Back with another So You Think You Can Dance post. We’re at the top 8, getting deep into the serious talent. Here we go.
Group number was cool, the men all in black, dancing a bit minimalist, the women in red with fans, but not just prancing about flipping their hair. I’m getting really tired of all the hair flipping and obscuring the girls’ faces — professional dancers don’t do that. I wish they wouldn’t make the girls do it here.
Solo: Tiffany. Good basic girl dancing on this show, but not memorable.
Witney and Twitch: East Coast Hip Hop
She was so good! Really committed to the sharper, harder movements, and did them way full out. I’m impressed.
Solo: Will. No goofiness! Good for him. Nice work.
Cole and Allison, Sonya Tayek number
LOVED THIS! He plays a soulless character so well, with no sadism-for-fun, just a matter-of-factness that is creepy and scary. Sonya’s choreography was amazing, all the slow movement to sudden fast freezes were awesome, and they killed every bit of it. There was real menace from him and fear from her in this. Cole matched Allison’s intensity, which is saying something. I couldn’t tear my eyes away. This was really so powerful and dramatic.
Solo: Lindsey. She’s really thought out how to make her solo still ballroom, but by herself. Looked good.
Eliana and Ryan, quick step (often the kiss of death on this show)
Her charm in this number was shiny and lovely! The choreographer managed to make a story out of the quick step to give them something other than just steps. Her carriage from the years of ballet transferred well to this formal ballroom hold. The dancing was great, but her charm totally sold it.
Solo: Chehon. I love his solos. He really tries to convey something other than “these are the tricks I can do.” The way he hangs in the air in the middle of his jumps makes me hold my breath. And his spins, his center is crazy. And then he cried because his mother was in the audience all the way from Switzerland.
Lindsey and Alex, jazz to that Gotye song.
Top shelf movement, and I love me some Alex, but their chemistry wasn’t there. There was supposed to be sexual tension, and they made frustrated faces, but I didn’t buy that aspect of it.
Will and Lauren, a Christopher Scott hip hop (which are often some of the best things on this show) in which Will has to be serious
He wasn’t as super-crisp with his lower body as he could’ve been, but he gave an “ordinary guy deeply frustrated” vibe, which was what the piece required. The musicality of the choreography was awesome. He did really well — no goofiness at all.
Solo: Witney. This didn’t do it for me as much as Lindsey’s solo, but she’s definitely hot.
Solo: Cole. Speed, drama, power — a great example of his dance style.
Cyrus and Melanie, jazz
Weird punching moves throughout this number, but cute punching. This one had to be tough for him, because there was a lot of move and pose, so it was so very much slower than his normal style. But his charisma is HUGE, and he papers over a lot of dancing deficits with that. He honestly looks like he’s having fun. He never has one fake moment on stage, and that’s a gift.
Solo: Eliana. She’s never made me cry before, but she did now and with less than 30 seconds of dancing. So deep on those toe shoes.
Chehon and Anya, Argentine tango.
What a different mood for a tango on this show, it was so quietly sexy. So intimate. The come here/go away/now we’re here and let’s be together and abandoned to each other got me a little flushed, to tell you the truth. The flicking leg thing, which usually comes off as aggressive, was so sexy — it looked like they were tangling legs and made me think of … you get the idea. I’m falling for Chehon even more this show.
Solo: Cyrus (I. Can’t. Wait. He is so Sick at what he does.) Loved every millisecond of it.
Tiffany and Ade, contemporary (it better be good to get the pimp spot over that Chehon and Anya number)
The dancing itself was so good, big and impressive and free, and Ade is so strong (with beautiful arms) but to a song about the power of love, there was very little connection between the two of them. I wanted more. I find Tiffany lacking in personality when she dances; I wish she’d waited a couple of years when she developed some gravitas. I obviously disagree with the judges and the voters, but I don’t find her memorable.
People leaving: (I’m SO thrilled Chehon is not in the bottom 2 this week! At this point, that’s what I care the most about.)
Lindsey — first choice I don’t agree with. She’s got more range, both in movement and in emotion than Witney. I would’ve kept her.
Will — I agree with this one. Cole brings more drama and tension to his movement, and he’s more of an emotional chameleon, so there’s more the choreographers can do with him.
I must say how happy I am that the women all had their hair back and I could see their faces this week! Hooray.
This was a really great night of dancing. I’ll be pointing my toes in my sleep. Hopefully, I won’t pretend I’m on the show so hard that I almost fall in Zumba tomorrow, like I did last week.