So You Think You Can Dance Canada - Toronto's Best Foot Forward

Auditions - Toronto, ON - Ep. 101 - Series Premiere
Judges in Toronto: Mary Murphy, Luther Brown, Tre Armstrong

It's HERE! And in my hometown!

It's the first episode of So You Think You Can Dance Canada so not only are we judging the dancers, we're judging the judges and the show itself. Can our Canadian version live up to the amazing US version? Let's hope! (How Canadian of us to worry if it's as good as the US version).

Canadian host Leah Miller is okay but she's sadly not Cat Deeley, but then again, who is?

Mary Murphy came up to help with the proceedings and joins Luther Brown and the extremely well spoken Tre Armstrong at the judges table and I'm not sure if Mary was being extremely polite as a visitor to our country, but seems like she loved EVERYONE and sometimes it felt like Tre let people through because Mary loved them. There was a lot of Mary screams but she seemed more subdued and taking over the Nigel role with more critical speak than her usual self.

Then again, were the auditions rigged to ONLY show the good people? Or did only good dancers try out (which again, seems much more Canadian of us, only showing off when we are sure that it's good enough.)? Because after this first episode, almost EVERYONE was good and we only got two wincingly bad auditions ("Jaguar" and Marcel the Zorro dude). Apparently we CAN dance!

So how different was the Canadian version? Other than the fact that almost all the dancers rocked it (which CTV might have skewed to put our best dancing feet forward and to prove that the Canadian edition might actually have the talent to back itself up), even the dancers that DIDN'T make it through to the finals all seemed to take it extremely politely with a humble "thank you". No drama or hysterics. Again, are we more self-aware and less delusional about our talents? Or was it just clever editing? I actually didn't miss the drama or hysterics because there's enough drama within the auditions themselves. The bad dancers were funny in the first US season, but as my complaints for the auditions portions since, they are just boring and tiresome now.

So from audition to audition, the dancers just wowed me and the judges, and with just too many to list individually (recap here), but here are a few of my notes:

There are also far more Asians trying out in Toronto than in a typical American city so that's a plus!

That gymnast guy Graeme Goodhall (above) was far better than I would have thought. Between the intro where he's jumping from building to building, I expected his dancing to be horrendous, but instead he was pretty darn good with a good feel for the music. Still needs a lot of guidance but with some good direction and practice, he can probably overcome some of the clunkier transitions. (Video here (not sure if it can be seen outside Canada, someone let me know)).

Jessi Catibog (above) was one of many hip hop/breakers that impressed me, though my friend still thinks the Americans are better at it.


Matt Owen (above) was almost TOO artistic for this show, so I was worried the judges would dismiss him but thankfully they kept him through. Maybe it was because of the blood on his chin from that JUMP! How good did that look on TV? (Video here)


(Natalli Reznik Video here)

How cute was Tamina Pollack Paris? (Video here)


So Sunday's episode will send us to the Vancouver and Halifax auditions, but I'll be back next Thursday with both Sunday and Wednesdays episode.

For More So You Think You Can Dance:
Check here for the most Recent current postings and Latest News on SYTYCD

For more on So You Think You Can Dance Canada:

For More So You Think You Can Dance:
Check here for the most Recent current postings and Latest News on SYTYCD

For more on So You Think You Can Dance Canada:

Top 12 Performances, Results 12 to 10
Top 14 Performances, Results 14 to 12
Top 16 Performances, Results 16 to 14
Top 18 Performances, Results 18 to 16
Top 20 Performances and Results
Introducing Canada's Top 20

Auditions:
Toronto Week - The Cut to the Top 20
Vancouver, Halifax, Calgary, Montreal - West, East, Middle and Quebec
Toronto - Toronto's Best Foot Forward
The Judges, The Host, The Teaser, All Photos from CTV

So You Think You Can Dance - Season 4:
Finale
Top 4 Performances
Top 6 Performances and Results 6 to 4
Top 8 Performances, Results 8 to 6
Top 10 Performances, Results 10 to 8
Top 16, 14 and 12 Weeks Recaps by Vance again
Top 12 Performances, Results 12 to 10 - Guest Blogger Linz McC
Top 14 Performances, Results 14 to 12 - Guest Blogger Linz McC
Top 16 Performances, Results 16 to 14 - Guest Blogger Linz McC
Top 18 Performances, Results 18 to 16
Top 20 Performances, Results 20 to 18
Introducing the Top 20

Auditions:
Callbacks in Las Vegas - The Top 20 Revealed - What Happens In Vegas
Milwaukee, WI - How The Midwest Was Won
Charleston, South Carolina and Washington D.C. - S.C.D.C. The New Electric (Boogaloo) Term!
Salt Lake City and Dallas - Yeehaw Utah!
Los Angeles - It's Time To Put On Those Dancing Shoes Again Kids!

So You Think You Can Dance - Season 3:
Live Tour - Toronto, Pasha's Solo Video, Neil's Solo Video
Finale - Winner Result
Top 4 Performances - Finals
Top 6 Performances, Top 6 Results
Top 8 Performances, Top 8 Results
Top 10 Performances, Top 10 Results
Top 12 Performances, Top 12 Results
Top 14 Performances, Top 14 Results
Top 16 Performances, Top 16 Results
Top 18 Performances, Top 18 Results
Top 20 Performances, Top 20 Results

For So You Think You Can Dance Season 2:
Favorite Video Clips
Song List Live Tour 2006 - Toronto
Live Tour 2006 - Buffalo, Pics, More Pics