‘So You Think You Can Dance’: Getting more and more ‘four’ real
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Nigel Lythgoe couldn’t stop talking about how great tonight’s episode of ‘So You Think You Can Dance’ was, and it was, but with each show lately it becomes clearer and clearer who the front-runners of the show are, and those who can’t keep up simply fall away.
Far and away the best couple of the night was Katee Shean and Twitch Boss, two dancers who have always been a boon to their partners, whomever they might be. Both have versatility, energy and personality, and it just so happens that the two of them were friends prior to the show, which made their partnership seem almost a little unfair. Add Mia Michaels to the mix and it’s barely a competition. Their first dance, a contemporary number by the divine M.M., started with a bang, literally, as Katee kicked down a door and portrayed an angry, insane girlfriend. Katee really is a hell of a performer as well as a dancer and the number, with its explosiveness and humor and clever use of the doorway, was eminently re-watchable.
Unfortunately, Comfort Fedoke and Mark Kanemura were the clear losers of the night (of course, they’re not losers in reality, but you know what I mean). Their fox trot was lacking but I actually didn’t think their hip-hop routine, which was lauded, was so great. Choreographers Tabitha and Napoleon D’Umo gave them a number about kids acting up during detention, but other than at the very beginning and end of the routine, nothing in their dance seemed to indicate the freedom and rebellion of what happens when a teacher is out of the room. Plus, thanks to the judges’ comments on previous shows, I noticed that they barely used up any of the stage space. Comfort’s been dancing on borrowed time, and Mark is fabulous and all, but he can’t match up to the other guys any longer.
Other lesser losers of the night:
Mary’s ‘fake-outs’. I’d rather listen to her scream for five minutes straight than for her to continue to pull this ‘I didn’t like it... ... ... I FREAKING LOVED IT!’ routine over and over again.
Toni Basil. The lady is a legend, and she looks great, but unfortunately, as a judge, she’s not so fine nor does she blow my mind. She talked a lot about the street, and funk, and groove, but didn’t use too many specifics when actually addressing the dancers.
Will’s solo. I love ‘Get Up Off of That Thing’ and was psyched to see what Will would do with it, since we rarely see him be funky, but thanks to time restrictions, the dance was over before it even began, which made his use of a wig and comb look much too hacky.
Other dippy props: The sign that Katee held up during her ‘Sweet Georgia Brown’ number and the hourglass that Courtney Galiano briefly gazed at during the lyrical hip-hop routine that she did with Joshua Allen -- that stuff is for the old guys on ‘Dancing With the Stars’ who don’t have the necessary dancing or acting chops. They need to be put away unless they can be used in a Mia Michaels capacity.
-- Claire Zulkey