So You Think You Can Dance – The first real test of the Top 11

So, yeah … I’m still a little miffed about this new format of So You Think You Can Dance.

I might be done ranting … might. But there are no guarantees. Let’s get that right out in the open to begin with. We set some boundaries, we all know where we stand. Fair? I thought so. (Oh … and by the by: I posted the fuzzy picture to the right from last week of my own accord … one more snipe at the SYTYCD The Powers That Be. Can you make out the fine print?  “Ten finalists are announced.” Uh huh … yeah, right.

The final thing (right now) I’ll mention is a quote from Nigel Lithgoe on last Thursday’s program, one I thought didn’t need reviewing because all it did was showcase fluff. (It was an introduction of the contestants and the all-stars so there was no set up for elimination.) And that quotation was this:

“… you’ve got two all-stars up there and two competitors and, sometimes, I couldn’t tell the difference between who was the all-star and who was the competitor….”

That pretty much says it all when it comes to this new format, doesn’t it? And, that’s coming from one of the judges, mind you.  If they‘re going to be confused watching the performances, where do you think that leaves the viewing audience?

Onward….

It’s our first chance to vote this season, Cat Deely notes. With Nigel Lithgoe, Mia Michaels and Adam Shankman judging this episode, we are introduced to “things we don’t know about the contestants” to get a little more insight into what might make them tick. Just a little frothy whipped cream to help us ease into each performance.

Billy Bell is up first, dancing a routine to the iconic “Footloose.” While completely out of his element, he does well overall. And the judges set the stage in doling out praise while at the same time being really, really critical of Billy. It might be a long night.

Cristina Santana’s routine was set to a song reminiscent of Prince’s “Darling Nikki,” a very strange, flicky performance far from her normal genre, but interesting nonetheless. You can see in her performance the routines picked by the choreographers are going to be challenging.

Jose Ruiz boogied down with Ne-Yo’s “Beautiful Monster” and man, did this work out well for him. His moves were fluid and he danced effortlessly as far as I’m concerned. The routine fit him to a “T.” And the ‘faces’ teachers Tabitha and Napoleon coaxed out of him worked to his advantage.

AdéChiké Torbert paired with Katherine Travis on a fantasy routine to “Addicted To Love” yielded smooth lines and strong performances from both the dancers. But AdéChiké’s partner overshadowed him and he was reprimanded by the judges on that point.

Melinda Sullivan, our token tap dancer, pulled a 180 degree turnabout of what she usually does, mixing it up with all-star partner and fan-favorite Pasha. The jumpin’ and jivin’ routine was adequate, but it looked rough on her. Tough going during elimination will position her in the Bottom Three, I predict.

Alex Wong (partnered with Allison) performed a unique Sonya Tayeh offering of Jeff Buckley’s “Hallelujah” that had the judges gushing. I wasn’t completely on board with the performance, regardless of the fact Alex was pretty much dead on in nailing what Sonya choreographed. The cock-eyed feet splays and herky-jerky movements looked more as if they were experiencing strokes than committing a dance routine. It was if they were in the midst of death-throes at times.

For me, Alexie Agdeppa’s routine was nothing more than a “going through the motions” clinic. Jason Mraz’s “Butterfly” the routine was centered around left her drab and unnoticeable. The lack of impression wasn’t lost on the judges, either.

Lauren Froderman’s effort to Yello’s “Oh Yeah,” however, was cute and spiffy. Her pairing with Ade worked to her advantage, but the judges, again, were vocal about their wants. Damn if they aren’t particular about what they expect to see, what they feel they need to be critical of. They’re being diva-ish, in my opinion, but that’s most likely a byproduct of the fact there are half the dancers at this stage of the game than usual. Things need to rock and roll early and quickly with this format.

Kent Boyd is nothing less than a fireball in his “Lady Marmalade” routine choreographed by Melanie LaPatin and Tony Meredith. It’s as if Kent grew up right before our eyes with this segment. Kent was staring at Anya Garnis’ ass shake for shake … flaunting his own moves … putting out exuberance by the bucketful. (Video below and here as well.) This little guy is someone we should all keep an eye on this season. He’s making waves.

Judge Nigel Lithgow bit off a bit more than he could chew in critiquing Ashley Galvan’s Tyce DiOrio “love” routine with all-star Neil. Post performance, he asked her if she had ever been in love. Her response was an emotional verging-on-tears, “As a matter of fact I think I am!” Nigel was trying to coax some feeling out of her going forward and he got it tossed back in his face. Will the exchange make her think more of a connection with the pieces she does moving forward? To be determined.

Robert Roldan committed a quintessential Sean Cheeseman African dance routine as far as I was concerned. Robert picked up on it well and gave it back to us demonstrably.

So … after all is said and done, how did the new format work out? I’ll admit not as bad as I’ve previously sniped. I’m still not completely on board with it, but this episode revealed the all-stars can complement the contestants without overshadowing them and muddying the waters.

Clacked by Michael Noble
on Jun 17, 2010 @ 13:00 EST5EDT