So You Think You Can Dance Canada 2, September 29: Dancing With Strangers

In the last Elimination episode, ballet-based Corynne and hip-hop’s Daniel were sent home. You can read my version of events here if you missed out.

Last week, I got a little over-excited in my praise of the show America’s Best Dance Crew, and misidentified judge Lil Mama. Oops! While I’m on the topic of that show, I congratulate We Are Heroes, the all-female winner of their recently completed Season 4. Their smooth popping and inventive choreography was always in sync and a pleasure to watch. But, let’s get back to this show!

Before the show gets going tonight, here’s a little numerical analysis of my own concerning the season to date. Two couples (Tara-Jean and Everett, Emanuel and Kim) have never been in the bottom three. Cody and Melanie have been there twice, while Austin, Amy and Vincent, and Jayme Rae have danced for their lives and survived three times apiece.

The proportions of provincial representation have not varied much. Remaining are B.C.’s Emanuel; Amy and Tara-Jean from Alberta; Jayme Rae, Kim, and Vincent from Québec; and Austin, Cody, Everett, and Melanie from Ontario. I could see one from each province making up the final four! One number that has skewed somewhat is that seven of the remaining ten are contemporary-style dancers, though Emanuel is also known for ballet.

A look at the types of dances that have placed dancers in the bottom three isn’t terribly informative, since such a wide variety of styles have been used this season. However, hip-hop, which had such a terrible record last season, has fared much better this time around. It has come up seven times, and five times the dancers have been safe. Further, no one has been eliminated who performed a choreographed hip-hop routine. Those numbers get even better when performances of three derivative styles (house, dancehall, and krump) are considered – the dancers of all three were safe. So… there will be no more talk of a “hip-hop curse!”

All right, I think I’ve milked my research about as far as I can… let’s get to tonight’s episode. Series host Leah Miller kicks things off in a slightly different way this week. After bringing out the top ten dancers, she explains the ways the competition changes as of this week. Perhaps the big one is that teams will be redrawn every week, but it’s also significant that voting is now on an individual basis, rather than voting for the couple. There’s no more dancing for your life, with the individual of each gender having the lowest vote total will automatically be eliminated with no hope of a reprieve.

Leah next introduces the four judges. Luther Brown and Blake McGrath are here again this week, along with principal judges Jean Marc Genereux and Tré Armstrong. At Leah’s prompting, Jean Marc implores the dancers to give it everything they have.

The pre-dance videos are insignificant this week. Let’s just say everyone is deliriously happy with his or her new partner, and leave it at that.

First to draw his new partner is Vincent, and he’s drawn Melanie. Potentially, this could be a very good team! They will be choreographed by Francis Lefrenière and Natalli Reznik, who were two top ten performers from Season 1. This is the first time Francis and Natalli have choreographed on the show, and they have prepared a paso doble in which Vincent is a desperado and Melanie is “the queen of paso.”

The song is “Conquest” by The White Stripes. It’s an appropriately energetic and dramatic performance, with much swirling of cloth.

Luther thinks they did a great job. Blake tells Melanie, “You are the most versatile competitor in this entire top ten.” Blake now understands why Vincent is Mia’s favourite, as he commanded the stage and their connection was believable.

Tré found Melanie captivating and intense. She feels Vincent danced through every inch and fibre of his body, and she loved it. Jean Marc feels Melanie was “intense, passionate, and committed,” and Vincent was grounded and (again) committed, and he has everything a good leader should have.

Kim has a solo next. It’s a hip-hop-contemporary interpretation of “Kiss From A Rose.” She is a very sensual woman. Everett is next, dancing to “Everybody Dance” by Chic. Although his feet are tapping a mile a minute, he still manages to engage the crowd. Some of those ankle positions are unbelievable.

It’s time for the next couple. Cody picks next, and selects the card with Amy’s name on it. They will dance a contemporary number under the direction of Stacey Tookey, about two high school sweethearts, separated because he’s gone on to college. The music is One Republic’s “Come Home.”

It’s one of those numbers that’s nice, but not great. Frankly, without the story detail beforehand, I’m not sure I would have got the whole context. I got that it was a “denied love” story, but the bit about school being the reason eluded me.

Luther says Cody worked hard outside his genre and kept focus. He expected more from Amy, but overall, says “Good job.” Blake agrees with Luther on both points, wishing that Amy had committed a little stronger. He adds that Cody’s technique is improving.

Tré also notes Cody’s growth, mentioning that he was pointing and flexing his toes correctly. She feels Amy gave a solid performance, but because it was her genre, Tré thought Amy fell a little flat. Jean Marc announces that Amy was “very, very good for me.” He sees Cody as an inspiration for hip-hop dancers who try out for this show in the future.

It’s time for more solos. Jayme Rae comes out smoking in silver pants, dancing a solo showing mixed styles. It’s quite good. Austin is next, and he spins and leaps as athletically as ever, though it was more controlled that some of his earlier efforts. This time, I knew I was watching a dance floor and not a gym mat. I like this one, too.

Emanuel is next to pick his new partner, and he draws Tara-Jean. Tara-Jean is often called “TJ” on the show, so I’ll be using both names for her from now on. They get a samba with Tony Meredith and Melanie LaPatin. Melanie explains that this dance is “an intoxicating blend of competitive Latin samba, infused with Brazilian spices.” Sounds tasty! This is Emanuel’s first stab at a ballroom style. She’s worried about his broken finger, and it does get in the way a couple of times during rehearsal.

In their performance, they shake it up big, as befits a proper samba. There’s a naughty move where he jumps into her face that has Leah at a loss for words. Shane Sparks was glad a similar move got past the censors on America’s Best Dance Crew 4! I think this couple looks good together, as both are very fluid.

Luther calls TJ the hardest working dancer here, saying she has been growing since she come on the show and is one of his favourites. He tells Emanuel that even with his finger, he does everything he’s expected to and carries himself very professionally. Blake believes their strong connection. Emanuel hears he had a strong performance, though his upper body wasn’t quite right for contemporary at one point. Blake feels Tara-Jean is another chameleon who takes on all styles, and she killed it.