Dear Tina,
This was a big week for So You Think You Can Dance? The Vegas callbacks ended successfully with a surplus of talented and personable dancers, only 10 of which would make it to the final round. I can appreciate a show revamping their format for the sake of keeping the premise fresh and drawing in new viewers. But this year with ten spots instead of the usual 20, the show is sacrificing extraordinary new talent in order to accommodate 10 “all-star” dancers that veteran audience members like myself have already seen on this stage. It would be like if next season of American Idol, the contestants performed a duet with Clay Aiken or Diana Degarmo each week. I’m wary, Nigel.
By the time they left Vegas, there were between 20 and 30 dancers competing for the ten spots. Instead of finding out their fate by waiting in a room filled with folding chairs until their name was called and they stood before the judges until they heard “yay” or “nay,” this year one judge would be flying into their hometown to deliver the news personally. Which is great if the answer is yes, not so great if you’re getting the boot. Can you imagine if that was the way your SAT scores were delivered in high school? You gathered every member of your family together in your living room and waited for an official to show up with a camera crew and reveal your cumulative score was 950? A little awkward, no?
During this process, which always takes longer than any American has the attention span for, my favorite dancer was given the bad news by Mia Michaels in his apartment. By himself. So depressing. Anthony Borelle, who outshone most of his competition throughout the Vegas callbacks despite a leg injury, was told that he didn’t make the cut because they can’t have a group entirely made up of contemporary dancers. Yes, I hear your point Mia. Except you turned the top 10 into the top 11 for the sake of having 6 boys instead of 5, 5 of which were contemporary dancers. I think it is highly likely that if Anthony auditioned again next season he would make it into the top 10 since Mia’s words of disappointment at their decision felt genuine. But the point is, he would have made it were they not making room for these “all-stars.” I don’t want to see people dance who already got a shot at this. These reality competition shows are meant to open doors for people who would never get to showcase their talent on such a public platform until an opportunity like this came along.
I watched the Thursday night episode that featured the top 11 dancing alongside the all-stars to pieces created by the show’s resident choreographers. It was fine but what I’m really interested in is seeing couples grow through this experience together, not couples that are starting out in two totally different places. One naive, the other seasoned and therefore, inevitably arrogant. Maybe they’re trying a Dancing With The Stars approach, but even that idea is a little misguided as these all-star dancers aren’t nearly the professionals you see on the opposing show. Those dancers have won national and international competitions, been the teachers to dancers that have won national and international competitions, and one has even been a choreographer on So You Think You Can Dance? These all-stars only credentials (with the exception of maybe Pasha and Anya), really, are being audience favorites from the past. Er, sort of…who are you, Allison Holker?
This is not to say I won’t tune in every week and then watch the dances I will inevitably drool over (despite my criticisms here) on repeat. But I just wish they would maintain what this show is supposed to be about and that is new talent competing against equally unaware, nervous, and impressionable dancers. Consider a return to what worked for six seasons in a row next year.
Now that I’m feeling all nostalgic, here is a dance from last year featuring the excruciatingly talented Jakob. What are the chances that the first dance with my husband at our wedding could look something like this? Can I add to my list of requirements for my soulmate that he be able to do what Jakob does in the last moment of this dance (1:18)? I think that’s fair.
30 Rock Quote of the Day:
Jack: Is it the body paint? Or is Danny just glowing like a beacon of manly commodore? Oh god, I’m extremely drunk.
Dear Tina 