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September 2, 2009

'So You Think You Can Dance' revisits 15 best performances

Tonight's So You Think You Can Dance special is revisiting the 15 best dances of the show's history. I'm super excited to see what they come up with and also interested to see if their faves line up with mine.

Here's their list:

-- Destini and Jamile's hip-hop routine to "Shake" choreographed by Shane Spark. That was a good one, but what I realize now that I didn't realize then was that about half of the lyrics were bleeped out.

-- Nick and Melody's Tyce DiOrio Broadway routine to "All That Jazz," Tyce's first routine on the show, and a good showing by all three of them.

-- Benji and Heidi's "Black Mambo" dance, which was a lot of fun, but slightly awkward when it was supposed to be sexy, since they're related.

-- Ivan and Allison's contemporary routine to Annie Lennox's "Why" choreographed by Tyce. This one, I recall, brought a lot new out of Ivan.

-- Mia Michaels' Emmy-winning bench routine with Heidi and Travis, which is definitely one of the most memorable moments of the series for me.

-- Speaking of most memorable moments, next is Hok and Jamie's "Hummingbird and the Flower" dance by Wade Robson. This is so unique and playing to these dancers' strengths, I just knew this would be on the list. Also, Nigel Lythgoe's intro segment that recapped season three reminded me just how amazing that whole season was.

-- Next is my favorite ever-ever, Sabra and Neil's "Sweet Dreams" dance by Mandy Moore, in which they are business people doing a negotiation around a table. I can't tell you how many times I've watched this. I just love it. I watched it twice just now.

-- Lacey and Danny's "Hip Hip Chin Chin," choreographed by Dmitry Chaplin. To get all Randy Jackson on you, that was a hot one.

-- Pasha and Lauren's Transformer dance by Shane Sparks. That one was cool. Also, as Nigel points out, it was very SYTYCD, with it being so far outside the comfort zones of its performers, and yet they totally shine.

-- Mark and Courtney's "Garden" dance from Sonya Tayeh. I don't always love Sonya's routines, especially on first viewing, but this one really worked with the quirky personalities of the dancers, particularly Mark.

-- Mark and Chelsie's "Bleeding Love" dance by Napoleon and Tabitha. I really liked this routine, but I'm still bothered by Chelsie's wardrobe -- she is supposed to be Mark-the-businessman's girlfriend, but I think she looks more like his daughter, which is a little odd. Still like the performance, though.

-- Joshua and Katee's Mia Michaels routine to "Hometown Glory." How could I have forgotten how much I liked these two together? Re-watching that literally just made me cry.

-- Brandon and Janette's Doriana Sanchez disco routine from last season. This one is unbelievably nonstop. 

-- Kayla and Kupono's Mia Michaels addiction dance, which a shining moment for both of them. 

-- Jeanine and Jason's dance by Travis Wall. This was a good performance, and another good moment for the show -- a strong routine choreographed by an alum. 

-- Last is Nigel's all-time favorite, the Tyce DiOrio breast-cancer-themed dance performed by Melissa and Ade. This is a very moving piece, and I'm not at all surprised to see it on this list. 

One I am surprised isn't on the list is the piece that Mia Michaels choreographed to honor her father. What else would you have put on your favorites list?

 

Posted by Sarah Kickler Kelber at 9:59 PM | | Comments (7)
Categories: So You Think You Can Dance
        

Comments

I most definitely wanted Katee and Joshua's Lyrical routine on there.

And the No Air routine.

my favorite by far has to be kayla and kuponos addiction piece by mia michaels

I'm surprised that these werent on there

-no air with katie and josh, choreo by tabitha and napoleon
-will and katie's pas de duex choreo by desmond richardson, (LOVED)
-will and jessica's adam and eve dance choreo by tyce
-twitch and katie in mercy choreo by mia

-im sure theres more that i just cant think of right now, but there are so many good ones and there's only 15 spots, so its hard to choose! im so glad hometown glory was on there!! i think that might be one of my alll time favs everrr

You have listed 16 routines, also, there are a few typos.

I thought the "jewel thieves" from this summer's Season 5 when Janette & Brandon wore those outrageous glasses was an all-time great. It was indeed unique and outrageous. Just the way they sneaked (snuck?) on to the stage from the back of the set was totally unforgettable! (And I accidentally deleted it from my DVR after just 3 viewings...Wah!)

SKK: I love that one, too! Starting to wish it could have been a top 30.

It was Pasha and Lauren who did the Transformer dance by Shane Sparks.

"-- Dmitry and Lauren's Transformer dance by Shane Sparks. That one was cool. Also, as Nigel points out, it was very SYTYCD, with it being so far outside the comfort zones of its performers, and yet they totally shine. "

SKK: Wow, I was tired last night. Thanks for the heads up.

Nothing from Season 1 winner Nick Lazzarini? What about the hot hot hot Tyce Diorio routine with Nick and Melody from Season 1? Unbelievable!!!

SKK: That was the second performance they showed.

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About Sarah Kelber
Sarah Kickler Kelber, an editor in the features department since 1999, got sucked into reality TV with the first episode of MTV's The Real World in 1992. Then came Survivor and American Idol, and suddenly, the genre was everywhere. She started blogging about it for The Baltimore Sun in January 2006 and has logged more hours watching and writing about such shows as Dancing With the Stars, Big Brother and, of course, Idol, than she'd like to admit.
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