? LOVE him so far.

 

Results will be interesting!

[ladymon]

 

All that said, they really did a damn good job with what they were given and the enthusiasm of the judges was well deserved.  This wasn't "bad" in any way, it just wasn't as good as it might have been or what I'd hoped for, what these dancers did even with a wobble here and there takes a lot of skill, and because ballet is so technically precise, there is no hiding a wobble or missed step.

Thank you!  Crikey!  That was a very difficult routine to learn and try to perfect in such a short time.  Couple that with what I'm sure is a dreadful floor to dance on in pointe shoes, those girls deserve a bit more praise than they're getting around here!

Ricky was my favourite going into the top 20 but when he started screaming beside Cat, I found myself saying "Dial it back honey...."

[NextIteration]

It felt disrespectful to me.  That's a song of grief and love.  It was weird and took me right out of the dance which was well done by both dancers.

 

This must be a "in the eyes of the beholder" thing, because it had me thinking of Jackie and Marvin grooving to the "night shift" from heaven - I thought of it as a tribute, and true to the intent of the song.

 

Thank you!  Crikey!  That was a very difficult routine to learn and try to perfect in such a short time. 

 

You are welcome.  The other thing is this, I haven't googled Jacque yet so don't know her background, but Jourdan is most likely not dancing classical at Complexions generally speaking except for class.  It is not their style.  I'm not expecting to see, for example a star like Misty Copeland competing on this show, but I'm sure that even she wobbles from time to time. ;)

 

The rareness of actual "ballet" on this show, especially with the women en pointe, I'm thinking, is because if it is not picture perfect, you can see the mistakes, even the untrained eye - and I think they get blown out of proportion and make the audience write it off.  Humans aren't perfect, especially with five hours of choreography and a few days to perfect.

[WhineandCheez]

Musings:
1.  Emilio was great in his 8 seconds—hitting on Hispanic girls.  Was really cute.
2.  Tanesha has the worst haircut I’ve ever seen.  During rehearsals I could really see it close and it is a total hedge clipper job.  She is not attractive at all, but she makes herself appealing (hair aside) I like when a girl does that. Not all of us can look like Jessicawiththehat.
3. Valerie the tapper is perky and cute but she taps clunky and spent ½ the song looking down with her hair in her face.  Her partner (name?) was fabulous and had tons of charm, I hope he doesn’t fall to the Tap Curse, I’d like to see him in other things.
4.  Jessica has an extremely expressive face—like Melanie did
5.  Ricky was my choice for the win in the auditions.  How could he not win??  Is an 18 year old supposed to be able to grow such heavy facial hair?  It’s odd.
6.  My choice for the go—Brooklyn and Rudy (with the shaved side hair) or maybe is giggling insipid partner (Karly??)
7.  MALENA!!!!!  Closest in charm and appeal to Anya I’ve ever seen.  However, since she flubbed at NotVegas, maybe she won’t be able to deliver in the other styles.  That folks is presence!!

[luvthepros]

 

It irks me every season, but particularly this season when Nigel has claimed that the Top 20 was supposedly picked on talent, but I hate the lukewarm praise with the "But you're likable, so people will vote for you" thing they give Rudy.  

 

I'm not a fan of Rudy's non flexible, no extension contemporary. But....I have a feeling Rudy is going to WOW us in Latin Ballroom. From the glimpses I saw of him in the call back episode, he looks trained and he did say he has had 11 years of Latin Ballroom training in one of his interviews. I'll believe Nigel's claim that these contestants were cast on talent when I see how Rudy does with Latin ballroom.

 

I predict that Rudy is better than Brooklyn in Latin ballroom and she auditioned with Latin ballroom as her specialty. I read somewhere on a forum that Brooklyn has had many more years of Jazz and (I believe it was) Hip Hop training than Latin ballroom. So again...can't wait to see what Brooklyn has in store for us in those genres. I will venture to guess Nigel and Co know more than we do at this point.

 

It irks me every season, but particularly this season when Nigel has claimed that the Top 20 was supposedly picked on talent, but I hate the lukewarm praise with the "But you're likable, so people will vote for you" thing they give Rudy.  

 

I'm not a fan of Rudy's non flexible, no extension contemporary. But....I have a feeling Rudy is going to WOW us in Latin Ballroom. From the glimpses I saw of him in the call back episode, he looks trained and he did say he has had 11 years of Latin Ballroom training in one of his interviews. I'll believe Nigel's claim that these contestants were cast on talent when I see how Rudy does with Latin ballroom.

 

I predict that Rudy is better than Brooklyn in Latin ballroom and she auditioned with Latin ballroom as her specialty. I read somewhere on a forum that Brooklyn has had many more years of Jazz and (I believe it was) Hip Hop training than Latin ballroom. So again...can't wait to see what Brooklyn has in store for us in those genres. I will venture to guess Nigel and Co know more than we do at this point.

[Primetimer]

The Top 20 are finally here, and they practically kill themselves to provide a good show.

Read the story

[peachmangosteen]

Ugh I dunno. I just have SYTYCD ennui or something because I just didn't get excited for like 90% of the show, and I felt myself eye-rolling at so much.

 

Same. And I didn't even watch any of the judge's comments!

 

That being said, it was an OK ep and I am still looking forward to how they all fair in other styles. Especially since, IMO, many of them just really weren't very good in their actual styles.

Edited July 3, 2014 by peachmangosteen

[dusang]

I fast-forwarded the majority of judges comments, which tends to be the best way to watch the show for me.

 

I agree with the comments about the ballerinas -- I thought it was a miscalculation to have them dressed identically and to go so classical with the choreo and costuming.  Ballet can be done to non-classical music, you know.  Also, at least one of them staggered on some landings and they were so identical I couldn't tell who or even if it was the same person repeatedly or both of them.

 

The Ricky/Jessica piece was really lovely.  I liked that Sonya reversed some of the poses to have Jessica be the balanced support and Ricky be the contorted display, if you know what I mean and I hope you do.

 

I'm not sure how I felt about the hip hop.  It was cool but a little too lyrical for me as an intro to hip hop dancers.  Although Teddy and Emilio killed their intros.  Terribly cheesey but also charmingly memorable.  Emilio giving his phone number out like that redefines swag, IMHO.

[ElectricBoogaloo]

I do not plan to vote this season because even though I have a FaceBook account I have no interest in using it for anything but keeping in touch with my friends. I don't log into any other websites using FB [/old person]. But the best thing about this new Fox app is that we will not have to watch the dancers hold up fingers for their corresponding phone number every week!

 

As soon as the first dance of the episode started, I thought wow, only a minute into the episode and I already want to murder the camera people and the editors. Gawd, PLEASE STOP with that choppy editing and the zooming in and the zooming out and the spinning!.

 

I don't like Jason Derulo for many reasons, chief among them that I don't like his songs and I hate the way he insists on singing his name at the beginning of his songs. Despite this, I thought fine, he's a new celebrity judge so I'll give him a chance. Maybe he will surprise me and offer interesting comments. Nope. But he interacted with Cat so he gets points for that. And the poor guy had to deal with sitting next to Mary and he took that in stride.

 

Although he didn't have much to add in terms of constructive criticism, he seemed more engaged with everyone (Cat, the dancers, the audience) than most guest judges. You can tell he's a performer, but he also seems like an affable guy. And I give him credit for singing live on the show (which sounds like faint praise but so many people lip sync now that it's worth noting when someone bothers to sing live) while dancing without huffing and puffing. Plus anyone who gets Snoop to show up gets a high five in my book.

 

So how much did this episode affect casting? Did the producers deliberately choose two ballerinas and two tappers so they could have this pair format for the first live show?

 

Serge was great in the cha cha but I wa not impressed with Brooklyn at all. I expected a lot more from her. She didn't look any better than some of the non-ballroom dancers doing ballroom we have seen in the past.

 

Why does Nigel have to tell these long pointless meandering stories just to say he liked a routine? Who the hell cares about the unnamed educators he recently met with or the kids he saw dance (because duh, we didn't get to see them so he could have been talking about any random people)? He really is like the old uncle/grandpa who spends ten minutes boring you with a rambling story just to answer a yes or no question. I'd gladly cut all of his stories/comments and have more dancing.

 

I also hate when he says stupid shit like, "I really like that John Legend track and I'm sure that John Legend would be really happy to see that Travis choreographed a beautiful routine." Really? You know John Legend well enough to make an assumption about what would make him happy? He just loves complimenting the show by projecting his feelings onto other people. Same thing when he pats himself and the show on the back. While I agree that it's nice to see SYTYCD alumni come back to choreograph, he's really just saying, "Look at what a genius I am that I finally figured out that we can keep promoting our past dancers by bringing them back and giving them more publicity!"

 

And must Nigel say EVERY season that this is the best top 20 ever? His hyperbole drives me insane! I also hate when he says patronizing shit like, "I think it's really important that America understands this is another level entirely that we have just witnessed here." Once again he gets to interpret what other people mean. So the audience was quiet because they were in awe! Nigel said so!

 

I want to hear more about Emily starting her own business. I mean, there's a difference between selling upcycled leotards on etsy versus actually running a company. Casey lives in Seattle but hates rain? Time to move, kid! I'm not a fan of Travis's choreography and this was no exception. I dislike literal choreography (like the hand over the mouth during the lyrics about the mouth, kicking the other dancer during the lyrics about being kicked out), the run into a jump onto the back, the center splits on top of the other person. .

 

I don't love tap but I love that Valerie and Zack got to tap together because you know they won't get to show off their tap skills again this season unless they have to dance for their lives. I find tap duets/group routines more entertaining than tap solos, and I loved that they used the stairs as a prop. I liked that Jason Derulo said he was a tapper and pointed out how difficult it is to tap on the stairs.

 

Bridget's 8 seconds were really boring. She likes peacocks? Great. Stanley's 8 seconds were more interesting. So far I like Bonnie Story's choreography. Let's have her back, but don't burn her out by having her choreograph too much for the show. I was more impressed with Stanley but Bridget danced well too. They were synchronized really well in the side by side pirouettes.

 

Hee, LOVE that Marat was so old school with his corrections during ballet rehearsals. While I appreciate the cameras mostly staying zoomed out enough so we got both girls from their head to their toes during their performance, I did not need the cameras to zoom out so far that I could see 20 feet above the stage and half of the audience. These girls are in IDENTICAL costumes so how are we supposed to know which one is which (and hence, who to vote for) if the camera is so far away that we can't tell them apart? I feel like the show didn't care because they want one of them to be cannon fodder now that they've gotten this pas de deux on the show.  You can't do a fouetté section en pointe like that if you aren't decently trained. They each had one really noticeable mistake, but whatever. I predict Jacque will be the one to go home next week because we didn't see her at all during the auditions or in Not Vegas. Unless the entire state of Iowa votes for her, I think we've seen the last of her, which is unfortunate because I always root for the ballet contestants.

 

Maybe I am 100 percent wrong here, but my impression is that the very very best up and coming young ballet dancers are not as likely to audition for this show, because there is pretty much one desired professional outcome for an up and coming ballet star - and that is to make it as a dancer in one of the few top ballet companies in the world, and this show is not going to really contribute to getting there, is it?

For the most part, yes, a talented ballet dancer who wants a professional career with a ballet company is not going to be auditioning for this show. Serious ballet dancers would be auditioning to become apprentices or to join the corps at 17, 18, 19 (which is where Jacque is right now). Jourdan, on the other hand, is 24 and already has an established and successful career so she may be doing this for the fame and the money (which is not necessarily a bad thing since most professional dancers don't make a ton of money). The publicity and recognition she can get from being on this show could allow her to become a more mainstream and commercial dancer. Most ballet companies end their regular seasons in the spring and then do tours in the summer, so she has the time to do SYTYCD without having to break her existing contract.

 

Ha, I hope Malene was exaggerating when she said she eats two pounds of chocolate a day! I like her and Marcquet (even though I know that I am going to have to double check the spelling of his name every time I type it this season). They both have fun personalities and their samba was really entertaining. I know Mary mentioned that Marcquet had a terrible jive in Vegas but didn't Malene do poorly in one of the rounds too?

 

Carly's 8 seconds was not interesting at all. She used to wear a t-shirt everywhere? Wow, that's fascinating! Everyone knows that they have to do these 8 second interviews every season so why don't these kids come up with like three interesting things about themselves ahead of time? I agree that most of the girls seem to talk a lot faster during their 8 seconds but many of them don't have anything interesting to say. I'd rather you tell me two interesting things about yourself slowly than speedtalk through a bunch of boring things.

 

Rudy seems like an overeager puppy to me, and so far he's amusing (he tells people he was bitten by a shark and he's a Cuban redneck, hee!). Hopefully his goofiness doesn't get out of control as the season goes on. He reigned it in during their performance though, which reminded me of Allison and Ivan goofing off in rehearsal footage and then killing Why. I agree that his technique isn't as good, he still powered through that triple pirouette. It wasn't as clean as Carly's but he got it around three times. I don't want to sound like a Rudy apologist because I loathe when the judges justify inferior technique with likability and personality. Of course I like likeable people but by the same token, this is not So You Think You Can Be a Nice Guy.

 

Emilio gets a high five for counting down before pressing that button on the timer. Notice how both Emilio and Teddy took their time during their 8 seconds yet still managed to convey specific information and be interesting! I don't usually like when songs are used in the most literal sense for their lyrics (see: Glee) and I really hate when songs get edited so much, but I really loved the smooth choreography and the music was used well.

 

Man, Nigel really decided to double down on pimping Jessica and Ricky by putting them together. Way to be subtle. I know how disorienting a head bonk can be, so she briefly had my sympathy. Wow, did Sonya go take some dance classes somewhere new? I knew that the opening number was by Sonya because it looked like her. But the routine she did for Jessica and Ricky was unlike anything I've seen her choreograph before. It was really lovely. She even told them to point their feet instead of flexing them all the time! And there was no upside down bicycling lift! How am I supposed to recognize a Sonya routine without her hallmarks? I kid, I kid!

 

Of course, I forgot all that once Nigel started blathering again. First he had to tell America how important this routine was. Then he had to talk about how glad he was that he created the show so that we could see this routine. Then the usual hyperbole because this is one of the best routines he has ever seen. I laughed when Cat tried to throw it to Mary and Nigel just kept on blathering.

 

Once Mary was allowed to speak, she picked up right where Nigel left off. EVERY SINGLE PERSON was touched by that routine because she speaks for the collective human race. And anyone who didn't feel connected to that routine, there's something wrong with them. Thanks for being so judgmental! It really annoys me that Nigel and Mary insist on projecting their feelings about dancers and routines onto everyone else who is watching. Why can't they just say "I felt this way"? That's what Jason Derulo did and it made me like him a lot more than Mary and Nigel. Although I liked this routine, I didn't think it deserved that tongue bath. One of the best routines EVER? Not in my opinion, but since I'm not Nigel or Mary I'm not allowed to say that's how MILLIONS OF PEOPLE feel.

 

Tanisha has 26 nieces and nephews and 11 brothers and sisters - yikes! I love that Nick loves his dog and thinks he has the best dog ever. Their cha cha was fun to watch. Between that routine and the samba, I have come to realize that the reason I usually don't enjoy ballroom on this show and DWTS is that one (or both) of the dancers are struggling or uncomfortable. When both dancers are comfortable and competent, it makes a world of difference.

[Bdwyre]

Like everyone else most of the girls just blend together for me except for Jessica and the blonde girl with the unfortunate haircut.

 

My favs from the auditions were Ricky and Marquette and I still believe that they have the talent, stage presence and personality to make it to the final four.

 

The praise for the Jessica/Ricky routine was ridiculous.  It was good - no doubt.  But "the best". C'mon, Nigel.  We are not stupid.  That routine doesn't even make it  to the top ten best routines on the show.  And speaking of Ricky....he sort of reminds me of Mark, who was one of my favorite dancers EVER.   Ricky has that same quirky personality and the way he moves sometimes takes me back to Season 4 and my sweet Mark.

 

Hated the group routine. HATED IT.

 

And Stanley!  Stanley, Stanley, Stanley.  He was freaking amazing.  Had no idea who he was when he first popped up on my screen but was impressed with everything he did.

 

Who will be out next week?  One of the ballerinas for sure and maybe Casey - something a little cheesy about him.

[inmyeyes]

I wish this was a showcase Top 20 show as in previous years, cos this one felt kinda blah in general even with everyone dancing in their genre

 

Random thoughts:

1. The contemporary girls, except for Jessica (who is Jazz, yes?) all blurred together. Competent but not outstanding. 

 

2. I actually really loved the Stacey Tookie routine; I thought it was beautifully choreographed. But execution-wise, it didn't have the abandon and/or attack that I thought it needed. Rudy and Carly's dancing felt tentative to me and they didn't quite feel/fill the music and that made it lack the wow factor. Rudy's claw-like hands also bothered me. That said, it was still better imo than the other two utterly forgettable contemporary routines. Ricky and Jessica, on the other hand, did a fantastic job with theirs. Hated the tongue-bath by the judges but that was really gorgeous. (Also, I covet Sonya's blue-purple hair.)

 

3. Loved Malene/Marcquet, who were imo easily the best ballroom couple of the night. Loved Serge, but Brooklyn didn't do so well. Her footwork could've been sharper and something about her execution felt a little awkward to me. Nick/Tanisha felt frantic, and not in a good way. 

 

4. Lovelove Zach. He dances so effortlessly and has real charm when he performs. Valerie didn't have the same quality of movement as him, I thought. And re: Valerie looking hunched/bending forward a lot, I noticed that too and prefer the more "upright" style of tapping. They're both adorable though. 

 

5. Chris Scott can still be hit or miss when it comes to duets but this one I'll put in the Hit column. Thought it was a good showcase of both of the guys and their intro cracked me up so bad. I'm rooting for the both of them!

 

6. Ballet. MEH. After the likes of Chehon, Alex, Eliana... this didn't stand up well. 

[luvthepros]

Watching them race up and down the stairs while trying to smile and tap-dance didn't do much for me.

James Cagney made it work when he descended from the White House staircase in "Yankee Doodle Dandy". That is one of the best tap moments in history, IMHO. As for classic tap duet numbers, my favorite will always be Gene Kelly and Donald O'Connor in the Moses Supposes routine in "Singing in the Rain". Yes, I also like the classic old timey tap much better than the modern tap style which is much heavier.

Edited July 3, 2014 by luvthepros

[beeble]

Are four people going home next week or just two? I hate the clearing house weeks. Four people when we have barely gotten to know them? WTF? 

I may be wrong, of course...

 

I would love it if the show did some sort of "catching up" with previous dancers to see who is working where.

[bosawks]

Did Mary's breasts decide to take the night off?

[Alison]

There are different schools fo tap right?  Zack seemed so much more upright than Valerie who seems to be a looking down/forward leaner. But I've seen that before and I am not sure if it's a style or a form break. Anyone?

Not necessarily different schools, but definitely different styles; you've got more of the old school Gene Kelly dancing and the looser style of a Savion Glover. Personally, I'm not a fan of the forward leaning, floppy torso style that Valerie seems to have learned; I get that the attention is supposed to be on the tapping feet, but I feel that dance should take the whole body into consideration. (Maybe that's my 10 years of ballet classes showing!)

Not disagreeing that there were some technical mishaps with the ballet dancers, but I'm wondering if maybe it was the stage? A surface with even the slightest slickness could have made them tentative, even with rosin on their shoes. It was a disappointing showing for ballet, though, given the pedigree of the choreographer.

[tvloserlife]

I agree with everyone who found the episode overall to be underwhelming.  And I was so excited going into it too.

 

Most of the contemporary routines just blended to me, but then Ricky and Jessica danced and it just left me breathless.  And then the judges started talking and suddenly I was like, okay yes it was great but not THAT great.  So good work Nigel for diminishing the routine for me.

 

That tap number was amazing specifically because of Zach.  I really do not like the rhythm style tapping that Valerie and so many tap dancers on the show seem to have, and the only tap dancer I've really liked was Everett from SYTYCD Canada (yes Aaron was great overall but specifically as a tapper I thought he was fine, not outstanding).  Zach definitely has a captivating stage presence when he dances and I didn't want the routine to end.

 

I always get excited about ballet but I really could not tell the two girls apart, and actually wasn't even sure if it was the same girl making mistakes or if they were both making mistakes and I just couldn't tell them apart.

 

And I think the hip hop was danced really well but I am personally a fan of hard hitting hip hop like Shane Sparks and Luther Brown, so this particular routine was just okay for me.  It also doesn't help that the show is so contemporary heavy as it is that when they also do lyrical hip hop it just feels like more of the same.

 

Absolutely adore the ballroom boys, particularly Marquet and Nick!  I can't wait to see more from them!  I am definitely planning on rewatching that samba.  The girls I don't remember as much, except that Brooklyn's limbs seemed too long for ballroom - that or she wasn't carrying her arms properly; it just seemed like she had limbs swinging all over the place.

 

I have no love for Rudy.  I wish they had cast Silky instead.

 

ETA: I have decided I would love Jessica a lot more if she just never spoke.  She believes in mermaids?  Really?

Edited July 3, 2014 by tvloserlife

[luvthepros]

  Her partner (Zack) was fabulous and had tons of charm, I hope he doesn’t fall to the Tap Curse, I’d like to see him in other things.

 

If I recall correctly, Zack really impressed Nigel in the Jazz round in the call backs. In fact, he told Zack he was the stand out of the group.

Edited July 3, 2014 by luvthepros

[Canada]

Did I hear Nigel right when he said that 4 people are going home next week?  Seems like a lot!

 

So disappointed in the hip hop.  I love the really great hip hop routines and that just looked like the opening to a really bad porn.  What a letdown!

 

Tapper girl really needs to wear a bra/get a better fitting bra.  That's all I have to say about that.

 

I loved the ballet.  I have no idea if it was technically any good or not, it looked beautiful to me!

 

Too much flaily, running contemporary.  Ugh.  The only one that vaguely stood out to me and I quite enjoyed was Stanley and Bridget.  Otherwise.... blah!

 

Surprisingly unimpressed by the ballroom.  They all seemed really good in auditions, but didn't really do it for me tonight.  Except Brooklyn and Serge, they were pretty good.

[ElectricBoogaloo]

Did I hear Nigel right when he said that 4 people are going home next week? Seems like a lot!

Jason said there would be four people going home next week but Nigel said two people a few minutes later.

[Canada]

Thank you!  I didn't want to lose 4 already.

[Alison]

If I recall correctly, Zach really impressed Nigel in the Jazz round in the call backs. In fact, he told Zach he was the stand out of the group.

Zach stood out to me throughout all the Not-Vegas rounds; he seems to be a very versatile dancer and I'm eager to see what style he has next week, and who his partner will be.

[Haleth]

Monty's review reminded me of the fantastic opening from last season. Wish they would have done something fun like that instead of the boring opening number from last night.

Edited July 3, 2014 by Haleth

[damnman]

Stanley, I could NOT take my eyes off him while he was dancing, absolutely beautiful to watch!  Felt sorry for the ballet, it just didn't seem very good. I do not have a dance background, never took a class in my life, just enjoy watching beautiful (in my opinion) dancing/dancers.

[realdancemom]

Thank you!  Crikey!  That was a very difficult routine to learn and try to perfect in such a short time.  Couple that with what I'm sure is a dreadful floor to dance on in pointe shoes, those girls deserve a bit more praise than they're getting around here!

Didn't know much about Jacque but Jourdan was one of my favorite girls after auditions and Not Vegas week.  I was disappointed because Jourdan did fall out of her pointe several times.  But then I looked at the floor and thought, "That looks really shiny and slippery."  If they're going to make these women dance pointe, they should at least put marley on the floor.  Nigel was also wrong with his critique.  Jacque was doing a Russian style attitude so it was correct.  Jacque might go home because she wasn't shown much.  I bet both of them have better contemporary technique than some of the other girls.

[Percysowner]

I will say that I don't blame Nigel for saying this is the best group of dancers we have ever had every single year. The show has been wobbly in the rating for some time, as evidenced by being cut back to one night a week and having running fewer weeks this season. Saying we have a good group here but it really isn't as strong as [insert season here] is not going to make people want to watch. It's also why I don't get too upset when really good routines get labeled the best ever every single year. Nigel is pervy and has some stereotypical ideas about how certain people should dance (see any black male who is good in street dances becomes an untrained dancer no matter how many years they have actually trained i.e. Joshua and FikShun), but he is passionate about keeping this show on the air. Since it is really completely unique, I'll give him and Mary a pass on the puffery. I will complain about the perving and other Nigel ickieness, but working to keep the show on by over praising doesn't bother me.

[ThirteenthJuror]

I knew from the opening number that this would not be one of my favorite seasons or cast. No one and I mean no one, stood out in that group number. You can blame it on Sonya and the lackluster choreography, but sometimes the dancers have to elevate a piece. None of them did.

 

Favorite routine was Ricky and Jessica. Although, I could have gone the rest of the season w/o hearing Nigel's timed-perfect tongue bath after the dance. I think Ricky hits the most beautiful poses and has intent behind his movement that draws my eye to him. I always knew Jessica was pretty good too. I'm glad she got to show a different aspect to her dancing, so this dance helped her. I don't think she' going to be as popular as people assume she will be though. Girls like her never are on this show.

 

The tap routine was just ok for me. I think there needs to be distinction made between the confusion of Valerie doing a particular style. It was more to do with bad technique. Her tapping is very elementary. When I think of classic tap, I think of the Nicholas brothers. Especially, when it comes to awe inspiring routines that make you go wow after they're done. They had a very famous step routine which I think this one was trying to pay homage to. Zack is the much better of the two. I don't know how long Valerie has been tapping, but her technique just isn't good.

 

The Hip Hop routine was just blah. I'm tired of the watered down Hip Hop on this show. Chris Scott usually does his best routines when he has two qualified dancers that can do more intricate choreography. Then we get this. Not impressed. I'm also not impressed with Teddy as a Hip Hop dancer in general. Hopefully, that changes as the season goes along because I think the genre is going to suffer with this cast.

 

My favorite ballroom routine was Malene and Marcquet. They looked like the  professionals they are. The stars aligned for them. Great technique, showmanship and routine. On the flip side I hated, hated, Brooklyn and Serge's dance. I'm not overly impressed with Serge as I see everyone else on the internet is, but he was definitely saddled with Brooklyn. Whom I think probably has the worst technique for her specialty I've ever witnessed on this show. This was the "best" Nigel? I don't care how good she did in the other genres during callbacks. If you can't master your own genre you auditioned in, then you're not the best.

 

On that same note; not overly impressed with Tanisha either. I know she's cross-trained and it shows. It's watering down her Latin technique. I've babbled on like the judges panel, so quickly. The ballerinas weren't that bad to me. I think they did good for what they had to do. They're not memorable enough though and that's what will land one of them or both in the bottom. I think Malene might be there as well. Only because mature, ballroom dancers like her never fare well on this show.

 

Overall, I'm not that invested in who goes home from this group. That hasn't happened in a long time. I do have those I like more than the rest (Ricky, Jessica, Malene, Marcquet, Stanley), but not enough to inspire me to vote.

[Kat]

I guess I'm in the minority, except for Monty, but I love Casey. My two other favorite guys are Stanley and Zach. None of the girls are standouts yet for me, but I'm sure some favorites will emerge in the weeks to come.

 

I also agree that while Nick and Jessica were good, their routine was over-praised. But guys, I'm just so happy to have SYTYCD back on my tv every week! 

[ElleTwoThree]

I always have weird feelings about the ballet dancers. I always just feel like it is safe to assume they probably are not great. I am not a ballet expert. Is that unfair?

 

As a ballerina who auditioned for this show I don't think you are completely wrong or unfair. But also not completely right, I'd say. I personally was never ABC or RBC material (I am way too lazy for that!) but was good enough to get into a good dance program at a well enough known school with a well known associated company, so I was on my way to be a company dancer. I am not crazy good though, so the chances of me being a prima were always slim. Maybe if I worked my ass off and really lived and breathed ballet the way a lot of my classmates did, I could have, never say never, but I found that life a bit... monotonous. So like a lot of people in my school I dabbled in other stuff, started to take more contemporary/modern dance than was originally on my plan, etc... losing focus on ballet also meant diminishing my chances at a company place. Which at 19 sounded fine. Dance is such a random bag, I mean nobody guarantees a job in anything, but I wanted less of the stuffy ballet and more fun (which in my mind was a Broadway show for example).

I auditioned in that phase basically (a few years on, but yeah... that phase), wanting more from dance but not knowing where to go with it. I wasn't expecting to get in, I just wanted the experience of such a big production (and in retrospect I wanted some validation which you do get if you are an ok dancer, as each passed stage makes you feel "worthy" as a dancer).

I think ballet is a tough field to stick to, even when you are good, because it is rigid. I remember Alex Wong's interview and he was saying exactly that. He was dancing for some good company (Florida?) at the time, but he wanted more. I think Danny, Chehon - they must have felt similar. And I don't think they are bad or mediocre even, I think they are accomplished dancers. How good was I when I auditioned? I don't know. Probably in my dance prime as I was receiving so many lessons, was still doing a lot of pointe work (which I gave up at some point) and was dancing all day every day. Was I great when measured to someone who was dancing at a good company level? Probably not. However I did get steady dance jobs for years after that audition, which means I cannot have been that bad.

So in essence, yes, the ballerinas on this show are probably not girls destined to be primas at world renowned companies, but don't necessarily have to be the black sheep of the ballet world!

 

Disclaimer: I haven't seen the episode yet, justwanted to put my 2 cents in.

[Lila82]

Emilio and Teddy were one hip thrust away from a full on striptease.  The outfits, the eyebrows, the cocky grins...the joke practically wrote itself.

 

Really appreciated the diversity in the contemporary dances.  Lots of forklifting from Travis, but the female choreographers took advantage of their male dancers' training.  I much prefer them showing their lines and technique than hoisting up ladies doing the splits.  Also appreciated that the contemporary and the jazz dancers connected so well with the music.  Not everyone can be Allison, but all eight dancers held their own.

 

Tap is mind numbing.  

Edited July 3, 2014 by Lila82

[Gardencrown]

On that same note; not overly impressed with Tanisha either. I know she's cross-trained and it shows. It's watering down her Latin technique. I've babbled on like the judges panel, so quickly. The ballerinas weren't that bad to me. I think they did good for what they had to do. They're not memorable enough though and that's what will land one of them or both in the bottom. I think Malene might be there as well. Only because mature, ballroom dancers like her never fare well on this show.

 

I agree with all of this -- especially about Tanisha. Her cross-training does show, but its to the detriment of her ballroom imo.

 

Ah the ballerinas. I could tell them apart pretty much, but my eye kept going from one to the other as I said, "Oh she messed that up," and then, "Oh she messed that up." I went back and forth thinking one was doing better, but ended up feeling like neither did all that great. Previous points made about the floor should definitely be noted, though, as dancing en pointe on slippery floor -- gah! But it's so bad for those girls. Jackie was never ever even seen before the top 20, and Jourdan did nothing to distinguish herself in that routine. 2 dark haired-girls, 2 black tutus, 2 names beginning with J, 2 dancers who made visible mistakes. Boy the Russian ballet master looked unhappy, but really, I think it was all just a terrible mismatch -- other choreographers made an effort to show the dancers off to good effect, so this situation seemed pretty egregious.  Something a bit...I don't know, softer? to show off their technique and different costuming would have helped.

 

I feel sorry for Brooklyn if she did indeed have a major costume failure, as some have said. But I don't think going first bodes well for her and Sweaty!Serge.

 

Really, the first set of votes for this show are always such a crap shoot because it's hard to say who the audience will like or not. For instance, I thought Paul was kinda blah in last year's first performance, but clearly lots of people loved him, when I would have voted him first out. And turns out I would have been wrong as he went on to have great dances. I can see the point that Malena might not take off. And Jessica? I can see Ricky being safe but her not. Right now Emily and Carly are literally the same person in my mind -- I don't know that I could tell them apart if they were standing in the room with me, though they both seemed to do well.

 

Liked Stanley -- such gorgeous lines and of course, Ricky. Liked Marcquet. Malena. I'm so so on everyone else. Two things though: I think this is a guys' season no doubt, and Rudy really reeeeeeally gets on my nerves. But I suspect Ameriker will love him.

[NextIteration]

When I think of classic tap, I think of the Nicholas brothers. Especially, when it comes to awe inspiring routines that make you go wow after they're done. They had a very famous step routine which I think this one was trying to pay homage to. Zack is the much better of the two. I don't know how long Valerie has been tapping, but her technique just isn't good.

 

Were you thinking of this scene?

[ThirteenthJuror]

That's exactly the scene I was referring to! Thanks for that, Nextlteration.

[Woodrose]

Chris Scott's National Dance Day routine is choreographed to Mark Ballas's song "Get My Name." So cool to see the SYTYCD and DWTS pros supporting each other in all their endeavors.

 

It's also great to see Jasmine, one of my favorite dancers from last season, in the Degree commercial.  I hope she made some big bucks with that.

 

Emmy-nominated choreographer Dmitry Chaplin was not even mentioned during the judges review of Serge and Brooklyn's cha-cha.  Sigh.  I was irritated on Dmitry's behalf.  Of course, they later fawned all over Travis.....

 

I'm looking forward to seeing Marquet as a pro on DWTS (it seems inevitable).  Those legs!  Those hips!  I smiled all the way through his samba with Marlene.  He also seems like a nice, funny guy.  Hope he can teach and choreograph.

 

Loved the hip-hop by Emilio and Teddy. They are gooood.  Really intricate moves and a fun style. 

[Blue Plastic]

I might be wrong about this, but it didn't seem to me that anyone was shoved under a bus tonight.  Usually from the very first show there seems to be someone the judges pick on and tear down, but not this time.  Of course I wasn't paying really close attention so please correct me if I missed something.

I thought Mary threw Marquet under the bus a little with her "terrible jive" comment, which wasn't fair since we the audience didn't even get to see that jive so it's bringing up things that the audience doesn't know about.  I was kind of wondering why she did that.  Does she really think he's no good?  It's hard to know because sometimes the judges will give a dancer a tongue bath one week and then the next week if that dancer lands in the bottom, they will tell that same dancer that they suck and are being kicked off the show.

    The first ballroom girl had some kind of wardrobe malfunction I think.

What the heck was that white thing sticking out in the back?  I kept hoping it wasn't a pad or tampon...

   

Not that bad of a show, but other than Jessica, all the contemporary girls melded together. I wasn't blown away by the ballroom ladies either, but at least I know who is who. Was surprisingly disappointed by the ballet and don't know Which one was which. And I don't know too much about tap, but Valerie did not impress me. She looked off balance, a bit heavy and seemed to be leaning forward a lot of the time ( bad posture?).

 

Did Emilio miss a trick toward the end of the routine? It looked like he slipped off the table when he was trying to do a trick to get on it.

 

This is coming from someone who knows nothing about dance, but Valerie always seems to be leaning forward and sticking her butt out.  And she seems to like to turn her back to the audience a lot, which just accentuates the butt sticking out.  It's really beginning to annoy me now.

I thought Emilio looked awkward every time he went back over to the desk.  Nothing ever seemed to happen whenever he went to the desk.  I liked the taller guy better, but it's spooky how much he looks like David Bowie.

 

Why do all the contemporary choreographers have such an obsession about creating a "story" in which the couple is arguing and on the verge of breaking up?  Boring!  Please no more couples breaking up OR dead/dying characters.

 

Speaking of dead...  I was kind of surprised Bridget didn't insert her dead dad into her 8-second spiel!  I fully expected the first words out of her mouth would be "My dad died when I was 12!" even though it was supposed to be things that no one knew about them.  I hope the show doesn't give her any more opportunities to bring that up.  I don't care for the 8-second thing anyway because I can't understand a darn thing they're saying when they have to talk that fast.

[tricksterson]

The cha cha and samba were my favorites, both were seriously sexy and hot.  Ballet was the weakest and I think Jaquie is most likely to go home.  I don't normally associate "Night Shift with hip hop because it's ,you know, actual music but it and the choreography suited each other perfectly.  Loved Jessica, Malena and Brooklyn.  Emilio is definitely the most irritating of them all.  Is he playing into the Puerto Rican stereotype deliberately or does he just naturally fall into it?

 

Didn't notice either Cat's undies or Brooklyn's malfunction.  My Dirty Old Man powers must be slipping.

Edited July 3, 2014 by tricksterson

[kechara]

Did anyone get a Scott Baio vibe from Emilio?  Just me then?

[shimarella]

James Cagney made it work when he descended from the White House staircase in "Yankee Doodle Dandy". That is one of the best tap moments in history, IMHO. As for classic tap duet numbers, my favorite will always be Gene Kelly and Donald O'Connor in the Moses Supposes routine in "Singing in the Rain". Yes, I also like the classic old timey tap much better than the modern tap style which is much heavier.

Oh I agree with you there! Duets like those were running ( tapping ) through my head in unflattering comparison to Zack and Val on the staircase. Sometimes those set/prop "challenges" work but often I find them an impediment to the dance on this show. 

[OakGoblinFly]

I thought the show was okay; nothing really grabbed me yet there were no total disasters. 

 

And still the show can’t figure out how to film the routines; half the time the camera operators were focused on one person so I couldn’t see what his/her partner was doing ….. errr, arrrgh.

 

I did NOT like that opening routine.

 

I got a small chuckle when Travis Wall and Anna Strong both described their routines with nearly the same exact words.  All four contemporaries blended together for me – and why must contemporary be so drama/angst driven?  Why can’t they ever create a contemporary about joyful things?  That being said, I thought Sonya’s routine was the best of the four.

 

I did feel sorry for the two ballerinas as it looked like they were struggling with the floor; it appeared that they slipped once or twice during the routine.  Still it was nice to see pointe work on the show.

 

I really liked the tap routine and for the first time I saw Valerie’s appeal; I thought she glowed in that routine.  Zach was pretty great too.  That was one of two routines that made me smile.

 

The second routine that made me smile was the hip hop with Teddy and Emilio.

 

I liked Marlene in the Samba but not Marcquet; there’s something that I find very distracting and unpleasant about his dancing.  I think I would have preferred Marlene to dance with Serge.

 

Serge was a good strong partner, too bad he was stuck with Brooklyn.

 

I was not impressed with Nick (despite how fast his feet move) or Tanisha (who still looks like a little girl playing dress-up).

[ari333]

Jason, the guest judge, mentioned "Jordan" his gf. Sparks? I thought she won AI at 17 and married (someone else) at 20. She's 24 now and divorced?  Am I confused and a fart fossil?

 

I totally love the ballroom folks this year. I'm usually a huge tapper fan, but that step thing didn't move me. I do realize that it was not at all easy, but it lacked something for me.

 

Agreed. They could have given the ballerinas different colored costumes. Sheesh

[GeorgieNY]

 

This is coming from someone who knows nothing about dance, but Valerie always seems to be leaning forward and sticking her butt out.  And she seems to like to turn her back to the audience a lot, which just accentuates the butt sticking out.  It's really beginning to annoy me now.

 

Speaking of dead...  I was kind of surprised Bridget didn't insert her dead dad into her 8-second spiel!  I fully expected the first words out of her mouth would be "My dad died when I was 12!" even though it was supposed to be things that no one knew about them.  I hope the show doesn't give her any more opportunities to bring that up.  I don't care for the 8-second thing anyway because I can't understand a darn thing they're saying when they have to talk that fast.

Valerie is doing the rhythm tap style in which that is the posture (discussed up thread) and I don't think she would turn her back unless choreographed to do so, but could be wrong about that. I enjoy her, but I would also like to see a more upright tap style from her. That tap routine was pretty difficult!

As for Bridgit and her dead dad- I really think it was the producers that encouraged her to constantly talk about it, and I feel kind of bad for her of that was the case- it made her memorable, but also made many dislike her. I don't know if remembering her is better than someone like Carly or Emily who we didn't see in auditions at all (or if we did, I don't remember!)

[chocolatine]

I don't know if remembering her is better than someone like Carly or Emily who we didn't see in auditions at all (or if we did, I don't remember!)

 

 

We did see Emily. She had the opposite of a sob story - she talked about how grateful she was that her parents paid all her college costs as well as all her dance training over the years. I think she also mentioned that it was her third time auditioning.

[Skittl1321]

 

Valerie is doing the rhythm tap style in which that is the posture

 

But if they are dancing together, shouldn't they be doing the same style? The one the choreographer uses?

 

(For instance, in ballet there are different styles. Because of the choreographer, I would expect the girl to use a Russian style of ballet in the pas de deux they performed, not an Italian or American style.)

[Kat]

 

2 dark haired-girls, 2 black tutus, 2 names beginning with J, 2 dancers who made visible mistakes. Boy the Russian ballet master looked unhappy, but really, I think it was all just a terrible mismatch -- other choreographers made an effort to show the dancers off to good effect, so this situation seemed pretty egregious.  Something a bit...I don't know, softer? to show off their technique and different costuming would have helped.

You nailed my feelings completely, gardencrown. I felt obligated to throw these girls some votes only because I felt like they got a raw deal. Jordan's audition was in my top 5 fave audition solos of all time. She has talent for days and I think she deserves to show it off.