The producers of So You Think You Can Dance (SYTYCD) invited Blogcritics Magazine to go behind the scenes and attend a taping of tonight’s show.
For those not in the know, SYTYCD, now in its third season, was born in 2005 as an inferior American Idol knockoff, but slowly blossomed into a guilty pleasure, and has since evolved into the best reality series on television. Even if, like me, you have an irrational hatred of the pasa doble and too many left feet to master the macarena, this show will make like a mustache and grow on you.
Week after week, the show spotlights young dancers – from ballet dancers to b-boys – performing superbly choreographed routines in genres that span the chasm between krumping and quickstep. This season, the producers have also effectively highlighted the personalities of the dancers such that Thursday’s elimination show is a weekly exercise in heartbreak.
Unlike other reality shows that celebrate humiliation, showcase obnoxious personalities, or force contestants to compete in pointless battles, SYTYCD is the rare show that celebrates improvement, showcases talent, and forces contestants to compete in the realm in which they aspire to retire. The judges are brutally honest but, in contrast to Idol, rarely take delight in stabbing contestants in the heart.
The only thing this writer was unsure about is whether this reality show actually represents reality.
After all, each week, dancers are forced to perform partner routines in genres often outside their element. Imagine a breaker, with no formal training, doing lifts in a contemporary tale or syncopated steps in a foxtrot routine that she only had a few hours to learn. Surely, one would expect to see mangled flips, tangled arms, or strangled necks. Yet, this season, the bloopers and blunders were nonexistent.
Ever the skeptic, I imagined that FOX, which does not air the performance show live, allows retakes until each team delivers the best possible performance of the routine.
I was wrong. And now, I am in further awe of the contestants.
As I entered Stage 46 in CBS Television City, I immediately sensed the community and the cult status that this show has engendered. I passed celebrities like Vanessa Williams and Kids in the Hall comedian Scott Thompson, who were obviously big fans. I spotted two of last season’s finalists, Donyelle Jones and Heidi Groskreutz, making the rounds with old friends, while two of this season’s eliminated contestants, Jimmy Arguello and Jesús Solorio, warmly embraced one another. Even two of the contestants' swing-dancing father, Buddy Schwimmer, who has become known for always holding an electronic LED sign while sitting in the audience, is greeted like a national celebrity.
As I took my seat, Corey, the show’s hypeman, rallied enthusiasm from the crowd. His duties were unnecessary, however, since all the rabid teenagers in the audience worshipped the dancers and screamed at the sight of any of them. Suddenly, I could imagine Beatlemania.
The audience frenzy never distracted me from the amazing fact that this two hour show practically taped in real time. Indeed, no routine was ever performed twice. Only a few pickups from beautiferous host Cat Deeley were ever recorded multiple times.
Up first, Lacey Schwimmer and Kameron Bink nailed the hustle but didn’t out-stun their previous weeks’ routines. Lacey’s bejeweled Wonder Woman headband also helped to distract from Kameron’s unsettling hair. Judging by the multiple Lacey signs around me, the fact that she has never landed in the bottom three, and her seemingly effortless performances, Lacey probably has the best odds of winning the competition … if not for the fact that her brother won last year.
Cedric Gardner, who is clearly the heart and soul of the competition, and partner Shauna Noland turned in a decent mambo that finally convinced judge Mary Murphy that Cedric deserves to stay in the competition. If you ask me, Cedric deserves to stay on the sole grounds that he is the only human who can dance in a way that creates the illusion that he has no bone in his lanky body. Cedric was clearly aided by the more experienced Shauna, who has the intense passion of Alex Owens, which is a Flashdance reference for those too young to remember that steel mill welders can make great exotic dancers.
Russian ballroom dancer Anya Garnis and ballet dancer Danny Tidwell performed a compelling contemporary routine that won rave reviews but also gave the judges an opportunity to point out that Danny’s ego appears to be cashing checks that his sculpted body can’t cash.
B-girl Sara Von Gillern and ballroom aficionado Pasha Kovalev then danced together for the first time since their respective partners were eliminated from last week’s merciless guillotine. Performing a west coast swing to Fatboy Slim’s “Rockafeller Skank,” the newly-formed duo turned in a clear crowd-pleaser.
Next, Sabra Johnson and Dominic Sandoval performed a romantic hip hop routine invented by Shane Sparks, who is undoubtedly the best hip hop choreographer alive today. Not only did Sabra and Dominic stun the crowd with a sexy performance, they seemed rather affectionate off-camera. (In case they’re already in committed relationships, I’ll give them the benefit of the doubt and say that they were just rehearsing their chemistry.) Undoubtedly, Dominic’s family, who was sitting in front of me wearing customized shirts with messages like “Vote For My Nephew – Dominic D-Trix,” were thrilled regardless.
The penultimate couple was Jaimie Goodwin and Hokuto “Hok” Konishi. Hok, the most mesmerizing and humble breaker to ever grace my television screen, looked uncomfortable even before the routine began. Dancing a waltz and dressed in a conservative vest, Hok survived the emotional routine, largely due to Hok's mantastic charisma and Jaimie’s spectacular lines.
Finally, if Neil Haskell and Lauren Gottlied don’t get eliminated this week, they only have one man to thank: choreographer Wade Robson, whose inventive routines have repeatedly mesmerized the judges and the audience. Neil and Lauren’s jazz stomp was easily the most well-received. Unfortunately, Lauren’s nonsensical remark that she pretends to be Asian will probably not play well.
The routines were so brilliantly executed that judge Mary Murphy, off camera, remarked that this was the best show she has seen in all three seasons. Guest judge Adam Shankman, who is the director and choreographer of the upcoming film, Hairspray, also seemed to fall deeper in love with the dancers.
The impact of this show, however, became most transparent when I left the studio. As I followed the crowd to the parking lot, I overheard another young audience member gush, “Oh my God, I can’t believe I touched Danny’s hand.”
