Vegas week finally arrived Wednesday on So You Think You Can Dance — and based on the first round of competition, it’s going to be one heck of a ride! A total of 152 dancers, who were given very little time to master relentless routines, faced judges Mary Murphy, Nigel Lythgoe, Tyce Diorio, Mia Michaels, Debbie Allen and Adam Shankman. By show’s end, only 77 were left standing.
First up was contemporary wonder Nathan Trasora, who took a rain check last season after an amazing audition, but he was just 17. One to watch, Nathan had no problem moving forward, as did other familiar faces like hip-hop dancer Justin Kenney (New Orleans) and rising ballroom star Iveta Lukosiute (Salt Lake City), who showed real showmanship by helping to coach krumper Russell Ferguson (Boston) in a ballroom routine that left Shankman in awe, calling their performance, “the most unexpected thing I had ever seen!”
Choreographers Tabitha and Napoleon put the dancers to the hip-hop test, knocking 21 of them out with their tough routine, including Jean “the Dream” Lloret, who defied gravity with his moves back in Boston, but was unable to grasp his own genre in Sin City. Another unfortunate loss for hip-hop fans was that of Shelby “Skip” Skipper, the panel-pleasing pioneer of New Orleans Bounce.
Ryan Kasprzak, the lovable older brother of season 5’s Evan, also felt the heartbreak after he barely made it through the first round and then blew a cha cha, forcing Nigel to break the news that this would not be his season either.
But it wasn’t all bad news. Billy Bell of Atlanta showed some real heart by not allowing a nose injury to prevent him from nailing his audition — and Paula van Open, who danced beautifully in her L.A. audition, and Willem, one-half of the same-sex dancing team, would also be back next week.
And last but certainly not least, Jonathan “Legacy” Perez (Phoenix), who had trouble early on showing off his personality, was lucky enough to get a rare chance to fight for his life. Pushing the mounting pressure down and stepping up — with a head spin slide to boot — he earned another chance to shine. But not so for Jonathan Litzler (New Orleans), who blew his do-over for having “no emotion whatsoever,” according to Nigel.
Next week the remaining 77 dancers will again be put to the ultimate dancing test. With tougher routines, more pressure and even less sleep, things are sure to be exciting. And if that isn’t enough, they’ve got to please one of the most ruthless panels in SYTYCD history. –Jed Dreben
Tell us: Who were your favorites in Vegas? Were the judges too tough?
Permalink | Comments (14)
