Firstly, what a great selection of guest judges. I have been such an admirer of Karin Kain since I was ten. She is so elegant, posed, professional, and classy. Not only is she a treasure to the dance world but a treasure to Canada. It was nice to see her in the spotlight again. The other guest judge was Dan Karaty. He is a hip hop dancer/choreographer from the states. I really like him. My (dance) opinion rarely sways from his and mostly I like that he tells it as it he sees it. He doesn’t sugar coat things but he is professional, honest, and gives really good constructive criticism.  

 

Secondly, FINALLY! By God the show has finally arrived! Seriously, the show was a let down and quite disappointing for the first 3 weeks. Every week was improving but it wasn’t at the same level as last year (by far) and it definitely wasn’t at the level the American version until NOW! Yeah! This week had a ton of great, great, routines and it is going to be very difficult to chose two people to go home. 

  

 

HIP HOP- Cody and Melanie

These two did a really great job. They were right into character and executed very well. However, I wasn’t such a huge fan of the choreo. I didn’t think it was overly original and the same theme of last week is creeping back a little… Sex to replace a lack of creativity?

 

CHA CHA CHA – Vincent and Amy

That routine did not excite me… in the beginning. But then, once that death-drop-lift-thingy happenend, it has smoking! I loved it! So much fun, passion, and excitement. The ending was one of the best endings I’ve ever seen! It really impacted the routine and made it totally memorable. Loved it!

 

HOUSE - Everette and Tara-Jean

Ever since last year with Vincent, Lisa, and Sho-Tyme, I have been a huge fan of HOUSE! Everette and TJ looked fabulous and effortless. It was fun, entertaining, and I really like how they took a few beats to get the crowd into it.

 

CONTEMPORARY – Emanuel and Kim

This was the first routine of the entire season, that I believed the performance instead of simply watching the performance. The timing was impeccable and worked beautifully with the music. It was nice to seem Kim in a more serious role versus a sex kitten and of course this is much more up Emanuel’s alley so he did well too!

 

DISCO – Daniel and Jayme Rae

This routine was energetic and fun. The tricks were very well executed. The split lift that Jayme Rae did with her head lower then her body was insane and truly made me nervous. (I have very little trust in my partners and don’t even like to be dipped let alone lifted.) However, the thing with disco is the actually dancing isn’t very technical and I agree with Dan that they didn’t commit enough to the actual dance portion of the routine.

 

WEST COAST SWING – Danny and Natalie

Performance of the night! I loved it… So creative and the fusion between Hip Hop, Jazz, and Swing were amazing. The commitment to the performance was excellent. All around fabulous. I have nothing negative to say at all!

 

JAZZ – Austen and Corynne

I take it back… THIS is the performance of the night! I am virtually speechless. The dancing, the choreography, the acting, the commitment was unbelievably excellent. The only critique I have to say is Corynne did seem a little uncomfortable with the gun and I didn’t quite believe her, until… She shot Austen and threw her had back in a sinister laughter; Ha ha ha ha ha!

OVERVEIW

Umm… are ratings low? Because this week, selling sex was definitely the theme! There were some very racy moments which I have mixed feelings about. Is using sex a creative outlet or a cover up for lack of creativity? Muy interesante!

 

Top Performances – Hip Hop – Daniel and Jayme Rae

Worst Performances – Rhumba – Danny and Natalie; Hustle – Nicholas and Jenna Lynn

 

JAZZ FUNK - Emanuel and Kim

Whoa! RA-CY END-ING! Damn…Totally unexpected! This piece definitely wins for shock value that is fo’sho! I thought the choreo was good but not the best. Emanuel was the magician/ ringmaster/imaginative character, which suited him because if he had the task to emulate Justin Timberlake-- it would have been a flop! I agree with the judges that he is definitely growing as a dancer. Kim… good job but again, I don’t think her performance was anything overly spectacular other then the shock value.

 

HIP HOP –Vincent and Amy

There was some very intricate choreography in that routine, specifically the tutting sequence towards the beginning. Very well done! Vincent did amazingly. Amy did well too but for me, it wasn’t quite street enough. Overall kudos to both.

 

CONTEMPORARY – Austen and Corynne

Well done. I enjoyed it. Specifically I really liked the beginning where Corynne was leaning against Austen’s leg. I thought it was very pretty, simple but elegant and something that took a lot of creativity to see. The highlights include obviously, Corynne’s leg extensions and the jumps/leaps/catches which were all well done on both parties’ behalf. I must say, my eye did wander towards Austen a little more then it did to Corynne.

 

MAMBO - Cody and Melanie M.

Very cute… very cute! I like! They really captured the spirit and attitude that a fun, entertaining, lively mambo needs. I disagree with the judges a little and think that Melanie did outshine Cody just a tad. Technically there is some work to be done; specifically Cody needs to remember to DANCE when Melanie is doing her turns and not just stand there. Also, the tricks were a little shaky and Melanie did a little slip. Is it me or are there a lot of noticeable slips this season? Either way, good job to both.

 

QUICK STEP – Everett and Tara-Jean

Ok… not bad. Good energy with the exception of the actual ‘quick step’. It needed to be a little bit more exaggerated and punchy but I think they did grasp the overall technique and presented a great performance.

HIP HOP – Daniel and Jayme Rae

Hmmmm… I like but I don’t. The choreo was pretty good but when so much sex is being used, it always makes me wonder if it’s a substitute for lack of creativity. As for the dancing, I thought they did well but to be perfectly honest, I thought last week’s was better. However, last weeks routine (dance hall) was A-MA-ZING and every week isn’t going to be at that capacity so… good job to this week!

 

HUSTLE – Nicholas and Jenna Lynn

Interesting!!! Some fabulous moments! There energy was fabulous, super high, impactful, and carried throughout the entire routine. Jenna Lynn has some really great leg extensions but I agree with Sean Cheeseman, that she doesn’t partner well. She is out to perform for herself and not as a partnership which unfortunately for this show, is really important. Nicholas I think really tries to work with her and he is a solid performer.

 

RHUMBA – Danny and Natalie

Everything Sean Cheesman said, I agree! I was totally nervous for Natalie… A crumper, who had to do a 180 and switch her personality and style successfully transforming into a saucy mamacita. Though, the beginning was a little slow for me, I was very impressed. I have never seen this style of rhumba on any SYTYCD. It had an authentic Latin feel and wasn’t too romanticized the way ballroom-style rhumba is. 

OVERVIEW

This was an exciting week! Much improved from last week so that was good but I still see a lot of nerves coming through. However, if this week improves as much as last, then there is nothing to fear and this season will be as fabulous as last years!

 

Top Performances: Dance Hall – Daniel and Jayme Rae; Contemporary – Vincent and Amy; Jazz – Natalie and Danny

 

Bottom Performances: Theatre – Emmanuel and Kim; Smooth Waltz – Melanie B. and Austen

 

 

THEATRE – Emanuel and Kim

Wasn’t really a fan of this piece. I felt they were dancing to the choreo instead of just dancing. Meaning you could tell they were performing and it wasn’t totally believable. Although, Emanuel did do a better job in his facials! Overall I found the choreo to be a little bit boring. Sean Cheeseman’s choreography is a hit or miss with me. He is either fabulous or a snooze fest… Sorry!

 

CONTEMPORARY – Vincent and Amy

This was a really well done piece. The characters were believable and well crafted. The dance itself was really technical and physical and I thought they did a very good job!

 

DANCE HALL – Jayme Rae and Daniel

what! WHat! WHAT! This routine was so sick! Definitely the best performance of the season to date! It was entertaining, provocative, both performers were equal to one another and they had chemistry. I really enjoyed it and was thoroughly entertained! I love Luther’s shout out to C.W. Jefferies!

 

PASA DOBLE – Anthony and Corine

This was ok. When you compare it to Natalie’s pasa doble’s from last season, there is a little something missing but nonetheless, they did a respectable job. I felt the costume was really distracting and got in the way a little. As for the fall… well covered! They kept performing and I was fully guessing as to whether that was done on purpose or not. Shout out to the split leap/catch by Corine. Her leg extensions are breathtaking!

 

HIP HOP – Nicolas and Jenna Lynn

Nicholas did a really great job. I would love to see him and Natalie pair up for a hip hop routine! I thought there were some ‘in sync’ issues but overall they played into their characters and I really did like the choreo. Jenna Lynn was a little self absorbed in this performance. She didn’t really feed off her partner are work to get a chemistry going. I felt she was performing more as a solo then as a partner.

 

JAZZ – Danny and Natalie

This was so good! I loved the choreography. It suited the music perfectly and I felt Natalie played her role perfectly. She has this understated elegance and a subtlety in her timing that is nearly impossible to detect but it makes all the difference in her dance style. I really like her and so far, she is my favourite dancer.

 

SMOOTH WALTZ – Austen and Melanie B

The choreography and opening was very dramatic and full of impact. However, the dancers did not live up to the expectation the opening created. The dancing was awkward and though the lifts were nice, you could see hesitation on Melanie’s behalf. Unfortunately I feel this was the worst routine of the night.