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Private Notes
The fourth season of "So You Think You Can Dance" kicked off Thursday night with a two-hour audition show from Los Angeles. Host Cat Deeley and regular judges Mary Murphy and Nigel Lythgoe were joined by Mia Michaels as they came face to face with the best and, of course, the worst that the dancing world had to offer. Dancers got one minute in front of the judges, and those with overwhelming "yes" votes moved on to the next round in Las Vegas, absolute "no" votes went home, and in-between dancers would be brought back at the end for a second chance in a group choreography routine. The first real joker of the evening was the man they call "Sex," who was making his third audition show appearance and, once again, making a fool of himself. Nigel lambasted the guy, telling him he "must just enjoy watching himself look stupid on television." And Nigel refused to call him "Sex" anymore, either. A visually impaired girl named Laura tried her best, but the judges didn't think her choreography was strong enough to remain in the competition. Mia, though, got very emotional and called the girl an inspiration because she had a close friend who lost their eyesight.
It was freezing cold outside in Salt Lake City, site of the first set of auditions in Tuesday's two-hour episode of "So You Think You Can Dance?" Would the dancers heat things up inside? Guest judge Mandy Moore joined judges Nigel Lythgoe and Mary Murphy for two days in Utah as they came away with 42 dancers who moved on to the Las Vegas audition. As usual, the dancers each had one minute to dance for the judges, after which they'd either get a ticket to Las Vegas for the next round, be sent home, or be asked to join the group choreography routine at the end of the day for a second chance.
Host Cat Deeley whisked fans away to Charleston, S.C., for the third two-hour night of auditions on "So You Think You Can Dance?" on Thursday night. Joining judges Nigel Lythgoe and Mary Murphy in the best mannered city in America was choreographer Tice D'Orio,who's worked with Janet Jackson, Jennifer Lopez and Paula Abdul, among others.
It's fair to say that when most Americans think "dance" they think ... Milwaukee? Well, that was where "So You Think You Can Dance?" made its final stop in the auditions for the 2008 season before heading to Las Vegas for the second round. Who knows what the famous beer brewing city could produce? "Laverne Shirley's" Milwaukee-based skipping down the street was pretty catchy... After an opening montage that showed judge Nigel Lythgoe having pretty bizarre reactions to hip hop dancers throughout the audition process, it was time to get down to business. Sort of. It seemed like the producers had a little extra time to kill, so they offered up auditions from previous cities that they hadn't shown before. The first was Michael Kim, who auditioned in Washington, D.C., and popped his way to Vegas, where his fate was sealed in Season 2 after failing to make the mark in the samba. Next up were a couple of roommates in the Los Angeles audition. Katee Shean, the first of the duo, made it to Vegas. Her friend, Natalie Reid, got through, too. In D.C., a salsa dancing couple, Janette Manrara and Romulo Villaverde brought the crowd to its feet with some very impressive dips and lifts. But it was only good enough to get them to the choreography round. Janette faced the judges first, and got a ticket to Vegas. Romulo, not so much.
Auditions in six cities brought more than 200 dancers to Las Vegas for the callbacks on "So You Think You Can Dance?" By the end of the two-hour episode, that group would be hacked to the 20 finalists -- 10 guys and 10 girls -- that will compete for the top prize this season. Host Cat Deeley promised the most competitive Vegas week ever, with the dancers being challenged each day in a different types of choreography. The six-judge panel included husband-and-wife choreography team Tabitha and Napoleon, Mia Michaels and Debbie Allen, who joined regular judges Mary Murphy and Nigel Lythgoe.
After five two-hour audition shows, it was down to the final 20 performers who will vie for the title and $250,000 on the fourth season of "So You Think You Can Dance?" After a topsy-turvy intro in which each of the finalists got a few seconds to show off their moves (Dramamine, anyone?), host Cat Deeley laid out the process: the top 20 will be split into 10 couples and each week they'll pick their dance styles randomly out of a hat. They'll perform and the voters pick their favorites. On Thursdays, the three lowest vote-getting couples will be announced and those six dancers will perform solos before the judges decide which guy and which girl is going home. Guest judge Dan Karaty joined Mary Murphy and Nigel Lythgoe for the first episode. And we're off!
The first results show of the season on "So You Think You Can Dance?" started with a bizarre group dance that included judge Nigel Lythgoe getting kidnapped, bound and gagged and left at the center of the stage awaiting host Cat Deeley to free him. Cat quickly explained the process once again, saying that the three couples with the least votes will dance for their lives, performing solos in their own style. In the end, the judges will decide on one guy and one girl who will go home. Dan Karaty again joined Lythgoe and Mary Murphy on the judging panel.
It was down to the final 18 Tuesday on "So You Think You Can Dance?" as Mia Michaels joined judges Mary Murphy and Nigel Lythgoe. She promised that this season is going to be "benoodles," which she explained meant "insane." She said there are a few dancers in the final that she won't be sad to see leave, but the majority are fantastic.
After a slamming hip hop routine to open the show -- it ended with Gev holding a headstand for what seemed like five minutes, and host Cat Deeley couldn't even throw him off by tickling his ribs -- it was time to eliminate two more dancers on "So You Think You Can Dance?" As usual, the bottom three couples would be asked to perform individual routines in their own styles, with the judges making the final decision on which guy and which girl would go home. Guest judge Mia Michaels again joined regulars Mary Murphy and Nigel Lythgoe.
It was down to eight couples Wednesday night on So You Think You Can Dance? as choreographer and general friend of the show Adam Shankman joined regular judges Mary Murphy and Nigel Lythgoe. Mary said this would be the shows best year ever because at this point in past seasons they've generally had a better idea of who the front-runners are. Nigel took a moment to pay tribute to legendary dancer and actress Cyd Charisse, who died last week. He and Adam suggested that folks go rent some of her classic movies, including Singin' in the Rain, The Band Wagon, Silk Stockings and Brigadoon. Nigel called her a remarkable woman and real star of dance. Host Cat Deeley said each couple would say a bit out their partners before each dance.
After some kind of freakish group dance routine that's definitely going to cause some nightmares, it was time to find out which two contestants would be sent home on "So You Think You Can Dance?" on Thursday. Host Cat Deeley handled the duties of introducing guest judge Adam Shankman, who again joined regulars Mary Murphy and Nigel Lythgoe. Cat said it was time to get right to business and introduced the first three couples that would get news on whether they were still in the competition for $250,000 and a chance to perform in Las Vegas. The bottom three couples would perform solo routines before the judges decide which guy and which girl were out.
Host Cat Deeley promised at the outset that the final 14 dancers will face some changes and the competition would get more difficult for the final seven couples. She soon explained that each of the couples would have to dance twice for the first time this season. Hip hop choreographers Napoleon and Tabitha Dumo served as guest judges, joining regulars Mary Murphy and Nigel Lythgoe.
After a wild opening Broadway routine choreographed by Tice D'Orio, it was time to cut two more contestants on Thursday's episode of "So You Think You Can Dance?" But first, viewers were treated to a montage of D'Orio ripping into dancers during the earliest audition rounds.
Host Cat Deeley reminds viewers that the final six couples will be competing for a place in "your" Top10. We're introduced to the final 12 dancers, followed by judges Mia Michaels, Mary Murphy and Nigel Lythegoe.
Host Cat Deeley is decked out ominously in black as she welcomes us to the show and tells us the judges will have to eliminate one more guy and one more girl. We open with a modest Napoleon and Tabitha Dumo routine featuring all 12 dancers wearing jackets which turn out to be glow-in-the-dark. Cat explains that three couples with have to dance for their show lives and were introduced to Mia Michaels, Mary Murphy and Nigel Lythegoe.
"Finally," host Cat Deeley tells us, we're down the final ten. Cat adds that now America's voting will be the only factor in who advances and who is cut.
Before we get going, Jessica comes out and informs Cat that she has broken a few of her ribs and is out of the competition. Left with an odd number of female dancers, the show has decided to bring back the recently booted Comfort for tonight's show. Cat introduces us to tonight's judges Nigel Lythgoe, Mary Murphy and Lil' C, adding again that the threesome no longer has to make any cuts, with only the public's vote deciding future eliminations. The couples have been changed at random, with the girls drawing a new guy from a hat. Also, since the public will be voting on its favorite individuals, everybody will be dancing a solo during the show.
Just two weeks away from the finale, eight contestants remained on Fox's "So You Think You Can Dance?" Four girls and four guys continued in the competition for the title of America's favorite dancer. The dancers picked new partners and routines out of a hat for this round of the competition. Every couple would perform twice and every dancer would perform a solo. Translation: Fox has two hours to fill! Guest judge Toni Basil (of "Mickey" fame) joined regulars Nigel Lythgoe and Mary Murphy. She got a chance to plug her current projects, working with Bette Midler on her Las Vegas show and Tina Turner on her tour.
Thursday night's episode of "So You Think You Can Dance?" spelled the end of the road for two more dancers who pulled in the lowest number of votes. The opening dance was a cool, futuristic hip-hop looking deal that was pretty captivating. Guest judge Toni Basil's speech about how she got into dancing, not so much. Host Cat Deeley asked Basil to talk about how much of a challenge it is for the dancers to learn all the different styles they have to know on the show and Basil's response was, essentially, that there are all kinds of dance and you'll never be able to master them.
With just six dancers left, we finally reached the glorious time of the summer when even "So You Think You Can Dance?" couldn't stretch itself to two hours. That meant instead of a bloated 120 minutes, viewers were treated to a packed 60 minutes as each couple performed twice and each individual dancer offered up a solo. Guest judge Adam Shankman joined regulars Mary Murphy and Nigel Lythgoe, and away we went..
Just six contestants remained, but that number on Thursday would be trimmed to the final four dancers still in the running for the title of America's favorite dancer on "So You Think You Can Dance?" Guest judge Adam Shankman announced that in addition to the $100,000 cash prize and the spot in a Las Vegas show, the winning dancer will also get a featured role in an upcoming movie he's producing. No details. That's just the prize. So, you know, yay! After the first commercial break, judge Nigel Lythgoe went all "Debbie Downer" on the dancers, telling them that they'll have to prepare themselves for rejection. In a minute-long speech, he said the word rejection -- or some form of it -- seven times, telling them dancers that by the end of the show, five of them will have been rejected. He said they should not dwell on it, but use it to propel themselves toward other opportunities. He then told them that each of them pulled in more than 1 million votes after Wednesday's performance show. Mary got emotional while telling them how proud she is of the progress they've made, and Adam told them to cherish the experience they've had on the show and to treat their fans well. All six dancers then performed their solos, and it would be the last time around the stage for two of them.
It was the first part of the two-night finale on "So You Think You Can Dance?" and host Cat Deeley threw a curve ball at us from the start. In an effort to change things up -- and perhaps to stretch another episode into two hours! -- each of the remaining dancers would perform with every other dancer. That meant the two girls would dance with each other, as would the two guys. Suddenly, those rumors of Lance Bass pairing up with another dude on "Dancing with the Stars" don't seem so special, huh? During the introduction, there was no immediately mention of the reports that Twitch and Joshua were rushed to the hospital earlier in the week after suffering from dehydration during rehearsals. Guest judge Mandy Moore joined regulars Mary Murphy and Nigel Lythgoe and Cat got the action started quickly, introducing the first dance from Courtney and Twitch.
Kicking off the bloated, two-hour finale of "So You Think You Can Dance?" host Cat Deeley noted that the season had consumed 35 hours of television. Gotta love summer TV. Six judges sat on the panel for the finale: Mia Michaels, Adam Shankman, Debbie Allen, Lil C and regulars Mary Murphy and Nigel Lythgoe. The night began with a quick video journey back through the season.
