Who do you think can dance?

What an exciting first week of dancing. We had some very talented dancers performing routines by brilliant choreographers. You’ve got to love Mia and Wade’s routines. Any of the couples that get to work with them will stand out from the rest.

So now let’s get down to it with a quick wrap up of this week. Everyone join in and discuss your favorites, whether it be couples, individual dancers or the choreographers.

So our judges for this week were Dan Karaty (Hip Hop choreographer), Mary Murphy (Ballroom) and Nigel Lythgoe.

The first couple up was Jamie and Hawk. Jamie is a contemporary dancer who says that ballroom and hip hop make her nervous. Hawk is a breaker who is so unique in his style and has moves that will blow you away. Lucky for Hawk they got to perform a Shane Sparks hip hop routine. Jamie caught on pretty well and had a lot of energy and enthusiasm when learning the choreography. With hip hop you need high energy and feel the music throughout your body. Well, how did they do?? Hawk is so fun to watch and Jamie did her best for an area that she isn’t strong in. The judges had positive comments for the most part and raved about Hawk and thought that Jamie did a fine job keeping up with the routine. Both should definitely be safe this week.

The second couple up was Anya and Danny. Anya is a ballroom dancer and Danny’s style is contemporary. They had to perform a Jive routine choreographed by Tony Meredith. In the earlier rounds, the judges had concerns about Danny and his attitude. They thought he was cocky and were concerned about putting him through. Well, how did they do? I didn’t quite like Danny’s outfit and I didn’t like the routine. It didn’t look like Jive to me (but what do I know). The judges raved about their performance (I guess I should find out what the jive looks like). We heard Mary Murphy’s first yell of the night. For any first time viewers, Mary has a loud shrieky yell that she makes when she really likes someone and the louder the yell the better. Nigel says that they will be a couple to be reckoned with.

The third couple was Lacey and Kameron. Lacey’s style is swing, ballroom, and is also a professional krumper. Lacey is also the little sister of last year’s winner, Benji. Kameron is a contemporary/hip hop dancer. Lacey and Kameron got to work with Mia Michaels and perform a contemporary routine. Watching Mia work with them during the rehearsal is tiring. I don’t know where she gets the vision for her choreography. Lacey was concerned that she wasn’t going to do Mia’s choreography justice. How did they do? Well, I was blown away. What a beautiful routine. Mia is brilliant. The running jump Lacey did into Kameron’s arms was fantastic. They had such chemistry, which is so important in this competition. Outstanding. Best performance so far. The judges raved about their performance and felt that Lacey embodied everything that Mia wanted. Her big brother sure was proud out there in the audience. They will definitely be safe this week.

The fourth couple was Sabra and Dominic. In the earlier rounds Mia expressed that she didn’t like Dominic’s cockiness. Sabra and Dominic had to perform a Disco routine choreographed by Doriana. Sabra was working that afro. She definitely looked like they were in the Disco era. Dominic’s pants were awful, but that is what they wore back in the day. It was challenging for me to watch Dominic at times because he seemed really stiff. The judges had mixed feelings. Dan thought it was ok, Mary liked it and Nigel commented on how this was the first time Dominic danced with a partner and should be commended for his performance. They may be in danger of dancing for their lives.

The fifth couple up was Ashley and Rickey. Ashley and Rickey are both contemporary dancers. They performed an Argentine Tango choreographed by Alex De Silva. How did they do? My first comment is that Ashley sure has got some legs on her. She looks like she is a giant. This was a very sexy routine but they didn’t have the chemistry to give it the sizzle that it could have had. Ashley got stuck on some parts and it wasn’t as fluid as it could have been. Nigel thought that their height difference could have been an issue for them. Dan felt that they definitely could be in danger of dancing for their lives.

The sixth couple was Sarah and Jesus. Sarah is the only B-Girl in the competition; however she showed her versatility in the audition rounds which will help her in the long run. Jesus is a lyrical dancer. They got to work with Wade Robson, one of the best choreographers on the show. It would be so wonderful to bring his vision to life. They had to perform a pop/jazz routine that required them to get into character. Based on the practice sessions, I don’t think we really knew what the end result was going to look like. So how did they do? I LOVED IT!!!! Such a fun routine. Very creepy at times and a lot. Wade is fantastic. There were a couple times in the beginning where their timing was off, but it definitely didn’t take away from their performance. They were great! We had to rewind and watch the performance again. They are definitely safe this week.

Next up was Jessie and Pasha. Jessie is a hip hop dancer and Pasha is a trained latin dancer. They randomly chose the waltz for this week. They got to work with Tony Meredith. The waltz is so different than any of the routines we’ve seen thus far. Jessie was out of here element because the waltz is very much about form, unlike hip hop. Pasha, on the other hand, was in his element. Did they pull it off? I would say so. They did a beautiful job. The waltz is so slow and can be boring. They looked elegant. Mary Murphy loved their performance, which is a huge compliment for them. They will probably be safe for this week.

The eighth couple up was Faina and Cedric. Faina is a ballroom dancer and Cedric considers himself a hip hop/improve dancer. Nigel was originally concerned with putting him through because he wasn’t very versatile during the audition rounds and felt that he would be stealing a spot from another dancer. The rest of the judges were adamant about putting him through and were willing to take a chance on him. They all felt that he was so unique and had shown moves that they had never seen with the hip hop dancers that have come before them in the past. We’ll be watching him throughout the season to see how far get gets. So Faina and Cedric got to work with Shane Sparks on another hip hop routine. Shane was concerned during rehearsal because neither one of them were getting the routine, especial Faina. He was frustrated at times and was certain that he was not working with the next winner of the competition. So hopefully the couple days of additional practice would help them out. Did it?? Not really. As a couple they were not together at all. Faina was painful to watch. Nigel felt that she was “dancing by numbers – 1-2-3-4”. That was so true. They didn’t do Shane’s choreography any justice. I definitely found myself watching Cedric. I definitely think they will be dancing for their lives. If Cedric wasn’t with Faina he would be safe. We’ll see.

So we are almost done with the show. Up next were Lauren and Neil dancing the salsa choreographed by Alex De Silva. I personally didn’t like their routine. It looked like they were going in slow motion in between all of their tricks. It could have been better. I would expect them to be dancing for their lives. We’ll see.

Last up was Shauna and Jimmy, both contemporary dancers. They got to work with Tyce Diorio and perform a broadway number. Tyce usually wants his dancers to get in character, which Shauna and Jimmy did by becoming Dorothy and the Scarecrow from the Wizard of Oz. Their routine was really fun. The judges felt that Jimmy outperformed Shauna. You can tell that Jimmy has wonderful techniques and very graceful. I look forward to seeing him perform other styles. They should be safe for this week.

So which of the couples made it and who had to dance for their lives. The bottom three were:

Sabra and Dominic, Ashlee and Rickey, and Faina and Cedric. What do you think about that? I wasn’t surprised. I definitely knew that Faina and Cedric would be there and suspected the other two. For these three couples it will come down to how much they bring on the stage when they dance for their lives. Anyone who has ever watched the show knows that it is not always the best dancer that gets saved. The judges want to see commitment and their love for dancing in that 30 seconds. Last year a couple of the really good dancers got eliminated because they took their round for granted. The same thing happened last night for the guys. The judges felt that Dominic and Cedric put all they had into their performances, including personality. Rickey fell short and got eliminated. For the ladies, Ashlee fell short this week. The rest of the couples get to stay with their same partners.

What do you all think? Who are your favorites?