Thursday, July 09, 2009

So You Think You Can Dance - A Dizzy Foot

So You Think You Can Dance - Top 12 Performance - Ep. 514
Judges: Nigel Lythgoe, Mary Murphy, Guest Judge: Tyce DiOrio

It's the final performance before we make the crucial cut to the Top 10. The Top 10 who get to go on Tour (info dates at the bottom of the post). The Top 10 that will start switching up the partners and the Top 10 where they will all get to showcase their solo's every week.

But to get there, we need to whittle it down once more. So let's start!:


Melissa Sandvig &
Ade Obayomi
Dance #1
Style: Disco
Choreographed by: Doriana Sanchez
Song: "Move On Up" - Destination
Grade: A-

Poor Ade. He's so awesome and he seems so nice and while I think he still could make the tiny moments slightly harder (I think he gets the big movements but is momentarily sloppy in others (but I'm talking like split seconds here)), Ade is SUCH A STRONG DANCER. So it's too bad he's paired up with Melissa because all I can do is stare at that GIRL.

Girl can do ANYTHING can't she?

Melissa is SOOOOOOO strong and all she needs to do is develop some diva quality off-stage, she could be a full fledged dancing queen. At this point she still seems too nice and regular. But her DANCING! Shake it girl! And that HAIR!

Here's the video of Melissa and Ade's Disco:



Kayla Radomski &
Kupono Aweau
Dance #1
Style: Contemporary
Choreographed by: Mia Michaels
Song: "Gravity" - Sara Bareilles
Grade: A-

They get another contemporary for a second week in a row? With Mia Michaels? Well that's a subtle way the producers are pushing them toward the Top 10. Not that I mind.

Especially with Kayla. I went from WHO? a few weeks back to LOVE now with her. I really really like Kupono but I still don't LOVE him but I still enjoy seeing him.

Here's the video of Kayla and Kupono's Contemporary:



Caitlin Kinney &
Jason Glover
Dance #1
Style: Fox Trot
Choreographed by: Tony Meredith
Song: "Minnie the Moocher" - Big Bad Voodoo Daddy
Grade: B

Was the dance supposed to be that slow? Or was it just me? It was a nice dance and I thought Caitlin looked glamourous with her dancing and her look. Jason did a pretty good job keeping up, though he still reminded me of a little kid doing this dance. Adorable and got the steps and all but I kinda wanted to giggle while watching him. I'm not sure why.

Here's the video of Caitlin and Jason's Fox Trot:



Jeanine Mason &
Phillip Chbeeb
Dance #1
Style: Kalinka - Russian Folk Dance
Choreographed by: Youri Nelzine & Llia Babenko
Song: "Kalinka" - Barynya
Grade: C+

I love Phillip (who is on Twitter). You know I love Phillip. Usually I don't support the Phillips in the competition, but I think Phillip has actually done a pretty good job every week, and sometimes harshly criticized.

So it hurts me to say that he was pretty bad here, save the hip-hop like turnovers he had to do.

Jeanine, like Nigel said, was beautiful. She saved whatever she could from this dance and worked like a Russian war horse (I have no idea what that is but it sounded good and descriptive) to pull Phillip along for this first dance.

Here's the video of Jeanine and Phillip's Kalinka:



Randi Evans &
Evan Kasprzak
Dance #1
Style: Hip-Hop
Choreographed by: Tabitah and Napoleon D'Umo
Song: "Halo" - Beyonce
Grade: A-

I may be blurred by love but was that as good as I thought it was?

At first I thought Evan's "acting" was pretty much left with a silly grin, but then again, a new father usually solely has a silly grin on his face (if it's not complete fear and horror) so maybe he DID get it right!

I can't believe how much I loved Evan's Hip-Hop. It went beyond the whiteboy attempting Hip-Hop and it not only hit the marks, he still injected a bit of his silly style into it all without losing the beats momentum. Randi is wicked!

Here's the video of Randi and Evan's Hip-Hop:



Janette Manrara &
Brandon Bryant
Dance #1
Style: Argentine Tango
Choreographed by: Leonardo Barrionuevo & Miriam Larici
Song: "Libertango" - Forever Tango (Original Broadway Cast Album)
Grade: A-

The judges give it a standing ovation. For a ballroom routine, Nigel thinks its as close to perfection.

Maybe it was, but what about the HORRENDOUS CAMERA ANGLES AND EDITS? I thought it looked pretty great, but I couldn't tell the first time around since they kept cutting at moments when I wanted them to linger. UGH. I felt dizzy trying to follow. (After a second viewing, I was able to fully appreciate Brandon and Janette a LOT more. Though I'm still dizzy).

Here's the video of Janette and Brandon's Argentine Tango:



Melissa Sandvig &
Ade Obayomi
Dance #2
Style: Waltz
Choreographed by: Ron Montez
Song: "(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman" - Mary J. Blige
Grade: B

I believe I've said this in a previous week but I think I just assume these two are dancing it perfectly now, and I barely even have to watch to evaluate these two. I think I was watching Melissa's flowing dress more the whole time as I watched it float around the dancefloor.

Mary notes the same thing I said in the previous dance, that Ade could strengthen in things a bit more and have cleaner lines, but overall, her eyes are drawn to Melissa.

Here's the video of Melissa and Ade's Waltz:



Kayla Radomski &
Kupono Aweau
Dance #2
Style: Broadway
Choreographed by: Joey Dowling
Song: "The Dance At The Gym" - West Side Story New Broadway Revival Cast Recording
Grade: B+

Having seen 2 different revivals of West Side Story (for a total of 4 times total) in the last 6 months (Broadway/ DC and Stratford), I think I have Jerome Robbins' original choreography ingrained in my memory, so I think Joey Dowling had some shutzpah to design a new dance to the classic number.

I thought Kayla and Kupono did a pretty great job with the dance, and I thought there were some very clever and ingenious new stuff, but overall, I thought it still paled in comparison to what's being performed on Broadway right now. (Here's the later section from the same scene from the current Broadway Revival).

Here's the video of Kayla and Kupono's Broadway:



Caitlin Kinney &
Jason Glover
Dance #2
Style: Lyrical Jazz
Choreographed by: Mandy Moore
Song: "Show Me Heaven" - Maria McKee
Grade: B+

Oh sure, just when Caitlin and Jason might have been in most danger, they get to do contemporary. Oh sorry. Lyrical Jazz. And Mandy Moore. AND Jason goes shirtless. Nice save.

I will admit, it sort of won me over halfway through and while it was sort of designed to showcase their best attributes (ahem), it worked. I thought it still missed something, like "magic" as Mary mentioned, but overall, I thought it was some of the best stuff we've finally seen from Jason and Caitlin together.

Here's the video of Caitlin and Jason's Lyrical Jazz:



Jeanine Mason &
Phillip Chbeeb
Dance #2
Style: Jive
Choreographed by: Tony Meredith
Song: "Stuff Like That There" - Bette Midler
Grade: A-

Okay, let's talk about Jeanine first, because girl does not get the attention or respect she deserves. Always forgotten since we're evaluating Phillip all the time, Jeanine always brings it and is almost forgotten because she becomes the standard to compare to.

Meanwhile, apparently Phillip was so bad in the first dance because he spent all his rehearsal time practicing for the Jive. I thought he was AWESOME so I'm glad Mary and Nigel totally agreed and I wasn't just being overly nice.

Here's the video of Jeanine and Phillip's Jive:



Randi Evans &
Evan Kasprzak
Dance #2
Style: Samba
Choreographed by: Pasha Kovalev & Anya Garnis
Song: "Ritmo De Bom Bom" - Jubaba
Grade: B

OH PASHA!!! Okay, Just watching Pasha jiggle his body in the clip gave me a ---- - --. Okay, so while this season's quality of dancers is up for debate, I've been pretty positive, but I will admit, now that I've seen Pasha again, I have to say no male dancer in this season has yet to make me as excited as Pasha did. (Other's in the same category would be Travis (on TWITTER!) and Neil, with Ivan, Dimitry, Kameron and Mark (ALSO ON TWITTER!) not far behind).

Okay, but back to Evan, who would probably be this year's most likely contender. He's more cutesy than sexy so it's kinda hilarious when he tries to be sexy here. His face didn't really work with it but I thought his dancing made up for it.

Randi as always, was fabulous, but their chemistry together seemed a bit more clumsy than they usually were.

Here's the video of Randi and Evan's Samba:



Janette Manrara &
Brandon Bryant
Dance #2
Style: Jazz
Choreographed by: Wade Robson
Song: "Ruby Blue" - Roisin Murphy
Grade: A

How tall is Wade? Or how short is Brandon? Maybe Brandon really IS Carlton?

Okay, have we just seen the latest SYTYCD classic? That was all kinds of AWESOME! I loved EVERYTHING about it. Loved the music. LOVED the weird choreography. EVERY. SINGLE. MOMENT. And I thought Brandon and Janette did an AWESOME job Dancing AND Acting it all. It was funny and amusing and quirky and sexy and wonderful!

Here's the video of Janette and Brandon's Jazz:



- - - - - - - - - - - - -
The Final Roundup:

Best Couple of the Night Overall: Janette and Brandon

Best Dance of the Night: Janette and Brandon's Jazz
Second Best Dance of the Night: Kayla and Kupono's Contemporary
Third Best Dance of the Night: Jeanine and Philip's Jive
Fourth Best Dance of the Night: Randi and Evan's Hip-Hop
Fifth Best Dance of the Night: Melissa and Ade's Disco

Best Male of the Night - Overall: Brandon Bryant
Best Female of the Night - Overall: Kayla Radomski

Worst of the Night - Single Performance: Jeanine and Phillip's Kalika
Worst of the Night - Overall: Caitlin and Jason

Predictions:
Bottom Three: Jason and Caitlin, Melissa and Ade, Jeanine and Phillip
Going Home: Caitlin and Jason
Should Be Going Home: Caitlin and Jason

Don't forget, I'll be back with the results show and our bloggers panel chat, with the awesome group of
LowResJoe, ABChau, TwoP Lauren S and myself who will discuss this week's performances and results.

They also announced the SYTYCD: Season 5 Tour dates: Dates subject to change.

SEPTEMBER
SUN 9/20 Manchester, NH - Verizon Wireless Ctr
TUE 9/22 Boston, MA - Agganis Arena Bos Uni
THU 9/24 Newark, NJ - Prudential Center
FRI 9/25 Mashantucket, CT - MGM Foxwoods
SAT 9/26 Trenton, NJ - Sovereign Bank Arena
TUE 9/29 Toronto, ON - Air Cananda Center

OCTOBER
THU 10/1 Columbus, OH - Nationwide Arena
SAT 10/3 Detroit, MI - Joe Louis Arena
SUN 10/4 Champaign, IL - Assembly Hall
TUE 10/6 Chicago, IL - United Center
WED 10/7 Minneapolis, MN - Target Center
FRI 10/9 Milwaukee, WI - Bradley Center
SAT 10/10 Toledo, OH - Lucas Co Arena
SUN 10/11 Indianapolis, IN - Conseco Fieldhouse
WED 10/14 Long Island, NY - Nassau Coliseum
THU 10/15 Baltimore, MD - 1st Mariner Arena
SAT 10/17 Richmond, VA - Richmond Coliseum
MON 10/19 Charlotte, NC - Time Warner Cable Arena
TUE 10/20 Duluth, GA - Arena Gwinnett Center
THU 10/22 Miami, FL - American Airlines Arena
FRI 10/23 Tampa, FL - St. Pete Times Forum
SAT 10/24 Tallahassee, FL - Leon Co Civ Center
MON 10/26 Houston, TX - Reliant Arena
TUE 10/27 Austin, TX - Frank Erwin Center
WED 10/28 Grand Prarie, TX - Nokia Theatre
FRI 10/30 Tulsa, OK - BOK Center
SAT 10/31 St. Louis, MO - Chaifetz Arena at St. Louis University

NOVEMBER
SUN 11/1 Kansas City, MO - Sprint Center
TUE 11/3 Omaha, NE - Qwest Center
THU 11/5 Colorado Springs, CO - World Arena
SAT 11/7 West Valley City, UT - E Center
MON 11/9 Los Angeles, CA - Nokia Theatre
THU 11/12 San Diego, CA - San Diego Sports Arena
FRI 11/13 Glendale, AZ - jobing.com Arena
SAT 11/14 Las Vegas, NV - Orleans Arena
MON 11/16 Sacramento, CA - ARCO Arena
TUE 11/17 Oakland, CA - Oracle Arena
WED 11/18 San Jose, CA - HP Pavilion
FRI 11/20 Portland, OR - Rose Garden
SAT 11/21 Everett, WA - Comcast Arena at Everett Events Center

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


So You Think You Can Dance - Season 5:

Top 14 Performance, Top 14 Results, Top 14 Panel Chat
Top 16 Performance, Top 16 Results and Panel Chat
Top 18 Performance, Top 18 Results and Panel Chat
Top 20 Performance, Top 20 Results and Panel Chat

Auditions - Vegas Week Part 2 - Top 20 Announcement, Top 20 Pictures/Panel Chat
Vegas Week Part 1
New York City, Denver, Miami, Memphis, LA, Seattle


So You Think You Can Dance Canada:
Finale
Top 8 and 6 Performances and Results, Top 4 Performances
Top 10 Performances, Results 10 to 8
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
Thanks to Rickey for the photos and videos.

Vance at http://tapeworthy.blogspot.com

2 comments:

jeremy said...

Nice to finally see dancers capable of dancing Doriana Sanchez numbers--after 4 seasons of barely getting by (or not at all).

Anonymous said...

I really enjoyed this episode, particularly the Robson routine and the Tango. So, I guess I liked Brandon and Janette best. Though Mia's routine was great, and Kayla continues to rule.

And I agree - what the hell is with the camerawork and editing? At least two times, they did a sharp cut right at a moment of impact (at the first big freeze in the jazz routine, and at the last pose in the tango), and it totally effed up any chance the viewer could have of actually, you know, seeing the dancing.

In the case of the tango, it was particularly jarring, and made what was almost certainly a really strong ending seem almost robotically precise... can that be the goal? I'm sure that editing dance routines on the fly isn't easy, but certainly they can work it out so that they're not stepping on the choreography so egregiously.

But anyway... great night, best of the season so far. Wade is the man!