Dream Baby's Dreams

SYTYCD 5 - NYC and Denver Auditions

2009-05-21T18:55:00.005-05:00

So the new season is underway, with the first round of auditions being held in New York. I'm pleased to see that our lovely host, Cat Deeley (love her interaction with the contestants!), is back to guide us through the season, as well as head judge Nigel Lythgoe and regular judge Mary "WOOOOOOO HOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO" Murphy. Joining them in New York are husband and wife choreography team Tabitha and Napoleon.

Gabi Rojas suffers from rheumatoid arthritis, but that hasn't stopped her from developing exquisite control over her body and her ability to move. Her lines are expressive and immaculate. She moves in a different way from what you expect, but it is beautiful, and her choreography for her audition was creative, to say the least. I enjoyed her. No surprise that she got straight through.

These Mutation guys are interesting. LOL. Joint-tortionism, huh? The things these guys get their bodies to do are sick. LOL. I want to see more. But I don't. I am very torn. Watching them makes me cringe and turn away, but then peek through again.

Peter Sabasino is a tap dancer who obviously knows what he is doing in the tap realm, but I wonder how he would move in other styles. With tapping, he is engaging and entertaining. He made me smile. He says he dances in a number of other styles, so we'll see. He got straight through to Vegas, no choreography this time. I guess we'll have to wait.

I love that Nigel doesn't pull his punches. The way he ACTUALLY gave a REAL critique on the dancing of the girl with the spinal problems. He told her ways she can improve her dancing and didn't belittle her in any way for attempting something she likely would not have any chance. He really is so very different from the usual sarcastic British judge on these shows, and I love that.

Maksim Kapitanikanov is a fantastic ballroom dancer. He has excellent rhythm and beautiful lines. It is really difficult not to watch Faina, because she is fabulous, but he somehow still managed to draw my eye. I'd love to see some good male ballroom dancers through this year.

Naboya Nakahama amused me to no end. Not sure how he'll do in a serious style, but he is hilarious. I could watch him all day if he kept doing what he was doing here. He isn't the best popper/locker I've ever seen, but he brought so much fun to it that I loved everything about it. I'd love to see more from him. And we'll get to in choreography!

Lauren from season 3 is teaching the choreography this year. Sad to see the the Mutants leave before even trying, but I'm sure they knew what they were doing. But Maksim got through, and Naboya got through, so I'm happy about both of those.

The second day brought Arielle Taylor, who made it through to Vegas in a previous season. She is a contemporary dancer who is very aware of how her body looks with each movement she makes. She has thought it all through very well. I loved her.

Igor and Nina came in with some Cha Cha and set the stage on fire. He has excellent partnering skills, and she is impossible not to watch. The low spins (pot stirs?) were insane. I'm dizzy after watching that.

Kellen Stancil made excellent use of an umbrella prop to show off his lines and spins. I'm really impressed with him, because to work with a prop so seamlessly takes a ton of talent. He is truly a beautiful, moving dancer. And the story behind using it really touched me. I'm rooting for him.

Chimezie Nwosu was a sight to see. The way he moved to his chosen music, a percussive piece full of traffic sounds, was perfection. He even made use of some of the lighting features on the stage. I loved watching him very much. He made me think so much of Twitch from last season, and that is a very good thing. He got through to choreography.

Igor is through but not Nina, and Chimezie is through as well. Yay on both counts!

Then the auditions moved to Denver, where Sonya Tayeh joined the judges.

Kayla Rodomski is very young, but obviously well trained. I enjoyed watching her move, but I'm not sure she would hold my attention for a long stretch of time. The judges were all about her though, and she is definitely going to be through.

Oh no...no they didn't...Mitch and Micha dancing ballroom together. How do they decide who leads? LOL. And surprisingly, one of them is straight. Neither of them dances in a masculine enough way to make me happy though, even if it is a samba which is more flamboyant. I'm just not feeling this. Ouch! The fall during the lift sealed the deal for me. Though they have made it through to choreography, but no further.

On the second day in Denver we saw the Jedi Cat/Lion. Oy.

Elias Holloway and his kid brother aren't bad! Cute kids. And they know what they're doing with the pop locking. I hope he gets through, though I'm sure he'll have to go through choreography. Adorable. Hopefully he can do more than just this one style. Wonder if we'll see the younger brother in a couple of years.

Brandon Bryant and Natalie Reid are both back! Woo hoo. I was a big fan of both of them. last year and hoped they would make it on.

Natalie is up first, and she shows us exactly why she almost got through before. The way she goes all out and stops her mid motion always has captivated me. I truly hope she gets into the Top 20 this year.

Brandon is dancing to the same music as last year, I think, and I am just as entranced as before. I think he is even better than he was before. The strength in his legs is phenomenal. I want to see him on the show so bad it is killing me. I was devastated last year when Gev got on instead of him, even though I was nuts about Gev. He is awe inspiring. Please, let him on this year.

Elias didn't make it through after choreography, but hopefully he'll follow their advice and will get some training in other areas. I liked him.

So, more again next week when the auditions head to Miami and Memphis.

So You Think You Can Blog?

2009-05-21T18:40:00.003-05:00

I know, I know. Its been a long time since I last blogged. A very long time.

I've been caught up with school and work and writing some novels and grieving for one of my cats and welcoming a new kitten into my home. Life has been crazy.

So, what has been going on in the world that I used to at least (semi?) regularly update? Well, David Cook has put out a fantastic album, U2 has released an album and are preparing to launch a huge sold-out tour, Blue October have released a new album, Depeche Mode have released a new album, and I believe Linkin Park is getting ready to release a new album.

It seems Britney Spears has somewhat gotten her life back on track.

JD Fortune is no longer the lead singer of INXS, possibly at least partially due to his own loose lips.

Marty Casey left Lovehammers to front LA Guns, and it seems he is now doing both simultaneously.

Project Runway is no longer part of Bravo, but has moved to Lifetime. And Bravo has replaced it with The Fashion Show. Not nearly as much of a guilty pleasure, I can assure you.

American Idol's 8th season has come and gone...and a lackluster season it was, in my opinion. There was certainly no David Cook or Michael Johns to capture my attention. Congratulations to Kris Allen. I'm just glad that Adam Glambert did not win. He makes my ears bleed.

So now what? What has brought me out of my lengthy blog silence? What could possibly be noteworthy enough to force me to set aside everything else in my life to type away to an unknown audience, regardless of the annoying A key on my keyboard, which my sweet little kitten has so lovingly pulled off so many times it won't go back on?

A new season of my biggest obsession, So You Think You Can Dance, of course!

So, tune in, sit back, and get ready for some amazing, some lackluster, and some insanely bad dancing. I'll be giving my own thoughts and comments, and if I can find videos of the noteworthy auditions and performances, I'll post them here as well.

David Cook: A New Album!

2008-11-19T11:04:00.003-06:00

All right people, the day you have been waiting for arrived yesterday! David's new album was released.

So...do you have it yet? What do you think of it?

If you don't have it yet, head on over to Amazon.com to purchase it.

And if you want to take a look at the lyrics to the songs, you can read them here.

What are you waiting for? GO!!!

Rock Star: Led Zeppelin????

2008-11-17T08:53:00.007-06:00

Huh? Really????? Squeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Oh wait...before I get too far ahead of myself here...it isn't a sure thing. In fact, at this point, it is just speculation. It seems that the boys of Zep want to tour again. Well...most of the boys of Zep that it. Robert Plant isn't completely sold on the idea, so the others are talking about finding a new singer and touring any way.

Producer Dave suggested that Rock Star could be a great way for them to find that lead singer. And I am in 100% agreement!

How awesome would it be to have Led Zeppelin touring again? And how amazing would it be to have Rock Star back on our TV's???

So...is there anything you can do about it? Well...yeah! Make your voice heard!!!

There is an article complete with a poll about bringing various reality shows back to the air found at TV Week. Place your vote for Rock Star. Also, scroll down to the bottom of the article and leave a comment detailing why you think it would be a good idea!

Then head over to the Rock Star: Led Zeppelin thread at RockBandLounge.com and talk with other fans about your ideas for how to make this happen.

And while your at RockBandLounge.com, jump on into The Big Letter Writing Campaign thread to find more ways to make your voice heard.

Rock Star: Led Zeppelin could be a huge hit. Brooke Burke, our lovely host, is riding high right now on Dancing With the Stars, and will likely be cruising to a victory shortly. We could once again be exposed to great new talent, like Ryan Star, Marty Casey, JD Fortune, Zayra Alvarez, Storm Large, Suzie McNeil, and so many others! If this is something that you want to see, do something about it!

EDIT: Led Zeppelin fans...what do you think? Leave a comment on this blog, or head over to the official Led Zeppelin forum to chime in on it.

Denim

2008-09-15T17:05:00.002-05:00

Denton Photos: September Flowers

2008-09-12T20:21:00.003-05:00

I took my camera with me on a walk in my neighborhood today. One of the primary things to catch my eye through the lens? Roses. Many of the roses on the bushes were dying, but I did manage to capture a few that were absolutely gorgeous, among some other buds.

Pretty Baby is now Cobralush

2008-09-02T18:53:00.002-05:00

The band formerly known as Pretty Baby is now known as Cobralush! Everything else is still the same. Zayra, Daniel, and Dave are all still hard at work, and the music is the same.

Check them out at Cobralush.com and at MySpace.

Olympics: Gymnastics Scoring

2008-08-16T09:34:00.004-05:00

Let me first say that I fully understand that scoring in Olympic sports like gymnastics, diving, and figure skating is completely subjective. However, with that said...the scoring system that the FIG has set up for gymnastics is not working.

I like the idea of having a start value/difficulty value in addition to a score for the execution of the routines. Diving has a system similar to this one, and it seems to work fairly well from what I've seen. But in the world of gymnastics at the Beijing Olympic Games, something isn't working.

Why did they institute allowing judges to not only view instant replays of the routines, but to view them in slow motion? And do they really think this is going to solve any of the problems they have in scoring? Granted, I am not a gymnast, nor have I ever been. But why is it necessary for these judges to scrutinize every tiny detail of the routine after it is over, in order to determine how many tenths of a point they are going to deduct from the execution score? Why should they have phones at their station to call the head judge and discuss these deductions? None of this makes sense to me, and frankly it is creating needless delays and what seem to me to be unjust deductions.

And in addition to that, I've got another beef with the scoring of gymnastics at these Olympic games. It may sound like sour grapes, but it is something that just doesn't make sense to me. I get the feeling that too many of these judges are scoring with a bias as opposed to attempting to score fairly.

Again, I am not a gymnast...just a fan. But I am a fan that has been watching gymnastics my entire life. I know what a perfectly vertical handstand on the high bar or parallel bars looks like. I know how to spot a "balance check" on the balance beam. I can see with my own two eyes when someone FALLS OFF of their apparatus. And I can tell when a gymnast has delivered a virtually flawless performance, possibly with a small step or hop on the landing.

So judges, please explain to me, how does a routine on the balance beam with a high start value that is virtually free of visible errors wind up with a score that is virtually the same as a routine on the balance beam with a lower start value and multiple visible errors? How does that happen? Especially when you consider that it happens during the same event, with the same judges, just minutes away from each other.

Or can you explain how you give scores to a gymnast whose only real errors of the entire night are small steps on his landings instead of sticking them like he did a few nights previously wound up in the middle of the pack, with so many other gymnasts who had multiple major errors (such as falling off their apparatus) finished ahead of them? How do things like this happen?

I know I really shouldn't be complaining about this, since the U.S. men's team finished with a bronze medal, the women's team finished with the silver medal, and two of the women's gymnasts won the gold and silver in the All-Around. But frankly, something stinks here. If I was seeing the same kinds of errors from the American gymnasts that I am seeing from these other gymnasts, and then seeing the scores that they are receiving, it would be understandable. But those errors are just not there.

How can some of these deductions be justified? How is it possible to have more deductions taken from a virtually flawless routine than from one that is riddled with balance checks and connected elements that do not connect?

The FIG needs to seriously do some major work on their scoring system. The way it is now, the judges can seemingly arbitrarily take deductions at will, without justifying their scores. This needs to be fixed, and the sooner it happens, the better.

Olympics: Men's 100 Meter Butterfly

2008-08-16T09:22:00.004-05:00

Michael Phelps is seriously blowing me away. Heck, he's blowing all of America away. No, more than that...he's blowing the world away. He rocks.

In what is the closest race he has won of the Beijing Olympic Games, Michael won his 7th gold medal in 2008, his 13th gold medal overall, and his 15th overall Olympic medal. Wow. With 7 in one Olympiad, he tied Mark Spitz for the most ever won in a single Olympiad, and he is still expected to win another one tonight in the 4 x 100 Medly Relay. He is just unreal.

This race he won by only .01 second. Seriously...one of the closest races I've ever seen in swimming. And everyone thought he had lost it by taking that last half stroke, but in actuality, that is what made sure that he won. He thought he had lost it. His Mom thought he had lost it. His coach thought he had lost it. The delegation from the silver medal winner's country thought he had lost it. Everyone thought he was going to take the silver, and his hopes to beat Mark Spitz's record instead of simply tying it would be dashed. But instead, he won it in one of the most exciting races you'll ever see.

And frankly, who cares that he didn't break the world record in this race? I don't think that is what anyone is going to remember after this is all said and done.

When I find a decent video of it, I'll post it here.

Date Night - Late!

2008-08-16T09:20:00.001-05:00

Jason Castro has vlogged again. Check it out.

Olympics: Men's 4 X 100 Freestyle Relay

2008-08-11T19:35:00.005-05:00

So I mentioned in a previous post that I am an Olympics junkie, or at least something to that effect. So far in the Beijing Olympics, I haven't had as much time to watch as I would have liked, but I've been recording it all so I can try to catch up on my break. I was watching last night, though...so I saw this.

All I can say after that performance by the U.S. men's team is WOW. Yeah, it doesn't hurt that I've been rooting for Michael Phelps since the Athens games, when he tried to win 7 gold medals in one Olympic Games. He didn't get it in 2004, but he did get 6 golds which is nothing to sneeze about. The first two races he has had in the Beijing Games have been two he wasn't supposed to be able to get gold in, or at least the ones that should give him the biggest problem out of all of his races...but he has come away from both of them with the gold. I can't wait to see what else he has in store for this country.

I don't know what else I'll be blogging about for this Olympiad...we'll have to wait and see. But so far, I am enjoying the games. I think the Chinese crowd have been very appreciative of all of the athletes from what I've seen. And as expected, there has already been a lot of excitement. I'm sure much more is yet to come!

SYTYCD - Finale

2008-08-11T08:59:00.005-05:00

Sorry it took me so long.

Top 20 Group routine - Shane Sparks

Group routine with former SYTYCD cast members:

Pop-Off between Philip Chbeeb and Robert Muraine

Joshua Allen WINS!

Katee and Will - Pas de Deux - Reprise

Katee and Joshua - Bollywood - Reprise

Katee and Joshua - Hip Hop - Reprise

Kherington and Twitch - Viennese Waltz - Reprise

Katee and Twitch - Contemporary - Reprise

Courtney and Mark - Jazz - Reprise

Chelsie and Mark - Hip Hop - Reprise

Comfort and Twitch - Hip Hop - Reprise

Courtney and Gev - Rumba - Reprise

Mary Murphy danced with Season 2's Dmitry Chaplin!!!

And Nigel Lythgoe danced with the kids from the Debbie Allen Academy:

All in all, this was a fabulous season, with all the things I expected and a lot of things I didn't expect. Until next year!

SYTYCD - Top 4 - Video

2008-08-07T14:21:00.002-05:00

I'm sorry it is so late in coming! Enjoy.

Katee's Solo

Courtney's Solo

Twitch's Solo

Joshua's Solo

Katee and Joshua - Contemporary

Twitch and Joshua - Russian Trepak

Courtney and Twitch - Hip Hop

Katee and Courtney - Broadway

Katee and Twitch - Foxtrot

Courtney and Joshua - Jive

Top 4 - Contemporary

After tonight's finale, I'll be saying goodbye to my first summer obsession, and moving on to my every-four-years summer obsession: The 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing!

SYTYCD - Top 4 - Commentary

2008-08-06T18:59:00.003-05:00

Courtney and Twitch - Hip Hop (Tabitha and Napoleon - We know Twitch can hit it hard, but I've definitely got questions about Courtney. I see some definite improvement from her, but I'm not sure this is something that I really would want to see any more of from her in the future. I wasn't really all that into the routine by Napoleon and Tabitha either. It wasn't a bad performance...but it wasn't anything I loved at all either. Not my kind of hip hop.

Katee and Joshua - Contemporary (Wade Robson) - I can't wait to see what Wade has choreographed! I can't think of anything of his other than last season's fox routine that I haven't absolutely loved. Seeing these two working together again is really exciting for me. I love Joshua and Katee together. The little touches that Wade puts in like kissing her elbow are really just beautiful. Really lovely routine with tons of emotion, and these two pulled it off insanely well. I'm nuts about everything about this.

Katee and Courtney - Broadway (Tyce Diorio) - Parasols, Tyce? Hmmm...I just really don't know what to say about this one. I typically really love Tyce's choreography, but this one is doing absolutely nothing for me in any way, shape, or form. And I'd have to say...I don't think it is the girls' fault. They did what they could with what they were given, in my opinion. But this piece just really didn't work for me. These two could have been amazing together in so many things, but this one, to me, just isn't the right piece for them.

Twitch and Joshua - Russian Trepak (Youri Nelzine) - I'm really, really intrigued! I've seen some dancing in this style before, and this is difficult stuff. Oh yeah, and I love the Nutcracker Suite! Wow! Joshua's leaps are insanely high. And the floorwork they've got Twitch doing is unreal. I don't know that any other combination of guys from this season could have pulled this off like these two are. And how cool is it to see so many different styles of dancing this season? Awesome! It will really be a shame if one of these two doesn't win.

Katee and Twitch - Foxtrot (Tony Meredith and Melanie LaPatin) - I really hope for Twitch's sake that his smooth ballroom skills have improved! His frame is improved! I don't feel like his shoulders are up next to his ears any more on this. And I really think they both are doing well with this, the footwork, the lines, the lifts...all really pretty good. I love the choreography for this foxtrot. And Twitch really played the part of a gentleman with it. Not bad at all.

Courtney and Joshua - Jive (Jason Gilkison) - They may have finally found a style that I won't love Joshua dancing. His footwork is okay, but his kicks don't seem quite right. I don't feel like he's kicking high enough, and not getting the retraction down quite right. I have to admit, I didn't pay much attention to Courtney in this one. It was a really insanely tough routine though, without a doubt. They got the tricks down really well though, and they were spectacular!

Top 4 - Contemporary (Mia Michaels) - Katee really shines next to Courtney in this one for me. They are performing the same movements, but my eyes go to Katee. And the same for Joshua over Twitch. Which surprises me a bit. I love what Mia created with this one - it is truly gorgeous, the movements involved in creating this dance. Oh yeah, and shirtless Twitch and Joshua on one stage...hell yeah. This was just a really amazing performance from all of them, all said though.

Solo order: Courtney, Twitch, Katee, Joshua

I'm still not thrilled by Courtney's solos. She has really nice lines, but her movements in her solos feel almost frantic. I love her when she's choreographed, but not as much when she does her own choreography. She, for me, has to be the biggest surprise in the Top 4 though. Not because she isn't a beautiful dancer, but because she never really was one of the stand-outs. She just kept plucking her way through it all, and here she is. You go girl!

Twitch...what can I say? I love him! I love watching him dance. It doesn't matter to me if he is adding some comedy to his routine or just doing a straight hip hop kind of routine. He loves what he is doing, and he makes me love him. He is fabulous.

I love Katee's lines. She has a way of finishing off her movements that is very unique, and very polished, and it makes her so incredibly easy to watch her and love her. For someone I wasn't so sure about coming into the Top 20, she has proven me wrong and the judges who voted to put her through right. She is an amazing dancer, and I am in love with so many of her performances from throughout the season.

I love that Joshua went up to the judges' podium and danced there. He really brought a lot of personality into his solo, which for me is the only thing that is ever really missing in his solos. He is absolutely adorable, and he brought that into his solo tonight. I love him too. He's fabulous!

Jason Castro is NOT Engaged

2008-08-06T17:41:00.000-05:00

SYTYCD - Top 4 - SPOILERS

2008-08-05T08:04:00.004-05:00

Spoilers are in for the final show. It should be awesome, by all accounts!

Read more about it here and also here.

What has me most excited? WADE ROBSON!!!

SYTYCD - Top 6 - Results

2008-08-01T12:06:00.003-05:00

Sorry it took me so long this time. I've got a lot going on!

They opened the show with a group routine choreographed by Emmy nominee Mandy Moore.

Each of the Top 6 performed another solo, to show what they can do in case they were eliminated.

Courtney:

Mark:

Katee:

Joshua:

Chelsie:

Twitch:

Lil Demon, a six-year-old hip hop/break dancer came out and entertained the crowd to fill some more time. He's too cute for words!!!

And in the end, a tearful Chelsie and gracious Mark were eliminated, leaving the Final 4 of Joshua, Katee, Twitch, and Courtney. Finale is next week!!!

SYTYCD - Top 6 - Video

2008-07-30T21:17:00.009-05:00

Thanks again to MJ for loading the video or finding them...whichever it may be. It seems like there has been a crackdown at youtube, so we may not be getting any good quality vids uploaded there for SYTYCD for a while. Too bad.

Courtney and Mark - Viennese Waltz

Mark Courtney A
by krunkyou

Katee and Joshua - Contemporary

Josh Katee A
by krunkyou

Chelsie and Twitch - Mambo

ch TW
by krunkyou

Courtney and Mark - Jazz

Mark Courtney B
by krunkyou

Katee and Joshua - Paso Doble

Josh katee B
by krunkyou

Chelsie and Twitch - Hip Hop

Ch&t_b_6
by krunkyou

Chelsie's Solo

Solo Chelsie
by krunkyou

Twitch's Solo

Solo Twitch
by krunkyou

Katee's Solo

Solo Katee
by krunkyou

Joshua's Solo

Solo Josh
by krunkyou

Courtney's Solo

Solo Courtney
by krunkyou

Mark's Solo

Solo Mark
by krunkyou

Date Night from Pittsburgh

2008-07-30T21:14:00.001-05:00

Jason Castro vlogged again. Check it out.

SYTYCD - Top 6 - Commentary

2008-07-30T19:01:00.005-05:00

The show is starting an hour later than normal tonight, and is only one hour long instead of the usual two hours. They started off by showing a rerun of last week's elimination episode. I'll be back with more later!

Adam Shankman is back on the judging panel with Mary and Nigel! Squeep! Have I mentioned before that I am absolutely in love with him? Because I am. He is a fabulous judge, and I wish they would make him a permanent fixture on the judging panel. Or maybe they could alternate between Adam Shankman and Lil C. Those two seem to be the most useful as judges with giving constructive criticism and without delving too deeply into favoritism out of the guest judges.

On with the show!

Courtney and Mark - Viennese Waltz (Jason Gilkison) - These two actually make a really cute couple! And SQUEEP!!! Sorry for the fangirly moment...but it is my Cookie! David Cook, Time of My Life! Oh yeah...dancing. Um. Okay. Effortless lifts, but the rise and fall action seems to be forced to me on Courtney's part. It makes the whole dance seem a little bouncy or something. Not quite as smooth as I would like to see from her. They were both in character really well, and portrayed the romance that was being asked of them. Mark was definitely the stronger of the two, for me.

Katee and Joshua - Contemporary (Tyce Diorio) - I love Tyce's contemporary pieces, and it will be really interesting to see how these two make it work. Blech. More Celine Dion. Quite a letdown after David Cook! But, FABULOUS choreography from Tyce again. The lifts are expressive and creative, and these two are performing the heck out of it again. Katee's lines are simply fantastic, and Joshua is right there with her...and he is a very strong man. There were tons of lifts in that, and he never wavers in them. (*wave to Paula Abdul in the audience*) That was an amazing routine, and I am back in love with these two. I love them apart...but I love them even more together. If we could have a winning pair, they would get my vote.

Chelsie and Twitch - Mambo (Tony and Melanie) - Twitch's pants are definitely not falling off tonight! Chelsie is fabulous, as expected. Twitch is keeping up with her pretty well, and they are performing their tricks nicely. His posture isn't quite working for me for this dance. His shoulders feel funky, again. Overall though, they did a really great job. This isn't a piece that I'm going to really remember in the end though, it's not one that is going to make me think back and go WOW. But it wasn't bad.

Courtney and Mark - Jazz (Sonya Tayeh) - Let's see what Sonya can do with a jazz piece! She was saying something about it being French burlesque, so that at least has me intrigued. This is freaking amazing choreography. I love everything she has done on this show this season. They definitely need to get her to be a more regular choreographer! There are so many parts in this piece that Mark and Courtney had to basically freeze in place in a pose, and they hit all of those pieces perfectly with the music. They did a GREAT job with this piece. I am so proud of the two of them. This is one of my favorite pieces that I've seen this season, easily. Wow wow wow wow wow!!!

Katee and Joshua - Paso Doble (Jason Gilkison) - Joshua is shirtless!!! I knew it was coming!!! And he's got tight pants on again too. Wow. I love a man with some meat on him. Okay...back to the dancing. WOW. I love the passion of a paso doble done well, and these two are doing it really well. Joshua definitely has the arrogance of the bull fighter down in playing this part. Katee is simply gorgeous in the way she moves. The footwork was impeccible, their lines were sensational, and everything about it just worked. This was OUTSTANDING choreography, and I absolutely LOVED everything about this routine. These two are amazing together. I think they could be my favorite pairing ever on the show.

Chelsie and Twitch - Hip Hop (Tabitha and Napoleon) - Interesting idea about the crazy conductors, and whoever has the baton (yes, it is a baton and not a "stick") is in control. I'm LOVING Twitch in this one (as I expected), but Chelsie is not doing much of anything at all for me here. She looks really uncomfortable, and she is trying too hard with her facial expressions, and just plain looks goofy doing it. I had a difficult time paying attention to how she was dancing because of her face. And how freaking cool was that arrangement of Janet Jackson's "Control"??? Love it!

Solo order: Chelsie, Twitch, Katee, Joshua, Courtney, Mark

Chelsie's solo was boring to me again. She is not as strong in doing her ballroom solos as some of the ballroom dancers from previous seasons. I love Twitch's comedy and the way he integrates that into his solos. He really does have the Midas touch, as far as I'm concerned! Yes, I am biased. No, I don't apologize for it. Katee's solo was about what I would expect from her...she has amazing technique and beautiful lines, but she is lacking a bit of originality in her solos, now that we've seen it a few times. When Joshua really gets going on his solos, I can't take my eyes off of him. He does things that a hip hop dancer should not be able to do, and he is such a hard hitting popper. I love what he does. Courtney's solo makes me feel like I have already seen this from her before...again. All of her solos are blurring together for me. She needs to find an in between speed - something other than lightning fast and completely still. And apparently Mark didn't want to be the only one to not go shirtless! LOL. I didn't enjoy this solo as much as I've enjoyed some of his others, but it certainly wasn't bad or boring.

So...for tonight, my order for the guys:
Joshua
Mark
Twitch

My order for the girls:
Katee
Courtney
Chelsie

With that said though, I absolutely don't want Twitch to go home! I would prefer for it to be Mark that goes tomorrow night, but I guess I'll have to wait and see. I would be fine with this order for the girls...and honestly, I would be okay with Courtney going home before Chelsie. I honestly don't think either of them has a chance to win against any of the three guys...Katee is the only one that I think has the potential to do that, if any of them do.

SYTYCD - Top 6 - SPOILERS

2008-07-28T21:31:00.003-05:00

Spoilers are starting to come in for Wednesday night's show! If you want to know the pairings, choreographers, dances, and the guest judge, check it out here. If you don't want to know, don't click.

There will be more detailed spoilers up at this link later, if you're interested.

See you Wednesday!

SYTYCD - Top 8 - Results

2008-07-25T08:22:00.002-05:00

The night started off with a group performance choreographed by Chuck Maldonado.

We then learned which dancers were in the Bottom 2 Guys and the Bottom 2 Girls: Will, Twitch, Comfort, and Courtney. I think everyone was shocked that Mark was safe. He was in the Bottom 2 last week, and he arguably had the weakest performance of all the guys on Wednesday night, with his Foxtrot. I'm not upset that he was safe...I love him! He is fabulous!!! For me, it's not just about technical skill, it's about who moves me, who makes me feel something. Mark consistently has done that. Very cool that he was safe.

Each of those dancers then performed yet another solo, just because.

Comfort

Will

Courtney

Twitch

And then Cat revealed with of those dancers would be leaving the competition: Comfort and Will. So, maybe this time, Comfort is leaving the competition IV REAL. Here's hoping that happens, at the very least. Tonight was a tough one for me, as far as the guys are concerned. I have genuinely enjoyed all of the guys who were in the Top 5 guys, and it is only going to get tougher each week. I think I have finally figured out that my overall favorite throughout the whole competition has been Twitch. I think he is fabulous. And he's been a favorite for me since before the season started...since Vegas week of last year! So seeing him in the Bottom 2 with Will (who is easily the best technical dancer on the show) was a tough one. I was biting my fingernails with nervousness for Twitch. Granted, it seems that the voters have been in agreement with me about Will...fabulous dancing, but lacking that little something extra that makes you just LOVE to watch him. He has shown that he is extremely creative and diverse in his solos - no two have been even similar, let alone exactly alike (like all of Comfort's solos). And frankly, his solos make me take notice, make me feel something, make me love him. They have since his very first audition! But there have only been a couple of his partner routines that have done the same. Something is lacking there, and we can no longer blame it on Jessica!

Anyways, Twitch is safe for another week! Thank you!!!

So far, since we were down to the Top 6 guys, they have been going home in the order that I had worked out in my head fairly early on in the season. Thayne, then Gev, then Will...leaving Twitch, Joshua, and Mark. I have a bad feeling in my mouth that it is going to continue in the order I had in my head earlier too...Twitch, then Mark, then Joshua will win. Not that I don't think Joshua will make a great winner! He will! I still love him, and Mark too. I've just gotten to the point that none of the dancers are above Twitch when it comes to my personal favorites. *sigh*

This next week is going to be another tough one for me. I think regardless of which one of Joshua and Twitch goes home...it will be one of them. They are both fabulous, but I think they are splitting a fanbase, at least to an extent. One of them has to go home if the other one is going to have a chance to beat Mark in the finale.

And yeah, I realize I am talking an awful lot about the remaining guys and not so much about the remaining girls. The girls this season, for the most part, haven't done much for me. My early favorites were Kherington, Chelsie, and Katee. Kherington has been eliminated. Chelsie has seemed to kind of flatline for me - she doesn't seem to be improving each week, so she is still at the same place I feel like she was at the beginning of the show. I want more from her. I want her to wow me again, and frankly, she hasn't in a long time. And her solos? Ugh. She needs to work on her solos in a big way. I realize it is difficult for a latin/ballroom dancer to dance a solo, but there have been many who have done it on this show in the past, and who have danced better solos than what she is doing. She needs to step up her game! I don't feel like she is as good a ballroom dancer as Heidi, Lacey, or Anya from previous seasons. And while she has proven to be versatile, she isn't making me love her as much as I loved some of them. And then we come to Katee. I still love Katee...she is a fabulous dancer, and she hasn't let me down a single time. My only concern for her is that I just don't think she has a chance to beat any of the guys. Nothing against her at all...I just think the guys are more unique, more interesting dancers...even if they aren't as technically good as Katee, and even if they have each screwed up a time or two in their routines. With Katee, I feel like she is incapable of messing up. I expect perfection (or near perfection) from her. I guess it might have something to do with those expectations. I don't expect Joshua to be able to dance a samba. I don't expect Twitch to be able to dance a contemporary. I don't expect Mark to be able to dance a hip hop. So when they do, and do it well, it seems better than when Katee dances anything, which I expect her to be able to do well, and then does it extremely well. Probably not fair, I realize. But that seems to be how it is for me.

More next week!

SYTYCD - Top 8 - Solos

2008-07-23T21:07:00.005-05:00

I'll add them as they are uploaded to youtube.

EDIT: Like with the Performance Videos, thanks to MJ.

Comfort
Video

Will
Video

Katee
Video

Mark
Video

Chelsie
Video

Joshua
Video

Courtney
Video

Twitch
Video

SYTYCD - Top 8 - Video

2008-07-23T21:03:00.005-05:00

I will add them as they are uploaded to youtube!

EDIT: Thanks to MJ of MJ's Big Blog for the video. I'll likely change them to youtube vids once they get uploaded, but no one has started to upload them there yet. I have better luck with embedding them from youtube than from redlasso.

Courtney and Will - Samba
Video

Katee and Twitch - Contemporary
Video

Comfort and Mark - Hip Hop
Video

Chelsie and Joshua - Argentine Tango
Video

Courtney and Will - Hip Hop
Video

Katee and Twitch - Broadway
Video

Comfort and Mark - Foxtrot
Video

Chelsie and Joshua - Disco
Video

Video for the solos will be in a separate post again, like last week.

SYTYCD - Top 8 - Commentary

2008-07-23T18:45:00.008-05:00

Tonight, Toni Basil is joining Nigel and Mary on the judging panel. Interesting. I'm not sure how I feel about her being a judge...and it makes me wonder if she'll ever choreograph anything on the show. I mean, I know Adam Shankman hasn't ever choreographed any of the competitive pieces (only a group number), and I highly doubt that Debbie Allen has choreographed for the show...at least not that I know of. But she's Debbie-freaking-Allen, so I know she knows what she's talking about. I don't know much about Toni's dance background other than what we saw in the video to the "hey Mickey, you're so fine, you're so fine you blow my mind, hey Mickey *clap, clap - clap* hey Mickey *clap, clap - clap*" song. I guess she is well known in the dance world...but I really don't know much about it all.

Interesting that we're getting a prepackage clip before the solos tonight. I don't know that they've ever done that before. Toni as a judge was pretty okay. She sounds like she knows what she's talking about, which is always a good thing, IMO. She does use the word "street" a bit too much, and I could live without her saying "organic."

Courtney and Will - Samba (Jean-Marc Genereux) - I think Will has really managed to get the flamboyance of the dance down really well, without losing any sense of masculinity. That's something that is really hard to do with the samba. Courtney looks great, but I have to admit, I'm really not focusing on her much in this routine. Will is pretty much stealing the show on this number, which is a little surprising to me. Outside of contemporary-ish routines, he has had a difficult time capturing my attention. He did with the samba tonight. A few times he wasn't quite down-'n-dirty enough for me, but overall, really pretty good. I think Courtney probably did really well with it, because I would have noticed if she was stinking up the joint.

Katee and Twitch - Contemporary (Mia Michaels) - Apparently these two knew each other before they made it onto the show, so they didn't expect to get to work together. That should help with the chemistry! There's a door in the middle of the stage as a prop...and apparently Katee is an abusive girlfriend in this one. Interesting. And Twitch keeps coming back for more - he can't get enough. I'm so caught up into the story on this one that I haven't paid much attention to the dancing in it. Really interesting story on this one, Mia. I didn't want it to end. They both got into their characters so well, that I couldn't pay any attention to technique. I loved this routine, and I really hope they do it on tour.

Comfort and Mark - Hip Hop (Tabitha and Napoleon) - We know hip hop suits Comfort, and I think Mark can do some much harder hip hop than we saw the first time around. I think this has the potential to be a real stand out kind of piece. I love the beginning section with the desks. And this is definitely a much harder hitting kind of hip hop than we've been getting from Tabitha and Napoleon. They are KILLING it! This might be my favorite routine that we've seen from Tabitha and Napoleon, because it combines a real hip hop kind of flair with a story line. It is the best of both worlds. Mark and Comfort really played their parts well, their dancing was off the hook, and that made me really happy. Oh yeah, and that flip lift? SICK!

Chelsie and Joshua - Argentine Tango (Dmitry Chaplin) - Dmitry is hot. Very hot. The intro with the chair was sexy, but I don't know how much tango was going on there. Once they actually get going, it is really fast and intricate footwork that they are required to perform. Dmitry did a fantastic job with the choreography on this one! They are flying all over the place! I'm not 100% sold on Joshua's frame in that one, but overall, I think they did a fabulous job. I think this is the best tango choreography we have seen on this show, and I'm not just saying that because I love Dmitry!

Courtney and Will - Hip Hop (Tabitha and Napoleon) - Slow hip hop with a ghost, huh? I guess we'll have to wait and see. SYTYCD history, Will? We'll see. I think one of the biggest challenges of this kind of slow hip hop is keeping the synchronized parts completely in sync. Sometimes, they are doing a great job with that, and other times, it becomes really obvious that they are just a hair off. I'm not digging this routine by Tabitha and Napoleon nearly as much as I did the earlier one, at all. It wasn't bad, but it wasn't fantastic either. It was just okay. I didn't buy into them playing those parts. Nigel seemed to think that they got the emotion of the routine down, but I really didn't feel it from them.

Katee and Twitch - Broadway (Tyce Diorio) - They've got some interesting relationships in their routines tonight! Earlier he was running from her because she was kicking his ass, now he's running from her because he really isn't interested. Tons of energy here, and I think they are really in control of the characters that Tyce gave them to play. I love the playful aspect that he puts into his Broadway pieces so often, especially in the lifts. The lifts he choreographs are never what you are expecting. Tons of fun! And for a style that is not really either of their specialty, they both really seem to excel at it. They both make me smile when they dance. And what a compliment from Toni for Twitch, saying he dances from the inside out. That really seems to match what I feel about him. I just wish she could have said it without saying the words "street" and "organic" again. LOL.

Comfort and Mark - Foxtrot (Jean-Marc Genereux) - I love Brian Setzer!!! The BSO is fabulous. Comfort and Mark on this foxtrot, however...not so much. They were missing connections all over the place, and I can't help but feel like those misses were mainly Comfort's fault. Mark has proven to be a good partner time and again, but he has had two partners in a row who weren't up to snuff. They were thinking too hard throughout the entire routine, and it made it feel very stiff. Their posture and hold weren't right AT ALL! Mark manages to really make lifts fly somehow though.

Chelsie and Joshua - Disco (Doriana Sanchez) - I really can't stand disco, and I really, really, REALLY can't stand Disco Doriana. This number is going to have to be seriously amazing for me to not hate it from the very core of my being. Lots of lifts, Doriana? Really? I'm shocked. Ugh. Yep, tons of tricks and lifts and really very little in between to make it cohesive as a dance at all. Did they do the tricks and lifts well? Sure. Fine. Really well, actually. But seriously, if they put another disco number on the show this season I'm gonna gag. Doriana's choreography is only good for making the audience gasp over the tricks.

Solo order: Comfort, Will, Katee, Mark, Chelsie, Joshua, Courtney, Twitch

Will as James Brown really, really works for me. Nice to see some personality coming through. Mark's solo, as usual, was incredibly interesting and unique. I could watch him dance in his own style all day. Happy Birthday to Chelsie - but honey, you need to up your game with your solo. And Twitch? He is definitely one of my superheroes!

Another Date Night with Castro!

2008-07-22T19:59:00.000-05:00

SYTYCD - Top 8 - SPOILERS

2008-07-21T22:09:00.006-05:00

And here they are...wait...um...

WHERE ARE THEY????

All of the usual sites are quoting each other, mainly just furthering some speculation about the pairings, and possible dances for one of the speculated couples. Nothing is really concrete. I am starting to think that we may not get anything else before the show. I hope I'm wrong, and if I am, I'll post it here.

In the meanwhile, the speculation is that the pairings will be:
Mark and Comfort
Twitch and Katee
Josh and Chelsie
Will and Courtney

Further speculation is that Mark and Comfort will be dancing Hip Hop and a Foxtrot.

BUT - all of this is speculation, and none of this is confirmed. If anything else shows up, I'll either post it or link to it. Have fun with speculation!

Oh, wait...one thing that is fairly certain - Mia Michaels will be choreographing at least one of the dances. That is based on something she said in an interview recently.

EDIT: As soon as I hit post, I find this at TWoP. That'll teach me to give up on spoilers. LOL. I'm sure more will show up from there, but that will give us a start.

SYTYCD - Top 10 - Results

2008-07-17T22:13:00.006-05:00

I'll add videos as they are uploaded to Youtube. UPDATE: All videos are up now.

Tonight was a sad night for me. Losing any of the 5 guys in the Top 10 is heartbreaking, because I truly love to watch all of them dance. I want to see more from each of them!!! I can't get enough. And I enjoy most of the girls that are left, too.

The night started with a Bollywood styled group number.

Cat Deeley announced that So You Think You Can Dance was nominated for 4 Emmys: Wade Robson, Shane Sparks, Mandy Moore, and the makeup artists were each nominated for an award! Congratulations and good luck.

The Top 5 girls all came back out to dance a Mia Michaels contemporary routine.

We then learned that Comfort and Kherington made up the Bottom 2 from the girls, and they would each dance another solo for us tonight, though it would not determine which one was eliminated.

Then, the Top 5 guys came back out to dance a number choreographed by a "mystery" choreographer, otherwise known as Mr. Nigel Lythgoe. This is the first time I've seen anything he's choreographed! It's about time, Nigel. I'm sure he couldn't resist working with such an extremely talented group of guys.

After their dance, we learned that Mark and Gev were the Bottom 2 guys. Like the Bottom 2 girls, they would each get the opportunity to dance one more solo for the audience.

Comfort's Solo

Mark's Solo

Kherington's Solo

Gev's Solo

Kherington and Gev were eliminated. I was not surprised about Gev. To me, he was the most likely choice for the first of the Hip Hop/B-Boy guys to leave. While he is FABULOUS at his own style, he hasn't had as smooth a transition into the other styles as Joshua and Twitch seem to have had, and he also has seemingly had a smaller fanbase than either of those two. I was prepared for his departure. I was not prepared for Kherington to leave. I know some are turned off by her smile, and I know she didn't have the best night last night. Frankly, her solo last night was weak as well. But she has had a really strong run, up until last night, at least in my opinion. I wasn't surprised to see her in the Bottom 2, but I was certain that voters would send Comfort home again. To me, the other girls pretty much had a free ride this week. I was wrong. And I am sad.

SYTYCD - Top 10 - Solos - Video

2008-07-16T21:45:00.009-05:00

Again, I'll post them as I find them.

Chelsie

Gev

Courtney

Mark

Comfort

Twitch

Katee

Will

Kherington

Joshua

SYTYCD - Top 10 - Video

2008-07-16T21:36:00.008-05:00

I will update as I find them! Solos will follow in a separate post. Twenty youtubes in one post would be way too much. LOL.

UPDATE: All videos loaded. Enjoy!

Courtney and Joshua - Hip Hop

Kherington and Mark - Two Step

Comfort and Twitch - Smooth Waltz

Katee and Will - Broadway

Chelsie and Gev - Contemporary

Courtney and Joshua - Rumba

Kherington and Mark - Jazz

Comfort and Twitch - Hip Hop

Katee and Will - Pas de Deux

Chelsie and Gev - Jive

SYTYCD - Top 10 - Commentary

2008-07-16T19:24:00.007-05:00

I'm getting started late tonight. I have to love the wonders of dvr on DirecTV! I don't know what we all did without Tivo and dvrs and the like.

This week, the Top 10 each drew a new partner from a hat, in addition to dancing two new dances and a solo. Supposedly, tomorrow night, we will get three group dances instead of the typical one: the whole Top 10, the Top 5 girls, and the Top 5 guys. Should be interesting.

Only 9 dancers come out, and Cat brings Jessica out to explain why she is leaving the competition. She looks gorgeous. She thought she had a cramp in her side, but it turns out she actually had a few ribs broken. Jessica will be back on tour, so we will get to see the fabulous Adam and Eve routine with Will on tour. Cat tells us that Comfort has been brought back to compete in Jessica's place. Also, the judges are no longer responsible for cutting a guy and a girl each week. Instead, that responsibility shifts to the voters. But guess who is on the judging panel this week? None other than Lil C! I'm excited to see how he is as a judge.

Courtney and Joshua - Hip Hop (Dave Scott) - I LOVE Dave Scott! I'm glad to see him back and choreographing a routine for Joshua. It's a Bride of Frankenstein themed piece, so it should be really cool. And as I expected, Joshua is KILLING it. Again, I feel like Courtney is a bit too bouncy for me, but not as bad as she was in the hip hop number she did with Gev a couple of weeks ago. Really cool concept for the routine, and overall, executed really well. I think Courtney has shown a lot of improvement in this style, and I think that the partnership is a good one for her.

Kherington and Mark - Two Step (Ronnie and Brandy) - I'm really excited to see Two Step on SYTYCD!!! I've been wanting to see some different styles, and it is really cool to see one that is from my part of the country being introduced. Their spins need to be faster and less forced. Mark looks GOOD in Wranglers and boots! But this two step feels slower and more labored than I can see in any country bar in Dallas or Fort Worth by untrained dancers. They're getting the steps in, but they were missing tons of connections, and it just didn't feel free. I'm kinda dissappointed.

Comfort and Twitch - Smooth Waltz (Smooth Waltz) - They've both done a waltz before, with varying levels of success. Watching the two of them trying to pull off a romantic couple in rehearsal is funny. For the short amount of time they had together to work on this, I'm actually really impressed. It definitely doesn't have the rise and fall that I would hope to see, and there wasn't the smoothness that I could have liked, but some of it is gorgeous. The lift at the end was breathtaking. Not as good as I would hope, but not as bad as it could have been. I would say that there was a decided improvement from Comfort, but maybe a step back from Twitch. (I have to say, Lil C is giving FABULOUS critiques. He really gets it. THANK YOU!!!)

Katee and Will - Broadway (Tyce Diorio) - They've got an actual boat on stage that works into the choreography. Interesting to see Will playing a part in a routine like this. It is very out of his normal character. He typically seems to be so serious and maybe a bit introverted, and he had to pull out every bit of extroversion he could muster. Great dancing, great choreography, great use of the boat prop. They completely embraced every aspect of what they were doing with this one. And it will never hurt for Will to rip his shirt open. I definitely had flashbacks of Dmitry.

Chelsie and Gev - Contemporary (Sonya Tayeh) - I'm really LOVING this choreography, and they are doing a fabulous job with it. Actually, I think I'm liking Gev in it more than Chelsie. He has totally embraced everything that Sonya gave him, and his movements are powerful and unique. Very interesting, and beautiful. They completely bought into the characters that they were given, and the choreography. That was fabulous. But he really blew me away tonight, and we're only halfway through.

Courtney and Joshua - Rumba (Jean-Marc Genereaux) - Joshua looks sexy as hell in this. The latin ballroom dances definitely suit him so much better than the smooth ballroom dances. The boy knows how to move his hips, and he knows how to work it. And Courtney??? WOW! Amazing extensions and lines in her movements, and she really bought into the character of the dance. That is definitely one of the better rumbas I've seen on this show. Fantastic footwork and sensuality throughout the routine, but a couple of the lifts were a tiny bit shaky. HEE!!!! Joshua is *threatening* to get nekkid like Twitch and Will always are. "Just wait till you see the rest of it" he says...I'm waiting.

Kherington and Mark - Jazz (Tyce Diorio) - They've both got a great quality of movement here, but I'm not sure that they are matching each other the way they really should be. She's got fabulous lines and extensions, and he has unique and interesting lines, but when they should be in unison, it doesn't quite line up. Lots of energy in it, but I don't know that they really had much chemistry on this piece. It wasn't bad at all, but there didn't seem to be a lot of passion involved in what they were doing together. I'm not sure I would agree with Mary that Mark is lost without having a character to play. I think if there had been more of a connection in the partnership, that he would have been fully believable.

Comfort and Twitch - Hip Hop (Dave Scott) - LOL...Twitch thinks the match-up will be "somewhat tremendous"...let's hope he is right. This definitely has the makings of being the best hip hop number ever on the show. Let's hope they don't dissappoint. The costumes are horrific, but once you get past that, these two are insanely good. They're hitting hard, they've got tons of personality, they really connect with each other on this one, and they completely showed that they absolutely know what they are doing in their own style. Outstanding. And thank you, Lil C, for explaining the meaning of buck: internal artistry meeting physical output. Definitely the best I have ever (and I do mean EVER) seen Comfort.

Katee and Will - Pas de Deux (Desmond Richardson) - Let's hope Katee can become like Gumby then. Will is nearly nekkid again. No complaints from me on that one. He is insanely strong, making these lifts look like they are completely effortless. There was a bit of a struggle on one move, but for the most part, I am seriously blown away by not only their technique, but also simply by the fact that they are doing this, and pulling it off! Katee exhibited some serious trust in him, throwing herself at him in some of these crazy moves and just knowing that he would be there to catch her. I am amazed.

Chelsie and Gev - Jive (Jean-Marc Genereaux) - I'm nervous for Gev on this one, I will admit. Chelsie will be fabulous, since it is her style. And she is! She is a little firecracker, that is for sure. And Gev isn't as bad in this as I would expect him to be. He's got the speed, but some of the moves seem to be all speed and no bounce, if that makes any sense. The jive should be really bouncy, and he's just a bit jerky. All in all though, not as bad as I expected from him. He didn't seem really comfortable with the jive, but he gave it his all.

Solos: Chelsie, Gev, Courtney, Mark, Comfort, Twitch, Katee, Will, Kherington, and Joshua.

Standout solos for me were Mark, Twitch, Katee, and Joshua. I hate that we are going to have to say goodbye to one of the guys this week...they are all amazing. I kinda expect that Gev will be the one to go though. Out of the girls, I fully expect Comfort to be eliminated again, even though she was FABULOUS in the hip hop with Twitch. I just don't think that will be enough to save her yet again.

Castro Date Night

2008-07-15T19:52:00.001-05:00

SYTYCD - Top 10 - SPOILERS

2008-07-14T22:25:00.006-05:00

As previously reported, Jessica is out due to an injury and Comfort is back in.

The first spoilers are in here.

It seems that Lil C is the guest judge this week...and we are getting group routines on Performance night, not just on Elimination night.

So far, all we have are the dances and maybe the choreographers. I'll update later if I find more.

UPDATE: The three group routines are supposedly for Thursday night's show, not for Wednesday night's show. Who knows?

SYTYCD Top 10 Injury Update

2008-07-14T17:38:00.006-05:00

According to zap2it.com, Jessica has an injury that required her to leave the competition. Comfort is supposedly back to fill in for her. We'll likely know a bit more, after the spoilers start coming in.

I may not be the biggest Jessica fan, by any stretch of the imagination, but I don't want to see anyone leave the competition for reasons like this. I hope she is better soon.

Check back here, I'll link to spoilers once they are up.

UPDATE: Zap2it has reported on this again, stating that Jessica has been suffering with a leg injury since the beginning of the competition that she had kept hidden from the producers. I do happen to remember her wearing a knee brace when she danced for her life the first week.

Also, speculation on the web is that the doctor's decision to medically remove her from the competition came as late as Sunday (some claim Saturday). All reports are that Comfort only found out that she was back in it on Sunday. That didn't give her much time to learn her routines, since performances are taped on Mondays!

SYTYCD - Top 12 - Results

2008-07-11T07:04:00.006-05:00

Last night, we discovered which dancers would become the Top 10 and head out on tour. The Top 12 danced a hip hop number together, choreographed by Tabitha and Napoleon.

To start the night off, we learned that Phillip Chbeeb has agreed to participate in a Dance-Off with Robert Muraine! Too freaking cool. I can't wait for that. Comfort and Thayne, Jessica and Will, and Kherington and Twitch made up the Bottom 3 couples and would each be dancing a solo to prove to the judges that they deserved to stay. But, before they got to do their solos, three dancers from the Alvin Ailey Dance Company performed. They were AWESOME!

Comfort:

Thayne:

Jessica:

Will:

Kherington:

Twitch:

In an elimination that likely suprised no one, Comfort and Thayne were both eliminated after their 4th consecutive trips to the Bottom 3. The judges said they wished they could could have kept Thayne and lost two girls (meaning Jessica would have been eliminated in addition to Comfort), and I couldn't agree more. Sadly, the format of the show requires an even number of guys/girls each week so that wasn't possible. I have a strong feeling that Thayne will be one of the alternates on tour though, so I'm sure we haven't seen the last of him. He has really, seriously grown on me over the last few weeks. I don't think he is as explosive a dancer as the rest of the guys in the Top 5 (did y'all SEE Will and Twitch's solos last night??!?!?!?!!?!), but he is a really beautiful dancer, regardless of his permagrin.

SYTYCD - Top 12 - Video

2008-07-09T21:16:00.008-05:00

EDIT: All videos are up now!

Chelsie and Mark - Salsa (Alex Da Silva)

Comfort and Thayne - Hip Hop (Tabitha and Napoleon)

Jessica and Will - Contemporary (Tyce Diorio)

Courtney and Gev - Cha Cha (Pasha and Anya)

Kherington and Twitch - Krump (Lil C)

Katee and Joshua - Viennese Waltz (Jean-Marc Genereaux)

Chelsie and Mark - Broadway (Tyce Diorio)

Comfort and Thayne - Contemporary (Mandy Moore)

Jessica and Will - Quickstep (Tony and Melanie)

Courtney and Gev - Jazz (Mandy Moore)

Kherington and Twitch - Smooth Tango (Jean-Marc Genereaux)

Katee and Joshua - Bollywood (Nakul Dev Mahajan)

SYTYCD - Top 12 - Commentary

2008-07-09T18:00:00.005-05:00

Once again tonight, we will get two dances from each of the couples who remain in the competition. So, they might not have to rush through the prepackage clips quite as fast as last week, but I have a feeling that they might be almost as short. By tomorrow night, we'll know who the Top 10 will be, and voters will take over the responsibility of voting off a male and female dancer each week. Also, they will randomly get a different partner each week, in addition to randomly getting their dance assignments.

Mia Michaels is back on the judging panel with Mary and Nigel this week. I think its a bit soon to have Mia on again, but oh well. Hopefully she won't fully piss me off tonight.

Chelsie and Mark - Salsa (Alex Da Silva) - They look HOT together tonight. Mark looks a little stiff in the shoulders, but he's got the footwork down and really knows how to play the part. That was a fabulous exit from the lift at the end. Lots of fun and energy going on in the routine. I'm not sure what Mia is talking about with Mark's "insecurity."

Comfort and Thayne - Hip Hop (Tabitha and Napoleon) - They're trying to keep Thayne from smiling too much for this number. Not sure if they'll manage it, but kudos to Napoleon for attempting. Comfort's definitely hitting harder than Thayne, but I expected that. He's actually doing better than I expected him to. I think I kinda like him in this routine...but I wasn't too fond of the routine as a whole. While Comfort did the harder hitting, she wasn't as enjoyable to me in the routine as he is. She kind of ignored him throughout, while Thayne played the part. He is the more intriguing dancer of the two, for me at this point.

Jessica and Will - Contemporary (Tyce Diorio) - Interesting...the Garden of Eden, huh Tyce? They're practically naked up there, and writhing around all over each other. The pair of them are hitting some gorgeous lines. I have to say, I love what Tyce has done with this, the music is perfect, the poses are perfect, the connection between the two is perfect (which I was missing last week). I'm seriously impressed with all of them on it, not only Tyce, but both of these dancers. This is the first time that Jessica has managed to move me. Oh yeah...and almost nekkid Will is never a bad thing. I am IN LOVE with this entire piece. LOVE!!!

Courtney and Gev - Cha Cha (Pasha and Anya) - I want it a little dirtier from Gev. He seems like he is trying too hard for perfection, and in the process he is losing some of the rawness of the dance. And I could use a little more hip action from both of them. The footwork was really good on her part, really iffy on his part. Really not bad, but not as good as I was hoping for from them. And the choreography was great - nice work Pasha and Anya! Lots of fun overall.

Kherington and Twitch - Krump (Lil C) - Holy crap, Twitch is KILLING this. And Kherington is proving that she can hang with him. I'm seriously impressed with the pair of them after that. Granted, I love them anyway...but they made me enjoy Krump, which surprised me. The end lost some of the synchronicity and energy, but overall it was insane.

Katee and Joshua - Viennese Waltz (Jean-Marc Genereaux) - Katee looks absolutely stunning tonight. She is hitting all of her lines beautifully. Something doesn't feel quite right about Joshua's frame to me. His shoulders aren't in the right position or something. And his feet are not smooth at all, but really he is almost stomping them into the floor. He did well with it, but I don't feel like he did as well as Katee did. She was the star of this routine, where most weeks he has been the star.

Chelsie and Mark - Broadway (Tyce Diorio) - I usually can't look away from Mark, but in this number, I'm having a difficult time seeing anything but Chelsie. She fully embraced this part and is owning it. He did well when I did manage to pay attention to him, but she was fabulous. This was a really sexy, fun routine. The fall forward? Wow...impressive.

Comfort and Thayne - Contemporary (Mandy Moore) - So they got a routine in each of their styles this week. Really interesting lifts again, like in Mandy's last contemporary routine. I'm really falling hard for her contemporary choreography. She creates such interesting movements and finds unique ways to tell her stories. Thayne is gorgeous in this one, with the lines he's hitting. Comfort, while not as good as Thayne, did much better than I ever would have expected for her on a contemporary routine. Pretty harsh from Nigel though. I get that there wasn't enough of a connection, and that Comfort wasn't fully engaged in the routine, but to say he wished a different couple was dancing it...ouch. (But I have to say...after Mia's two routines last week, and Tyce and Mandy's routines tonight, I am giving in. I am now a fan of contemporary dance. Dammit.)

Jessica and Will - Quickstep (Tony and Melanie) - Jessica seems to be slipping and sliding a bit, instead of taking real steps. The twist felt really out of place in this number, but I guess Tony and Melanie were trying to make it more exciting to get people to vote. But honestly, to me, the most memorable part of the entire routine was Will crawling across the floor to her at the end. The dancing was a bit bouncy and not really smooth. Will is truly a gentleman with his response after Mia's comment. I like him a lot. I want to love him...but right now, I just really like him a lot. And as great as Jessica was earlier, she was right back where she's been the last several weeks for me on this one. I really think that if they are in the bottom three tomorrow, she is likely to leave, even over Comfort. Comfort is at least the only girl in her style in the competition, so she is a bit more unique. Jessica has all the skills, but none of the confidence. Granted, I'm sure that hearing the judges tell her these things over and over and over again isn't helping her confidence level any. But still.

Courtney and Gev - Jazz (Mandy Moore) - Mandy seems to have a thing for props this season. Let's see how this works. LOVE this choreography! And they are performing it sooooooooo well. Mandy did a great job of not only putting together a routine that really works with the music, but also using some of Gev's moves and making them work within the character of the dance. I have no idea if it was difficult choreography or not, but it was insanely well performed, and it was interesting, and I wanted more, more, more of it.

Kherington and Twitch - Smooth Tango (Jean-Marc Genereaux) - Mr. and Mrs. Smith, huh? This makes two dances tonight that have forced Kherington to take on a more intense persona, and yet again, I feel like she is doing a really good job with it. Twitch's carriage seems to be a bit off. The dance didn't feel like a proper tango to me, but I loved that there were characters to play and a story to tell. I don't think it was anywhere near as bad as the judges seem to feel it was. It likely isn't really as memorable as I would have liked, but it wasn't bad.

Katee and Joshua - Bollywood (Nakul Dev Mahajan) - This is really energetic and interesting. They both kept their energy up throughout, and stayed in character. I don't really know how to go about critiquing something like that, because it is something so very different from anything I've ever seen before. It's really cool to see something so completely different on this show, and to expose the American public to a completely different style of dance that most have likely never even heard of. Their symmetry of movement was right on point throughout, which seems to be really imperative in this style of dance.

So...top 3 of the night? Courtney and Gev, Chelsie and Mark, and Katee and Joshua.

That would leave as the bottom three: Comfort and Thayne, Jessica and Will, and Kherington and Twitch.

My guess as to who will leave? Thayne from the guys, and either Comfort or Jessica. I hope Jessica.

Castro Vlog's from San Jose

2008-07-08T18:48:00.000-05:00

SYTYCD - Top 12 - SPOILERS

2008-07-08T07:04:00.002-05:00

If you want to know what they are going to be dancing, check the link. If you don't want to know, please don't click on the link.

Thanks to TWoP, for finding information on IDF about what would be danced.

SYTYCD - Top 14 - Results

2008-07-04T09:03:00.003-05:00

The night started off with a fabulous Broadway group routine choreographed by Tyce Diorio to Money, Money. Pure awesomeness.

The Bottom 3 couples were Kourtni and Matt, Comfort and Thayne, and Courtney and Gev. I was a little bit surprised that Comfort and Thayne, and Courtney and Gev were both in the Bottom three, yet Will and Jessica were not. Oh well. Maybe I should vote.

Anyways, each of those six dancers performed a solo routine for the judges.

Kourtni:

Matt:

Courtney:

Gev:

Comfort:

Thayne:

Also, Robert Muraine (the amazing popper who made it to Vegas only to quit) was back! He performed yet another awesome solo for us...and there may be a dance-off between him and Phillip Chbeeb on the finale! Squeep!!!

After it was all said and done, Kourtni and Matt were both sent home.

SYTYCD - Top 14 - Video

2008-07-02T21:24:00.007-05:00

All videos here include both the prepackage clip and the judges comments.

Jessica and Will - Jive

Comfort and Thayne - Broadway

Kourtni and Matt - Hip Hop

Chelsie and Mark - Jazz

Kherington and Twitch - Paso Doble

Katee and Joshua - Contemporary

Courtney and Gev - Hip Hop

Jessica and Will - Lyrical Jazz

Comfort and Thayne - Smooth Waltz

Kourtni and Matt - Mambo

Chelsie and Mark - Foxtrot

Kherington and Twitch - Contemporary

Katee and Joshua - West Coast Swing

Courtney and Gev - Broadway

SYTYCD - Top 14 - Commentary

2008-07-02T19:00:00.006-05:00

So tonight, they are really switching things up on us. The Top 14, in the same pairs as last week other than our new couple, will be performing two routines each. TWO routines...already...wow. This is pretty early in the season for that, and I have no clue how they are going to fit 14 routines, plus pre-packages, and judges comments into 2 hours. More than likely, we will be seeing some very, very short routines. Joining Nigel and Mary on the judging panel are new-comers Tabitha and Napoleon.

Jessica and Will - Jive (Tony and Melanie) - Prepackage clips are going to be extremely short tonight, it seems. Something seems to be missing from this jive...like maybe energy? I'm not sure. They seem tired, and like they are just trying to get through it, so it isn't nearly as energetic or fun as it should be. Some of the tricks are nice, but overall, this jive didn't do much for me. And it will likely will be extremely forgettable by the end of 13 more performances.

Comfort and Thayne - Broadway (Andy Blankenbuehler) - Okay, I LOVE West Side Story. LOVE!!! And it is good to see some Broadway choreography on the show done by someone other than Tyce Diorio for once. Not that I don't love Tyce's choreography - I do - but change can be a good thing. I think that they nailed certain parts of this routine, and other parts fell a bit flat to me. I think that they had pretty decent chemistry between the two of them, which is a bit surprising to me. Overall though, they did a pretty good job, and I really enjoyed the choreography. Nigel was a bit tough on them though. Ouch.

Kourtni and Matt - Hip Hop (Cicily and Olisa) - Another one by the two of them, huh? Ugh. It makes me almost want a Dan Karaty routine, I dislike their choreography so much. Granted, I have to say that this one is far different from anything else I can think of seeing from them before. In a few places, you actually need to have a partner and it isn't just the two of them dancing the exact same thing standing next to each other. So...as far as the dancing is concerned...um...just NO. They weren't hitting very hard, they weren't in sync with each other in a lot of places, and honestly, the entire routine was insanely forgettable. And was it just me, or was it CRAZY short? I felt like it was over before it started. So...Nigel...can we please stop asking these two choreographers back??? Pretty please with a cherry on top?

Chelsie and Mark - Jazz (Mandy Moore) - Really fast, interesting routine here. The chemistry between these two is killer, as usual, and they danced really well. I loved the quirky lifts that they did, and they fully told the story that Mandy gave them to tell. Mary needs to get a new line this season. LOL. We know that you loved it, and you aren't putting a damper on anything. Great job, kiddos!

Kherington and Twitch - Paso Doble (Tony and Melanie) - Twitch's shoulders are up too high, or something. His posture isn't quite right. He looks insanely hot though (did y'all see those abs?!!?!?!?!). They played their parts well, though not quite as well as I would have wanted. I think they did a respectable job with this, though it wasn't the best paso doble I've ever seen. The lifts were unreal though!

Katee and Joshua - Contemporary (Mia Michaels) - I've been waiting to see Joshua do a Mia Michaels routine, with really high hopes. And he is absolutely not disappointing. The running lift thing where he was helping her to run - wow...great connection between the two of them, fabulous choreography. I really didn't want it to end. That was AMAZING. I loved all of the lifts, I loved the way they did the beginning perfectly in sync, it was just perfection. And as good as Joshua has been in all of these routines, Katee has been right there with him. It may surprise people more with him because he is the hip hop guy...but she is fantastic. She needs to get some props for all of that. Dammit Mia, you are starting to make me love contemporary dance.

Courtney and Gev - Hip Hop (Cicily and Olisa) - Ugh. Another routine from them. I guess one tonight wasn't enough. He's a bit too smooth for me in this routine, and she is a bit too bouncy for me. I would prefer if they met somewhere in the middle. Freaking BORING choreography. They did okay with it. I wanted more. It wasn't horrible, but it wasn't great.

Jessica and Will - Lyrical Jazz (Mandy Moore) - I actually really like how Mandy choreographed the use of this shirt as a prop and integrated it into the dance. I really needed more emotion from Jessica on this one though. She seemed to be just coasting through the routine, and not playing the part that Mandy gave her to play. Will is GORGEOUS! Wow. And the lines he hit were fabulous. I need to see him with a different partner. She had no emotion, no passion...I wasn't feeling it, and I don't think she was either.

Comfort and Thayne - Smooth Waltz (Edward Simon) - Who saw these lines coming from little miss Comfort? Wow. I'm impressed. She was gorgeous in those lifts. And I felt the connection between the two of them again. I think I was wrong about not liking this pairing. They are really, really good together! Was it the best waltz ever? No. But it was really pretty good. I really hope that if they are in the bottom three tomorrow night, that at least she sticks around.

Kourtni and Matt - Mambo (Alex Da Silva) - That spinning lift was insanely slow. It should have been flying, but it dragged ass all over the place. Matt's arms are funky again, and I'm sure Nigel will have something to say about that. I really wish they had better hip action going on, and their footwork feels labored. All in all, this just really didn't work on a lot of levels. Should have been all sorts of down and dirty and sexy, and there was just none of that going on. I have a feeling that they will definitely be in the bottom three again.

Chelsie and Mark - Foxtrot (Edward Simon) - Now this is nice and smooth! I don't know how Mark does it, but he really looks like an old school silver screen gentleman in this one! Can I just say that Bon Jovi should never have been performed like this though? Great chemistry between the two, great (and DIFFICULT) choreography, awesome hold and good footwork...really good! I enjoyed this a lot, aside from the music. Paul Anka doing It's My Life??? *shuddering*

Kherington and Twitch - Contemporary (Mia Michaels) - Again, I've been waiting to see Twitch work with Mia, and see what she pulls out of him. Interesting slanted bed on stage there. Hmmm...I actually really am loving this! They keep tossing themselves on and off of this bed, and the way she interpreted the lyrics of this song is intriguing, even if it is a bit literal. I would have liked to see a bit more use of the stage overall, but it is really cool to see a dance that pulled me in as well as this did, without using more than about a six foot piece of the stage. Very, very cool again, Mia. And can I just say that I love that we're getting to see so many of these guys without shirts on tonight?

Katee and Joshua - West Coast Swing (Benji Schwimmer) - I loved the WCS that Benji did last year for Pasha and Sara, so I'm really hoping to see something just as amazing tonight for Katee and Joshua! Cute dog! It's a lot slower than what I was expecting, but I can definitely see a touch of Benji in several of these moves. I think they did a really good job with it. Adorable ending. Hee! She really stood out and shined in this one, which I think is really good for her.

Courtney and Gev - Broadway (Andy Blankenbuehler) - Hmmm...I'm not so sure about this one. I wanted to really like this, but I felt like he really did a much better job than she did. She tried to do it, but her arms and hands were off, somehow. He really did a great job with playing a character for the show, and she fell pretty flat to me. Again, this choreography was very, very different from what we get from Tyce, but it is a really refreshing change.

My Top 3 Couples: Katee and Joshua, Kherington and Twitch, Chelsie and Mark (I know, I know...huge surprise, huh?)

My Bottom 3 Couples: Jessica and Will, Kourtni and Matt, Courtney and Gev (barely below Comfort and Thayne)

SYTYCD - Top 14 - SPOILERS

2008-07-01T09:35:00.002-05:00

Once again, I will just link to them for those who want to know, so that those who stumble upon them and don't want to know aren't spoiled.

TWoP Spoilers

Some of the things included in these spoilers are REALLY surprising to me. I am really curious to see how it all pans out tomorrow night.

SYTYCD - Season 2 and 3 Group Performances

2008-06-30T16:29:00.000-05:00

Over the last few years, some of the most interesting, creative choreography pieces have actually been the group numbers, not the competitive pieces. I thought I'd share them with y'all. Enjoy!

Season 2

Top 20 - choreographed by Brian Friedman to Technologic

Top 18 - choreographed by Dan Karaty to Get Up Offa That Thing

Top 16 - choreographed by Shane Sparks to Poison

Top 14 - choreographed by Mary Murphy to Footloose

Top 12 - choreographed by Doriana Sanchez to Born to be Alive

Top 10 - choreographed by Wade Robson to Ramalama

Top 8 - choreographed by Tyce Diorio to Cell Block Tango

Top 6 - choreographed by Mia Michaels to Hide and Seek

Season 3

Top 20 - choreographed by Wade Robson to Put Your Hands Where My Eyes Can See

Top 18 - choreographed by Shane Sparks to It Was All in Your Mind

Top 16 - choreographed by Tyce Diorio to Lioness Hunt

Top 14 - choreographed by Adam Shankman to You Can't Stop the Beat

Top 12 - choreographed by Jean-Marc Genereaux to Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy

Top 10 - choreographed by Mia Michaels to The Moment I Said It

Top 8 - choreographed by Shane Sparks to Get Up

Top 6 - choreographed by Wade Robson to 2:19

David Cook: Rare Solo Songs

2008-06-30T08:26:00.003-05:00

This is a fan tribute video, put together to a couple of David's rare solo recordings. The first song is typically called Optimistic to a Fault by fans (I don't think anyone is really aware of what David actually calls it), and the second song is Dear Heaven. Check them out!

SYTYCD - Favorite Performances from Season 3

2008-06-29T10:09:00.004-05:00

Continuing with the theme I started yesterday, now I'm going to post some of my favorite performances from the third season of So You Think You Can Dance. This is the season that I first started watching the show (I only caught Season 2 on a weekend long MTV marathon), so it holds a very special place in my heart. Enjoy!

Top 20 Week

Kameron and Lacey - Contemporary

Jesus and Sara - Pop-Jazz

Jimmy and Shauna - Broadway

Top 18 Week

Pasha and Jessi - Jazz

Dominic and Sabra - Contemporary

Kameron and Lacey - Broadway

Top 16 Week

Kameron and Lacey - Quickstep

Dominic and Sabra - Rumba

Hok and Jamie - Jazz

Top 14 Week

Danny and Anya - Contemporary

Pasha and Sara - West Coast Swing

Dominic and Sabra - Hip Hop

Neil and Lauren - Jazz

Top 12 Week

Pasha and Sara - Jazz

Neil and Lauren - Contemporary

Top 10 Week

Kameron and Sabra - Contemporary

Danny and Lacey - Samba

Pasha and Lauren - Hip Hop

Top 8 Week

Dominic and Lauren - Rumba

Neil and Lacey - Latin Jazz

Neil and Lacey - Contemporary

Pasha and Sabra - Broadway

Top 6 Week

Pasha and Lacey - Hip Hop

Neil and Sabra - Jazz

Neil and Sabra - Paso Doble

Top 4 Week

Danny and Neil - Contemporary

Neil and Lacey - Lindy Hop

Neil, Danny, Lacey, and Sabra - Broadway

SYTYCD - Favorite Performances from Season 2

2008-06-28T21:59:00.000-05:00

So I've been taking a trip down memory lane, looking back at some of my favorite, stand-out performances from So You Think You Can Dance from seasons past. I never saw the first season, and I did look up a few performances on Youtube from that season. I'm not sure if I'm just not finding the right ones, or if the first season just really doesn't hold up in comparison, but I wasn't too terribly impressed with what I found. Part of my problem may be that whoever the host was, she drove me nuts. Also, they used a lot of choreographers who aren't still involved with the show, and frankly I wasn't all that impressed with many of them. I think that they made a lot of tweaks with the format of the show between the first and second seasons, and it is working much better now. Anyways, I'm going to take this trip starting with Season 2. I hope you enjoy it as much as I do!

Top 20 Week

Benji and Donyelle - Hip Hop

Travis and Martha - Broadway

Top 18 Week

Musa and Natalie - Contemporary

Benji and Donyelle - Cha Cha

Top 16 Week

Ryan and Heidi - Cuban Rumba

Ivan and Allison - Argentine Tango

Top 14 Week

Benji and Donyelle - Viennese Waltz

Dmitry and Ashlee - Contemporary

Top 12 Week

Ivan and Allison - Contemporary

Benji and Donyelle - Broadway

Top 10 Week

Travis and Heidi - Paso Doble

Travis and Heidi - Contemporary

Benji and Natalie - Jazz

Dmitry and Donyelle - Samba

Top 8 Week

Ivan and Allison - Argentine Tango

Ivan and Allison - Hip Hop

Benji and Heidi - Broadway

Benji and Heidi - Mambo

Top 4 Week

Travis and Benji - Hip Hop

Donyelle and Heidi - Broadway

Benji and Heidi - Salsa

Final Four Group Dance - Wade Robson

David Cook: New Vlog

2008-06-27T17:20:00.000-05:00

Michael Johns at The Dan Band

2008-06-27T15:02:00.003-05:00

FYI - there is some adult language in this video! NSFW! (Not Safe For Work)

Jason Castro - More Video Updates

2008-06-27T14:57:00.002-05:00

Jason has been adding some video blogs to keep his fans updated with what he's up to. The tour is right around the corner, so I'm sure he's getting excited. Check these two latest updates from Jason out for more info.

SYTYCD - Top 16 - Results

2008-06-27T09:47:00.005-05:00

The show started out with a Mia Michaels group routine that seriously made me think it was a Wade Robson routine. Lots of fun. I love to go on trips into Mia's mind.

We then learned that the bottom 3 couples were Thayne and Chelsea, Chris and Comfort, and Kourtni and Matt. I was a bit surprised to see Kourtni and Matt in the Bottom 3 instead of Jessica and Will. Oh well. Each of those 6 dancers performed a solo.

Chelsea:

Thayne:

Comfort:

Chris:

Kourtni:

Matt:

We were also treated to a performance by the dance group Quest, with Dominic and Hok from last season (and some guy named Ryan, supposedly from Season 1 - the only season I haven't seen). They were tons of fun!

EDIT: Quest video replaced with better quality! Enjoy.

And while the judges were deliberating about who would leave the competition, American Idol's Jordin Sparks performed her new solo, One Step at a Time. She really needs a new stylist. Ugh.

At the end of all of that, Chelsea and Chris got the boot. Which means, for the first time in Season 4, we will get a new pairing for next week of Comfort and Thayne. Maybe Comfort can slap the shit out of Thayne and wipe the permagrin off of his face. I'm not holding my breath on that one though, or on the two of them managing to stay out of the B3 next week. We'll see.

SYTYCD - Top 16 - Video

2008-06-26T12:32:00.004-05:00

Kherington and Twitch - Hip Hop

Courtney and Gev - Rumba

Comfort and Chris - Jazz

Jessica and Will - Disco

Kourtni and Matt - Contemporary

Chelsea and Thayne - Quickstep

Chelsie and Mark - Hip Hop

Katee and Joshua - Samba

SYTYCD - Top 16 - Commentary

2008-06-25T19:01:00.008-05:00

Joining Nigel and Mary on the judging panel tonight is Adam Shankman. I really like him, and I think he usually gives constructive and enthusiastic criticism, so I'm glad to see him there tonight.

Kherington and Twitch - Hip Hop (Tabitha and Napoleon) - I have high hopes for Twitch in this one. They are apparently going on a prison break, according to the choreographers. This is a different type of routine from what we saw from Tabitha and Napoleon the first week...not as lyrical, but still, it tells a story. I would have liked to see them both give a little bit more with it, push a little bit harder. But honestly, I really thought they did a good job with it overall. They were well synchronized, and Kherington upped her game quite a bit I thought. They hit it! Should be, I hope, enough to get them through tomorrow night, even though they went first.

Courtney and Gev - Rumba (Tony and Melanie) - Gev cleans up good! LOL. She looks amazing too. Really great opening, and Courtney recovered really well from her shoe getting stuck on her dress. Nice hip action from them both throughout, and I think they managed to play the part nicely. They were definitely both in the character of the dance the entire time, and they had a great connection with each other. I think they handled the choreography that Tony and Melanie threw at them quite nicely. And Gev is so cute with his little crush on her. The comparison that Nigel made between Gev and Dominic from last season is right on the money. And Nigel needs to leave Adam alone! He gives great, constructive advice! Ugh.

Comfort and Chris - Jazz (Tyce Diorio) - Tyce designed an African jazz piece for them, so no jazz hands tonight. And they're dancing to Beautiful People by Marilyn Manson...definitely interesting. I really do love Tyce's choreography here, but I'm not so sure they did it like I would have wanted to see it. They just didn't give it as much as there should have been. Like Nigel said, with the drumbeats from the music, it should have been more - punchy, I guess. Their energy just wasn't quite right for this piece. They should have been larger than life in this one, and they were completely average.

Jessica and Will - Disco (Doriana Sanchez) - Ugh. Do we really need another disco routine on this show? I am so over disco, and I am so over Doriana's choreography that is only about tricks and lifts. Disco was over in 1980...28 years ago. They did fine. Will's a star. Jessica is okay. Great lifts. Great tricks. No real dance in between the lifts and tricks, as expected with the choreography that Doriana always gives. Nothing spectacular. Moving on.

Kourtni and Matt - Contemporary (Sonya Tayeh) - I've never seen anything choreographed by Sonya, but I've heard she's really interesting. It's about comic book characters, so I'm already drawn in. It could be really playful and fun. I really like that at some points in this routine, we really get a feel for just how tall and long Matt is. He's got great extension. And I really think I kinda like Sonya's choreography! Very interesting, very different, and very quirky. Lots of fun. And I really enjoyed it. Oh yeah, and they danced it fabulously.

Chelsea and Thayne - Quickstep (Heather Smith) - Thayne's personality is really starting to grate on my last nerve. He just needs to tone it down some. He's trying too freaking hard. Is Chelsea trying to lead him? Sometimes it looks like she's trying to take over a bit. And she still looks incredibly uncomfortable in heels. Thayne needs to lose permagrin, and focus more on getting all of his steps right. This could have been a fabulous quickstep, but it is really falling flat for me. The energy just felt awkward for it. They are in trouble again this week, I'm fairly positive.

Chelsie and Mark - Hip Hop (Tabitha and Napoleon) - Okay, I've got to say...I'm dying to see Mark do hip hop. Why? Because he will probably bring his quirky energy to this in a way that we have never seen in hip hop. I have very high expectations for this routine. I hope they don't disappoint me. I really love that Tabitha and Napoleon give the dancers characters to play, and that they try to really put the emotion of the music and lyrics into the choreography. Hip hop danced in a suit seems odd...but they are doing a fabulous job with it. Not only are they really getting the moves down, but they are seriously delivering on the emotion of the piece. Fantastic. And Chelsie? Who saw this coming from her? Not me. I had huge expectations for him, and I expected her to do well...but she did really amazingly well. Oh yeah...and I LOVE Adam Shankman.

Katee and Joshua - Samba (Tony and Melanie) - Joshua looked scared when they got the samba. He was still scared when he got to rehearsal. LOL. Wow. Joshua!!! Who saw this coming from him???? (Did you all SEE his ass and thighs??? Holy shit, that's hot.) He is such a good dancer. And Katee is seriously playing the sexy seductress part so well that she ws worried about. Crazy routine, and performed crazy well. I am in love with them. I could watch them dance all day.

So...my top 3? Katee and Joshua, Mark and Chelsie, and a tie between Kherington and Twitch and Courtney and Gev.

My bottom 3? Chelsea and Thayne, Comfort and Chris...and ??? I guess Jessica and Will, but really only because I'm not a fan of disco. Their performance isn't one that stood out to me as either really good, or as really bad.

I'll post video as soon as I find it.

The Davids on The View

2008-06-24T19:50:00.000-05:00

Part 1

Part 2

SYTYCD - Top 16 - Spoilers

2008-06-24T08:17:00.002-05:00

If you don't want to look, that's fine...but if you do, you can go over to Idol Forums and take a peek to see what to expect on tomorrow night's show.

I know I'm ready to see it!

Michael Johns: Even More Radio Interviews

2008-06-22T09:39:00.004-05:00

Another radio interview with Michael...this one's a good one! He talked with Dino and Shawn on Sunny 95. Check it out here.

If you want to download that one, click here.

And here's another one, on Smiley in the Morning, for you to download.

Enjoy!

Michael Johns on the Radio

2008-06-21T10:32:00.004-05:00

Michael has done several radio interviews recently, and I'm finding some of them to share with you. I hope you enjoy!

Newsradio 740 KTRH

104.7 KISS Phoenix

I'll post more as I find them.

AI7 Tour - Media Day

2008-06-20T19:31:00.002-05:00

The Davids on Entertainment Tonight:

And the Top 10 are interviewed on Good Day LA.

Michael Johns on Mix 107.7

2008-06-20T11:33:00.003-05:00

Michael did a radio interview on Dayton's Mix 107.7, where he revealed he will be performing a Queen song on tour. No word yet as to whether that means he will be doing Bohemian Rhapsody or We Will Rock You/We Are the Champions. I, for one, would be happy with either. Granted, I would be even happier with both.

P.S. I know that he filled in for David Cook one day on a radio interview...and I'm looking for it. I still haven't found it, but when I do, I'll post it.

SYTYCD Top 18 - Results

2008-06-20T08:40:00.004-05:00

The night started off with a group number choreographed by Shane Sparks. AWESOMENESS. Shane, if you see this, please come back and choreograph some routines for the kids again. You are a force in this world, and a huge loss to the show.

The Bottom 3 couples were Chelsea and Thayne, Susie and Marquis, and Comfort and Chris. No big surprises there based on the performances. Each of those six danced a solo.

Chelsea:

Thayne:

Susie:

Marquis:

Comfort:

Chris:

Susie and Marquis were eliminated. I really was not surprised at all about Susie's elimination, but I actually really disagree with the judges on Marquis's being cut. I thought his solo was actually the strongest out of the three, but they thought that it was too many tricks, too little dance. Even on rewatching it, yes, he had a lot of tricks in there...GREAT tricks...but there was also a lot of dancing that connected the tricks together. I think they got this one wrong.

SYTYCD Top 18 - Video

2008-06-19T18:07:00.003-05:00

EDIT: All videos updated now.

Chelsea and Thayne - Jazz choreographed by Mandy Moore

Chelsie and Mark - Argentine Tango choreographed by Alex de Silva

Jessica and Will - Hip Hop choreographed by Cicily and Olisa

Kourtni and Matt - Foxtrot choreographed by Jean-Marc Genereaux

Courtney and Gev - Contemporary choreographed by Mandy Moore

Katee and Joshua - Broadway choreographed by Tyce Diorio

Susie and Marquis - Salsa choreographed by Alex de Silva

Kherington and Twitch - Viennese Waltz choreographed by Jean-Marc Genereaux

Comfort and Chris - Krump choreographed by Lil C

SYTYCD Top 18 - Commentary

2008-06-18T19:02:00.015-05:00

Chelsea and Thayne - Jazz (Mandy Moore) - Um...interesting costumes. I really like the choreography that Mandy gave them, and I feel like the characters gave them a great excuse to really throw themselves into the performance and lose their inhibitions, but I don't think they accomplished that at all. It was okay, but they didn't give it everything they had, and it made the entire routine very lackluster. They felt...disconnected...not only from the performance, but from each other.

Chelsie and Mark - Argentine Tango (Alex de Silva) - Mark likes "meaty" dancing. LOL. Great choreography, amazing chemistry between the two, their intensity (especially Mark's) is off the charts. And who woulda thunk that a guy like him who is so out in left field as far as his own personal dance style could dance such a difficult and intricate tango as this, and pull it off like he does this every day? Wow. He seriously impressed me with that. I like them more and more, the more I see of them. They are one of my favorite couples, easily. And Nigel, I'm sorry, but I don't think Chelsie is capable of "sleazy"...she is adorable, but it's just not gonna happen.

Jessica and Will - Hip Hop (Cicily and Olisa) - Did we really need to bring this choreography team back? Sorry...not much of a fan of their work. Will is hitting it really hard, but I can't tell that Jessica is hitting anything. She is holding on to her lyrical personal dance style way too much, and is just not believable doing hip hop. Will looks like a natural at this style though. I think he may have taken classes with Debbie Allen in a lot of styles, so there is likely a whole lot that we still have to see from him. Nigel seems desperate to keep this pair out of the bottom three a second week in a row, because I would imagine he doesn't want to see Will there again...but frankly, he is so far better than Jessica, that she needs to go home. She is holding him back. Sorry if you are a fan of hers, but it's the truth. So I feel like Nigel went a bit light on her in hopes to save them from B3 hell.

Kourtni and Matt - Foxtrot (Jean-Marc Genereaux) - I actually think this is a great choice of dance style for Matt, to be able to show some personality. Jean-Marc did a wonderful job with the choreography. They are doing so much better than last week, its a bit unreal. I think being in the B3 last week really lit a fire under them both, and they are engaging with the dance, and with each other. Nice lifts, great energy, decent footwork...overall, a really nice job. Again, I've got to disagree with Nigel a bit, as far as not finding them believable in their performance. Last week, I didn't buy either of them. This week, I believed the whole thing.

Courtney and Gev - Contemporary (Mandy Moore) - I don't know that I've ever seen a Mandy Moore contemporary routine (at least not one that I remember), so this will be interesting for me. I think Gev has a little bit of a crush. LOL. I really love the opening to the piece, with them just laying down/sitting on the floor of the stage. Mandy choreographed some gorgeous lifts for them, that really fit well with the piece as a whole. I actually really am loving this. Gev is surprisingly really great at the contemporary styling of the piece. He is more than holding his own with her, and he definitely redeemed himself from the "Disco Duck" comment from Nigel last week. I don't see the jazz styling that Mia sees from Courtney. Not sure where that is coming from.

Katee and Joshua - Broadway (Tyce Diorio) - GREAT choreography from Tyce. I am in love with this, and even more because they are performing the heck out of it. That backflip from Joshua was seriously amazing. Tyce really put stuff in here that I'm not sure any of the guys this season but Joshua could pull off. And their personalities? Wow. Beautiful dancing tonight, again. These two are also officially amongst my favorite couples. That was so much fun. Not only was it fun, but it was really danced very well. I still am surprised at how much I'm liking Katee, too, because I really did not like her that much in her audition, and I was seriously turned off by her when they were selecting the Top 20. I love them both. And their partnership is on fire.

Susie and Marquis - Salsa (Alex de Silva) - This should be right up Susie's alley, since she is supposedly a salsa dancer. Ouch. Alex called her a "street dancer," not a salsa dancer. Sadly, I think he is right. Marquis is outdancing her in her own style, and frankly he isn't doing that well. She is doing the moves, but there is nothing behind them. I am very underwhelmed by her. Alex put some really interesting lifts and tricks in this one, and she totally should have shined in it. I'm not really impressed though. There is no connection to each other, little connection to the dance...it's just not right.

Kherington and Twitch - Viennese Waltz (Jean-Marc Genereaux) - Jean-Marc choreographed this piece for not only Twitchington, but really for his daughter. He nearly had me crying before they started dancing. Wow. I've got chills watching them...Twitch is so smooth and elegant out there, and Kherington's lines are beyond gorgeous. And yes, if you were wondering, they are also amongst my favorite couples at this point. I love that Twitch is really able to dance in these styles that are so completely different from hip hop and popping, and make them look RIGHT. That was beautiful. I really don't know what Mia is talking about with the smiling being too glossy for the piece. Nigel has it right. The piece was about uplifting Jean-Marc's daughter, not about depicting the struggles she is living with...her smile is perfect for that. Kherington's smile felt very real and full of life and love.

Comfort and Chris - Krump (Lil C) - Should be interesting for Chris. And he actually seems to be somewhat hanging with Comfort on this one. But you know, I honestly want more from her. I want her to blow me away with this, and she isn't. It's not quite as disappointing to me as Susie doing salsa, but she just isn't exciting me on this routine. It's not horrible...but they weren't great either. They were just okay. But still, Chris was much better at krumping than I think anyone ever expected him to be.

My top 3: Kherington and Twitch, Katee and Joshua, and Chelsie and Mark.

Honorable Mention goes to Courtney and Gev.

My bottom 3: Susie and Marquis, Chelsea and Thayne, and Comfort and Chris.

Video soon...waiting on someone to upload to youtube.

David Cook: People Interview

2008-06-18T18:55:00.001-05:00

David did an interview with the people from People. (Hee...) Check it out here.

Michael Johns: Berry Gordy Motown Event

2008-06-18T18:41:00.000-05:00

David Cook: New Video Blog

2008-06-17T20:51:00.001-05:00

Want SYTYCD Spoilers?

2008-06-17T17:47:00.004-05:00

You can find them here, and another poster's thoughts here. Thanks to TWoP!

I am just going to link to them, so that people who don't want to see them don't accidentally stumble onto them.

Sounds like tomorrow night should shape up to be a very, very interesting show though! I'll blog my thoughts on the night as soon as possible, and video will likely follow sometime on Thursday.

David Cook on 105.1 The Buzz

2008-06-17T07:45:00.001-05:00

Here's another radio interview, this one talking about his playlist. Enjoy!

David Cook on Jimmy Kimmel Live

2008-06-15T22:21:00.000-05:00

David Cook: More Radio Interviews

2008-06-13T21:20:00.002-05:00

David made the rounds today on radio. Check the interviews out below.

Cincinnati's Q102 WKRQ FM

Boston 104.5 XLO

WTMX Chicago

Providence

SYTYCD Top 20 Results Show - Video

2008-06-13T14:09:00.004-05:00

They started the night off with a Group Dance number choreographed by Wade Robson. I love this!!! They should have thought of tying the judges up a long time ago.

The bottom three couples were Kourtni and Matt, Rayven and Jamie, and Jessica and Will, who then each performed a solo before the judges determined who would be leaving the competition.

Kourtni:

Matt:

Rayven:

Jamie:

Jessica:

Will:

After all of these performances, the judges decided that it was time to say goodbye to Rayven and Jamie. Too bad for them.

David Cook on the Tonight Show

2008-06-13T14:00:00.002-05:00

Time of My Life

My Hero

Taking a Look Back: AI7

2008-06-12T21:31:00.016-05:00

Season 7 of American Idol gave us some truly memorable performances...performances that really touched us, or made us take a second look. Sometimes performances that simply made us say "Wow."

I'm going to try to take a look back at the performances from this season that I found to be memorable, for various reasons. I hope you enjoy the trip down memory lane.

One of the first performances that made me take a second look was by Alexandréa Lushington, with Spinning Wheel. She didn't make the Top 12 and the big stage, but she really wowed me with this one.

My favorite performance from David Hernandez was in the Top 20, when he did Papa Was a Rolling Stone. He showed a lot of personality and really let his vocals shine.

Brooke White turned Love is a Battlefield on its head in a way I never would have expected, but I loved it.

David Cook took me by surprise with Hello. It shouldn't have worked. But it really, really worked.

Brooke White came out in the first week of the Top 12 and took my breath away with an emotional performance of Let it Be.

Also in the first Beatles week, Chikezie did a version of She's a Woman that was surprising, refreshing, and unique. I'd love to hear more from him along this line.

Michael Johns showed off his amazing rock abilities with Queen's We Will Rock You and We Are the Champions. I loved him already at that point, but I seriously thought he could have a chance to win with this one.

Taking a Dolly Parton song and turning it into a soul song doesn't sound like it would work, but Michael Johns proved that it could with It's All Wrong But It's All Right.

Another singer who turned a Dolly Parton classic on its head was Carly Smithson with Here You Come Again. She made the music and vocal suit the lyric in a gorgeous and breathtaking performance.

And yet again, on Dolly Parton week, David Cook did his own arrangement of Little Sparrow that should never have worked, but which quickly convinced me that he not only could, but should, win.

Jason Castro gave me one of the biggest and most pleasant surprises of the season, with Somewhere Over the Rainbow. I still get chills when I hear it.

The next week, David Cook once again surprised us all with his own arrangement of Mariah Carey's Always Be My Baby. Wow. Just wow.

And how do you follow a performance like that? Well, Jason Castro got to find out, by doing his own version of I Don't Wanna Cry.

Syesha Mercado really turned on the heat during Andrew Lloyd Webber week, with One Rock and Roll Too Many.

Brooke White really touched me again during Neil Diamond week, with her performance of I Am, I Said. I really love her the most when she is sitting in front of the piano and doing her thing.

I was scared...seriously scared...when I found out that David Cook would be performing The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face. I shouldn't have been. He did an amazing job with it, and it is actually one of my favorite performances of all time from American Idol now.

David Archuleta was simply amazing throughout the competition, but the one performance of his that really stood out to me as his best, was one of his last. When he did Don't Let the Sun Go Down on Me during the finale, he gave me goosebumps and made me nervous that he might win.

But I needn't have worried...because David Cook followed with The World I Know, and gave what could be his quintessential performance on the show. I seriously cried when he performed this that night. He did an amazing job with it.

So...there you have my *quickly counting* 18 favorite and most memorable performances from Season 7 of American Idol. Yeah, I realize that I completely left out Ramiele Mulabay and Kristy Lee Cook. Frankly, they didn't have any performances that struck a chord with me. I could have gone on to do a number of others...because I am leaving out some that I truly love like Archie's Imagine, Castro's Hallelujah, Carly's Superstar, Michael Johns's Dream On. Hell, I am even leaving out David Cook's Billie Jean and I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For. I could go on and an. But I think 18 is enough for now.

SYTYCD - Top 20 - Video

2008-06-12T08:07:00.005-05:00

Rayven and Jamie - Hip Hop

Susie and Marquis - Smooth Waltz

Kourtni and Matt - Jazz

Chelsea and Thayne - ChaCha

Chelsie and Mark - Contemporary

Kherington and Twitch (Twitchington) - Broadway

Katee and Joshua - Hip Hop

Comfort and Chris - Jive

Jessica and Will - Tango

Courtney and Gev - Disco

SYTYCD - Top 20 - Commentary

2008-06-11T21:12:00.005-05:00

Rayven and Jamie – Hip Hop – really cute. Not the hardest hitting hip hop routine, but I really kind of liked the vibe of it. It really wasn’t something that blew me away at all though. Hmmmm…Will I remember this one after seeing nine other routines? Probably not so much.

Susie and Marquis – Smooth Waltz – He hits some beautiful lines, but his posture seems off in hold. Those lifts seemed off too. I’m just not sure about her still. Kind of a boring dance for the first night. I don’t think I’ll remember them by the end of the two hours.

Kourtni and Matt – Jazz – I really like her, and I really wanted to like this routine, but I’m not sure about it. It felt really uptight, and jazz dancing should be a bit more loose and free flowing. I just wanted more from them. Seems to be a running theme so far for the night. (And who woulda thunk I would be agreeing with Dan Karaty so much tonight??? I’m baffled…)

Chelsea and Thayne – ChaCha – Technically very good…but I kept wishing that Thayne would get down and dirty a little more. She seemed to really get the vibe of the dance, and he seemed to have the technique down but not the vibe. Overall though, I think that they are the best so far tonight.

Chelsie and Mark – Contemporary – really interesting choreography by Mia, again. I really think they did well with it, but it was sometimes difficult to tell because of the way her dress moved around, but I actually really loved what we could tell there. The concept of the dance was fabulous. I’m in love with so many of Mark’s quirks…they may not be technically great, but they are interesting and unique. This was the first truly memorable performance of the night.

Kherington and Twitch – Broadway – Twitchington…LMAO. I think this was a great number for the two of them to start out with, and I think they did a fabulous job with it. It really was a perfect fit for their personalities. I think they will easily be one of my favorite couples this season…they are both so engaging and energetic. I really, really liked this. Another memorable performance. Looks like they’re finally turning it on. I hope that the rest of the night is following the lines of these last couple of performances.

Comfort and Chris – Jive – They seemed to be on at different times…sometimes she really shone, and at other times he did, but never at the same time, to me. I thought he was the better of the pair though, at really getting the feel of the jive. Pretty decent, but not great. She is adorable though. I really like her. Oh yeah, and Nigel doing her accent? HEE!!! And yet again…(I am so at a loss about this happening)…Dan was right on the money. Oy, what is this world coming to?

Katee and Joshua – Hip Hop – Definitely the better hip hop routine of the night. Much more hard hitting, but still with a romantic twist, and a bit of a soft side. I really, really liked that. Awesome choreography, great story line, and it was really memorable. They did really, really good. They were perfectly in sync when they should be, and their solo stuff was all really intriguing too. I was really impressed by them both, and that surprises me about Katee, because I never liked anything that I saw of her before tonight.

Jessica and Will – Tango – Their chemistry is really, really great. Will’s feet seemed a bit off to me though? Not sure. I loved his carriage and posture, but I thought she didn’t really pull it all off. I’m not thrilled with her lines. He definitely stole the show on this tango. I’m not so sure that they are the “couple to beat” like Mary thinks. He might be…not sure about her.

Courtney and Gev – Disco – Good, fun, playful…nice lifts. Disco is not my thing, especially the way Doriana choreographs it. I thought Nigel was a bit harsh on them, actually. It’s not one that is going to stand out to me as one of the best of the night, but it wasn’t the worst either. Evs.

So…best of the night for me? Twitchington, Katee and Joshua, Chelsea and Mark.

Jason Castro: Message to the Fans

2008-06-07T18:58:00.000-05:00

Rolling Stone Ask a Rock Star: David Cook

2008-06-07T18:45:00.003-05:00

Rolling Stone did an interview with David Cook, only instead of having a reporter interview him, they dished out fan questions. Check it out here.

David Cook: WalMart Concert

2008-06-06T16:16:00.001-05:00

SYTYCD in MKE

2008-06-05T15:30:00.006-05:00

Last night was the final night of auditions for So You Think You Can Dance, taking us to the snow of Milwaukee. Before they got to the MKE auditions, they showed us a few standouts from the previous cities that didn't make it to air in the earlier auditions.

Michael Kim, a popper who auditioned in DC, is pretty decent.

Friends Katee Shean and Natalie Reed both made it straight through to the Vegas round.

And Latin dancer Janette Ranrara stood out, even though her partner did not.

Moving on to the MKE auditions, two tap dancers made it through!

Bianca Revels was first.

And she was followed later on by Lizz Plott, who I think is superior.

One of my favorites of the night, by far, was Evan Kasprazak.

Kourtni Lind managed to make herself stand out, and I am really excited to see what she might be capable of, if a choreographer like Mia Michaels gets her hands on her.

Cooper Zamorano seriously reminds me of Travis from Season 2. And it seems I'm not the only one, since that was Nigel's comment to him. I swear, in making my notes, I wrote that down before Nigel said anything though!

However, my favorite audition of the night belonged to Danielle Chorizo, AKA Travis Wall.

2008 Stanley Cup Champions

2008-06-04T21:42:00.000-05:00

'Nuff said...

David Cook on Fox News Radio

2008-06-04T17:55:00.001-05:00

Listen in to the podcast here.

Ed Roland Discusses David Cook

2008-06-03T18:16:00.003-05:00

Here's a really cool interview with Ed Roland, the lead singer of Collective Soul, on the Zakk Tyler Show. Ed discusses David's choice to perform The World I Know on the final night of competition on American Idol, and his thoughts on how it went. Listen in.

Preorder David Cook's New Album

2008-06-02T21:46:00.001-05:00

No word still on the possibility of a reissue of Analog Heart. If I hear anything, I will let you know. There is a possibility that some of the songs from Analog Heart will make it onto the new album though. We'll just have to wait and see.

Carly Smithson's Official MySpace Page

2008-06-02T21:45:00.000-05:00

....

David Cook on 103.7 Lite FM

2008-06-01T12:58:00.002-05:00

David did a radio interview with Gene and Julie. You can listen to it here.

Apparently he played his last show before AI at the R Bar in Denton. *sniff* I wasn't there. Dammit.

David Cook on the Billy Bush Show and Adam Corolla Show

2008-06-01T09:45:00.003-05:00

Listen in to the podcast of the Billy Bush interview here.

And for the Adam Corolla interview, check it out here.

David Cook on Nightline

2008-05-31T09:27:00.000-05:00

David Cook on Best Week Ever

2008-05-31T09:26:00.001-05:00

Some funny stuff here...

SYTYCD Charleston and DC Auditions

2008-05-30T09:39:00.007-05:00

So once again, we had some fabulous auditions. I think I may have spoken too early yesterday when I said I was already picking a favorite. LOL. Because Brandon Bryant...wow...just wow. He's amazing.

A pair of twin brothers actually really impressed me last night too. Anthony and Antwain Hart have a little something special. I'm not sure if I'll like Anthony on his own...but Antwain has a really unique quality to his dancing that is intriguing.

Sheila Kaiser was impressive.

There is just a little something about Jeremiah Hughes that really draws me in when he dances. I can't quite put my finger on it yet. But I want to see more.

Courtney Galiano is too freaking cute for words. Oh yeah, and she can dance too.

Markus Shields...he seems so serious. But I really, really like what I see. I want him to believe in himself, not rely on his mother (who is deceased) to believe in him. He's got the goods. He needs to really let himself enjoy dancing.

And a few of the auditions really touched me, even though they didn't get through to Vegas...including BJ Harris

More next week!

Jason Castro Day in Rockwall

2008-05-30T09:18:00.003-05:00

The city of Rockwall, Texas was all abuzz with Jason Castro yesterday! As part of a welcome home visit, they gave him a parade, and he performed a brief concert at the Amphitheater. Check the festivities out here.

As I find more, I'll bring it here.

EDIT: I found more!

Somewhere Over the Rainbow

A Jason Castro Original Song - Tonight

Deep In the Heart of Texas (awwwwww, I lurve him...he's playing it on the ukelele)

Getting the key to the city

Daydream

Jason Castro on 103.7 Lite FM

2008-05-29T12:13:00.003-05:00

As part of his Homecoming festivities, Jason was interviewed this morning on 103.7. The interview is in 3 parts!

Check it out here.

Also, his parade and mini-concert are scheduled for later on this afternoon. I'll post what I can find when I find it!

David Cook on Hot 99.5

2008-05-29T10:26:00.001-05:00

David Cook did a phone interview on the radio station Hot 99.5. Check it out here.

SYTYCD Salt Lake City and Dallas Auditions

2008-05-29T10:00:00.009-05:00

So, last night took us to both Salt Lake City, Utah and Dallas, Texas for auditions for this season's So You Think You Can Dance. Here are some of my favorite auditions from the night.

First off, he may not have been the best dancer, and he didn't make it out to the Vegas round, but he made me cry. I am so proud of him! He is doing a great job showing the world that having Down's Syndrome doesn't mean you can't do anything that you set out to do. I have a very special place in my heart for people with Down's Syndrome, and Brett Banford is AWESOME!

Okay, moving on to the dancers who actually had or have a shot at getting on the show. Gev Manoukian did a great job of showing that if you actually listen to the judges and go and get more training...you actually have a shot at getting through! I really like him. I hope he does well in Vegas. He's a breaker, but he is showing here that he's got some training in contemporary and other styles...and it is a really nice combination.

My early favorite at this point? Yeah, I know...it's really early. But this girl is amazing. Kelli Baker is one of the best dancers that they've shown so far. She seriously gave me chills...and I don't often get into contemporary dancing like this. I can appreciate it...and with great choreography I can sometimes really love it, but usually I could take it or leave it. With her...I want to take it. She is that good.

Did you know there were strip clubs in Salt Lake City? I didn't. LOL. But apparently there are, because Ryan Race is a DJ at one during the day. This guy is not too bad. We'll see how he does in Vegas. Check out Ryann Race.

Thayne Jasperson didn't get as much air time as some of the others, but what we saw was gorgeous.

The biggest standout for me from the Dallas auditions? Joshua Allen, by a mile. Wow. This kid could be GREAT. I can't wait to see how he does in Vegas and hopefully beyond. He's got some serious ability.

Areille Coker has quite a bit of potential. It was really cool to see them getting out there and doing challenging and interesting lifts at this point of the auditions. I like that. And I like her. She is really, really good.

Two others that I want to keep an eye on? Kortney Pearson and Michelle Stringham. They both have been away from dance for about 5 years, but you can definitely see their passion and the desire that they have for it. If they can get back into it in the few months between when they auditioned and when Vegas rolls around, I think they've both got some potential.

The Davids on The Today Show

2008-05-29T09:50:00.005-05:00

Interview:

Archie's Performance - Think of Me:

Cook's Performance - Time of My Life:

David Cook Signs with 19/RCA

2008-05-28T16:09:00.003-05:00

From his official MySpace page:

DAVID COOK SIGNS TO 19 RECORDINGS / RCA RECORDS

COOK'S DEBUT ALBUM IS DUE FOR RELEASE IN FALL OF 2008

COOK’S FIRST SINGLE “THE TIME OF MY LIFE” WAS THE BEST SINGLE DEBUT OF AN AMERICAN IDOL SINCE SEASON 2

1 MOST ADDED AT HOT AC AND AC RADIO RIGHT OUT OF THE BOX AND 2 MOST ADDED AT TOP 40 RADIO WITH OVER 1 MILLION STREAMS IN 24 HOURS ON AOL’S POPEATER SITE IT WAS THEIR BIGGEST SINGLE PREMIERE OF 2008

American Idol winner David Cook has been signed to 19 Recordings / RCA Records and is preparing to start recording his debut album which is due for release in fall 2008.

"David Cook is an extraordinarily versatile and talented artist with an impressive sense of musicality," says Tom Corson, Executive Vice President and General Manager, RCA Music Group. "He is a natural performer and a true star. We are thrilled to welcome him into our family."

Cook, who's first single, "The Time Of My Life" skyrocketed to 1 on iTunes within 7 hours of being available, will be recording his album over the summer while on the road with the American Idol tour. The tour kicks off on July 1st in Glendale, AZ and wraps on September 13th in Tulsa, OK.

“The Time Of My Life” has sold 236,024 digital tracks in 4 days, making it the best single debut of an American Idol since season two. Additionally, Cook currently has 17 tracks on the Top 100 Digital Songs Chart, the most ever by any artist.

“The Time Of My Life” is blowing up at radio, coming in as the 1 most added at Hot AC and AC radio right out of the box and 2 most added at Top 40 radio, pulling in over 6 million listeners in less than a week without an official launch. Additionally, it was the biggest single premiere on AOL’s PopEater site, garnering over 1 million streams in 24 hours.

“I am extremely happy to be signed by 19 Recordings / RCA Records. Signing this deal is truly a dream come true. I am looking forward to the recording process and creating a record. The support I have received from America has been overwhelming and I can't wait to hopefully do right by them,” says David Cook.

25 year old David Cook hails from Blue Springs, Missouri where he discovered his singing skills while in the 2nd grade. Before his American Idol victory Cook independently released an album "Analog Heart" which earned him an URBY nomination for "Indie Album of the Year." Cook also belonged to two bands, Midwest Kings and Axium.

"David Cook is a remarkable talent and is a worthy winner of American Idol," says Simon Fuller, creator of the popular TV series and chief executive and founder of 19 Entertainment Label Group "he has an astonishing voice, and is capable of truly memorable performances as he showed throughout the season. He's mature, well grounded and knows what he wants. It's this quiet determination that sets him apart from other singers; I honestly believe that David has the potential to go on to become one of the most successful Idols of all time".

Jason Castro Back in Dallas

2008-05-28T15:21:00.003-05:00

Jason has made it back to Dallas for a brief visit before rehearsals get under way for the American Idols Live tour. As part of his visit, the city of Rockwall will be giving him a parade, and there will be a mini-concert following the parade. All of this will take place tomorrow, but this morning, he visited Fox 4 DFW. You can check out the interview and performance he gave there right here!

Also, be sure to come back tomorrow for more from his visit at home.

David Cook on The Morning Show with Mike and Juliet

2008-05-28T13:40:00.001-05:00

Interview:

Time of My Life:

Top 10 Minus the Davids on Access Hollywood

2008-05-28T10:04:00.002-05:00

The Top 10 from season 7 of American Idol (minus the two Davids) paid a visit to the set of Access Hollywood. They dish on Simon's harshest criticisms, who is the messiest, the best dancer, and who spends the most time in hair in makeup. Check it out here.

David Cook on ABC News Radio

2008-05-28T08:36:00.003-05:00

You can listen to it here. He talks about Archie, the upcoming tour, and how he actually really likes his first single Time of My Life.

David Cook on Ellen

2008-05-27T16:26:00.001-05:00

Interview, and performing The World I Know

David Cook on Regis and Kelly

2008-05-27T16:24:00.001-05:00

Part 1

Part 2

Part 3 - Time of My Life