by Kylene Hamulak

 

It's the last stop on the audition tour, and So You Think You Can Dance is in Salt Lake City, Utah with Adam Shankman joining Mary and Nigel on the judging panel. To kick off the show, Mary shares her three suggestions for the auditioners, as demonstrated by Adam: 1) No booty shaking 2) No Self Worship and 3) No Reach. Let's see if the dancers heed her warnings!

Witney Carson (18 - American Fork, UT) - Bringing Latin ballroom to the stage, Witney has enough skill (and looks) to merit all kinds of uncomfortable remarks from Nigel, a "HOT TOMALE" declaration from Mary, and a censor bleep from Adam. Going to Vegas? Absolutely.

 

Lynn Gravatt (33 - Portland, OR) - Lynn is bringing us alien space dance from Pleiades and her three spirit guides. She also used to be an aerospace engineer. She's not the most terrible dancer ever, but she's not making it to Vegas.

 

Deanna "Dee" Tomasetta (19 - Millbiry, MA) - The only girl in a large Italian family with all boys, Dee is adorable. She might be an ugly crier, but she's a gorgeous dancer with such strength and control, it's no surprise when she's sent out to Vegas.

 

And then to cleanse your palette...here comes a guy who is going to dance the life cycle of the praying mantis. Oh yes. You read that correctly.

Gene Lonardo (22 - Las Vegas, NV) - Dressed in what looks like a fig leaf and makeup, Gene presents, as promised, the life cycle of the praying mantis. Laugh if you must, but, like...he kind of did it. It's not something I ever wanted to see, but...now I have. He's from Las Vegas, so either way he was going there, but this time he's going to continue on to the next round!

 

Lindsay Arnold (18 - Provo, UT) - As Nigel points out, Lindsay is both a good performer and technician. She was also a beautiful dancer (and the second "hot tomale" of Salt Lake City), and she's going to Vegas.

 

Mariah Spears (18 - Phoenix, AZ) - Mariah brings krumping to the audition and it's, as she promised, kind of scary. The judges want to see more of what she can do, so she'll be back for the choreography round.

 

Murphy Yang (22 - Roy, UT) - Murphy's story is pretty much about the lack of support from his family, which is unfortunate because he's a delightful dancer. The judges point out that he doesn't have enough substance in his dance, but his love of dancing makes him charming to watch. They want to see what he can do in choreography.

 

At the end of day one, twenty dancers have made it to choreography. Murphy is cut from the group, but Mariah Spears and ten other dancers are on their way to Vegas.

 

Derek Kujawa (19 - Boulder City, NV) - Anytime Nigel brings nipples into an audition discussion, you have to expect something special, right? He is criticized for his feet, but the judges love everything else about him and send him straight to Vegas.

 

So the next pair to audition are Whitney Hallam (19 - Orem, UT) and Johnny Ahn (29 - Orem, UT). Johnny has been studying a dating course to teach him how to win over women by being creepy. I mean, that's what I assume the description is because that's what HE is. When they do their ballroom dance routine, it's a little like watching the first couple of weeks of Dancing with the Stars. They have no chemistry (as the judges point out), but there is dance skill - they're both coming back for the choreography round.

 

Next we get a montage of dancers who are returning after several appearances on the show who once again make it to Vegas but don't get their names announced this time.

 

Adrian Lee (22 - Los Angeles, CA) - After getting cut dramatically in Season 7, Adrian has returned to audition without telling his family, hoping he can deliver good news. There is some criticism from the judges, but not enough to keep him from going directly to Vegas!

 

Rachel Applehans (20 - Denver, CO) - Rachel makes it clear that she's dancing "for" Nigel and hopes it makes him uncomfortable. My guess? It worked. Unfortunately, her "burlesque jazz" didn't have a lot of technique, so she's coming back for choreography.

 

Leroy Martinez (29 - Sacramento, CA) - Everyone is rooting for Leroy, who is dancing for all the right reasons. With a tough background and an inspirational motivation, neither the crowd nor the judges want to do anything but cheer for him. He makes it to the choreography round, but the judges don't expect him to continue in the competition.

 

Day 2 choreography brings Johnny, Whitney, Rachel and Leroy back to judgement. Johnny and Whitney are cut, while Rachel is given another chance in Vegas. When it comes down to Leroy, the judges tell him that his dancing isn't strong enough to continue, but he's made everyone proud.

 

And that's a wrap on Season 9 auditions! Next up - Vegas for 181 dancers!

 

 

So You Think You Can Dance airs Wednesdays at 8/7c on FOX.

 

(Image courtesy of FOX)