By Lindsay Strouse

 

So You Think You Can Dance returns this week with photos and videos of childhood days to embarrass both the judges and the dancers. I must say, I quite enjoyed seeing the photo of Nigel Lythgoe’s English schoolboy attire and Mary Murphy’s kiddy-diva days. And if things weren’t good enough, Cat Deeley actually had on a fashionable dress this week…with no animal print! Things are finally starting to turn around.

 

With only seven couples left, here’s how the performances went throughout the night:

 

Dancers: Ashleigh Di Lello and Jakob Karr
Style: Hip Hop
Choreographer: Tabitha and Napoleon D’Umo
Song: “Whatcha Say” by Jason Derulo
It’s funny how this pair’s dancers work out—they actually string together into a real relationship. In the first week, Ashleigh seduced Jakob, then they got married, then they fought over a cane and now Jakob is cheating on her! And man, do these two know how to show passion and anger when it comes to being in a relationship. I was absolutely blown away by how good this piece was. They continue to meet and then go beyond everyone’s expectations and are by far one of the fastest growing couples on the show. Their acting was so believable in addition the precision and effort they put into each move. Adam admits that while he didn’t believe in Ashleigh at first, he thinks she could be a real contender for the Top 10.

 

Dancers: Karen Hauer and Kevin Hunte
Style: Broadway
Choreographer: Spencer Liff
Song: “If My Friends Could See Me Now” from Sweet Charity
The Hot Tamale train got a little bit off track this week for Karen and Kevin. The chemistry just wasn’t there and Kevin looked uncomfortable throughout the entire piece. I could hardly concentrate on the story of the routine because I was so distracted by his raised shoulders and unpointed toes. To put it simply, they just didn’t get the Broadway style and could have put a lot more energy and personality into the dance. The judges point out that this piece requires humor and neither brought it to the table.

 

Dancers: Noelle Marsh and Russell Ferguson
Style: Fox Trot
Choreographer: Eddie Simon
Song: “Baby (You’ve Got What It Takes)” by Michael Bublé
This is Russell’s second time performing the Fox Trot on So You Think You Can Dance, only this time he is actually dancing with his partner isntead of Melanie Lapatin. I’m so happy Noelle didn’t drop out from her accident a couple weeks ago or we would have missed out on this routine. The performance, lifts and chemistry were all fantastic. It was obvious both dancers were having a blast on stage while making it look effortless. Since the first time he performed this style, Russell has improved drastically, from his arm placement to footwork. Noelle was gorgeous in all her movements and connected everything with a simple, graceful fluidity. Even though both dancers were WAY outside their comfort zone, they rocked it out.

 

Dancers: Channing Cooke and Victor Smalley
Style: Jazz
Choreographer: Tyce Diorio
Song: “Blackbird” by Bobby McFerrin
Oh Tyce, you and your crazy concepts…that I LOVE. This sort of flashes back to Wade Robson’s “Hummingbird” piece, with both Channing and Victor emulating two eclectic black birds. The song had opportunities for the dancers to really hit certain accents, which they did perfectly. However, while Nigel thinks Victor has grown and matured greatly as a person, he believes he has not grown as a dancer as much as the other contestants. And though Channing had a rocky start with changing partners, the judges see tonight’s routine as a breakthrough. Speaking of breakthroughs, Channing almost broke through Victor’s face during rehearsal by basically headbutting him and leaving 5 stitches as a battle wound. Ouch.

 

Dancers: Kathryn McCormick and Legacy Perez
Style: Paso Doble
Choreographer: Tony Meredith
Song: “Pursuit” from the Cirque du Soleil soundtrack
Passionate. Fierce. Intense. Those are just a few words that came to mind as I was watching Legacy and Kathryn relate to one another and move across the stage. Everyone continues to be impress with Legacy’s progress, observing the incredible stretch these styles are from hip hop and B-Boy moves. Last week, the judges made a comment to Kathryn that she was dancing a bit childish. This week, it was like she was a different person, dancing with more maturity than we have ever seen before. It’s no wonder this pair gets rave reviews; according to Nigel, he catches Legacy practicing through the halls every chance he gets.

 

Dancers: Ellenore Scott and Ryan Di Lello
Style: Contemporary
Choreographer: Travis Wall
Song: “Your Ex-Lover is Dead” by Stars
As soon as I heard Travis was choreographing, I knew I was in for something special. Right I was. The choreography was so beautiful and really pulled on the strengths of each dancer while portraying a simple, yet passionate story. And where lies passion, lies a shirtless Ryan. Not that I’m complaining. But back to the dancing. Both Ellenore and Ryan were so completely invested in the piece and their characters and were able to draw off each other beautifully. Ryan’s strength is so imperative when it comes to the amount of difficult lifts in all these routines. After the judges give rave reviews of the dancesr, Mary comments that the dance was “magical” and “perfection.”

 

Dancers: Mollee Gray and Nathan Trasoras
Style: Pop Jazz
Choreographer: Laurieann Gibson
Song: “Bad Romance” by Lady GaGa
The Dream Team is back, baby! When there’s a Laurieann piece, you know it’s going to be hard-hitting, sharp and on point. These two did not disappoint in those aspects. Their synchronization was perfect and right in tune with each other. Mollee’s commitment to her dancing is astounding, and she is called one of the most committed dancers on the show. And while Nathan may be one of the most technically gifted dancers on the show, he needs to grow in many other areas and mature…quickly. However, all in all, they must have done something right because they got a baby scream from Mary Murphy, and we all know how much we love those.

 

Cat Deeley once again asked the judges who they thought was in the most danger of receiving the lowest amount of votes. The judges unanimously agreed that after tonight’s performance, Karen and Kevin might be put in the hot seat tomorrow.

 

You don’t want to miss out on tomorrow night’s live result show of So You Think You Can Dance, November 18 at 8 PM ET to see which two dancers are leaving us next!

 

(Image courtesy of FOX)

 

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