Posted Nov 19th 2009 3:33AM by Jason Hughes
Filed under: OpEd, Episode Reviews, So You Think You Can Dance
(S06E16) If things keep going the way they've been going, I'm going to start thinking America's really learning something about dance after all these shows they've been watching the past several years. I understood and agreed with every single one of America's choices, which is more than I can say for Nigel and the judges.
We did get to see Nakul Dev Majahan, joined on stage by MDN Bollywood Productions, in a Bollywood routine he choreographed. While I loved the earlier Bollywood piece we got this season, this one didn't grab me quite as strongly. A lot of that probably has to do with how foreign it still is to our Western senses; we don't really understand what we're seeing or why we're seeing it all the time.
Still, I guess I'm glad it's part of the show, as it continues to showcase the diversity in dance around the world. I even applaud their ill-fated attempt to try Russian folk. I say keep trying
SYTYCD, just be very wary of what you put on these dancers.
Continue reading Review: So You Think You Can Dance - Top 12 Revealed
Posted Nov 18th 2009 1:44AM by Jason Hughes
Filed under: OpEd, Episode Reviews, So You Think You Can Dance
(S06E15) After last week's lackluster performances, I was starting to wonder about the vaunted strength of this season's Top 20. But the 14 remaining dancers came back very strong this week, with improvements across the board. There was only one dance that completely disappointed me, but throughout the night, I cannot easily see the Top Ten dancers we're working toward.
One thing that's a little frustrating when we get down to a smaller number of dancers like this, and they're only performing once ... we get a
ton of filler. The judges went on and on about each contestant. Maybe FOX should consider shortening the episodes to an hour-and-a-half during these weeks and give us more episodes of some of their great sitcoms like
'Til Death or
Brothers.
Hmmm -- maybe I can handle the rambling judges after all.
Continue reading Review: So You Think You Can Dance - Top 14 Perform
Posted Nov 12th 2009 2:42AM by Michael Pascua
Filed under: Episode Reviews, So You Think You Can Dance
(
S06E14) I'm very surprised that
So You Think You Can dance had no musicians this week. I thought any desperate pop/dance musician would jump for the opportunity to hawk their song to America. Instead we get only one amazing dance group, but that wasn't enough to fill an hour's worth of television.
I hope that the show was really live because there were some awkward camera angles, a microphone that wasn't adjusted in the beginning, and graphics that appeared out of nowhere. Luckily, it was adjusted in the first five minutes, but it shows that
SYTYCD was depending on their pre-taped nature for the past few weeks.
Continue reading Review: So You Think You Can Dance - 2 of 16 Voted Off
Posted Nov 11th 2009 2:27AM by Michael Pascua
Filed under: OpEd, Episode Reviews, So You Think You Can Dance
(S06E13)
So You Think You Can Dance finally lets America vote. Sadly, I only liked four of the eight dances this week and I wouldn't mind if any of them were eliminated. One thing I did like was the introductory sequence, they finally figured out a way to make the stage a little less huge. The choreographers are doing better to let the dances fill the huge stage.
With only eight performances, the show felt like the critiques were longer than the actual dancing. If they inserted one large group dance, the show could have cut off some of Mary's more annoying comments.
Continue reading Review: So You Think You Can Dance - Top 16 Perform
Posted Nov 4th 2009 4:12PM by Jason Hughes
Filed under: Episode Reviews, Reality-Free, So You Think You Can Dance
(S06E12) Yet again, because of the ongoing World Series on FOX, there was no elimination this week, which means we barely had time to process the dancing before two contestants were being eliminated. Luckily for me, it became clear pretty quickly which two performances were the weakest of the night.
There were two that were absolutely amazing as well, one that may go down as one of the top
SYTYCD dances of all time. But the most important question of the night was: Did the judges agree with me as to who should have gone home?
Thankfully, by next week all these distractions will be sorted out and you and I will be able to vote for ourselves who we want to keep around.
Continue reading Review: So You Think You Can Dance - Top 18 Perform
Posted Oct 28th 2009 12:55AM by Michael Pascua
Filed under: OpEd, Episode Reviews, So You Think You Can Dance
(
S06E11) We finally get to the actual competition on
So You Think You Can Dance. On tonight's episode, the judges cut one guy and one girl without America's help. It's okay, I don't trust America. Cat welcomes us in a stunning Chinese-inspired dress. I'm still amazed by Cat's ability to look good in anything.
As we watch the dancers open the show, we start with the newest addition to the Top 20: Brandon. Even after meeting these contestants yesterday, I still don't know them. To make it worse, the sound people kept using the live mic on the tappers, and at first I thought my ears were going.
Continue reading Review: So You Think You Can Dance - Top 20 Perform
Posted Oct 27th 2009 12:31PM by Nick Zaino
Filed under: Celebrities, Casting, So You Think You Can Dance
On last night's special Monday episode of
So You Think You Can Dance, producer/judge Nigel Lythgoe displayed an empty chair, just in case, he said, a special guest decided to grace them with her presence. The chair was marked with the name "Paula Abdul." (On a side note,
SYTYCD was on basically in place of
House -- how can such a popular show go on break so often?).
The current slate of judges, including Lythgoe, Mary Murphy, and Adam Shankman (in for Mia Michaels), seems perfect. Other than the fact that I wish I had the technical know-how to develop a filter that would detect when Murphy is about to sound like a claxon and automatically adjust the volume of my TV, I enjoy all three judges. And, as
I've said before, I actually feel like I'm learning something from the show when they critique the dancers. When they need another voice, they have Debbie Allen, the sometimes overly loquacious Lil C, and a few others who can easily step in.
Continue reading Paula Abdul on So You Think You Can Dance?
Posted Oct 27th 2009 8:31AM by Michael Pascua
Filed under: OpEd, Watercooler Talk, So You Think You Can Dance
I don't want to toot my own horn, but I predicted that illness would fell more reality show competitors in
last week's TV Squad APB podcast. It turns out that the first to be affected was Billy Bell.
Fox's official website posted a message wishing Billy a speedy recovery. There were no details of his illness.
It's a shame to see Billy go so soon. After seeing
Monday's performance, which was pre-taped, he showed power and technique. He hopes to try out for Season Seven.
If you want to be spoiled on who replaced him, the replacement's partner and dance, and another injury continue reading.
Continue reading So You Think You Can Dance dropouts and injury spoilers
Posted Oct 27th 2009 1:08AM by Michael Pascua
Filed under: OpEd, Episode Reviews, So You Think You Can Dance
(
S06E10) In a
So You Think You Can Dance first, we get to meet the Top 20 before competition starts. It's nice to see the dancers doing well in their element before they fall apart trying to learn Disco, Bollywood, or Russian Folk.
We also welcome Adam Shankman as a permanent judge. Nigel wants Paula Abdul to guest judge eventually. Since she was in the audience of
Dancing with the Stars, she's probably got the time.
I dislike the return of last season's finale stage as the new permanent stage. The camera angles constantly have heads in the corners, and there are no more stairs for cool performance elements.
Continue reading Review: So You Think You Can Dance - Meet the Top 20
Posted Oct 22nd 2009 12:48AM by Jason Hughes
Filed under: OpEd, Episode Reviews, So You Think You Can Dance
(S06E09) Tonight, we started with 38 dancers, and by the end of the hour, the Top 20 stood revealed. I'm never quite sure how to take these episodes;
American Idol always has one, as well. For the most part, it's just contestants walking in front of the judges and hearing "Yes" or "No." For those of us who've been watching since the beginning and finding our early favorites, it can be a little tense and exciting.
But then I think about someone who's never watched the show, and who's maybe tuning in for the first time tonight. What a boring hour of television they would be in for. You barely get any snippets from the good dancers who make it through. Mostly it's just a parade of faces you don't know and lots of crying.
But before we get to the tears, we need to get excited. For the first time, and to give everyone a more even playing field going into the first performance show, this Monday at 8pm ET, FOX offers a special non-elimination episode where the Top 20 get to show us their stuff.
Continue reading Review: So You Think You Can Dance - Top 20 Revealed
Posted Oct 21st 2009 11:29AM by Allison Waldman
Filed under: OpEd, Celebrities, Awards, Reality-Free, So You Think You Can Dance
Maybe they'll change the name of this year's
Academy Awards to
So You Think You Can Win An Oscar? Or maybe it'll be
Oscar, You Should Be Dancing. What else can we expect now that
Adam Shankman has been assigned to produce the Oscar broadcast... with Bill Mechanic. The Bill Mechanic part is almost like fine print. (Or that cute kid Brick on
The Middle who whispers under his breathe in a funny, creepy way. "Mechanic...")
The story here is
Adam Shankman. He's a director/choreographer and dancer. He's a judge on the current season of
So You Think You Can Dance. His biggest credit is
Hairspray, one of the few movie musicals that has made it to the big screen and was a bit hit in the last decade. Shankman should bring movement, energy and -- perhaps -- dance to the
Academy Awards?
Continue reading Adam Shankman, the dancing Oscar producer
Posted Oct 15th 2009 1:27PM by Michael Pascua
Filed under: So You Think You Can Dance
So You Think You Can Dance may never be the same again. In all-capitalized
Twitter messages, Mia Michaels has announced that she is quitting. The last of the three messages read:
"
THANKS SYTYCD AND LOOK FORWARD TO WHATS AHEAD FOR ME...LOOKOUT WORLD!!!!!"
It's really weird seeing that Mia has been not only an anchor for the choreographers and judges, but she has been so enthusiastic about season six being on of the best seasons. She has also left a message on her Facebook account with similar sentiments.
Mia Michaels wasn't the same strict choreographer
last night in Vegas' callbacks. She was calm and organic with her teaching.
Continue reading Mia Michaels is quitting So You Think You Can Dance?
Posted Oct 15th 2009 12:50AM by Michael Pascua
Filed under: OpEd, Episode Reviews, So You Think You Can Dance
(
S06E08) We're down to 77 contestants trying to get to the top 20 of
So You Think You Can Dance. It's day two of Vegas and we follow the rest of the contestants as they go through choreography from several of our favorite choreographers including
Making the Band's Lorrie Ann Gibson.
Injuries plague several of the dancers tonight, and it makes me wonder how far I would make it on this show before I sprained my Achilles' tendon.
I was all excited that we would find out the top 20 tonight. Sadly, I've been duped and will have to wait for next week.
Continue reading So You Think You Can Dance: Vegas Callbacks 2
Posted Oct 8th 2009 3:05AM by Jason Hughes
Filed under: OpEd, Episode Reviews, So You Think You Can Dance
(S06E07) So many judges, so little time. Tyce DiOrio, Mia Michaels, Debbie Allen, Adam Shankman, Mary Murphy and Nigel Lythgoe all sat in judgment of the 152 dancers who survived the audition rounds. The pace of the show picks up dramatically when we get to Vegas, and somehow I had myself convinced they were going to cram the entire week into tonight's one-hour episode.
Thankfully, I'm an idiot. Vegas Week continues next week for you and me. In fact, we only got through the first two days. But in that time, we lost nearly half of the contestants including several early favorites, and certainly some favorites of mine.
The more I see of these dancers, though, the more excited I am for this season. I thought last season suffered from the blands through a lot of it, despite some amazing choreographed performances, but there are a lot of really dynamic personalities already shining through.
Continue reading So You Think You Can Dance: Vegas Week, Part 1
Posted Oct 7th 2009 1:02AM by Jason Hughes
Filed under: OpEd, Episode Reviews, So You Think You Can Dance
(S06E06) Oh no! Screwball Mia Michaels was the third judge in Salt Lake City for this final stop in the audition rounds. Adam Shankman can't take his permanent spot fast enough for me. Michaels needs to stick to amazing choreography.
That said, she actually didn't bother me at all tonight as a judge. So I've been unfair to Mia Michaels. Oh, who am I kidding, she's usually horrible.
What wasn't horrible was the caliber of talent in Utah. Granted, the competitors come from all over the country to these destination cities, but I feel confident in saying that we saw the widest array of the most impressive talent right here tonight. No wonder they saved it for last.
Continue reading So You Think You Can Dance: Salt Lake City Auditions
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