After Lara and Francis were eliminated last week, narrowly missing a chance to claim a spot in this year’s So You Think You Can Dance Canada Top 10, it was time for the most exciting episode of the season on Wednesday.
Why was it the most exciting? Clearly because the dancers would each draw new partners for the first time in the competition. On the U.S. version of the show, this always leads to high stakes and great drama so I was on the edge of my seat for the majority of Wednesday’s program.
After the standard crowd warm-up, it was time for the first new pair…
NATALLI & IZAAK
To start the show, Natalli drew her partner Izaak and they selected hip hop for their routine. Sho-Tyme was the choreographer. While I fully expected Izaak to be the leader of the two, Natalli is the one who stood out throughout the performance which styled in a boxing format. What I questioned was whether this was because her performance was great or because it was such a foreign style for her that she benefitted from being outside of her element. It was a good routine but I think that these guys might be in the bottom, not because they deserve to be but instead because they aren’t as popular as some of the other dancers. Luther said that Natalli “knocked Izaak out.” Blake said that they were three weeks away from crowning the winner and that they both fell short. Tre said that Natalli hit it out of the ballpark and Jean-Marc concurred, admitting that Izaak was down for the count.
VINCENT SOLO
Because we have reached the Top 10 portion of the series, in addition to their paired routines, the dancers will also be dancing solos as well to help Canada decide its favorite dancer. Vincent did a good job and showcased his technical prowess in an admirable fashion.
ARRASSAY SOLO
One of the stories about the competition this season has been how Arrassay’s natural talent has seemingly been buried by her former (tear) partner Nico’s popularity. One of the biggest questions that I have been wrestling with this season is whether it would have been better for her to ride Nico until the end of the competition and then surprise everyone with her natural talent, or to show people what she can do now and attempt to challenge the competition favorite. While I thought that splitting from Nico would hurt Arrassay this week, her solo proved that she actually has a chance to dethrone the king. It was breathtaking.
Commercial.
KAITLYN & DANNY
With Lara being eliminated, Kaitlyn is my new favorite dancer and I couldn’t have been happier with her selection of Danny as her new partner. The pair selected the mambo, choreographed by Tony Meredith and Meredith LaPatin. Immediately, I noticed that Kaitlyn looked different and it appeared she was wearing some hair extensions. The dance itself was brilliant, and Kaitlyn definitely benefitted from Danny’s awesomeness. It was easy to see that Kaitlyn was clearly more motivated this week with her new partner than she had been with Izaak in weeks. At the end of the performance, Luther said that they “smashed it.” Blake said that it was a “mambo match made in heaven.” He also said that they were on the Blake bus to Jean-Marc’s VID list. Haha. Tre said something about how they will pay for all the transportation. Jean-Marc finished off the hilarious commentary by saying that Danny brought the mambo while Kaitlyn brought the tabasco.
LISA SOLO
Unfortunately, it was forgettable.
MILES SOLO
Miles delivered the best solo routine of the night after finally getting a chance to highlight his break dancing. The crowd was on its feet (I guess that was the case for most of the night since the majority were in the standing room mosh pit) and after being forced to do dances that he was uncomfortable with, Miles proved that he was in it to win it.
One of the best parts of the entire evening was the lengths the producers went to, to keep the new pairs a secret. The solos were not based on who had danced already (which is what I was counting on to decipher who would be dancing with who).
Commercial.
ALLIE & NICO
I think Dance fans everywhere rejoiced when they saw this new pairing. While Nico and Allie are two very different dancers, their unique styles can balance each other and that is what happened when they performed Amy Wright’s waltz. Nico has been lucky in this competition because he has been blessed with pairing with two of the smaller females (first Arrassay and now Allie). This allows him to lift them easily and the result are complicated tricks which many of the other guys would have trouble with. This dance was one of the better ones of the evening. Luther told Nico that he was the perfect partner and that he made it look effortless. Blake said that while it was sad to see Nico leave Arrassay, what better new girlfriend to get than Allie? (As an aside, I think Blake’s judging has significantly improved over the last few weeks). Tre said that it was a good combination of naughty and nice but believed that the footwork was not as smooth as it should be for a waltz. Jean-Marc said that the frame wasn’t tone enough (whatever that means) but had no problem telling the world that Nico and Allie were two of his favorite dancers and would easily sail into the Top 8.
DANNY SOLO
One of the best solo performances of the evening, Danny started his off by playing around with his hat which had every woman in my vicinity on their feet.
KAITLYN SOLO
It didn’t take long for Kaitlyn to remove her hair extensions. A sound solo but I don’t think it showed the country what she is capable of. I am hoping she doesn’t get lost in the shuffle.
Commercial.
It was at this point that I started to wonder about something. Do the pair dances really even matter at this stage in the competition? Will the solos being introduced, have we finally entered the phase of the competition where the dancing doesn’t matter and it comes down to popularity? I guess time will tell.
ARRASSAY & VINCENT
Two of my favorite dancers were up next doing a disco routine that was dreamt up by Melissa Williams. Arrassay and Vincent dominated it. It was without question, the best routine of the evening and the chemistry between the two definitely surprised me. I didn’t think that the two would be a good match when they first came out, but I think both are fundamentally good partners, with the ability to make whoever they dance with look good. At the end of the performance, Jean-Marc was standing! Luther said that Arrassay was a beast. Blake said that they showed Canada what it takes to be in the top 10 and that it was as spicy as jerk chicken. Haha. Tre said that they got her disco daydreaming and Jean-Marc said that they killed it before putting them on his Very Insane Dancer list.
ALLIE SOLO
In the most unique solo of the evening, Allie did a weird one-footed rock ballet piece. It was interesting and looked VERY difficult and at the end of the show, Tre said that it was the first time that had been done on the Idol stage? If anyone knows what she meant, please e-mail me.
NICO SOLO
Nico came out wearing a Zorro-inspired mask of some sort which he promptly used to illicit screams from the girls in the crowd. Really Nico? You totally didn’t need the mask to do that. I identify with Archimbault in that respect. Everytime I walk into a room, the girls also scream. I don’t think it’s for the same reasons though.
LISA & MILES
Lisa drew Miles and lucked out again when the pair received the contemporary style as their dance for the week (Lisa is a contemporary dancer). It was choreographed by Sean Cheesman. I thought that the routine was average. It was good, but didn’t sound out in a sea of spectacular sessions from the others. I believed that both dancers were in trouble. Luther said that Miles had to show them everything and that he was a better dancer than when he first came in. Blake said that it fell a little flat for him. Tre said that they should have made more of they were rolling on the floor and that they should roll with feeling. Jean-Marc said that Miles had miles and miles to go in the competition.
NATALLI
Natalli delivered a great solo.
IZAAK
Izaak’s solo fell flat as I think he was trying to mix too many styles together. What he did do right was play completely to the camera.
End of show.
Luther said that Danny was a trooper and that he was needed in the competition. He also said that Arrassay was a gem who was his favorite girl in the competition.
Blake praised Kaitlyn for being the strongest technical dancer who should be in the Top 4 and praised Nico as well.
Tre said that Allie was a chameleon and told Lisa that she reminder her of herself and why she wanted to dance when she was younger. She also told Vincent that he was the strongest dancer in the competition.
Jean-Marc was surprisingly harsh in his final assessment and told Izaak that while he was charming, he always brought the minimum. He said that Miles was the perfect profile for the show, with the way he managed to pick up new dances every week. He also said that he was a renaissance man and that Canada should vote for him.
He finally complimented Natalli for being exactly what the competition needed.
End show.
Predictions?
Lisa and Vincent unfortunately.
