So You Think You Can Dance Season 9 Episode 4 Recap: Salt Lake City Auditions
Jun 14 2012 09:58 am ET
Salt Lake City tends to produce some of the best Latin/Ballroom dancers, but along with them we got a great range of contemporary and hip-hop dancers
It may have been cold during the auditions, but people brought the heat inside. Along with Nigel and Mary was Adam Shankman who was in the media because of the mixed reviews of Rock of Ages. Same audition rules of green (Vegas), yellow (choreo), or red (rejection)
Whitney Carson - The brace-faced ballroom dancer had both youth and sexuality at the same time. The fact that she could turn on her sensuality when the music starts playing will be a great asset; hopefully showing that she could portray a character other than sex-kitten. I was shocked that her partner was 16, because he looked age appropriate. Whitney was amazing and had no problem zooming to Vegas. Her father's reactions were so awkward when she tried to hug him.
Lynn Gravatt - Cat explains how SYTYCD has found underground dance styles have been found including the wobble. Lynn explained that she was doing Alien-Space Dance from Pleiades, the constellation/star system. She claimed that a force entered her body to dance and she had to find out why. She apparently has three muses following her: "Devil Da Flame," "Devine Da Flame," and "Rainbow Lite Bright." Cat asked the obvious: are/were you on drugs? The former aerospace engineer started to dance and it was a lot of spinning and wiggles set to dubstep. It gave Mary a few laughs, but it was an obvious rejection with a smile.
Dee Tomasetta - Family has been important for many contestants this season ranging from undercover dancer fathers, but Dee's large Italian family didn't arrive. She is the only girl in a family of male cousins and a brother. Dee was the continuation of strong contemporary girls, her flexibility and control over her limbs being her strengths. I like how she only used her leaps during the chorus proving that she had a lot in her bag of tricks and she didn't need to resort to flips. She called her grandmother with her good news.
Gene Lonardo - We had a montage of a-typical performers and ended up with Gene who explained his performance was the evolution of a male praying mantis. I thought the routine had nice sharp turns and appreciated that he hit certain music beats. Like Adam Shankman I was expecting a big fail, like space dancer Lynn, but it had real talent in there. He made it through Vegas even though he called Nigel a woman.
Lindsay Arnold - Apparently it takes a commercial break to get another female Ballroom dancer. Like every wholesome family story Lindsay comes from a family of dancing sisters, all of them seem to be getting support from their parents. Her twist is that she's a bit more cross-trained in other styles of dance. Her partner wasn't auditioning, but I loved the pair together. I really liked that she genre jumps; I saw a lot of Paso Doble but with twists. Mary pointed out that she was reminded of DWTS' former-pro Julianne Hough. She was sent to Vegas.
Mariah Spears - After a montage of Ballroom/Latin dancers, we got a krumper. Great editing, production team. They caught Adam almost spitting out his water. She hits hard when she needs to, but has soft moments. She ended with a knee slam. The judges loved the krump; Mary found it the most believable for the female krumpers. They sent her to choreography and surprised the judges and made it through.
Murphy Yang - Murphy was nervous because he's been on his own with unsupportive dancers. His family disowned him and he was homeless; his girlfriend saved him from all despair. I liked his approach at the beginning of his dance, he showed humor, moved right into power moves, and ended with humor. Nigel didn't think there was enough content but was entertained. He was sent to choreography because of his untapped potential. Sadly, he couldn't keep up with the choreo and was sent home.
Dareian Kujawa - The confident dancer was trying to channel his energy. Even though he came from a poor family, he dedicated his life to dance and brought himself up. Nigel pointed out that Darion had nice pointy nipples. Really Nigel? That’s something I would say in the comfort of my couch, not in the contestant’s faces. Fortunately the dancing was amazing. He had amazing extensions and some strong power moves. He also stops on a dime to the music. It's odd to say this, but you can see his life experiences emoted through song. Nigel pointed out that his feet are his biggest concern. Even with his shoddy feet, he was sent to Vegas.
Johnny Ahn & Whitney Hallam - It's sexy girl zone time and Johnny, Mr. Suave, was a studied jerk. Cat forced him to flirt with girls and he struck out. His partner Whitney thinks it's just really good acting. He then tried to explain his coursework and it didn't work. Whitney pointed out to the judges that the flirting didn't work. They started their routine with a great move but the rest of the cha-cha was a lot of the same for me. Johnny mugged for the camera but not Whitney. Whitney looks so much older than she should but she held her own ground. Mary warned the two that they lacked any chemistry. Nigel liked Whitney, but Johnny was warned that he continuously make the "ooh" face. Both went to choreography with different partners. Johnny wasn't strong enough and neither was Whitney.
Adrian Lee - It's time for the second chances rounds. There were several auditioneers that got cut several times, some on the last round right before the green mile. Adrian was cut in Season Seven right at their green mile when Mary had to reject him at his home. He took a year off and when he arrived on stage, he was applauded even before he danced. While he had some nervous talking, his dancing was amazing. His height creates some amazing shapes with his long arms and legs. Adam thought he needed to learn transitions if he wanted to choreograph. Mary and Nigel pointed out that he used too much self worship. He was given two tickets (the second for his mother).
Rachel Applehans - We got the last few (Contemporary) powerful dancers that succeeded to Vegas. Rachel was really shy as a child, but dance turned her into a confident, sensual dancer. She did a more of a jazz routine and brought a lot of sass into her routine. She didn't have a lot of content, but she had confidence oozing out of every pore as she flirted with the only straight male on the judging panel. She was sent to choreography and even with Leroy, she had moments of greatness. She screamed with excitement because she was going to Vegas.
Leroy Martinez - After the contestants started to fall apart by the end of day two. Leroy was part of a program that helped for afterschool dance, the Peacemakers. He had a great personality and I was surprised by how quickly he moved for his size. He had some cool pop and lock moves and actually could do a backflip and some head moves. He got Adam to tear up because of how amazing Leroy was as a person. He was sent to choreography in more of a sympathetic move. He was the last to get the news, and was given a standing ovation. He was still rejected, but they called him a diamond.
The auditions are finally done and Vegas pushes the 181 contestants even harder, forcing contestants to hit their breaking point. A little more than 10% will succeed.
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