After my first week of covering the So You Think You Can Dance Canada tapings, I think I had a pretty good feel for the competitors.
The one conclusion that I have reached is that a contemporary dancer will win. I didn’t realize that 7/8 remaining dancers are primarily contemporary performers and even Denys has had contemporary training. Interesting right?
To be honest with you, I wasn’t surprised about Charlene and Edgar’s eliminations. While I was happy Nathalie was saved, I definitely thought that they were on the radar to go but I definitely thought that the competition lost some flavor with Edgar’s ouster (for the aforementioned contemporary cluster).
Let’s get to the numbers.
JANICK & MACKENZIE
Hip Hop
I thought that Luther’s choreography in this routine was much better than what he choreographed for Amanda and Edgar last week. I thought that the partnering between Janick and Mackenzie was particularly good. New judge Sergio called Janick the most versatile dancer left in the competition and I thought that this was on point. Tre said that while she first thought Janick was the wild card in the competition, now she knew that she was just wild. Bottom line? Great routine for both dancers.
Jeff and Nathalie did their solos. I thought both were fantastic.
DANIELLE & DENYS
Contemporary
I thought that the Sabrina Matthews choreographed routine about a woman finding out that her husband had died while fighting for his country was totally inspired. To be honest, it was one of my favorite routines of the year, including both So You Think You Can Dance U.S. and Dancing With The Stars. While I haven’t been Denys’ biggest fan, he definitely stood out in this one and it was the first time I looked at him as a potential winner. The judges were on their feet the second the performance was over and who could blame them. Brilliant choreography bettered only by brilliant dancing. Judge Rex Harrington said that it was heart-stopping. Totally agreed. Sergio said that the audiences at home didn’t get to see what a great partner Denys was and that he was pushing Danielle to take risks. Jean-Marc made an over-arching statement about the cost of freedom. It truly was an amazing performance.
Amanda and Sebastian did their solos. I thought Amanda’s was very good. Host Leah Miller revealed that Sebastian had suffered a hip injury and was dancing through it. It brought back memories of all the U.S. dancers who were injured. Billy Bell, Ashley Galvan, Alex Wong. The Canadians have been lucky this year.
The Top 8 then danced together in a Sean Cheesman choreographed group number that had an airline theme. Rex made a really odd comment when he said something about wanting to join the mile high club.
AMANDA & JEFF
Contemporary
I thought that while the choreography was good and perhaps even technically better than the other contemporary piece, this one didn’t have as much heart. I just thought it was okay on a night when many performances were memorable. Rex said that it was dance poetry. Sergio said that Jeff had to be in the top four. Jean-Marc said that the piece was about a lasting memory but that the irony was that everyone would remember it. I respectfully disagree.
Denys and Janick did their solos.
SEBASTIAN & NATHALIE
Cha Cha
Love that former contestant Danny Arbour choreographed the routine. I still think that Nathalie is by far the best dancer in the competition and her cha-cha was as spectacular as I thought it would be. I also had to admire Sebastian doing one of the hardest dancers with an injured hip. It’s clear that the judges didn’t agree with my assessment. Rex said that it had a lot of ‘cha’ but not a lot of ‘cha cha.’ He said that that Sebastian was a little weak. Sergio said that Nathalie could adjust to any style she is given. Yup. She’s amazing.
Danielle and Mackenzie finished off the shows with their solos.
An interesting night for sure. My predictions to go? Sebastian for sure, and the girls are up in the air. I can only hope that Nathalie will pull through.
