Yaaaaaawwwwwwwwn

Would it have killed Whitney Spaner to ask Cody about his love life? He reveals nothing of interest in this interview; the juiciest tidbit concerns his leave of absence from “Grease.” Come on, bloggers! Let’s put our backs into it and figure out who Cody’s girlfriend is. (Liversausage, I expect your full participation.)

Can anyone explain this to me?

In this blog entry, Nancy O’Meara mentions the shoot location: “I loved watching this episode. I had no idea they learned the choreography on the roof top — so Hollywood!”

So far, so normal. But then, with no transition…

“I recently ran into a fellow choreographer at Debbie Reynolds Dance Studio, and he told me he was a big fan of Taylor Swift, and that he’d asked his agent to contact her manager because he would love to work with her because, once again, he was a big fan.

Gulp! Bad move. If I conducted any of my rehearsals with any of my clients and acted like a fan I don’t think I would have much of a career.”

Eh? I’m genuinely perplexed. First, what does this have to do with the show? Second, what is she getting at? I think the idea is that to win clients, you must act like a confident professional with a service to offer, rather than like a starstruck fan. Right? I’m just guessing, here.

Eighth dancer to go: Janelle Ginestra

Maybe because the dancers were coming off a break, which dissipated the hothouse atmosphere, this episode felt less urgent to me than have previous ones. And while it’s sad to see Janelle go, she was this week’s obvious eliminee. She’s a little defensive in her exit interview. She acknowledges that her technical abilities aren’t on par with the other dancers’, but she thinks her visible passion makes up for her lack of technique. It’s an interesting question: is robotic perfection preferable to unpolished emotion?

So You Think You Can Dance: Recap: 4:03, Hour Two

We’re in D.C. (for the first time, weird), and Dan Karaty is the guest judge.

Megan Campbell is dancing to Alicia Keys. She’s landing with an almost audible “click” on each move, which I think is a conscious attempt to match the music. Nigel says he heard one person applauding and asks who it was. Megan says it was her aunt, who’s her biggest fan. Cut to the aunt, a pretty woman standing in the back of the auditorium. Nigel says Megan won him over, although he got sick of her throwing her hair around. Mary says Megan is “pure joy” to watch. Dan says “that’s what I call leaving it all on the floor.” They’re teasing her, wondering aloud where she can see both the Eiffel Tower and the pyramids. Her aunt is crying. They’re sending Megan to Vegas! Nigel comes off the podium to give the aunt a hug and a kiss.

Derrick Bradley is back with a “Dancing Derrick” jersey and a catchphrase: “Dancin D, what it do, what it be, hollaaaa.” Could work, except that he’s a little white guy. Since almost passing out during SYTYCD auditions last year, Derrick has been taking classes, specifically jazz and African. Oh god, he’s throwing dice, he’s miming jerking off, he’s swinging a bat, he’s hacking away at a golf ball (“Fore!” shouts Nigel), he’s flipping pancakes. Mary says, “Sounds like…bad dancer.” Nigel says, “If you were doing charades, it would have been great.” Derrick’s feelings are hurt. He asks, isn’t the competition about having fun? Mmm, no. “Does it make me a bad dancer cause I don’t do any kicks or flips?” he says. A remark like that reveals non-dancers’ total ignorance of what dance is. Nigel’s irritated. He says, “This is one of the hardest professions in the world.” Dan’s contribution: “It’s really honestly cheesy.” Bring back Bryce!

Markus Shields, 23, is wearing a shirt emblazoned with his mother’s image; she died when he was twelve. He says he tries to emulate “her wisdom and her characteristics.” He seems sweet and smart. I love what he’s doing. Wow. It’s hip-hop, but it’s full of feeling, and he’s very, very musical. Lovely control, too. He says he’s not happy with his performance. Click through to find out how he fared!

So You Think You Can Dance: Recap: 4:03, Hour One

If all Charleston has to offer is dancers like this abysmal couple, John and the lady in red, it’s going to be a long hour. Guest judge Tyce wonders what could have caused these two to audition in the first place.

Jeremiah Hughes, 19, from Ontario, Canada, is preparing by doing a long series of planks and grimacing fiercely. ” My most negative feature is that I happen to be human,” he says. Mine too! He’s dancing in an white button-down shirt with not one button buttoned. He’s not bad, but I find his audition routine almost unbearably cheesy. “Bad improvisation,” he says as soon as he’s finished. Inexplicably,  Nigel calls him “one of the most exciting dancers I’ve seen this season.” Mary loves him too! Tyce says he’s inconsistent, that some moments are great and some are weak. Nigel asks him to do up his shirt, which he does. As a reward for wearing his clothes as God intended, he gets a ticket to Vegas. When he reemerges in the lobby, his shirt is completely unbuttoned again.

Syiddah King, 25, wearing socks in all four primary colors, dances to Ciara’s “Ring the Alarm.” Tyce is open-mouthed in bafflement. Nigel says Syiddah is not a dancer but a mover, and not a particularly good one. “So you think you’re doing your job,” she says, which isn’t a bad line. Syiddah walks off the stage, saying she doesn’t need to hear from Tyce because she doesn’t know who he is.

Shamika Robinson, whose audition consists mostly of video dancer moves, says she was trying to do something they haven’t seen. Mary says they’ve seen plenty of booty shaking, thank you very much. Nigel says what Shamika did wasn’t dancing. Mary agrees. Tyce: “That was very basic, veeeeeerrrry basic, just so you know.” Shamika looks skeptical. “So you think all three of us are lying to you?” Mary says. Shamika: “I don’t think; I know.”

So much more recapping after the jump.

Adam/Chu Dance Crew strikes again

It’s Miley’s and Mandy’s turn to post a dance retort, which they won’t do until June 10. In the meantime, ACDC is rubbing it in:

What can M&M possibly do to compete with this? I’m picturing them holed up in a windowless dance studio, desperately hoping they can master the reverse airbaby over the next twelve days.

So You Think You Can Dance: Recap: 4:02, Hour Two

We’re in Dallas, Texas. It’s chilly. Adam Shankman, the mastermind behind “Hairspray,” the musical, is the guest judge.

Brian Davidson, who looks like a roadie, claims to be thirty, although I’m not really buying it. He promises the judges will see whatever he feels. “Period.” He also claims he never feels nervous, “period.” “I just look fear in the eye and it runs. Period.” Ten seconds into his audition, Nigel stops the music. Brian looks like he’s on the brink of snapping. He storms off the stage. “I know I danced good,” he interviews, and invites Nigel to “kiss [his] American ass.”

Chad Agnor trains fighters and teaches ballroom dance, country line dance, and hip-hop. He’s growing on me with each passing moment. Warming up, Chad pulls his hamstring. He lies on the floor facedown, revealing a giant cross tattoo on his shaven skull. He’s in terrible pain; he’s crying. Still, he plans to carry on with his audition. “Get our your glasses, America,” he orders us. “It’s my time to shine.” More after the jump…

So You Think You Can Dance: Recap: 4:02, Hour One

We’re in Salt Lake City, and I’m hungover. Happy post-Memorial Day, everyone!

Michael Moore is 26 years old. He has one brother, five sisters, and almost 25 nieces and nephews. His family dances with a Native American company called Morningstar. He’s not into it; he’s an urban type whose dance company is called Transfusion Hype. Mid-routine, his pink bandana pops off. Speaking of which, there’s some popping going on. There’s also lots of squirming around on the floor. Michael’s frustrated–his mind went blank, I think. Nigel calls the performance “frenetic” and “desperate.” Panting and laughing, Michael says, “Yeah, that was bad.” He did most of his routine facing the back of the room, the blonde guest judge points out. Michael agrees with all of the judges’ criticisms. He says, “Can I say something? I teach dance. No, I’m totally kidding. I just think it’s so funny when people come on and say they teach dance.” He will not be going to Vegas.

A pudgy little guy in a graffiti moves around in slow motion. He says he was popping. Nigel counters, “There’s more Pops in my breakfast cereal than you’ve got up there.” Zing!

Much more recapping after the break!

I’m a bad blogger

Sorry, gang. Memorial Day weekend spiraled out of control. But I’ll be back in a few short hours with a nearly instantaneous recap of SYTYCD!

7:26 minutes in heaven

I’ll admit I haven’t followed all the ins and outs of this Miley Cyrus/ACDC dance battle, but 2.5 million YouTube viewers have!

As Gabe at Videogum puts it, this vid “makes you feel like America’s paving the way to a brighter future through the major industry of dance and somehow you’ve been left in the coal bin of history.”