So You Think You Can Dance – Salt Lake City, Dallas – Recap

By On 05/28/2008 · 28 Comments · In Uncategorized

FYI: This is my first season watching the show, and I know nothing about dance. Should make for some pretty interesting recapping! Uhm. Not.

Two hours is way too much “dance” for me. I found myself getting a little bored by the end of the second hour. I’m guessing the competition gets interesting as we get to know the personalities. I like the fact that there isn’t too much emphasis on bad dancers. I also like that the 3rd judges spot is a rotating spot, taken by one of the show choreographers.

Unlike Idol, the judges actually seem to be paying attention during the performances. Nobody resorts to tired cliches to get their point across. I saw the other permanent judge, Mary Murphy on Idol Gives Back and had no idea who she was. I thought she was a comedian–she had this horrible routine where she kept screaming. She’s actually an expert in ballroom dance who judges competitions. I expected her to be way more annoying. So far so good. The really good dancers get put straight through to the next round. The rest have another round where they learn and perform choreography. It would be nice if we saw a little bit more of that–but then the show would probably be three hours and completely unwatchable.

Ok, I’ve got a recap of sorts, with videos. And it begins after the jump…

Tonight’s auditions cover Salt Lake City and Dallas. Dallas must have sucked, because more than half the show is devoted to SLC. These kids are going to eventually be expected to learn a variety of routines from all types of dance genres. Although they put through untrained dancers–particularly street dancers–It appears that only the highly trained have what it takes to go deep. Like Idol, the judges put through characters who aren’t meant to stick around.

Salt Lake City is split into two days. The guest judge is choreographer Mandy Moore who has done work for Celine Dion.

Salt Lake City Day 1

Chelsea Hightower 18 – Pleasant Grove UT – Video – She’s got a hard luck story. Big family, missing father, lost houses and cars. She dances with a partner. She’s got a lot of sass and style. She gets a ticket straight to Vegas. Nigel says she really uses her face. Mary says she’s got great legs. Judges comments are cut into the dancers routine, which is interesting.

Brett Banford 25 – Salt Lake City UT – Video – Inspirational audition of the week. Brett is a hip-hop dancer with Downs Syndrome. The judges tell him that he’s a great mover, but not a good enough dancer for the competition. He gives a big speech about how people with disabilities can have a normal life. Rah Rah.

Michael Moore – 26 – Orem UT – Video – Michael is hilarious. His dancing consists of a bunch of jumping and crawling around on the floor. After, he was able to explain exactly why he sucked. “Holy crap, I was bad,” he says. After the judges give him the thumbs down, he makes a really cool leap off the end of the stage.

Richard Castaneda – 23 – Provo UT – Video – Richard dances, badly, to Blake Lewis’s “Break Anotha”. Really the only reason why I bothered to clip it.

Gev Manoukian - 21 – Centerville, UT – Video – Gev does break dancing on ice. Crazy! He auditioned 2 years ago, but wasn’t advanced. He’s taken some jazz and ballet to work on his technique, and he’s back to audition again. He’s interesting–hip-hop with some nice classical lines. The judges are impressed and he advances to the choreography round.

Lindsey Judkins – 22 -Ogden, UT – Video – She’s a great dancer with some great moves, but she’s super cutsey. She’s just a tad annoying. Mary likes her ankles. Mandy is afraid she’s a little one dimensional, but Nigel has other ideas. He sends her straight to Vegas.

Nicole Downer – 27 – Pleasant Grove UT – Video – Mormon Mom dances on the side–that’s Nicole’s story. She brings her 4 children–all under the age of 6–to rehearsal with her. What, her husband couldn’t take the day off work? She’s amateur, but the judges give her points for trying. Mary thinks she should start a little dance group with the neighborhood gals. I don’t think that’s what Nicole had in mind.

Kelli Baker – 18 – Salt Lake City UT – Video – Kelli’s mom is a dancer who helped create the choreography for High School Musical. Kellie has studied dance all her life, and it shows. She’s a very talented dancer. All three judges agree that she’s the best they’ve seen all season. This one is going to stick around for awhile. Kelli is sent straight to Vegas.

Day One Choreography – Video – Nigel attempts to pull a fake-out on Gev Manoukin. But guess what! He’s going to Vegas. So are 18 other contestants we didn’t actually see.

Salt Lake City Day 2

Naomie Christensen 31 – Salt Lake City UT – Video – Naomi is an actress and a financial advisor, and I’m pretty sure she’s a plant. She don’t got no moves, and the judges give her a big lecture about showing up and not taking it seriously. “I feel like I’m being punked!” says Mandy. Ya think?

Ryann Race 26 – Salt Lake City UT – Video – Ryann is a strip club DJ. They have strip clubs in Salt Lake City? Ryann dances free-style and has some awesome, fluid moves. Very natural. The judges advance Ryann to choreography.

Matt Dorame 21 – Salt Lake City, UT – Video – The judges love Matt, a trained dancer. Mary says, “Beautiful technique, awesome.” Nigel says, “Fabulous, great lines,” but makes him promise to ditch his basketball shorts before he hands over a ticket to Vegas.

Thayne Jasperson 27 – Mapleton, UT – Video – Another very trained, very talented dancer who moves straight on to Vegas.

Kortney Pearson 25 – Lindon, UT and Michelle Stringham – 25 – Salt Lake City UT – Video – Best friends, Kortney and Michelle audition together. They both gave up dancing when they got married 5 years ago. Now, they’re both divorced so… The dancing for both is a bit rusty. The judges believe they both have promise and move them both on to the choreography round.

Day Two Choreography – Video – Despite not having any experience learning choreography, Ryann Race moves on to Vegas, as does best friends Kortney Pearson and Michelle Stringham. Forty-two dancers from Day 2 advance to Vegas.

Dallas

The Dallas auditions begin about 90 minutes in, and are almost like an afterthought. Adam Shankman, the director of the movie-musical Hairspray is the guest judge.

Brian Davidson 30 – Dallas TX – Video – Wherever the music takes him, wherever the vibe takes him, that’s where he’ll be. Uhm. Ok.

Chad Agnor 29 – McKinney, TX – Video 1 Video 2 – Fight trainer, ball room dance instructor, dumb ass–Chad thinks it would be a great idea to audition with a torn hamstring. It gets all dramatic as Nigel advises him not to audition, or risk further injury. But, damn it! This is Chad’s big chance, so he dances on that injured hamstring. Ouch. His wacked out Irish/line dancing hardly looks worth risking permanent damage, but there you go. The judges chew him out, and then send him, limping, home.

Paige Jones 19 – Dallas TX – Video – Dancer, pageant girl, straight A student. Her apartment is decorated all in pink. She’s so completely over the top, it’s gotta be at least partly, an act. Her dancing is pageant-robotic, complete with fake winks and smiles. Nigel calls her a pirouetting set of teeth. Guest judge Adam says there was zero passion and zero heart, but plenty of pert. And it’s off to choreography for Paige.

Joshua Allen 18 – Fort Worth TX – Video – Joshua has some very original hip-hop moves. “Boy, you got wings” says Adam. “The most exciting dancer we’ve seen so far,” Nigel enthuses. With that, Joshua advances to choreography.

Cassidy Corder 22 – Fort Worth TX – Video – This girl thinks she’s got moves, but she doesn’t. Lots of booty shaking is meant to equal dancing. I don’t think so! Although Nigel says it’s one of the worst auditions he’s seen, Cassidy thinks she deserves a chance at choreography. Adam calls it “a tank.”

Brianna Gardner 18 – Dallax TX – Video – Brianna is comically bad. “She looks like a bored stripper,” says Nigel.

John Dix Corpus 23 – Corpus Christi TX, Arielle Coker 18 – Corpus Christi TX – Video – A couple auditions together. One is a talented dancer. The other not so much. The judges go ga ga for Arielle, but call John, her partner, “a bit un-rehearsed.” Adam gives him props for not dropping her, which is not a ringing endorsement. Arielle advances straight to Vegas. Nigel says no at first, but then moves John on to choreography.

Steven Arner 19 – Forest Hill TX – Video – Steven, an asshat with stupid hair, does some crappy hip-hop dancing, calls Mary a bitch and is thrown out of the audition. That’s all you really need to know.

Choreography and Snuggle Dance – Video – Paige Jones and Joshua Allen advance to Vegas. John Dix, the partner of Arielle Coker, does not. Such a mensch, though, he’s happy for Arielle.

The show wraps up with the Snuggle tm Happy Dance! Way to go, product placement! The little snuggle bear dances along in the corner. Aw.

 
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  • http://www.xanga.com/hisaki_chan707 Hisaki

    Aww. The guy with Downs was cute. :)

  • KrazeeK120

    A BIG part of me thinks that Chelsie will be TCO (or at least one of the TCO’s) this year…

  • fedexhamlin11

    wow this is the first time ive watched this, im pretty amazed of how entertaining it is. :cheese1_ee:

  • idolbeat

    I liked the girl whose mom is a choreographer – what was her name? Was it Nicole? She was so graceful!

  • Pam

    I liked the girl whose mom is a choreographer – what was her name? Was it Nicole? She was so graceful!

    She really was. I was impressed with her too.

  • AZIdolFan

    i love this show. even the bad auditions are ok. i liked the last hip hopper (dominic?) who got through (not mickey mouse guy). i thought he was great!

  • sumidol

    There were two that really stood out for me but I dont remember their names but I bet they will make it past Vegas. Do they call them B dancers? The big black guy with ALL the moves and the girl whos partner didnt make it thru, he was great at being right there for her but I saw him as more of a prop for her. That has got to be a sad thing but I bet we will be seeing a lot more of the two of them. This is something that I believe all my kids will watch with me unlike most of Idol (this year at least), they didnt recognize half the songs or the guests and lost interest during most of it. This show appears to have music that they like to hear or dances that they like to do. I like shows that are fun to watch as a family.

  • BlankSlate

    The daughter of the HIGH SCHOOL MUSICAL choreographer (Bonnie Story) was KELLI BAKER.

    She was good and you know she is going far in this competition.

    As for Overtanned Pageant Girl.. PLEASE GO AWAY. Ugh. Why is she going through if not for her comedic, albeit unintentional, charms?

  • Hoppy

    To a certain extent, you are right about the untrained dancers, but there have been some good surprises over the past couple of seasons. I didn’t watch S1, but Jamile who they mentioned tonight went pretty far. In S3, Dominic and Sara went further than any other street dancers ever had (Top 8), and though I think Sara had some training, Dom had NONE. It will be hard for the next generation of B-girls, B-boys and poppers to top Sara and Dom and how versatile they ended up being, but that’s the great thing about this show, watching them learn and grow.

    I also love that they don’t treat one style of dance as being superior to any other. Ballroom, contemporary, hip-hop, street dance, etc. If you’re good, you’re good and they do a great job of showcasing all these different styles.

  • daisy

    Enjoyed much of the show last night, the comments from the judges much more helpful and spot on than AI (even Nigel, which I begrudgingly admit is not half bad as a judge). I agreed the bad auditions are entertaining, and don’t go on and on, making you cringe
    Kelli was fierce and I loved the breakdancing tonight, hoping some of the free styling dancers make it far in Vegas, it’s fun to watch, is creative and cool.
    and the music, contemporary, hip, I am googling for the songs as soon as the show is over

  • http://www.myspace.com/swood1104 Sarah

    It will be hard for the next generation of B-girls, B-boys and poppers to top Sara and Dom and how versatile they ended up being, but thatà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s the great thing about this show, watching them learn and grow.

    I LOVED Sara. She was probably my favorite of the girls, and ended up being so versatile. She gave some of the best performances of the season last year, IMO.

    The show really dragged for me last night, but there were definitely some standouts – Chelsie, Arielle, and Kelli. I also really, really liked Matt Dorame. He’s an early favorite of mine, for sure. Gorgeous dancer.

  • wfowfowfo

    We love this show – and know nothing about dancing as well.

    I really liked the basketball shorts guy (Matt) – he’s obviously a well-trained ballet guy — did you see his toe point? Seems very ernest and cute.

    I also liked the big black popper dude (Joshua) — but he’s got ballet in him too, did you notice at the end of the show clip he was doing one of those very controlled twirls (perio…ette? sp?)

    Should be great to see it all play out. I’ve never actually voted, never been that invested, but we shall see. Fun to have somewhere to talk about it.

  • KrazeeK120

    MJ…Nice job on the recap!

    The show does get more interesting as you get to know the personalities. I usually don’t even bother to watch the auditions, but I’m watching this year because I figure it may help me a little in the pool. We’ll see!

  • mrsbjh

    To those of you who haven’t watched this show before, you are in for a treat when the competition begins. All of these people who are used to dancing alone are paired together randomly and asked to do partner dances, in most cases a style that neither is familiar with. The way they work out these unfamiliar routines in a week and do them so well is just amazing. If you can stick with it through the auditions, I think you’ll love the show.

  • SpenserJ

    I LOVED Sara. She was probably my favorite of the girls, and ended up being so versatile. She gave some of the best performances of the season last year, IMO.

    Sara is an excellent dancer and she was my favorite of the girls last year too.

    I also liked the big black popper dude (Joshua) à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬’  but heà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s got ballet in him too, did you notice at the end of the show clip he was doing one of those very controlled twirls (perioà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬ ¦ette? sp?)

    He did throw several fancy turns in there, and I said to myself – whoa, there’s more to this story than hip hop.

    In S3, Dominic and Sara went further than any other street dancers ever had (Top 8), and though I think Sara had some training, Dom had NONE. It will be hard for the next generation of B-girls, B-boys and poppers to top Sara and Dom and how versatile they ended up being, but thatà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s the great thing about this show, watching them learn and grow.

    See, here’s my theory on this: People who study dance all of their lives can end up with amazing technique that can really be quite impressive. Then, you see them dancing at the club, and they are hysterically way off the beat (i.e. Paula Abdul). It’s because they have training, but no natural rhythm. Then, you have those hip hoppers with no training – who do absolutely amazing things with their bodies.

    They stand out amongst the other hip hoppers (or B-people or whatever Nigel likes to call them) because they have amazing body control and an innate sense of rhythm. People like this can pick up technique very quickly. The switch up of the styles in this show as we start the top 20 serves these people well. They pick up the Latin dances faster than the trained technicians and of course they kick ass in the hip hop choreography. So, as long as they don’t screw up too bad in the Modern & lyrical crap (styles of dance that require no rhythm or musicality at all), they can make it quite far.

    This, I believe, is why Dom with no training and Sara with a little training when she was younger advanced so far. The gifts they were born with added up to more than all of that training some of the others had.

    Sabra, last season’s eventual winner, had the least amount of training amongst the technical dancers yet she won. Because her natural ability allowed her to keep improving exponentially above her competitors.

    That’s why for some of us Danny was so amazing, he had the total package: tons of training, a strong sense of innate musicality and an insane amount of natural body control.

    That’s my theory anyway – and I’m sticking with it.

    MJ – I too find the audition rounds of this show rather plodding – and I really don’t pay much attention until the Top 20, when things get really interesting.

  • Ladybug

    Love having a forum for this show, so thanks again, mj.

    One thing I have always enjoyed about SYT is it has a core of sheer joy, for the most part. The (good) dancers soar. The judges are thrilled to see genuine talent displayed, even old curmudgeonly Nigel. While nerves are in evidence, it is nothing like you see on Idol.

    Oh, and the group dance numbers are, to use the overused word, awesome! No pointy poses these! They are professional and shockingly good. These will come when the regular competition starts. NOT to be missed.

    I love Cat as the host. She is so easygoing and SO not into herself. (Loved the fall on the ice last night! Pure Cat!)

    As SpenserJ noted above, you get hip-hoppers who turn innate grace and body control into true dancers. And you get surprises like ballroom experts or ballet types who turn into krumpers and street dancers extraordinnaire. (Benji, Danny, Neil and many others.) And vice versa (Hok. And that guy in S1 who turned into a magnificent ballroom dancer … gotta look him up!)

    This is a thoroughly entertaining show and I even enjoy the tryouts because of some of the performances you see that have everyone hollering Holy CatDeeley! Did you see THAT?

  • MN Sue

    Hmmm…what goes through a post-Idol mind while watchng SYTYCD.

    Imagine a show that recognizes talent spanning many genres of dance rather than focusing on finding a predetermined style and sex.
    Judges who are attentive and humane, giving props to those whose passion for dance is left on the stage even if they are not right for the show.
    One can actually look forward to what the judges have to say.
    Looks and personality can not be overlooked as Nigel books his harem, I mean talent, for his show.

    Oh, and Nigel, I will forgive you most of your sins against Taylor if you would just keep Pageant Girl off my screen. (Yup, I hate her that much)

  • sumidol

    MJ – If I could give you a Mary “holler” I would. I did not see all of it but now I can and hang in there it DOES get better as you get to know and see the dancers grow and amaze you. Whether you know a thing about dance or not it gets very entertaining and some performances can blow you away. This was my first year to watch only on reruns and I got hooked. A guy name Benji had won the year before and man, that guy is amazing so I am looking forward to seeing more good stuff.

    Oh and a part of the show that I loved was that you got to see the dancers in practise, goofing around or getting upset, struggling or excelling. I liked how you got to really know each contestants real personality. This is something I wish they did with the Idols

  • MN Sue

    Spense, gotta love everything you said, ceptin’the lyrical comment. Dissing on contemporary? Meet me on the playground and we’ll discuss it. I’ll be the one in the Lacey tube socks.
    Seriously, while I marvel at what street dancers can do and respect their mad talent, I feel what contemporary dancers put out.

  • kerfuffle

    MN Sue,

    I love me some Contemporary, too: Park Bench and Sunflower (Travis and Heidi), Hummingbird and Flower (Hok and Jaime), Umbrella (Ivan and Allison – that was “Contemporary,” no?), Heavenly Reunion (Neil and Lacey) … I could go on, but those are some of my favorites. Very moving. Beautiful!

    Kelli Baker is an early favorite for me (thanks for the recap, mj, so I could look up her name), as well as some others whose names I don’t yet know.

  • MN Sue

    Yes, Kelli is all kinds of special and wickedly talented. I have no doubt she will make it onto the show. I wonder if she will have the personality needed to connect with the voters. I remember how Danny struggled at the beginning of last season. Voters placed him in the bottom three many times. Or, on second thought, maybe it wasn’t him but his partner Anya that caused the apathy. Regardless, the judges saved Danny and they will save Kelli, too. On this show Nigel ain’t no dummy.

  • sumidol

    Kerfuffle (love that name) I agree with you on how those dances really moved you. I have not seen my father in over 15 years, my childrens father is gone so believe me I was completely moved by the Heavenly reunion – I love dances and songs that make me “feel” too. (saying quietly, I know its the wrong place but – thats why I love Mr Castro the mostest.)

  • kerfuffle

    sumidol
    May 29th, 2008 at 2:21 pm
    … I love dances and songs that make me à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“feelà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬  too. (saying quietly, I know its the wrong place but – thats why I love Mr Castro the mostest.)

    Me too, also. :mrgreen_wp: (BTW: There’s no wrong place to mention Jason Castro, who is a special gift to those of us who “get him.”)

    And thanks for the kind words about my “name”. It’s a fun word to say. Another is: “brouhaha.” :lol_tb:

  • kerfuffle

    mj,

    In your recap, you said:

    … I saw the other permanent judge, Mary Murphy on Idol Gives Back and had no idea who she was. I thought she was a comedianà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬’she had this horrible routine where she kept screaming. Sheà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s actually an expert in ballroom dance who judges competitions. I expected her to be way more annoying. So far so good. …

    Mary knows her stuff – buuuutttt … she does scream in her critiques when she really loves a routine. She says the dancer(s) just climbed aboard the “Hot Tamale Train.” (I guess it would be the equivalent of Randy Jackson identifying a performance as a red-hot-molten-lava-bomb, or whatever inane clichà © it is that he uses.) The other judges sitting at the table are usually given a warning to cover their ears before she, ummm … lets loose. Fortunately, that at least gives viewers the chance to do the same (or hit “Mute”). I think she really does mean well. :unsure_tb:

  • Hoppy

    I think a lot of people early on pegged Mary as the “Pauler” of this show, but she is no Pauler. Yes, she is quirky and very very very loud at times, and says some silly things. But she also flat out knows what she’s talking about, and she will be the first to bust a dancer on bad ballroom technique. She may yank out a Randy-esque cliche (i.e. hot tamale train) occasionally, but unlike Randy, she actually can give a constructive critique.

    The judging is just SO much better on this show. The judges know what they are talking about and don’t over-pimp or underpraise just because they can. And unlike the “cranky British judge” on Idol, DWTS and America’s Got Talent, Nigel only gets curmudgeonly during the auditions and it’s usually completely deserved. For the most part, he’s actually… okay. Go figure.

  • SpenserJ

    Spense, gotta love everything you said, ceptinà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢the lyrical comment. Dissing on contemporary? Meet me on the playground and weà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ll discuss it. Ià ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ll be the one in the Lacey tube socks.

    Tee Hee – so to clarify: First, I adore Lacey and her tube socks. So, maybe I’m a tad dismissive of the genres, and that’s not entirely fair. Like I’ve said previously, I think Mia Michael’s genious is in the fact that she gives contemporary choreography a flow that it doesn’t always have.

    kerfluffle, I agree that all of those dances were amazing. But again, I think those dances were performed by dancers who weren’t just technically proficient in that genre, but dancers who infused the dance with their musicality from the heavens. Anyone new to this show should watch the Park Bench, Heavenly Reunion and Hummingbird on Youtube.

    By the way, I think the most stunning part of the Hummingbird dance was Jamie’s controlled plie’s. (Again another Denise Wall trained dancer). Jamie’s lines & extensions were the finest I’ve ever seen – until last night – when I got a look at Kelli Baker. That girl has mad skilz and is a force to be reckoned with.

  • sumidol

    And SpenserJ – I think they should really go look up Danny Tidwell on youtube while they are at it – I liked the link you put up awhile ago with all his plie’s

  • SpenserJ

    And SpenserJ – I think they should really go look up Danny Tidwell on youtube while they are at it – I liked the link you put up awhile ago with all his plieà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s

    Well, they should do that whether they’re interested in the show or not – as I can assure that a life without some Danny F*#king Tidwell Youtubes is simply not a life worth living.