On Wednesday, I had the chance to catch up with finalist Jessica Richens at the So You Think You Can Dance 11 finale in Los Angeles.
I told Jessica that she had been my pick to win, and I asked her if she was just as surprised as I was that she didn’t come out on top. I asked her if her early struggles in the competition (where she kept finding herself in the Bottom 6) actually worked as an incentive for her to work harder to the point where she almost ended up winning the entire show. I asked her about how the judges all seemed to be rooting for her, but that it took America a little bit longer to recognize her immense talent and connect with her and why she thought it worked out that way. I offered her my theory about how a dancer’s original partner on the series helped double their votes as that obviously was the case for Fik-Shun and Amy last season and Ricky and Valerie this and why this didn’t seem to be the case for her as she kept managing to survive despite her partners being cut. She told me what her favourite routine of the season was and gave me some advice for what style I should try and master if I wanted to try out for next season. Finally, she carried on the tradition of all the finalists teaching me a dance move.
Check out the video above!
