Dallas Blagg Moving To Europe

Ballet gangsta and good guy Dallas Blagg is moving to Europe this week. Stop by his Myspace to wish him well and ask him to keep us posted. He has videos of some of his favorite choreography there, well worth watching.

More Anya And Hok Interviews

Daemon's TV has interviews up with this week's departing dancers.

Anya will take this experience with her:

D: What do you think this experience brought you?
A: Oh, I’ve gotten so much knowledge, just to be in that atmosphere, to be surrounded with so many great and talented people, I just felt very fortunate and I really felt that as of right now I’m just so much better. I’m a better performer, I can understand more things, and when I dance I am more present. And you learn every time. Even if you didn’t have the chance to work with the choreographer you wanted to work with, you just look at their creation and you just learn. What a process, I definitely will take this with me, hopefully.

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Hok performed that amazing solo with a bad back:

D: Do you wish you had done something different with your solo routine?
H: Well, the day before I did that, I really hurt my back pretty bad, so I was just worried I wasn’t gonna be able to do anything. I think I could’ve done better with my solo, but I feel more like no matter what I did with my solo, the judges had made their decisions already, so it probably wouldn’t have changed all that much.

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Reality Remix gives us a video recap of the week, and this interview:

Overwhelming Amounts Of Talent

Novelist Anna David's take on the state of reality TV:

Some TV shows feature an array of talent so overwhelming that it's almost painful, while others are painful because they grant airtime to people with seemingly no abilities whatsoever. And then there are those that feature the talent-free but are nonetheless a sheer pleasure to watch.

"So You Think You Can Dance" falls squarely into the first category. It's really not an exaggeration to say that every person on the show is able to do things with his or her body that seem far beyond human capabilities.

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The Night Of 100 Stars

We stumbled upon this great tap dance blog, where we found this video. It's from The Night Of 100 Stars in 1985. There are too many dance stars to mention in this clip, including some of the all-time greats, but for a SYTYCD connection, Debbie Allen shows up, and Christopher Walken (I wonder if he does a Kameron Bink impression). Hope you enjoy it as much as we did.

Interviews with Anya and Hok

The weekly BuddyTV interviews are up, in text and audio.

Anya:

Q: Alright, Anya can you tell us what you have planned for the future?

A:I've gotten really positive feedback from a lot of choreographers on the show and I'm looking forward to working with some of the choreographers and just truly take any opportunity where you can challenge yourself and just look at offers, find an agent and just take it further, one door is closing and a bigger door and a better door will open up always and I'm going to step right into that door.

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Hok:

Q: Lets talk about the performance show this week. It seems that a ton of people loved your Mr. Bojanlges routine, especially fans on the internet, were you surprised by the judges reaction to it?

A: I don't know if I was surprised. It was very, very hard actually, because you're really feeling good cause you're dancing with the music, you finish your piece and then all of the sudden they smash you to the ground. It is really hard to take and it's hard cause you're just really feeling good and they knock you down like that, but then again all the stuff they say...they're professionals too and it does make sense. I just think that if I was a better dancer they could have been happy about the piece.

LINK

Higher Standard?

Adam B. Vary at EW.com makes a couple of excellent points:

Nigel Lythgoe was deeply concerned that if he chose Lauren for the Top 20, he would be accused of showing favoritism to a former employee (of sorts). So when he did bring Lauren into the fold, he warned her, in no uncertain terms, that if anything, the judges were going to be holding her to a higher standard than any of the other dancers.
.......
Anya, week in and week out, had consistently delivered stellar performances, more that matching the peerless technique of her partner Danny Tidwell — and even injecting their routines together with some needed showmanship oomph. Lauren, meanwhile, had been a disappointment, coasting by with merely okay-to-good performances, once even wasting 15 seconds of a solo opportunity with a pouty walk-on intro. Nigel said as much to Lauren last night — and then announced she was in the Top 10 and Anya was going home.

Now could someone please explain to me how exactly that is holding Lauren to a higher standard?

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Around The Web

TV Cocktail gets catty about last night's show:

Cat, glad to see that after one and a half seasons, wardrobe has stopped hazing you and finally allowed you to venture into the realm of normal dressers. Granted, tonight’s ensemble is a little more of my sorority days than present, but can’t judge you there, girl! Are you going vintage? Please say yes.

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Beckylooo at TV In The Woods thinks Neil has more potential than Hok in the short term:

Now about those cuts last night... I'm ok with them. I enjoy Hok more than I enjoy Neil but at this point, Neil seems to have more potential for immediate growth than Hok, despite his solo being dreadful. But I don't blame that on him as a dancer. This touches on what I got into yesterday. These kids aren't choreographers. The show's not called So You Think You Can Choreograph. Those that don't have a knack for it are going to suffer in their solos. I fear Neil is one of them. He strings a bunch of crowd pleasing tricks together with little to no flow or musicality. And yet the last two weeks he's really started to shine when given challenging work.

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Backstage Report

Deborah Starr Siebel's backstage report at TVGuide fills us in on some details:

"The two who went out today will be the alternates on the tour," says judge Mary Murphy. "We always have to have two or three alternates go along, so I don't think the fans are going to be disappointed in that department. Hok will be out there by popular demand. And I think Anya will be there, too, if they'll both sign up to do it. And I'm sure they will."

And this about Pasha:

"I told him, ‘I know you didn't even want to try out,'" says Murphy. "And he said, ‘Mary, this is the best thing that's ever happened to me in my life.' He doesn't talk about it, but you know he almost died last year. So for him to come back from that and have this experience I think is absolutely wonderful."

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Shauna & Cedric Interview

A bit late but still interesting. Cedric hypes Pasha.

Top 12 Results Show Recaps

Brett Love at TVSquad:

Jean-Marc Genereaux got the nod to choreograph the big opening number this week, to the tune of "Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy." It was my favorite of the opening numbers so far. Lots of energy, and the period costumes were great. It's pretty impressive that, after all of the work that goes in to the weekly routine, the group is still able to come together and deliver these big numbers each week. As fun as they are though, we do tune in for the results.

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Hanh Nguyen, From Inside The Box, thinks Neil & Lauren shouldn't have been in the bottom 3, and mourns the loss of Hok:

Hok was one of my favorites for his dancing, but for the rest of the package as well. He's cool, has a nifty accent, dances, paints and plays violin well. Plus, I thought the mutual crush between him and Jaimie was cute. (Oh, and Hok would have brought in so many ticket sales for the tour!)

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Mickeyworld has the opening number and all the solo clips.

LINK

Jason Samuels Smith

J. Sam Smith isn't just a great tapper, he's also a musician. Check out his Myspace page, and his bio at Divine Rythm Productions.






LA Tapfest LINK

So You Think You Can Dance - Top 12 West Coast Spoiler

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Opening group number is Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy, choreographed by Jean-Marc Genereaux.

Cat explains about the importance of the top 10.

First 2 couples are Dominic & Sabra, and Danny & Anya. One couple is safe.

We get the video packages from both performances.

Dominic & Sabra are safe!

Danny & Anya are in the bottom 3.

Mary Murphy says Danny & Anya aren't going down on her watch, if she has anything to say about it.

Commercial.

Musical guest tonight is Enrique Iglesias, right up there with Jean-Marc Genereaux as hardest names to type quickly.

We're back. Hok & Jaimie's package first.

Pasha & Sara next.

Pasha & Sara are in the top 10!

Hok & Jaimie are in the B3.

Denise Wall is in the audience.

Nigel congratulates Denise for being Jaimie's teacher and Jaimie for being such a beautiful dancer.

Neil & Lauren and Kameron & Lacey after the break.

We're back.

This will be interesting. Neil & Lauren received more votes in our poll than Kameron & Lacey, and both couples have power voting fan bases.

Kameron & Lacey are safe!

Neil & Lauren are in the B3.

Wade says he doesn't understand this choice, maybe the goggle thing worked against Neil & Lauren.

Tap dancer Jason Samuel Smith makes a surprise appearance and performs.

Jason gets a standing O from the judges.

Jason is Debbie Allen's cousin. If you like Savion Glover, you'll enjoy Jason's performance.

Commercial.

Danny, Anya, Hok, Jaimie, Neil, and Lauren will be dancing to be in the top 10. Wade Robson says they'd better leave blood on the floor.

Nigel announces the Emmy nominations for Wade and Mia.

Anya first, her best solo yet.

Danny next. He spins forever and throws in a few Mia moves.

Jaimie up. It was ok, but nothing special.

Hok does his break thing like only he can do it.

Lauren and Neil after the break.

We're back, Lauren first.

It's the best we've seen Lauren on the show.

Neil jumps and spins.

The judges retire to the stairwell.

Enrique Iglesias performs. No dancers, just him and his band.

Based on solos alone, Jaimie would be going home, too close to call on the guys.

Only flaws might be Hok & Neil doing basically the same thing they always do.

Judges are back. Not unanimous on the girls.

Jaimie is safe!

Nigel says Lauren has never really reached her potential.

Lauren is safe!

Anya is leaving. We're heartbroken here.

Judges are unanimous on the guys.

Hok is going home!

Danny and Neil are in the top 10.

Hok: "I knew it was coming, but it is just the beginning."

That's the show. Hok & Anya don't make the top 10. All new couples next week.

Thanks for joining us.

Poll Results

We didn't get our poll published until this morning, but I think we have a pretty clear picture of who is safe tonight. Dominic & Sabra received 28% of the vote, with Danny & Anya a close second with 25%. Hok & Jaimie will almost surely be in the bottom 3 as they polled only 4%, the lowest of the 6 couples. Kameron & Lacey were second lowest with 10%. Will tonight be their first time in the bottom 3? Or will their power voting fan base overtake Neil & Lauren (12%) and Pasha & Sara (17%)?

We'll know who the top 10 are by the end of the show.

Ramalama, Park Bench Nominated For Emmys

So You Think You Can Dance choreographers Wade Robson and Mia Michaels received Emmy nominations today, both in the Outstanding Choreography category. Wade was nominated for his season 2 group number, Ramalama (Bang Bang). Mia was nominated for Calling You, better known to show fans as the park bench dance, performed in season 2 by Travis Wall and Heidi Groskreutz.

Congratulations to both!

Nothing To Get Excited About

EW's Adam B. Vary wasn't impressed with last night's performances. He blames the choreographers:

Indeed, Nigel was right to say he was sorry to see Wade judging and not choreographing, because the ones who deserve the lion's share of credit for the night's weirdness were the choreographers themselves. After a promising start with a rousing jazz number from Sabra and Dominic — and can I just say that I'm thinking Dom maaaaay have just lost some votes after all those shots of him concussing his poor partner over and over and over again — the night quickly became a contest between the choreographers to see which one of them could create the most off-putting routine.

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Around The Web

MickeyWorld has all the clips from last night's show.

LINK
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Brett Love at TVSquad does his usual great job recapping, including this observation about Danny:

The other thing that I finally picked up on tonight is how he has a tendency to step out of the style of dance he is doing. When he gets away for his solo bits often times Danny the (dance of the week) performer disappears for a bit as Danny the ballet dancer appears. It's somewhat jarring and hurts the performance overall.

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TVGuide's Community Blog:

As the judges and Cat banter, I'm thinking to myself who SHOULD go. For the girls I think the bottom two in terms of range are Sara and Anya. Lacey is a frontrunner. The judges LOVE Sabra and Jaimie. And Lauren has been consistently good. The guys are all pretty much equally great. Pasha is Pasha and therefore awesome. Kameron is riding the Lacey train. The judges are absolutely enamored with Danny and Neil. Dominic consistently and pleasantly surprises everyone. And Hok has that continually growing fanbase. So in summary, I don't have any clue really! On to the show...

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Here's an interesting one. Swan Lake Samba Girl knows Pasha and Anya from the ballroom world. She gives us some insights, like this about Pasha and his hair:

I had to laugh though at Sara’s hair comment. He DOES take forever with the damn hair! But it’s a Latin ballroom thing, I swear. They all wear their hair greased down, slicked back, blown-dry and hair sprayed firmly, stiffly into place, not a stray strand or else. It’s basically a rule of competition. It looks a bit kooky to me, to be honest, but no one challenges them rules… I’m thrilled they’re encouraging change with the hair thing here, but after all this time, it’s probably just one of those things that’s part of life for him. And the women’s makeup is another thing — so much of it at the comps, and just caked on! I’ve never seen so little makeup on Anya as here, and she looks gorgeous.

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First Top 12 Recaps

Emily at Elaire Fare recaps.

LINK

My Ox Is Broken like Dominic & Sabra the most.

LINK

Nate Levy at Levy on TV:

Opening: I’m perplexed by Cat’s dress. Is it a short dress that’s made to look ruffled, or is it an ill-fitting longer dress? I guess we’ll never know. Pasha manages to combine 3 styles in 15 seconds. Neil is back to twirling. Anya continues to have a terrible taste in fashion. Cat reminds us that this is the last week where the partners remain the same. I don’t get why Cat always wants us to scream “judges”. But we do it anyways. Tonight’s guest judge is Wade Robson, meaning we’ll have to rely on Mia Michaels for some kickass routines. Nigel has had a haircut, and looks spiffy. Cat and Nigel reminisce about British things. Mary thinks it’s still anybody’s game. The hot tamale train is mentioned again, and I still don’t ever want to take a ride on it. Wade Robson thinks the dancers have a responsibility to be honest as humans on stage. Deep, Wade. Deep.

LINK

So You Think You Can Dance - Some Quick Thoughts

For the most part, it was a night for the ladies to shine.

Nigel's hair was fluffier than usual, and as Sashafire asks, is it possible for Nigel to look any more like a character from the Simpsons?

Dominic & Sabra, choreographed by Tony Meredith. Another great routine, Dominic was good, but Sabra really pulled ahead with her performance. We'll hate to see them split up next week, but we'll be interested to see how each does with different partners.

Hok & Jaimie, choreographed by Tyce Diorio. We disagree with the general consensus of the judges. We really...

CLICK FOR MORE
felt Jaimie for the first time tonight. We're not sure about the whole "old man" thing, but Hok avoided what could easily have turned into a parody.

Pasha & Sara, choreographed by Mandy Moore. Sara finally broke through. She starred, Pasha was supporting cast. Good job by Mandy Moore.

Neil & Lauren, choreographed by Mia Michaels. For the first time, we look forward to re-watching their routine, but that may have more to do with Mia than Neil & Lauren. A little out of sync at times, but the movement is finally getting interesting to watch.

Danny & Anya, choreographed by Jean-Marc Genereaux. Jean-Marc's reputation is growing beyond just being the French-Canadian Joe Pesci. He made the foxtrot interesting. As good as Danny was, Anya was even better (full disclosure: we love Anya here). It reminded us of what someone once said about Ginger Rogers. She had to do everything Fred Astaire did, only backwards, in heels. We do hope Danny broke through to some of those who haven't "gotten" him so far. We want them both on tour to do their Viennese Waltz.

Kameron & Lacey, choreographed by Dan Karaty. Their weakest routine so far, and don't blame it on Dan Karaty. Kameron's performance was average at best, Lacey's forgettable, though to be fair, hiphop is not her specialty.

So You Think You Can Dance - Top 12 Voting Numbers

Dominic & Sabra
888-836-7601

Hok & Jaimie
888-836-7602

Pasha & Sara
888-836-7603

Neil & Lauren
888-836-7604

Danny & Anya
888-836-7605

Kameron & Lacey
888-836-7606

So You Think You Can Dance - Top 12 Track List

Dominic & Sabra
I Do The Jerk - Ryan Shaw

Hok & Jaimie
Mr. Bojangles - Fosse (Original Broadway Cast)

Pasha & Sara
Body Language - Queen

Neil & Lauren
Let The Drummer Kick - Citizen Cope

Danny & Anya
It Had To Be You - Brian Evans

Kameron & Lacey
Here I Come - Fergie

100,000 Hits

We received our 100,000th hit today. Not bad for a two month old blog started as a spur of the moment thing. Thanks to everyone who has taken the time to visit Blogging So You Think You Can Dance, and to all of the sites and blogs that have linked to us.

10 Year Old Wade Robson And Paula Abdul

Another one found by Loralyn. 10 year old Wade Robson dances with Paula Abdul at a stay-in-school function.

Natalie Krumps In Greece

Our friend Loralyn found another great video. Season 2 favorite Natalie Fotopoulos choreographs a krump routine for contestants on the Greek version of So You Think You Can Dance.

Travis & Ivan At AIDS Benefit

Travis Wall and Ivan Koumaev will appear at the Fire Island Dance Festival Friday, along with a host of great dance companies. DuckyXDale has all the details, and you can support him in his Big AIDS Ride.

LINK

Good News About Cedric

Gene at Monsters Of HipHop writes to tell us that it's just been booked and confirmed. Cedric Gardner will appear at their Orlando Tour Finale this weekend. More details at their site. Also, this from their MonsterBuzz blog:

Toy company Wild Planet has also called on Cedric, giving him a 2 week opportunity to come work with their San Francisco based outfit, learning all the ins & outs of the toy industry as well as sharing his ideas on new toys.

With this and the Chuy story earlier today, it's gratifying to see good things happening to good people.

RMN Predicts Top 4

Halfway down this page, The Rocky Mountain News makes their top 4 predictions. Picking their homegirl, Sara, is understandable, but many will disagree with the choices.

Web Roundup

TVGuide has interviews with Cedric and Shauna.

TVGasm's Krank Mills wrote an entertaining recap of last weeks results show. Hmmm, does Krank remind you of anyone we know?

Something For Nothing has a couple of videos from Lacey's past. I think we've posted them here, but they're worth seeing again.

A reader points us to this video from Neil's past.


Checking out that one, we found this one, Neil and his brother Jeff. These, kids, are the wages of fame.


WAZO News breaks SYTYCD fans into 2 groups, and gives us a shout out (thanks!) here.

Chuy Fans Take Heart

ATTENTION NASHVILLE AREA, AND JESUS SOLORIO FANS EVERYWHERE
When Jesus Solorio was dismissed during the So You Think You Can Dance top 16 results show, it was one of the most lamented early eliminations in reality TV history (pipe down, Malan Breton fans). Fans will be happy to learn that Chuy is gaining employment from his time on the show. He'll be appearing at workshops TOMORROW, Thursday, July 19th, at Hermitage Dance Academy in Nashville, Tn. More info here. There will be 2 sessions, one for 9-12 year olds, and one for 13 & up (not sure how far up), with a question and autograph session after each.

Space is limited, so register early. If any blog readers attend, please take a camera and send us a report.

Apologies

We posted a video this morning that we said was Pasha & Anya. We need to look more closely next time. It turns out it was a different Pasha & Anya. Who knew? Anyway, we do strive for accuracy, and we apologize for misleading our readers.

The video in question is here, if you wish to view it.

Ranking The Guys

BuddyTv ranked the top 6 girls yesterday. Today we get the top 6 boys. I don't think I agree with a single ranking.

LINK

Ballroom Rock 'N' Roll

The Seattle Post-Intelligencer, in it's Art To Go blog, takes on Gia Kourlas' article in the New York Times, which we blogged here. They'll take Benji over Danny.

Schwimmer, on the other hand, is perfectly suited to his material and confident enough to take it anywhere he wants it to go. He can ballroom with the best of them, but when James Brown sets the tune, Mr. Brown himself would have appreciated the way Schwimmer can get up off of that thing. It's about time: ballroom rock 'n' roll.

LINK

Cat Interview

Our favorite présentateur de télévision, Cat Deeley, was up early this morning. She talked to the Kansas City Fox station's morning show. One of the hosts proved she doesn't watch the show when she asks if we're going to get Hairspray this week. There are coma patients who know Hairspray was featured on the last week's show. Check out the video, here. Just to the right of the video, it says Cat is a judge. Doesn't anybody there watch their own programming?

Shauna Fan Video Re-released

We blogged this Shauna Noland fan video before she was eliminated from So You Think You Can Dance. You may have gotten the dreaded "This video is no longer available" message when you tried to watch it. That's because the creator, Youtube user moltanlavafalls took it down. It has been re-edited and re-released. Also appearing are Jimmy Arguello, Cedric Gardner, and Kory Amaral, music by Bjork, Outkast, and Clockhammer.

So You Think You Can Dance - Top 12 Dance Spoilers

Dance spoilers for So You Think You Can Dance July 18th, after the jump...

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Wade Robson in the third judge chair. Some details are still sketchy. Not necessarily in this order:
Dominic & Sabra, Jive, Tony Meredith (remember Danny & Anya from the top 20 show?)

Hok & Jaimie, Broadway, Tice Diorio, assisted by Travis Wall.

Pasha & Sara, Jazz, Mandy Moore

Neil & Lauren, Contemporary, Mia Michaels

Danny & Anya, Foxtrot, Tony Meredith (well received by judges)

Kameron & Lacey, Hip-hop, Dan Karaty (mixed reviews)

You'll Never Oversleep Again

So You Think You Can Dance - The Girls Ranked

We lose 2 more dancers this week, then we'll be down to the top 10. Who will go? BuddyTV ranks the girls. Lauren ranked #2?

LINK

EW Gives SYTYCD A B+

EW.com reviews So You Think You Can Dance and gives it a B+:

...the ever-so-clever trick Dance regularly pulls off: Both dancers and viewers are constantly learning things. What's a good paso doble? How do performers interpret modern dance in a way that doesn't confound the audience? Does krump have rules? (Let's see Dancing With the Stars tackle that one.) Whenever the Simon of the group, Idol exec producer Nigel Lythgoe, muses about the influence of Michael Kidd and Bob Fosse in a beautifully choreographed piece, he's giving a quick lesson in dance history. It's like Bugs Bunny dropping opera, or mom slipping vegetables into the spaghetti sauce. It's so sneaky, it works.

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It Had To Be You

Singer Brian Evans has announced that his version of the classic, It Had To Be You, will be featured on Wednesday's top 12 performance show. You can preview the song at his Myspace page.

From The Mailbox

A reader submitted this Sara Von Gillern fan video, uploaded by Youtube user corrismatic.

A Week Of Danny

Between a New York Times article and guest judge Adam Shankman's comments, we've talked a lot about Danny Tidwell this week. Our friend Beckylooo posted the video below to her blog. It's a Danny we haven't seen on the show. Read her article here.


We blogged a post by Jennifer Garam at WriteousChicks. She has responded to some of the feedback she received:

I have gotten some feedback on my recent So You Think You Can Dance post regarding arrogance and humility as it pertains to Danny. Specifically, that lack of humility gives off the impression that you think you are better than everyone else, and that Danny will not be as likable to America i.e. the voters if he is arrogant. I take this to mean that if Danny comes off as overly-confident or “arrogant,” he will be punished by the voting public for displaying this kind of behavior, and that their votes will go to someone else. And sadly, this may be true.

In response to these comments, I’d like to make the distinction between arrogance and confidence. As I’ve written, I don’t find Danny to be arrogant. For example, I don’t think saying that he was surprised to find himself in the bottom 3 was an arrogant statement, I think it was truthful.

LINK

Myspace Goodies

On his Myspace page, season 1 winner Nick Lazzarini posted this video.


Speaking of Nick, season 3 audition favorite Yessy Gomez has a great Nick lyrical solo posted on her Myspace page. She also reports that she's lost 63 lbs. We'd love to see her audition for season 4.



Shauna Noland has a slideshow with some of our SYTYCD favorites on her page. She also has a great Bollywood video, and reveals that she's a big LOST fan. I knew I liked her.

3 From Jaimie

A reader submitted this McDonalds Commercial. Jaimie Goodwin is the one in the red dress, and all the way to the right in the group. It was choreographed by Tyce Diorio.


Our friend Clarita thinks we have yet to see the best of Jaimie on the show. She says:

...she hasn't had as much of a chance to prove it yet because she's only soloed once, but she is arguably the best technical dancer among the females on the show. The thing is that she's nuanced and doesn't have as standout of a personality, so it's easy to miss her, but if you focus on her dancing, it's truly beautiful/amazing. No surprise that she trains at the same place as Danny, Travis and Allison.

She suggests this video of Jaimie at NYCDA.


While preparing this post, we stumbled on this one, solos by Jaimie and Travis at NYCDA Burbank.