SYTYCD Season 11 Top 4 Analysis

Hello, I'm back - kind of!

After a month or so of no internet connection and being away from home, updating this ish was unfortunately not to be. Last recap was the Top 18 performance - yikes.

Anyhow, we've come a very long ways in the competition since then, with some fabulous routines churned out along the way. Instead of recapping every single performance last night (grand total of 15, I believe), I'll just thoroughly analyze and review each competitor's performance individually.

VALERIE

Background

Oh, Miss Val. Of the four, the one who feels most like your friend. She's managed to connect with audiences brilliantly through little clips of her life at home and her previous training. Valerie seems like the spunky girl you met at your dance studio. Her story of simply moving to California when she decided dental hygiene was not to be felt refreshingly normal. 

There's been lots of criticism that Valerie's spot in the Top 4 should have gone to Tanisha, a more polished performer and technician. However, Tanisha lacked one big piece that Valerie has in droves - personality that shines through the screen. 

Best Performances

Again, there's lots of criticism that Valerie only got this far because she was partnered with Ricky. There's definitely some truth to that, but who WOULDN'T have gotten far if someone else was partnered with Season 11's favourite? These are my favourite performance of hers throughout the season;

SING with Zack Everhart, Choreographed by Anthony Morigerato

TURN DOWN FOR WHAT with Ricky Ubeda, Choreographed by Pharside and Phoenix

PEARL with Zack Everhart, Choreographed by Tyce Diorio

Chances to Win

Frankly, I think Valerie's chances are pretty slim to win the competition (I'd peg her coming in at either 3rd or 4th). However, the exposure she got from this thing is unbelievable, and she will absolutely have a career in the biz. 

JESSICA

Background

To me, Jessica seems like the dancer who hasn't really found her niche in dance, either on the show or in her own personal style. Technically brilliant, this may be an asset companies and choreographers in her later career may covet, because she's kind of a blank canvas you can throw anything at. However, in a competition like this, you NEED to find your niche. Her solos, are, frankly, very uninspiring, bland, and often uncomfortably sensual. However, she has whipped out very solid routines and is 50% of Season 11's signature routine (her and Ricky's contemporary by Sonya Tayeh).

Best Performances

VOW with Ricky Ubeda, Choreography by Sonya Tayeh (expect to see this in the finale)

LIKE REAL PEOPLE DO with Casey Askew, Choreography by Travis Wall

HERNANDO'S HIDEAWAY with Zack Everhart, Choreography by Spencer Liff

Chances to Win

I think this year's girls were a little weaker than previous years, but of the bunch, Jessica still rises to the top. She's gorgeous and clinical in her movement, but I think her general immaturity in her dancing and her inability to be completely versatile (her West Coast Swing and her Hip Hop were both pretty lacking) will cost her the crown. Expect to see her in 3rd or 4th place.

Actually, now that I think about it, we didn't see her do any ballroom besides her initial West Coast Swing with Nick Garcia, right? Yikes.

Click to see my analysis of this year's top 2 guys 

EMMY Nominations for Outstanding Choreography 2014

As always, SYTYCD choreographers get nominated for Outstanding Choreography at the EMMYs. There's not many other shows that get nominated for the same award (usually just SYTYCD and Dancing With the Stars), so it makes you wonder if this award will even stick around after the show ends.

They didn't cite specific routines for each choreographer nominated, so I included a few of the choreographer's best routines (in my humble opinion). Remember, these choreographers are all getting nominated for LAST SEASON's routines. i.e. Amy Yakima, Fik-Shun et al.

CHRISTOPHER SCOTT

Sand
Dancers: Carlos Garland, Nico Greetham, Fik-Shun Stegall, BluPrint, Aaron Turner, Paul Karmiryan, Curtis Holland, Alan Bersten, Tucker Knox, Jade Zuberi

Let's Get It On
Dancers: Fik-Shun Stegall and Amy Yakima

Also wanted to include "The Gravel Road", but for some reason blogger wouldn't let me upload it directly into the post, so you'll just have to do some extra work and click here . 

MANDY MOORE

I Can't Make You Love Me

Dancers: Jenna Johnson and All-Star Neil Haskell

Feeling Good

Dancers: Fik-Shun Stegall and Melanie Moore

The Edge of Glory

Dancers: Makenzie Dustman and Paul Karmiryan

Still my absolute favourite dance from last season. And I'm still just as in love with Paul.

NAPOLEON AND TABITHA D'UMO

After Party

Dancers: Amy Yakima and FikShun Stegall

Run the World (Girls)

Dancers: Jasmine Harper and All-Star Comfort Fedoké

TRAVIS WALL

Wicked Game

Dancers: Amy Yakima and Travis Wall

Honestly, Travis might take it all just for this piece alone. One of the most stunning routines ever produced on the stage, and it was such a treat to see Travis perform his own choreography. And I included the no audience noise version for you lovely people :)

Medicine

Dancers: Tucker Knox and All-Star Robert Roldan

Well, there we are. Kinda fun to look back on last season, isn't it? Not sure who will take it this year, as Travis and Mandy both had very strong seasons last year. It may sway to Travis, which I am 100% okay with because he deserves every bit of success he receives. Where's Stacey Tookey's nomination, though?

There were also nominations for Outstanding Makeup and Outstanding Reality-Competition Program. And, of course, for our wonderful host, Miss Cat Deeley. Here she is, looking gorgeous and wearing my favourite sparkly romper of hers;

The good news: seeing as Derek Hough for DWTS is the only other recipient for an Outstanding Choreography nomination, the odds seem to be in SYTYCD's favour to win an Emmy this year (although they didn't last year...). The bad news: Last week's episode clocked in the lowest all-time ratings in the series's history, with only 3.6 million people watching this past Wednesday. Yikes, guys. 

SYTYCD Season 11 Top 18 Recap + Top 16 Reveal

First of all, following a rather mediocre week last Wednesday, tonight was one of the best shows in recent memory. Definitely makes me remember why I'll be so sad when this show gets canceled. Listen to my pleas, FOX!!

Misty Copeland is guest judge again, and she'll be back next week as well - maybe hinting at a permanent position for Misty at the judge's table? I sure hope so - between Mary's usually incomprehensible babbling to Nigel's bipolarity, it would be nice to have a rational force on the panel.

Opening Number
How It's Done - Choreography by Krystal Meraz and PHARSIDE

The choreographers are part of the "Academy of Villains", which, I think, was a crew competing in the audition episodes? Anyways, you know whenever the song of a piece is remixed/composed by District 78, you know the piece is gonna be completely insane. The 18 dancers were split into white chess pieces and black chess pieces and danced on a chess board. So cool. Emilio had a little solo and it looked like he might have slipped up, but it was still so incredible.

Bottom 6 Reveal

GUYS
1. Stanley
2. Emilio
3. Teddy

GIRLS
1. Emily
2. Bridget
3. Jourdan

I should play poker. Not to toot my own horn or anything, but I predicted 5/6 dancers in the bottom - SHAZAM!

Jacque and Zack - HIP HOP
Choreography by Keone Madrid and Mariel Madrid - Stay With Me

I loved this routine, and reminded me a lot of Jeanine and Phillip's Mad routine in Season 5, with the floorwork at the beginning. I think Zack has a kind of humble strength that is an absolute asset with voters and with the competition in general, and Jacque keeps knocking everything out of the ballpark. Excited for this couple's future. In this performance we were also given an inside look to the (blossoming?) romance between Jacque and Rudy - ow ow.

Jourdan and Marcquet - CONTEMPORARY
Choreography by Dee Caspary - Disappear

I usually love Dee's choreography (see: Melanie and Marko's Skin and Bones) but this felt like nothing too memorable. Marcquet definitely outshone Jourdan in this piece, although it should technically be easier for her. I think Jourdan just has performance issues, or more specifically issues relaying emotion through performance? Kind of disappointed Dee didn't tell her to stop friggin smiling the whole time. Marcquet looked really good in the group performance as well, so hopefully he gets to showcase his genius before he gets kicked off.

Jessica and Stanley - JAZZ
Choreography by Tyce Diorio - Funkier Than a Mosquito's Tweeter

Oh, Tyce. When you're not so impressed with yourself your choreography is usually pretty great, but the notion for this routine was just bizarre. Jessica and Stanley were supposed to be on a flying carpet, and were supposed to relay the feeling that they were flying. Although well-danced, the movement in no way said "flying" or "in the clouds" - sorry Tyce. Misty pointed out to Jessica issues with her face while performing, which I think was critique well-deserved. I'm not sure what's the magic needed for Jessica to pull of another Jessica-et-Ricky-esque performance, but it definitely was not there tonight.

Bridget and Emilio - JIVE
Choreography by Anya Garnis and Pasha Kovalev - Happy

Jive is one of my favourite ballroom styles to see performed - it just looks like a ton of fun to perform, and it's definitely fun to watch. Bridget and Emilio definitely stepped up, and I'm glad Nigel et al didn't slaughter Emilio for having next to no classical or ballroom dance technique training. Fun, upbeat, completely enjoyable.

Emily and Teddy - CONTEMPORARY
Choreography by Tyce Diorio - Ne Me Quitte Pas

Not much to say - beautiful contemporary, nice to see Emily in her own genre and will hopefully popularize her a little bit with voters. Teddy is easily growing into a very strong competitor. Nigel had to plug how smart and educated he was with some useless poem verse or something relating to the piece. Who knows.

Brooklyn and Casey - JAZZ
Choreography by Bonnie Story - Crazy Little Thing Called Love

This just showed the difference between Casey's technical training and Brooklyn's technical training. Maybe I'm being too harsh on Brooklyn because it seems like she's only ever trained in ballroom, but the gap between the ability of the two was pretty wide tonight. Casey's pirouettes are all I ever want to have in life.

Valerie and Ricky - VIENNESE WALTZ
Choreography by Lacey Schwimmer - I Won't Give Up

When one Schwimmer fails, bring in another one? Besides Valerie's dress looking like something they pulled off a 19th-century corpse, it was a very pretty waltz, and I'm glad Lacey gave Ricky stuff to do in the choreography as well (arabesques, batements, etc), when in a waltz usually the guy kinda just supports the girl. Was it standing-ovation worthy? Not sure. But in the judges' eyes, Ricky can do no wrong.

Carly and Serge - HIP HOP
Choreography by Luther Brown - Senile

Definitely one of my favourite Luther Brown numbers. Maybe he subconciously heard my pleas last week and ditched the tight black leather he loves in his numbers so much. Carly killed it, and Serge found his way too. Very entertaining, and no one still has no idea what the hell Nigel is talking about half the time. "Well, I'm not sure why I'm getting booed!" Just critique and praise the dancers, Nigel. Don't go off on tangents about the choreography when you don't know how to critique.

Tanisha and Rudy - BROADWAY
Choreography by Warren Carlyle - Sing Sing Sing

Rudy had a couple trip ups, but overall wonderful piece. Very high-energy and captivating, and extra points to Warren Carlyle for using a song from Fosse.

SYTYCD Top 20 Show + Top 18 Reveal

And so the actual competition starts. Sorry for the late recap, life's been nuts. Misty Copeland was the (AMAZING) guest judge. Some people found her too harsh for the show, but at the end of the day, this routine line-up was rather bleh, so Misty had a lot to critique.

Opening Group Number - New York, New York (On the Town 2014)

Fun choreography. Ricky, Rudy and Nick were showcased for the majority of the routine, probably because they have some of the biggest personalities and are great performers. 

Bottom 6 Reveal

GIRLS

1. Brooklyn

2. Jordan

3. Malene

GUYS

1. Casey

2. Nick

3. Serge

Hey, my predictions were half-right! My only question is why Jordan was in the bottom when her fellow ballerina and disastrous pas-de-deux partner was not... 

Tanisha and Rudy - JAZZ

Choreography by Sonya Tayeh - You Need 

Meh. I guess Sonya's decided that her jazz pieces will be electro-goth-ish pieces? Tanisha proved herself to be good outside of her latin ballroom genre, with some beautiful extensions and turns, but it felt like overkill when half the piece was her doing an extension. Rudy had the most unfortunate costume of the night, him sporting a Chippendale-like collar with a middle suspender riding down to his pants. The inclusion of the chairs was bizarre, especially since they were clunky-looking office chairs. The chairs almost felt like an afterthought, and turned out to be a disappointing prop when the most exciting parts of the piece were when Tanisha and Rudy actually danced together and had contact, without use of the chairs at all. 

Valerie and Ricky - CONTEMPORARY

Choreography by Travis Wall - Oh Darling

Ricky again proved his prowess, and Travis again proved how he could produce an easily-digestible yet unique contemporary piece with a drop of a hat. I personally think Valerie did better than the judges gave her credit for in this piece. This couple will sail through this week, but I worry about them receiving a latin ballroom down the road, as we haven't seen Ricky do anything other than his genre so far. We shall see.

Bridget and Emilio - HIP HOP

Choreography by Luther Brown - Work

I had a lot of problems with this piece. Let's run down all the errors, shall we?

1. Bridget, although this song is by the infamously big-bootied Iggy Azalea, Hip Hop is more than strutting your stuff around. 

2. Luther Brown, don't have Bridget be the showcase of the piece if she can't hit hard.

3. Also, Luther, WHY ARE ALL OF YOUR COSTUMES LEATHER? EVER? THEY'RE ALL BLACK LEATHER, AND WEIRD CUTS OF BLACK LEATHER. WHAT THE HELL

Emilio did awesome, although I would have liked to see some more hits and pops and stuff for him in the choreography, since we know he can do it. I also worry about this couple having to do ballroom.

Jessica and Nick - WEST COAST SWING

Choreography by Benji Schwimmer - Respect

I love Benji so so much, but this routine seemed ill-fated from the beginning with Jessica dislocating her shoulder. I think the biggest problem in the routine was the music choice - it usually didn't match with the choreography. Towards the beginning, Nick and Jessica were both high-energy and bouncing around, but with the amount of lifts and tricks in the routine, they soon lost steam and towards the end ended up falling out of synchronization. Everything looked laboured and confusing towards the end. However, this is partially Benji's fault, having choreographed them an insanely difficult routine. Although this is true, Nigel still has no right to call out the choreographer when critiquing the dancers. Let the audience know the routine was difficult, praise and/or (in this case or) critique the dancers, and have a chat with Benji afterwards. No harm done.

Carly and Serge - CONTEMPORARY

Choreography by Sonya Tayeh - Latch (Acoustic)

Hands-down best piece of the night. Beautiful chemistry and performance from a couple who could easily be overshadowed by bigger names in the competition. Serge was unexpectedly amazing at supporting Carly and understanding the nuances of contemporary dance. Very, very excited for this couple, who I can now see going very far in the competition.

Emily and Teddy - HIP HOP

Choreography by Dave Scott - Don't

Very entertaining - I love Dave Scott for his no-frills attitude when it comes to Hip Hop. Both Teddy and Emily were good at the routine, but while Teddy was trying VERY hard to evoke some chemistry, Emily seemed more concerned with performing to the audience. Completely agree with the critiquing here. Very fun piece.

Malene and Stanley - BROADWAY

Choreography by Spencer Liff - I've Got Your Number

I truly didn't think this number was as bad as the judges said it was. Stanley was more concentrated on pulling off a solo performance than a duet, and Malene, seemingly introverted, had trouble performing to the audience on her own, so the entire thing collapsed a little bit. The phone idea was brilliant, but by the end of the piece proved that there was a limited amount of moves Spencer could get the dancers to do by being tied to the phones. For an uneducated (dance-wise) audience, this would have been a fun routine, but when on SYTYCD it has to be kicked up a couple notches. Still didn't give Nigel the right to bash Spencer Liff's ideas though.

Jourdan and Marcquet - JAZZ

Choreography by Sean Cheesman - Work Work

Not much to say here. When Jourdan and Marcquet were dancing individually is when they really shone - the partner work was a little sloppy. Also, I could have done with way less crotch shots from Jourdan. This couple may be in danger next week.

Brooklyn and Casey - ARGENTINE TANGO

Choreography by Miriam Larici and Leonardo Barrionuevo - Gallo Ciego

Jesus, this is the point in the show where I wonder how many more routines we have to go. Anyways, I love a good Argentine Tango, and although it wasn't my favourite ever done in the show, I think they pulled it off. I still think Brooklyn's biggest issue is nerves, as she seemed a little unnerved at the beginning of the routine, but they had some beautiful lines and great chemistry. This should keep them both safe. (By the way, my favourite Arg Tango to be done on the show is Caitlynn and Pasha's Malajunta . Classic and stunning).

Jacque and Zack - AFRICAN JAZZ
Choreography by Sean Cheesman - Dibiza

I thought they looked more like Dr. Seuss characters than creatures out of an African jungle or whatever, but it was really fun. Jacque and Zack managed to retain some chemistry and beautiful partnering while dancing such a performance-based and exhausting dance style. Kudos. 

Who gets sent home?

SYTYCD Season 11 Top 20 Showcase Recap

Can I mute the audience?

OR

How relevant can we make Jason Derulo?

I was actually very excited about tonight's episode - I think the idea of having a "showcase" of sorts, is brilliant. We get some guaranteed good routines off the bat and we get to know the dancers a little bit better. Jason Derulo was guest judge.

Brooklyn/Serge - Choreography by Dmitry Chaplin
LATIN BALLROOM

Soooo unlucky for Brooklyn and Serge to open the night with a ballroom. It was pretty forgettable, honestly - Brooklyn seemed a little frantic throughout the entire routine. But, kudos to them for opening the entire season, it must be incredibly nerve-wracking.

Emily/Casey - Choreography by Travis Wall
CONTEMPORARY

Very beautiful contemporary choreography by Travis Wall. In the clips we saw from rehearsal Emily and Casey had harder hits and crashes on contact, which we didn't completely see in the performance and I would have liked to see, but Casey had some gorgeous turns and Emily had some amazing extensions. Casey was complemented by Mary on his partnering skills and rightly so - he has the special ability to let his partner shine and then step out of her shadow and step into the spotlight.

Valerie/Zack - Choreography by Anthony Morigerato
TAP

Definitely the routine I was most excited about tonight. Very cool use of the staircases - how EXHAUSTING could that have been though, Jesus. Cool costumes, too. Tap can be SO redundant and boring, but hopefully Anthony Morigerato continues to choreograph with the show because this was brilliant. Also - Nigel even told the audience to shut up. Beautiful moment.

Bridget/Stanley - Choreography by Bonnie Story
CONTEMPORARY

Another contemporary piece about relationships not working or something. Bridget reminds me SO much of Hayley Erbert, it's ridiculous. I was actually watching Stanley way more than I was watching Bridget this entire routine. Stanley's extensions, his pirouettes, his jetees and his jumps all have such a fantastic quality of movement. I hope he sticks around because he seems like one of those wonderful dancers who aren't necessarily amazing competitors. Also, I learned that Jason Derulo and Jordin Sparks are dating. Learn something new every day.

Jacque/Jordan - Choreography by Some Angry Russian Guy
BALLET (Pas de Deux from Swan Lake)

IN case you were wondering why there's never been an all-girl pas de deux on this show. Jacque fell off her box at least once, Jordan fell out of at least two pirouettes. They whipped out 15 (thank you, Nigel) fouettes and had some pretty attitudes. The one time they showed the russian choreographer in the audience was terrifying. Nigel was BEYOND annoying in his critique.

Jason Derulo - Wiggle
Probably the second time I've ever heard this song in my life, and I didn't like it any better the second time around, but, whatever. Snoop Dogg (Lion?) makes an appearance in the last five seconds. Hey, if it ups their ratings, so be it. And Jason Derulo is a good stage performer.

Malene/Marcquet - Choreography by Louis van Amstel
LATIN BALLROOM

THANK YOU Louis van Amstel for using some (at least seemingly?) authentic latin music for a latin ballroom piece, and not "My First Kiss" or anything by Jennifer Lopez. Malene is obviously a seasoned performer. I honestly think Marcquet could run away with the competition this year, he's got the passion and the versatility. Much better than Brooklyn and Serge's ballroom earlier this evening.

Carly/Rudy - Choreography by Stacey Tookey
CONTEMPORARY

THANK YOU Stacey Tookey for a contemporary piece that isn't about relationships falling apart. Beautiful choreography, but Rudy needs to watch his turnout and his feet, especially in jumps.

Teddy/Emilio - Choreography by Christopher Scott
HIP HOP

First of all, Teddy has some of the nicest eyebrows I've ever seen on a person. Emilio is obviously the stronger of the two. If I can remember properly, I think Teddy auditioned as a tapper? Either way, they've billed him as hip hop for the season, mainly so they're not slaughtered for only picking one hip hopper.

Jessica/Ricky - Choreography by Sonya Tayeh
CONTEMPORARY

Best contemporary of the night. The song got annoying after a little while but Ricky is so obviously the strongest dancer this season. Ricky's control is what gets me every time. His patience in his extensions is stunning. He's definitely Travis Wall, Jr., if not better.

Tanisha/Nick - Choreography by Louis Van Amstel
LATIN BALLROOM

Nick is better than Serge and probably equal to Marcquet, when comparing the Latin Ballrooms of the night. By the way, this was all playing at the 57th minute of the last hour.... Someone's speeding everything up next week.

Rankings
All my personal opinion :)

1. Jessica/Ricky
2. Valerie/Zack
3. Emily/Casey
4. Malene/Marcquet
5. Carly/Rudy
6. Teddy/Emilio
7. Tanisha/Nick
8. Bridget/Stanley
9. Jacque/Jordan
10. Brooklyn/Serge

Bottom 6 Predictions Next Week

GUYS
1. Serge
2. Stanley
3. Nick

GIRLS
1. Tanisha
2. Jordan
3. Bridget or Emily

Season 11 First Partner Reveal and Top 20 Analysis

Right, well, I'm back already, because while spending half my day on Tumblr, I came across a revealed list of the partnerships for the show next week.

Next week everyone will be competing with a partner from their own genre. The audiences at home then WILL BE ABLE TO VOTE. Eliminations start July 9th, where I assume the partners will be switched up to continue the competition with the different genres. So it's like a half showcase- half competitive episode.

Partners for the July 2nd show

Teddy/Emilio (Hip-hop)
Jourdan/Jacque (Ballet)
Valerie/Zack (Tap)
Rudy/Carly (Contemporary)
Nick/Tanisha (Ballroom)
Brooklyn/Serge (Ballroom)
Malene/Marcquet (Ballroom)
Bridget/Stanley (Contemporary)
Jessica/Ricky (Contemporary/Jazz)
Emily/Casey (Contemporary)

Source: SYTYCDance GIFS Tumblr, whose source was Idol Forums

First of all, it is COMPLETELY unfair that Jessica Richens and Ricky Ubeda were paired up. They have gotten perhaps the most screentime in auditions/callbacks of anybody (followed by Rudy/Nick and Bridget). Maybe their reasoning was that since Jessica is technically a Jazz dancer, she should get thrown in with Ricky, one of the best dancers going into the TV competition, for a contemporary piece? Who knows. But either way, the advantage they have over the other contestants has just taken another leap.

I am all about the ballet duet and the Malene/Marcquet pairing. Obviously they wouldn't pair Marcquet and Brooklyn together, who are partners professionally already. Also so excited for tapping pair Valerie/Zack. If anyone's already tacked up an enormous fanbase, it's Valerie Rockey.

Analysis

First, let's tackle the uproar over excluding Jaja Vankova from the Top 20 this year. I personally really liked her too, and having a female krumper would mix it up this year. Everyone had high hopes for female hip-hopper Mariah Spears last year, and did surprisingly well, despite being sent home prematurely. Personally, I would have subbed out Bridget Whitman for Jaja this year in my top 20, but what can you do.  Jaja did really struggle in the contemporary round in LA.  Note: Bridget, I don't want to be a heartless jerk, but stop talking about your dad. It's very sad and it's beautiful that you can pull inspiration from his story, but at a certain point sad stories reach a plateau with voters. Time to let your personality through, ok?

As for Landon, Jenna Johnson's ginger ballroom friend, he would have been a nice addition to round out the top 20, but at the end of the day, there is TONS of ballroom this year, which is exciting. The producers and judges (ahem, Nigel) usually really have to push and convince the voters to support the ballroom dancers, like with Jenna last year, but since there's 6 this year and they're all fairly popular already, Season 11 may be a different story.

I am very, very excited for this season. I would have liked another hip hop dancer, but whatever. I am already in love with Rudy and very excited for Valerie and Ricky's potential. There's lots of huge personalities this year.

Thoughts on the Top 20? Comments? Questions? Shoot me an e-mail; sytycdfansblog@gmail.com and I'll answer them on the blog.

xoxo Maddy


To come next week: Top 20 Showcase Episode, Top 10 Predictions

LA Callbacks and SYTYCD Season 11 Top 20 Reveal!

So, the big callbacks show. The drama, the tears, the blown-up stories. It's all in good fun, and this year, it was super sped up to smoosh what should be 4 hours of material into 2. If anyone thinks I missed four episodes before this one, I haven't, I watched them, I just don't recap the audition shows because they are BRUTAL to recap. However, I promise my perpetual laziness will not impact shows from here on out. All recaps will be out by either Wednesday night or Thursday morning.

As with any season ever, there's contestants that get huge hype and airtime and those who come and go without ever seeing their face or their name on the show itself. Early favourites going into tonight include Phillip Chbeeb's crewmember Jaja Vankova, jazz darling Jessica Richens, contemporary-beauty-with-a-sob-story Megan Marco, and Next-Travis-Wall Ricky Ubeda.

First dramatic cue of the night - hip hop dancer Stephen's girlfriend goes into labour. Um, dunno, but if I had to choose between seeing my first born ACTUALLY BEING BORN and a competition where you have a 20 out of 157 chance of making it on the show, I'd go with the labour.

First round (not including the first solo round) - Hip Hop, Choreography by Chris Scott
Nice to see Jasmine Harper again as Chris's helper. Megan Marco gets cut, for some reason Marie Poppins gets to stick around, and Jessica Richens gets to dance for her life. In other news, ballroom dancer Marcquet Hill is mistaken for a hip hop dancer by his contemporary dancer partner. "I thought he was hip hooop!" Also, was it just me or was there an underlying it's-because-he's-black joke in there somewhere? Um, I'd be ditching her for the next round, Marcquet. You're obviously a rising star.

Jessica Richens' Solo - to some Michael Bublé song. She may not have great chemistry with her partner, but she is a wonderful solo act. Missed some cues in the music, but her feet and her turns were gorgeous. Through.

Second round - Jazz, Choreography by Sonya Tayeh
Jaja Vankova and Marie Poppins have early troubles. Johnny Waacker and my early SYTYCD Season 11 love Rudy Abreu slide through. "Early father" Stephen and Marie Poppins end up getting cut. Sonya shouted some threats, but at the end of the day, it's all good, because everyone knows Sonya Tayeh is a goddess of everything.

Jaja Vankova's Solo - powerful, krumpy, I don't know what else to say??? Through.

Third Round - Ballroom, Choreography by Dmitry Chaplin and Anya Garnis
Tappers go through. Rudy knocked it OUT OF THE PARK. Someone's tooth gets knocked out of their head. Emilio Dosal is back! Remember Aaron Turner? Season 10's 21st choice? He made the show because Emilio Dosal had to get nose surgery, and, as we all know, Aaron ends up making it to the finale. Crazier things have happened. Anyways, Jaja and Emilio pair up for the ballroom round and have some insane chemistry. Phillip Chbeeb, whatever you're doing to churn out these dancers from i.am.me, you're doing it right. Rudy's ballroom-dancing best friend Nick Garcia was given just a fraction of his deserved screentime and it was beautiful.

Fourth Round - Contemporary, Choreography by Travis Wall
Makenzie Dustman!!! Her presence in this round reminded me of all my pent-up Season 10 anger about her lack of love from voters. Whatever... The ginger ballroom guy who auditioned with Jenna Johnson makes it through. Rudy Abreu, Ricky Ubeda and Jessica Richens all pass through with flying colours.

Bridget Whitman's Solo - pretty basic contemporary movement, but pretty. The story about her father is very sad, but she needs to quit talking about it so much - it's getting very old very fast. It becomes a problem in Callbacks when contestants get so little time - all her screentime is dedicated to her father's story. Through.

Fifth Round - Group Round!
And so the drama reaches its climax! The first group - "One Love" - although pretty on the surface, there was one ballroom girl and she was the star of the show. They're asked to decide who will leave. What? They play a montage of bad groups. Everyone is awful, according to the editors. Johnny Waacks's group is the best routine - a gorgeous mix of contemporary and his waacking. Then they showed a montage of good groups and a beautiful split jump from my Rudy Abreu.

Here goes "One Love"'s decision of who to kick off the show. They all get up on stage and and cry and say they can't kick anyone off. This temporary show of loyalty apparently got to a small place in Nigel's heart and they all get sent through.

Sixth Round - Last Solos

Ricky Ubeda - Genius solo. Up there with Melanie Moore's Cracks and Billy Bell's Fly. Plus, he scored bonus points by using David J. Roch's Skin and Bones, used by Travis Wall to choreograph Melanie and Marko in one of my favourite contemporary pieces on the show of all time. Ricky's solo was not only stunning, but SMART. He would totally purposely lose control of his arms and legs and then go into an attitude or a triple pirouette without a second thought to show his insane control. Controlled, creative, genius. See the full glory here; https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZDVGZGlClkk

Top 20 Reveal

First dancer to get the news is Ricky Ubeda. If he didn't make top 20 there would've been riots. Also to make through is Jessica Richens and a couple others that got no screentime. Emilio Dosal is through with a little bit of mean talk from Adam Shankman. Jaja Vankova doesn't - I guess two people from i.am.me is too much - and it would suck bigtime for Emilio not to make it after making it once already. Johnny Waacks gets cut and leaves in his skirt. From the little sneak-peek package before a commercial break I could tell they would pull a ratchet "Well, there's only one spot left and two of you!" for Nick Garcia and Rudy Abreu.

Jenna Johnson's ginger ballroom friend, whose name I learned is Landon, doesn't make it through. I really liked him and thought he could have continued. Oh well. Justine Lutz, who was my favourite solo in the auditions, unfortunately doesn't make it through either. There's not only one spot left between Nick and Rudy, so I guess I was wrong with that one. Nick moves through first. Like five ballroom people make it through at once.

It doesn't come down between Nick and Rudy, but Rudy and Silky. Rudy gets the spot.

COMPLETE TOP TWENTY
Ricky Ubeda

Jessica Richens

Jacque LeWarne

Teddy Coffey

Stanley Glover

Carly Blaney

Emilio Dosal

Bridget Whitman

Valerie Rockey

Zach Everhart, Jr.

Jourdan Epstein

Casey Askew

Emily James

Nick Garcia

Tanisha Belnap

Serge Onik

Malene Ostegaard

Marcquet Hill

Brooklyn Fullmer

Rudy Abreu

There we have it folks - I may be back later this week to analyse this top 20 further, but for now it's pretty obvious this season will be very interesting. Twitter is in complete riot over Jaja Vankova. At the end of the day, there's only a handful of the top 20 that got lots of airtime, so time to start looking these people up...

Let Season 11 begin! I love this time of year.