SYTYCD: Warm-up special

Though while this special So You Think You Can Dance episode was being promoted, I assumed the top 20 dancers were going to be performing their solos as a way to showcase their talent, I was pleasantly surprised to see that the dancers were put into small groups and choreographed in their own genres. There was no pressure and it was pre-competition so the dancers were able to have fun. But that doesn't mean they didn't work hard. As Adam pointed out, this show is about improving, but following the amazing performances from last night, how do dancers improve upon perfection? Everyone danced so well, meaning this promises to be a wonderful season full of impressive dancing. Anyway, here is a recap of the dances from last night's episode.

1) Group dance: choreographed by Wade Robson
This performance was set up like a turf war with small groups within the larger group competing with one another. It was a smooth and sexy routine that did not disappoint. It was very entertaining.
2) Hip hop dancers (Russell, Legacy, Kevin): choreographed by Tabitha and Napoleon
This was a high energy dance that included tons of trick and showcased the very talented hip hop men from this season.
3) Contemporary (Channing, Nathan, Ariana, Jakob): Tyce choreographed
This dance was emotional and powerful and Tyce's choreography was amazing.
4) Tappers (Peter, Bianca, Phillip): new choreographer Derick Grant
This was a more classy tap performance and less action packed than I was expecting, but it was still pretty good. That said, I agree that it is going to be difficult for the tappers to get votes. Also, there were times when the camera did not show the dancer's feet! There are always camera problems on SYTYCD, but this is unacceptable. Nigel also points out that these three dancers are going to be expected to dance in other styles, but no one on the show is going to have to struggle in their tap genre. It almost puts the tappers at a slight disadvantage. We'll see how they do.
5) Jazz dancers (Mollee, Pauline, Ellenore): Sonya choreographed
Throughout the dance these three were so in sync and it was an entertaining performance.
6) Contemporary (Victor, Noelle, Billy, Kathryn): Mandy choreographed
There were lots of lifts and kicks in this routine and it was very fast paced and technically difficult. But they all pulled together and performed beautifully.
7) Latin/ballroom dancers (Karen, Ashleigh, Ryan): Jason Gilkinson choreographed this samba routine
This was a hot hot hot dance that helped me remember how sexy and wonderful ballroom dancing is when it is done well.

In more SYTYCD news, two dancers are unable to perform in tonight's first live episode, during which two dancers are going to be sent home. The full story is here, but from what I can tell, Billy Bell has permanently withdrawn from the competition because he has mono and Noelle will be unable to perform tonight because of an ankle injury. Noelle will be given one week to recuperate, as stated in the SYTYCD rules, but if she is unable to return next week, she will be out of the competition. In the meantime, hip hop dancer Brandon Dumlao will replace Billy and we'll have to see how Noelle's absence will be handled tonight.