Interviewing the winner of So You Think You Can Dance was definitely an opportunity that I did not want to miss. It was especially great that SYTYCD winner Sabra Johnson was joined by runner-up Danny Tidwell. I talked to the finalists about their time on the show and what advice they had for future contestants. They spoke openly about how they felt that choreographer Shane Sparks did not like anybody. Sound juicy? Read on. This interview also concludes our So You Think You Can Dance Special. Thanks to everyone involved and everyone who read the pieces.
Murtz Jaffer: You guys have done this before right?
Sabra Johnson: Not like this. The press actually usually cancels on us.
MJ: Really? Well, we get them all because even for American Idol, because this is the only Canadian stop, usually when the American Idols go to American cities, you only get five but because this is the only Canadian stop, we get them all.
Danny Tidwell: The whole shebang!
MJ: The whole shebang!
SJ: If we were Beyonce, we’d get it everywhere we went… but we’re not Beyonce. (Laughs).
DT: (Laughs).
MJ: I am going to start by asking you about the finale. When you were announced as the winner, it was like okay… Sabra wins. Roll credits. What was up with that? Did they just run out of time and how did you feel about winning?
SJ: We did run out of time! I never actually got to watch the finale so I don’t really know what happened but how did I feel about that? How did I feel about winning you mean?
MJ: Yeah, winning.
DT: (Laughs).
SJ: Well, good, obviously! I mean that was fun! It will never happen again so you gotta eat it all up, but it’s still weird.
MJ: And then what happens after winning? I know you get this big cash prize but is it just the recognition? Getting other gigs based on the fact that you won this show? What’s the appeal of winning So You Think You Can Dance?
SJ: You know, I hope I don’t get gigs based on the fact that I won this show. I hope I get gigs because I am a good dancer or because I performed well or because I am good for the part or something. Definitely, all of us being on this show, every dancer in America and Canada now, will kind of know who we are so it will make it a little bit easier going to auditions. People can call us to audition. That will make our lives a little bit easier but we still have to do it like everybody else. Go to class, go to auditions.
MJ: I wanted to ask you about the pressure of having your brother on the show. Did you ever have the idea where you said that ‘because he did so well, so now I have to step up,’ or was it just not a consideration in what you were doing?
DT: Not really a consideration at all. I think it is because I am the older brother so I didn’t really think about it. I think that’s why he did it first though.
MJ: Oh really?
DT: Yeah, to do it the opposite way.
MJ: I was going to ask you about that. Why did he try it first? You didn’t want to compete against each other?
DT: No, we didn’t want to compete against each other. And also, I don’t think he would have done it if I did it first.
MJ: Really?
DT: Yeah.
MJ: At the beginning of the competition, the judges said that this guy has got an attitude problem and then it kind of seemed like you became a fan favorite near the end. Do you find that you were growing as the competition went on?
DT: Well, for sure. We came from New York, well, I came from New York so when I got to LA, just working with people from LA was kind of weird at first. Because you know, everyone has their cliques and that kind of thing so it was hard for me to like get into it. But after awhile, I got used to it.
MJ: I wanted to ask you what your favorite performance.
SJ: I have so many favorites when people ask me!
MJ: I personally liked the Sweet Dreams table/arm-wrestling number with Neil.
SJ: Oh, that one was so much fun! I love that one. Actually all my dances with Neil. That one, the paso doble and the jazz were so much fun. And I still love doing them. Anything with Dominic just because I know him so well and we got along really well. My hip hop and my contemporary with him. Actually all my dances with Dominic were really fun, so it’s a hard to say. I got really lucky having really good dancers.
MJ: Cat kept saying that you were “in danger” and that you were “in danger” three times in a row and then at the end, everybody was like this guy is in the finals for sure. Did something change or was it just the way that people saw you that changed?
DT: I just focused on the dances. I had no idea. I didn’t really see myself as being “in danger.” After Top 20, it was pretty fun. After Top 20, we got to be there and get a lot of time on TV and it got me a lot of time to do my solos so I wasn’t really that upset about doing the solos.
MJ: I have never seen a guy who is able to do the pirouettes like you can. So where does that come from? Is it just a lot of practice? Because I just saw you busting them out all the time and I can’t even stand on my toes!
DT: Well, I took a lot of ballet. It was good. It was fun.
MJ: And so I guess it is just the practice of being able to do so many in a row.
DT: Yeah.
MJ: They are starting a Canadian version of the show. I wanted to see if you had any advice for the Canadians that are going to be auditioning.
DT: They are starting a Canadian version?
MJ & SJ: Yeah.
MJ: So You Think You Dance Canada or something. They have done that before. Are You Smarter Than A Canadian 5th Grader? Deal Or No Deal Canada.
SJ: Oh my god, that’s so funny! They add Canada to all of that? Are You Smarter Than A Canadian 5th Grader? I don’t see any American that is smarter than a Canadian 5th Grader! I am just kidding! I am just kidding America!
MJ: (Laughs).
SJ: Everybody always asks that question, like what kind of advice do you have?
MJ: Well, you are the winner!
SJ: I mean but how I am supposed to advise somebody to win?
MJ: I don’t know. Dance well?
SJ: (Laughs). That’s all you can say though because everybody is such a different type of dancer. Even just going back to our Vegas auditions. There were 200 great people and so I know (probably not for Danny because Danny is I am sure Top 2 in Vegas) but for the rest of us who are auditioning and who are also young, and some of us who haven’t had as much experience as others, it’s created a sense of ‘we have made it over these people who have had a lifetime of experience.’ There were amazing people and so it is hard to give advice to somebody who already dance well.
DT: I’d say everyone just try your best to try to stay true to yourself. It’s really easy to get caught up in all the new things that you are learning and all the exciting things that are happening to you. Just make sure that you stay true to where you come from and remember what you are there for. And all that stuff. All that jazz.
MJ: I asked Sara about your ‘Push It’ performance and that was one of my favorites.
(Danny makes face like he hated it).
MJ: And that was the face that she had too, so I wanted to see what you thought about it.
DT: I hated it!
MJ: That’s what she said too! It came off fine on TV.
DT: Yeah, Shane Sparks didn’t like me very much. He didn’t like anyone really.
SJ: He didn’t like anybody except Lacey. Just going to throw that out there.
MJ: He did love that guy who performed on the finale. What was his name? Brian Gaynor.
DT: Yeah.
SJ: Uh huh.
MJ: He loved him. He was the only one who I saw him stand up for.
DT: Yeah, he definitely was trying to sabotage us.
SJ: Yeah.
DT: It worked!
SJ: It worked!
(Danny & Sabra laugh).
MJ: I loved your instruction to that performance though. I don’t know if you remember when you were like “oh, we’re going to do some Salt & Pepa.” I was dying of laughter because I had never seen the show. I literally just watched almost the entire season on DVD before I got here.
SJ: Oh wow.
MJ: And it’s a pretty intense experience because when you watch it like that, you can literally see the change from the first episode to the last.
SJ: Really?
MJ: Yeah. Like ‘oh my god, this guy’s gotten so much better!’ And you become so much more invested in it. I don’t know if you guys do that on the show.
SJ: We get to watch them, but it is completely our choice.
MJ: But do you recognize that you are improving as the show goes on or is it not even a consideration.
SJ: I didn’t recognize that I was improving until after like a year, if that.
MJ: Very cool. Well, that’s it for me. Thank you both.
SJ: Thank you.
DT: Thank you.
Here are the remaining dates for the So You Think You Can Dance tour:
Nov 19 San Diego, CA – San Diego Sports Arena
Nov 21 Los Angeles, CA – Nokia Theatre
Nov 23 Oakland, CA – Oracle Arena
Nov 24 Sacramento, CA – Arco Arena
Nov 25 San Jose, CA – HP Pavilion at San Jose
Nov 27 Portland, OR – Rose Garden
Nov 28 Everett, WA – Everett Events Center
Nov 30 Reno, NV – Reno Events Center
– The third season of So You Think You Can Dance aired on CTV this past summer.
– The third season of So You Think You Can Dance aired on FOX this past summer.
Sir Linksalot: So You Think You Can Dance
Please credit Murtz Jaffer & RealityDish.com when using this interview. If reposting, please post just an excerpt and link back to the rest of the piece.
