Well, it’s finally here.
The part of So You Think You Can Dance we know and love is finally here: The Live Shows.
Since I loved and enjoyed reviewing SYTYCD’s Live Shows last season, I really wanted to try it again this season because it’s just fun and exciting to watch and give my opinions (along with creating the titles for the editions).
This week, in honor of this season being two styles of dance being spotlighted, Street and Stage, I have decided to split my honorable title of Favorite Dance of the Week between dances by Street contestants and Stage contestants. However there will be only one mention for this for both sides.
So without further ado, let’s get into what we’ve been waiting for: the reviews of the dancers and their dances!
Before I get to the dances’ critiques, I wanna mention that...there is a nice little change in the studio. That’s because the SYTYCD Stage has finally been redesigned! In its place is more bright lights and turning colorful walls. I think it looks great, and can work in the concepts of the presentations of the dances this season. If utilized well, the looks of the dances can be vibrant, intense, colorful and amazing visually.
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And now, the dancing...:
First up are
,
and Eddie "Neptune" Eskridge*, three Street-ers that I thought would be great at the start, but actually didn't make the mark this week.
To be honest, this dance was terrible to me. The choreography by Dave Scott is pretty underwhelming and shoddy, and it makes me sad that these three wanted to go this far, only to shoot back down. It had not enough substance and rawness in it, and left me with less to be desired. And I felt the song playing dragged them down with it. There were little bits to it that I liked but others were terrible. I was happy Jason was on the same page.
It was just a disappointing start to the season’s competition.
And about that song, Riff Raff referred to himself and Far East Movement as “so ill”. The only thing about them is ill is the ability to make lines in their song so crappy and disjointed, that they can make you sick. Sure made that way.
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Next up is the first Stage dancers hitting the Live Stage for this season, the team of Moises Parra, Gaby Diaz and Derek Piquette. Doing a routing by Stacey Tookey, they find their one shining moment and attempt to stay in that. From watching the rehearsals clip, I thought they reached their shining moment already, as I actually felt the passion and emotion they were conveying from their moves, and I felt like I was going to cry from it. And I was even closer to crying from watching the performance itself
And the song of it, “Luminous” by Max Richter, did not help matters.
All three of the dancers did a beautiful job, both individually, in parts and together. Their contributions were fantastic to watch, and made my heart warm up like a light bulb. I watched the guys more, but from watching Gaby, she really (and clearly) stole the performance with her moves. This was an awesome way to continue the competition, and I wish this was the first dance of the Lives Shows (I don’t care if everyone would get bored by it, I still wish it that happened).
Even their hug with Travis
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Next up is the Street team of Lily Frias, Džajna Vaňková aka “Jaja”, Burim Jusufi aka “B1” and Asaf Goren hit the stage with their routine by Christopher Scott. And let me state that when we found out that two of my favorite dancers are in the same team this week, you know I’m super excited. It seems that in the rehearsals that meshing four different styles of the same genre into one would be challenged; I would agree that four different dancers doing what they love in their own ways trying to work together to do the same choreography is challenging. But I believe that they can pull off what they’re given. And boy, was I right...to an extant.
To Son Lux’s “Easy (Switch Screens)” featuring Lorde, I thought the dance was really enjoyable
I thought the only ones pulling of the moves well were Jaja and Lily. They guys were very fine, but the one thing I repeatedly noticed from them was doing spins and stuff. Fortunately, they redeemed near the end when they combined with the ladies and did the part of the bit that took my breath away.
The ladies pulled off their moves like clockwork; one move goes to another like the seconds on the dial-so quick and so effortlessly. I really enjoyed their timing to beat aw well; the song was awesome to listen to on its own (I wanted to dance to this one myself), watching the girls dance to this, bit-by-bit, piece-by-piece, was fantastic. Also, the part where the four dancers converged together was magic. Seeing one guy and one girl mesh with their dancing was awesome, let alone both of each.
Another problem I had with the dance is the work of the camera crew. There were so many changes and angles, that it was hard to watch the dance segment, let alone focus on it. (I get that’s why I was less positive on the guys) I don’t what the director was thinking with that; it was annoying. and it was frustrating to give it a better review, because this dance, I feel, should get a better review. All-in-all, though, this was a fantastic routine, and I definitely think--no, know that all four dancer will make it in the competition much longer.
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And now here’s the inspiration for part of the title: Domin8rix, because this dance made me blush for how sexy and steamy it was during the
Stage-rs Alexia Meyer, Hailee Payne and Marissa Milele brought us one of the most brutally smoking dances this season (and this is the FIRST LIVE SHOW!!) and possibly the entire series to this Brian Friedman-created jive in honor of the iconic genre of film noir.
During rehearsals, it was sexy enough watching them practice (and this is ironic, as one of them are from Utah), and it was hilarious watching Friedman dancing with stilettos, but what came down the line made my jaw drop...and something else rise.
The ladies showed lots of fierce, fab and sexy with their set, played with “New Dorp, New York” by . And that was before they took off their trenchcoats. And when disrobed...Holey Wackazoley.
The sultry substance and raw talent were so strong, I could feel them in my pen--veins. It was like looking at a burlesque show in 1970s New York, and the Let’s just say there were so many questions to be answered, like:
How did the ladies ascend on the stage?
How could this dance air while in the Family Viewing Hour?
Why was I not jerking to this at first? (hey, this is the Internet; there are no ratings)
Could they be anymore talented after this?
Nigel & Paula raised a great point that I sort-of agreed with: the dance is so sexual and not very subtle, that it’s not that sexy for us to enjoy. Well, I’ve seen some things on the internet that tries to be sexy and fails miserably in my book, so this is little better to me.
We’ll never know the answers, but this is clear: these girls are talented and this dance will certainly my favorite female dance of the night.
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And speaking of favorite...
The next members of Team Stage, Darion Flores and Jim Nowakowski (another of my favorites), perform what had to be a very gruelling routine. It’s a ballet bit, choreographed by Benoit Swan Pouffer (must be French) set to “Blood and Stone” by Audiomachine.
I didn’t see much synchronicity from the two guys, but when I did, it was amazing. The power and emotion was felt everywhere; from the dance itself, to the looks on their faces, and even the set lighting was damn-near breathtaking. I know I can never do this dance ever in my life, but watching them do the dance made me feel really weak and tired. The strain on their bodies was clearly seen here, yet they pulled it off great. Good job to them.
I will mention that many people in the comment sections on Hulu and YT had a bit to say about the guys’ costumes, which look more like what the lady dancers would wear than something more unisex. And I agree--they really look ridiculous.
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Let me tell you, I felt uncomfortable for watching this dance...and even more so for loving it.
In this next dance, the last three members of Team Street, Yorelis Apolinario, Virgil Gadson aka “Lil O” (yet another one) and Ariana Crowder performed a perfectly dope routine created by Christopher “Pharside” Jennings and Krystal “Phoenix” Meraz. During the rehearsals, I saw why I love Virgil: he’s fun to watch, exciting and has a smile that lights up an already-bright room. So I was sitting at the edge waiting for what he’ll do here...and I wasn’t disappointed, also with the ladies; the girls were just as great.
Set to Bruno Mars’ “Locked Out of Heaven” (which isn’t a very heavenly song to me, un-ironically), Vigil plays a man who’s time is up on Earth and is placed on a scale between love and evil, with a lovely angel and a sexy demon vying for his attention.
(Spoiler Alert: He ends up with the demon)
This dance was all about teamwork here, whether in a dominoes style or synchronized, which I LOVED. Watching the fight for the man’s interest into dance was both heavenly and devilish. And Virgil still held his own; I’m still trying to do that limp jump dance myself, because it was cool to watch. Along with the rest of the dance, which is why I call this my Favorite Street Dance of the Week! I’m sure they’ll be pleased.
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Just like these next dancers will be.
Edson Juarez and Kate Harpootlian, and pair from Team Stage take on this -led bit, with “Shaped Like A Gun” by Tailor to set the mood. And the mood was really sad. So sad, I felt like I wanted to cry.
The emotion seeped through from the dancers to me like an actual couple close to having sex, the moves they displayed were amazingly subtle yet bursts in blatant love, and the physical contact between them was so good it felt like me watching them made made me a third wheel to a actual relationship or a participant in the most classy menage a trois ever.
My God, these took such a great job, and I love this dance so much that it is my Favorite Stage Dance of the Week! This is definitely deserved.
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Now that all of the dancers have gotten their chance to re-introduce themselves to America, it’s time for one of the judges to perform hopefully one performance for this season, instead of being whored out by the producers for a lot of these like Adam Levine or Blake Shelton or any of the other coaches on The Voice.
This here is the debut performance of his single “Cheyenne”. And already, something stuck out like a sore thumb: this song sounds eerily similar to Nick Jonas’ ”Jealous” and Taylor Swift’s “Style”, especially matching in beat with the latter.
(Listen to them together; it’s shocking.)
And the title reminds me of the character of the same name from Reba, which is actually a good thing. It’s not that bad of a song, and would’ve been better had it not sound so plagiaristic. How ironic that nine people wrote this, and it still sounds like something at least three of them stole. Plus, Derulo’s high vocals were irritating.
On the other hand, the performance was great. It looked like a murder mystery, yet didn’t reach macabre, Derulo and the All-Star dancers were awesome, and reminding me of Michael Jackson wasn't that bad, even though he’s still acting like a clear MJ wannabe.
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The final Stage dance of the night is by...all the members, in this, the Team Street dance, performing to “Body Language” by Queen.
The strange sounding song and the strange looking outfits really do mesh well with the choreography by Warren Carlyle. The brief bits of tapping won me over along with the use of chairs for the ladies to sit on like Aladdin on the flying carpet. Everyone did a mindblowingly fantastic job; the setup, staging, the dancing even the costuming were fantastic.
Also, I the second the snaps of the music came in, I immediately joined, because the atmosphere was too fun and exciting to just sit and watch. I was just like Peter Parker in his attempt at Cabaret dancing in Marvel’s non-MCU abortion Spider-Man 3.
“Now take on this.”
The bouncy-yet-subdued, and crazy-yet-calm display was damn well enjoyable, that I had to give it the honorable distinction I’ve waited all year of giving once again, Favorite Team Group Dance of the Week. Too bad…,
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because Team Street has an equally awesome Group Dance, too.
Watching the rehearsals, I was delighted to see the synchronicity the dancers show; it’s just perfect. And what I watched later was this x100.
This was like...wow!
The quick speeds of the dancers and the energy just spills out of the screen and you just lose your breath from watching. The camera crew did great keeping up with the dancers, and ensuring a smooth, yet ferocious experience.
Well, the first week has finished. And boy, was I impressed. All of these dancers showed a lot of promise and talent. Whether individually or as a team, this group has made a name for themselves in that I’ve almost never seen it. The routines I’ve seen this week have made them shine bright like I’ve seen the light to the gates of Heaven. But next week is when some of the lights begin to dim. Who will shine brighter, and who will fade into obscurity? We’ll find out
There are no eliminations at the start of competition, as to properly introduce the dancers and give us a chance to know them a little more, so next week, eliminations will properly begin of each episode, with the first dancers of both Sides getting the boot. But this will be after another round of the dancers; they now have to give it everything they got, and not only impress the judges, but also the viewers. And of course, I will be here, giving my critiques of the dances, proving I’m not as impressionable as I’ve made myself out to be.
See you next week!
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