So You Think You Can Dance

Is it just me or has there been far too much SYTYCD? We had both the American and Canadian this summer. The Canadian edition ended while the American version was running through the auditions. Beyond the SYTYCD saturation I really think Season 6 of the American show has had a few problems. Here are my thoughts:

• Assigning a permanent 3rd judge, Adam Shankman, has weakened the judging overall. Personally, I always enjoyed having the rotating 3rd judge as it gave us a different perspective. I loved Lil C’s commentary and observations. Mary and Nigel have their strengths and I think they are very strong. Of all the choreographers they could have chosen to be a permanent judge did it have to be Shankman? He basically just repeats what others have to say or he blathers on and on. There was certainly no competent hip hop or krump judging. I  hope that they revert to the previous format.
• information packages – for some reason on some weeks of the show they have dispensed with the info packages before the dances. I have always found those very interesting as we got to hear what the dancers thought as they learned the routines. Hearing what the choreographers have to say is very interesting and gives us some insight into them.
• Why are there 6 dancers in the finale? It is too many for a finale. The way they did it before where everybody danced with everyone else was a great way to see the dancers perform and to be able to compare them.
• I hate the new stage. It seems to big for the show. Plus why do they have to display weird things behind the dancers.

I certainly hope the rescue this ‘hot tamale’ train wreck.

SYTYCD Canada – The Results

I am not sure what is up with Canada and why the voting is so bizarre but this show is close to losing all credibility. The main problem, as I see it, is that Izaak is still there! Every single week he is told that he is weaker than his partner and he needs to ‘step-up.’ Yet, week after week, he is not eliminated. We are now at the point in the show where only votes count, the judges have no say. I bet they are kicking themselves that they did not get rid of him when they had the chance.

Last night Vincent and Arassay were eliminated. The four women left: Arassay, Lisa, Allie and Natalie are all ridiculously talented but I am shocked that it was Arassay who went last night. She is strong, talented and exotic and she can dance circles around some of the others. For the guys, it was Izaak and Vincent in the bottom I am dumbfounded why it was Vincent who went. He had two very solid performances the night before and Izaak was weak and told to step up for the millionth time. All of my favourites are gone now: Danny, Frances, Arassay….

Week 2: So You Think You Can Dance Canada

Apparently someone has criticized Jean-Marc Generaux’s English speaking abilities. One of the judges, Tre Armstrong, correctly pointed out that it is seriously bad form to criticize someone who is speaking in a language that is not their mother tongue. To drive the point home (unnecessarily, in my opinon) she went on to add that she would challenge that person to come and do the same thing as Jean Marc en Francais.

Last week I blogged about the content of Jean-Marc Generaux’s comments. It seemed he basically repeated what other judges said and then threw in a sexist comment. I must say that he was way better this week. There were only a couple of minor sexist remarks and his level of respect towards the women (take a note, not ‘girls’ SYTYCD Canada) competitors. I am hoping this will continue.

I think the judge of the night though was Luther Brown after Tamina and Joey’s silly ‘jailhouse sleepover’ routine. Luther definately gets the ‘keeping it real’ award. He was hysterical. I am sure it will be up on youtube soon. Definitely worth a look. I will link it as soon as I find it.

So You Think You Can Dance Canada

I am a recent convert to SYTYCD. It helped to get me through my summer of unemployment and gave me something to look forward to every week. I was rooting for Joshua and Katee since the first routine they did to “No Air.” We were all thrilled here when he eventually won.

Now, I am watching SYTYCD Canada and I have to say the talent is easily as good as or better than the American version. I have not learned all of the contestants’ names but Lisa and Tamina are early stand outs for me. The one thing I am annoyed about with this version of SYTYCD is one of the judges Jean-Marc Generaux. He seems incapable of commenting on performances of dancers without saying something horribly sexist. I just want to skip through him every single time he is on the screen. I am not sure why the network thinks this is ok. At one point, last week, he was actually encouraging a male dancer to grope his partner saying something along the lines of “if I had three hands I would have them all over her.” It was disgusting and demeaning and completely unnecessary. Given that he is a ballroom expert you would think he would have something new to add when he is judging those routines but he doesn’t. His style seems to be to reiterate what other judges have said and throw in a sexist comment. I certainly hope he is not going to be on every single episode.

Nigel Lythgoe has his own quirks from the American version. He seems to target male dancers who do not seem ‘masculine’ enough for him. To me, these comments appear rooted in homophobia and are just as bad as Jean-Marc Generaux’s sexist comments. I say bring Mary on – she is loud and she screams but at least she is not sexist or homophobic adn she always has something new to add to the comments.