The big question around here, though, is whether Annapolis dancer and Baltimore School for the Arts grad Caitlin Kinney will make the Top 10. Here's hoping!

The first couple is Melissa and Ade, doing disco with Doriana Sanchez. OK, first of all, those are some crazy sparkle-pants Ade's got on. Second, this is fast, and has so many spins that it's a wonder they stay on their feet. Um, well, they do until the very end, when their final move gives way somehow and Melissa stumbles. (Does Ade drop? Is her footing off? It's hard to tell.) But it's fun and energetic, for sure. Nigel Lythgoe says it was exciting and had some "tremendous stuff" in it. In the replay, it looks like both of their feet slipped, causing the fall, by the way. Mary Murphy, reference Doriana's line about praying to the disco gods: "Can I get an amen?" She adds that it was well-executed and that they were both "letting it go." Tyce DiOrio: "That was friggin' great! I mean, I want to say, I adore you, and no one would think that a ballet dancer could do that, so that's growth." He says that Ade embodied it well.

Kayla and Kupono take on a Mia Michaels contemporary routine that is about addiction. In a more revealing and emotional introductory segment than usual, Kupono discusses that he had a close friend who was almost destroyed by a drug addiction that had repercussions in his family, too, and that he almost doesn't want to portray the character of the addiction. "I just sucks having to be in it for that minute-thirty or just those two counts." Then he cries. It's pretty powerful, though there is a part toward the end where he is supposed to be guiding the addicted Kayla through some moves, and it seems like he just isn't exactly where he is supposed to be, which makes it look a little funky. Still, though, a nice piece. Nigel says it's a powerful piece for anyone who has dealt with addiction. He said that Kayla was superb as the addict and that Kupono was powerful in his role as well. Mary says Kupono stayed in character with intensity through the whole performance and that Kayla was flawless. "You guys are staying on the train; don't worry about it." Tyce says with Mia, you add a level to yourself and become an actor. He adds that Kupono could use a little more power in his body, but his acting was great. Kayla he just calls "a beast."

As a side note, can I just say, as someone with hardly any pigment, how refreshing it is to see that the stylists or whoever on this show let the pale girls be pale without feeling the need to fake-tan (or worse, real tan) them into orange oblivion? (*cough* Dancing With the Stars *cough)

Jeanine and Phillip are working with Youri Nelzine and Lilia Babenko on a Russian folk dance. Jeanine: "I don't think I know anyone in the world who is extensively trained in Russian folk dancing." Except maybe the choreographers they just met! Anyway, it's very traditional and difficult-looking. If they are faking it till they make it, Jeanine is definitely doing a better job since she has so much more dance background, but together, they survive. Nigel says it's difficult: "We ask you to try anything and everything on this program, but I'm not sure we should have thrown that. This has nothing to do with your dancing, it just feels like we didn't ask you to do enough. This felt a little too folky. Anything like this, you need an awful lot of vodka to go with it." He does say, though, that Phillip's legwork on the turns was fab and that Jeanine looked beautiful. Mary says Jeanine made it believable and that Phillip's flips were interesting. Tyce says he agrees to a degree, but he wants to know how they executed what they were given: "Jeanine, you are fabulous. Phillip, I thought this would be horrible for you, but you socked me."

Randi and Evan are given the task of doing a Napoleon and Tabitha hip-hop routine in which they are a young couple in love and have just discovered that Randi is pregnant. No disrespect meant to Randi's husband, but these two are a cute couple and have great chemistry, so they really sell the joy that is an inherent part of the routine. I don't adore N&T's style, so it's hard for me to judge sometimes whether the actual dancing was good, but they were at least very in the moment for the whole performance. Nigel says it was good because they didn't make them "be urban," they just let them be themselves. He says that he says it every week, but they are one of his favorite couples. Huh. That's interesting because I mostly recall him saying that he was a little bit disappointed, but I'm glad to hear they are a favorite. They're so cute, I just want to carry them around in my pocket! Anyway, Mary says she was expecting a trainwreck, but they did a great job. Tyce says it was such good storytelling by Tabitha and Napoleon, but "Evan, I think you need to find more."

Janette and Brandon take on the Argentine tango with Leonardo Barrionuevo and Miriam Larici. Brandon interviews that the dance "exudes sex" but later he and Janette are searching for their chemistry since they are just buddies. Their technique is pretty amazing -- intense lifts and footwork and speed, but I don't see a lot of connection between them even so. I'm still impressed, though, because this routine was tough. Nigel is silent at first, then gives them a standing O. The other judges stand, too, speechless. Nigel finally says, "For a ballroom routine on this show, I think that was as close as we've seen to perfection on this stage ever." Mary does her hot tamale train routine. "That was reallly outstanding, the flicks, the lifts." [SCREEEECH!] Tyce says they had so much attention to detail. He goes on a rant about orange juice, but the gist is: "Unreal. Unreal. Unreal." 

Then, it's round two! Cat informs us that next week, the dancers will change partners.

Melissa and Ade have a waltz with Ron Montez for their final dance. He says it's freer than a traditional waltz, so they break hold more. OK, this is good, just so pretty. They are such a good combination -- and to me, their obvious chemistry shows what Janette and Brandon didn't have in the last dance. It was lovely and had fabulous lifts. Nigel says Ron played to their strengths (backhanded compliment, no?) and that it was beautifully danced. Mary agrees that it was beautifully danced, but that his waltz footwork was lacking in power. She calls Melissa mesmerizing and says she is peaking at the right time. She says she doesn't want to see their partnership break up, and Nigel asks if he gets a break from her next week. "Pipe down, you English muffin!" Oh, she's probably been sitting on that line for three weeks, but it still made me giggle. Tyce says when they dance to "Natural Woman," you have to rise to the challenge of the music. He seems to imply that they didn't, but then says it was great.

Kayla and Kupono are doing a Joey Dowling Broadway number. It's weird because Joey has so much energy and pizzaz during the rehearsal that I was expecting a more in-your-face kind of number. Not that this is subtle -- I don't know. It's very cute, and they seem to dance it well, but I wasn't jumping all over the place about it. Nigel says this is his period of time and everything was dangerous -- "there was no feeling of true emotion for that style of music." He says they didn't have the toughness even though they danced it well. Mary says maybe they didn't latch onto the style, but she still thinks they did a good job even though she can see where Nigel is coming from. Tyce says they needed to get down into the floor and make it part of their world and use the space more.

Caitlin and Jason are not excited to break up. Caitlin says she will miss Jason's hugs and ability to calm her down, while Jason will miss Caitlin's quirkiness and silly jokes. They are working with Mandy Moore on a lyrical routine. And the performance? I don't know, it just makes me happy -- they are clearly so excited to be dancing their own style, and it seems like Mandy challenged them because of that, and it worked for them. Also, I like that it's a routine that just is without having to have a two-minute description of the backstory. Don't get me wrong -- some of the story dances are among my favorites -- but it's especially refreshing after last week's crazy alien dance. Nigel says they obviously worked very hard, but he doesn't honestly always see chemistry between them, but technically it was good. Mary says she does see chemistry, but she didn't see magic between them even though she did love the choreography. "Caitlin, you are again another outstanding woman in this competition. You just week after week come up with really amazing lines." Tyce says she gave them great partnering and that they had the lines and were in sync, but he thinks they played it a little safe, but their work is appreciated. 

Phillip and Jeanine have a jive with Tony Meredith and Melanie Laplatin. Oh, Phillip. This is a tough routine, but I think Phillip is just out of his depth, and Jeanine just dances circles around him. Nigel praises the choreography and says the dancers have to bring it to life, and that Phillip did the best he has in his own style. That is taking into account that he slipped and he was nervous, but he is still coming to life. He says Jeanine is for sure one of their Top 10 dancers. Mary guarantees that Jeanine will be back. She says she was surprised by Phillip and how he handled the speedy footwork and adds that Jeanine was on fire. I'm starting to think that maybe I didn't even watch Phillip because I was watching Jeanine the whole time. Tyce: "I say call 1-888-FAN-FRIGGIN-TASTIC!"

Randi and Evan are sad to be splitting up. Their final dance is a samba with Pasha and Anya. (Pasha! Anya! Yay!) They are not sure how they are going to handle all the shimmying and booty-shaking, but they give it their all. They are dressed in animal-print costumes, which I am going to assume was someone's attempt to help them own their characters a little more, but I'm not buying it. Here's the thing. I love these two, but I think they were not that comfortable with the idea of the dance still and despite their great technique, that still came through a bit. Nigel isn't sure what to say. He says Evan is not a hot samba king, though he did everything he was supposed to, and that even though Randi is hot, together, "it wasn't as hot as I would like it." Mary says, "It might not have been hot, but there was a slow sizzle going on." She loved the choreography and their partnering, but Evan needed to push and "get gritty with it." Tyce says Evan needed to be a detective and see what the previous contestants have done to kill the samba (in a good way). Mary feels like she was interrupted and adds that Randi was a hot tamale.

Brandon and Janette have a Wade Robson jazz routine for their last dance together. They will be cartoonish thieves. Wade takes some guff for doing a lot of "weird x" or "strange y" routines, but I really do love this one. It doesn't hurt that I already like the song (Roisin Murphy's "Ruby Blue"), but Brandon and Janette sell this performance, goofy characters and all. Nigel says that tonight they have shown that "there isn't anything we can throw at you that you don't do brilliantly."He says that Janette shocks him because next to her little picture, it says "salsa," and she has stayed with Brandon and kept up with everything they have done. He says they deserve the most votes of the night. Mary agrees, "BEST FOR LAST!" Tyce: "You guys just have that thing. ... You're not a victim. You're in charge. ... I'm so proud and privleged to watch you."

All right, who's going to make the Top 10? Or perhaps a better question is: Who isn't? 

One is Jesse Sandlin, the chef at Abacrombie, who Elizabeth Large had already speculated might be in the cast.

There's also brothers Bryan and Michael Voltaggio, both from Frederick. Bryan is the chef and owner of Volt on Market Street in Frederick. Michael lives in L.A. now and is the Chef de Cuisine at Bazaar by Jose Andres.

I'll get some more details as soon as I can, but in the meantime, here's the full cast list for Top Chef: Las Vegas, which premieres on Aug. 26:

* Ashley Merriman, 32 – Center Sandwich, N.H.; Resides in Seattle, Wash.

* Bryan Voltaggio, 33 – Hometown: Frederick, Md.; Resides in Urbana, Md.

* Eli Kirshtein, 25 – Hometown/Resides in: Atlanta, Ga.

* Eve Aronoff, 40 – Hometown/Resides in: Ann Arbor, Mich.

* Hector Santiago, 41 – Hometown: San Juan, Puerto Rico; Resides in Atlanta, Ga.

* Jennifer Carroll, 33 – Hometown/Resides in: Philadelphia, Pa.

* Jennifer Zavala, 31 – Hometown: Cromwell, Conn.; Resides in Philadelphia, Pa.

* Jesse Sandlin, 30 – Hometown/Resides in: Baltimore, Md.

* Kevin Gillespie, 26 – Hometown/Resides in: Atlanta, Ga.

* Laurine Wickett, 38 – Hometown: Rochester, N.Y.; Resides in San Francisco, Calif.

* Mattin Noblia, 29 – Hometown: Biarritz, France; Resides in San Francisco, Calif.

* Michael Isabella, 34 – Hometown: Little Ferry, N.J.; Resides in Washington, D.C. 

* Michael Voltaggio, 30 – Hometown: Frederick, Md.; Resides in Los Angeles, Calif.

* Preeti Mistry, 33 – Hometown/Resides in: San Francisco, Calif.

* Robin Leventhal, 43 – Hometown: Sun Valley, Idaho; Resides in Seattle, Wash.

* Ron Duprat, 40 – Hometown: Mare Rouge, Haiti; Resides in Hollywood, Fla. and Naples, Fla.

Mary Carole McCauley got a chance to catch up with Annapolis dancer Caitlin Kinney yesterday. The 21-year-old is in the Top 12 on Fox's So You Think You Can Dance, which airs on Wednesday and Thursday nights. Here's Mary:

After portraying an alien attempting to impregnate her human prey, Caitlin Kinney fully expected to be in danger of elimination last week on Fox’s hit reality show So You Think You Can Dance.

Before Thursday night’s results show was broadcast, the lithe, 21-year-old from Annapolis rehearsed the "dance for your life" solo required of competitors who receive the fewest viewer votes.

"Honestly, I didn’t think there was any way Jason and I weren’t going to be in the bottom three," she says, referring to her partner, Jason Glover. "We’ve been hanging on by our teeth. When I found out we were safe, I was just flabbergasted."

Kinney, who studied at Baltimore School for the Arts and trained as a classical ballerina, wrapped up an intense day of practicing by chatting about the ups and downs of the competition thus far, and her future plans.

Q: None of the dance styles you’ve assigned so far play to your strengths. Has that been hard?

A: It has been frustrating. I’d love to have a chance to dance something more lyrical. Of course, we don’t choose what dance styles we’ve been given, or what we wear. I’ll be honest, I was a little jealous when Melissa [Sandvig] got to dance a pas de deux in toe shoes last week. At the same time, the harder you work, the greater your rewards. I’d rather get a style that plays to our strengths later in the competition.

A: That’s a darn good question. Most of my training is in ballet, but I don’t have a traditional body for classical ballet. I’m not stick thin, and I have a very muscular build. I’m happy now with the way my body is, but boy, it takes a long time for any woman to be able to say that. I’m not quite sure yet in what style as a dancer I fit best. That’s why I auditioned for So You Think You Can Dance. Never again will I have the opportunity to learn all these different styles compressed into one summer.

Q: When I talked to your sister Megan last week, she said you guys used to talk about running a joint studio/health clinic.

A: Yeah, when we were kids. Megan and I were going to run a studio where people could study dancing and acting, and Erin [their eldest sister], who is now studying neuropathic medicine, would run a health clinic next door. I honestly think that’s one of my long-term goals, but it’s down the road. I don’t want to open a studio before I have knowledge to impart.

Q: Was it hard for you when Megan didn’t make the cut? [Megan Kinney, 19, auditioned separately for the reality dance competition and made it to the final round in Las Vegas before being tossed out.]

A: We both knew that whether we got cut on the first round or later on, one of us would get sent home, and the other would go on. We had a long talk about it before we went out to Las Vegas. Megs is so unbelievably talented, I really thought she would be the one to advance. When she was cut, we both high-tailed it out of the room so we could avoid the cameras. Her leaving was the worst part of the competition for me.

Q: How is your hip feeling these days? [After a potentially career-ending injury, Kinney’s right hip was surgically rebuilt two years ago.]

A: It’s really wonderful. I’ve been so blessed, because I ended up having even more flexibility than I had before my injury. But, getting injured was really tough. When I was told I might not dance again, I just stayed in bed for two weeks and read books. One of the favorite things my mother ever said to me is: "The true definition of faith is to sit in the unknown and be OK with it." I thought about that a lot. And, when I did come back to dance, I had a new sense of gratefulness.

Photo by Kelsey McNeal/FOX

Tonight's number -- a Broadway routine to "Brand New Day" from The Wiz choreographed by Tyce DiOrio -- is no exception. So good, so fun, and amazing costumes. (I am, however, as usual, distracted by some of the manic camerawork that makes it tough to actually see the dancers' movements.)

Host Cat Deeley gets right to the results: Karla and Vitolio and Evan and Randi are called to the stage. The quick step still might be the kiss-of-death dance, as it turns out the Karla and Vitolio are in the bottom three couples.

After the break, three more judges are on the stage. Janette and Brandon find out they are safe. Kayla and Kupono are in the bottom three couples, and Melissa and Ade are safe. Mia Michaels says she is shocked about Kayla and Kupono because she thinks they were the best performance of the night. Kayla actually cries because she's so overcome.

That leaves two couples: Caitlin and Jason and Jeanine and Phillip. (Members of Caitlin's family, including her mom and her aunt, are there dressed similarly to her crazy costume from last night, with a sign that says "Aliens for Caitlin.") Caitlin and Jason are safe (and shocked), and Phillip and Jeanine are in the bottom three.

The evening's professional dance performance is an amazing ballet by dancers Desmond Richardson and Patricia Hachey from Complexions Contemporary Ballet. 

Then, solos: Karla looks remarkably comfortable and strong on stage tonight. Vitolio dances to "Here Comes Goodbye," which seems like a bad choice of song. His solo is a little disjointed and off the cuff. Kayla gives an energetic and emotional but more controlled performance than her last time in the bottom three, when she was accused (unfairly, I think) of cramming too much into the solo. Kupono exudes a lot of emotion in his solo, joy and hope and just wanting to be there, I think. Jeanine finally gets to dance her style on this stage, and she is so good. Last is Phillip, who gets to show off what he does best, his crazily unique popping and locking and limb-wrenching.

Kelly Clarkson comes out to sing "I Do Not Hook Up" while the judges deliberate. She sounds great, and she looks better than when she was on Idol last season, but she still needs her stylist to work a little bit harder on her behalf. 

The judges are back with the results, women first. Nigel tells Jeanine that she had the strongest solo of the evening and is safe. He tells Kayla that she is a favorite of the judges and the choreographers, but they found her solo to be very "static" and not dancing from the heart. They say that Karla is a very good dancer, but she hasn't quite shown the star quality they saw in her at first, so she is out. So Oxon Hill, Md., dancer Karla Garcia is going home. She says she will remember all her friends and dancing her contemporary routine.

They are unanimous with the guys, too. They tell Phillip he is unique and superb, but they thought he overworked his solo. Still, they are keeping him. Nigel says Vitolio has great presence and presents himself well, but he doesn't deliver. Kupono is told that his solo was weak and didn't show much passion, but they hope to see more from him in the future. So Vitolio is out as well.

Guess the quick step really is the kiss of death! Yikes.

Mia says, that, without naming names, it has changed for the better. So she regrets being so horrible to Brandon? Nigel asks if she is talking about a "small, male dancer," and she says yes.

Speaking of Brandon, Janette and Brandon are first, and they relive their highs and lows, which means that they recap the past three weeks in their own words. They are doing the cha-cha with Jean-Marc Genereax. The dance is very fast and sexy and fun, and they kill it. Janette is obviously in her element, but Brandon stays right with her. Nigel Lythgoe calls it "the best damn cha-cha I have ever seen on this show ever!" He praises Brandon's articulation of his feet in particular. "I can't even begin to describe how good this was," he goes on. Mary Murphy calls Janette amazing, pointing out that salsa technique and cha-cha technique are very different, and she did a great job. And, of course, "two first-class tickets on the hot tamale train [SCREEEEEEEEEEEECH]!" Mia acknowledges that she has probably scared Brandon, but says that she is the hardest on her best students and that that's where it's coming from. She makes Brandon cry. "You are going to love me and hate me on this journey. ... You are ... you're amazing. Janette, you've been on fire since day one, and today is no exception."

Randi and Evan are doing Broadway with Joey Dowling, and in the performance they have to fight. In rehearsal, it looks really complicated, but they seem to have figured it out since then because during the performance, they are very in sync and they are really selling the story with their faces, too. Nigel tell us it's an homage to Bob Fossey and that it was terrific. He tells them their wrists need to be a little more flexible in this particular case. He says that Randi carried it off, but, as per usual, he expected a little bit more flair from Evan. Mary says that Evan and Randi mostly got the character well, though it could have been a little brighter. Still, though, she was entertained. Mia says they needed to take the work to the next level because of their slight height. Mia says Randi was a little "heavy," though she is careful in her use of the word to make sure that it's about Randi's movement, not her size. She says they did a good job but she wants more.

Caitlin and Jason are next. (By the way, in case you missed it, Mary McCauley interviewed Caitlin's family today about her time on the show.) They are doing pop-jazz with Brian Friedman, and it's pretty weird: Caitlin is a space alien who has destroyed earth and is searching the planet for the last man alive so she can procreate. Hmmm ... OK. The whole dance is very strange and out-there, and Caitlin is wearing an outfit that might even rival the crash-test dummies from a couple of weeks ago. No matter what, it's definitely interesting, but there was so much going on, it's hard for me to judge. Nigel says that Brian is from another planet and that it was very weird, but that to make it work, they had to commit themselves 100 percent and that they did that. Nigel says that if she is trying to get impregnated, she might be a little too covered up: "It's like the dancing condom or something." "Safety first, Nigel, safety first," Cat says. Mary says it didn't play to their strengths, but they dug in and had a lot of fun doing it. "It just didn't sit right with me," she says. But she still loves the two of them and hopes they won't be in trouble. Mia says she thinks Brian just wanted to have some fun and that they danced it really well.

Phillip and Jeanine are doing hip-hop with Napoleon and Tabitha, and their story is about how they are locked together into this partnership on the show. And in a totally not-subtle move, they are connected together with a chain. This seems kind of gimmicky and actually a little dangerous to me. I mean, I don't mind props altogether, but there seems to be a lack of grace in the idea of, "Oh, I know, let's do a dance about people who are locked together in a partnership, and let's ... lock them together!" Just not that novel, you know what I mean? That said, they dance it well, though Jeanine does seem to trip on the chain toward the end. (Not that we can tell because the camera work is so tight at that point. That annoys me sometimes -- gets too fancy and you can't actually see what the dancers are doing!) Nigel says if they keep dancing like that, they should be chained together for life. He credits Jeanine for making it look like every style is her style, when actually she hasn't done her own style yet. Mary thought it was creative and fabulous and that they handled the props well and that Jeanine was crazy-good. Mia says she is a big fan of Napoleon and Tabitha and that the concept was there, but she found herself getting caught up in the "chainography" -- which was a little sloppy and uncontrolled. Basically, she found it distracting.

Melissa and Ade are doing a pas de deux from Romeo and Juliet with choreographer Throdal Christensen. Melissa (the ballerina, luckily) says it has been her dream to dance Juliet, so she gets to live her dream on national television. That's pretty cool. The dance is lovely and wonderful, and I love seeing ballet on this show. Melissa is a total natural, and Ade holds his own. I worry, though, that because it's a quieter style of dance than some of the others that people won't be as pressed to call in for them. But I hope they do. Nigel says it's amazing that they are doing classical ballet on this show and that it was beautifully danced. He says Ade's feet could be a little better, but his carriage was amazing. Mary says she just loved it and found the chemistry flawless and believable. She says they put her in a dreamlike state she didn't want to wake from. Mia says she's excited to be celebrating classical ballet on the show and excited that it was danced as well as it was danced. She also says, "I also love that it's a black and white Romeo and Juliet. ... You can't fake classical ballet; it exposes everything." And they did it!

Last tonight are Karla and Vitolio with the quickstep. 

Before that, they announce the Dizzy Feet Foundation, a new group that will avoid scholarships to underprivileged youth, starting with 10 students. The committee includes Katie Holmes, Debbie Allen, Carrie Ann Inaba and others. Nigel mentions that July 23 will be the 100th episode and will feature a Judy Garland tribute dance by Katie Holmes choreographed by Tyce DiOrio. 

So then it's actually time for new couple Karla and Vitolio and their quickstep with the Genereauxs. They are supposed to be in a museum, and Vitolio is a statue. It's a crowd-pleaser, with lots of speed and lifts and energy, very cute. Not to mention, it has a very impressive costume change -- at first Karla is wearing a poufy black-and-white polka-dot dress, but once she and Vitolio start the quick part of the quickstep, they do ... well, I'm not sure exactly what, and suddenly the dress turns almost inside-out, and she's wearing a sparkly pink and orange gown. Nigel: "There were so many good things about that." He loved the choreography and the costume change and the footwork and most of the lines. Mary: "Well so much for the kiss-of-death dance!" She says Vitolio did a magnificent job, as did Karla. Mia says that Jean-Marc is a genius (she's all about praising the choreographers tonight) and that she isn't taking away from their performance when she says that. She is amazed by how they did. Vitolio says he hoped they turned the kiss of death into the kiss of joy. Mia says, "You made out with it!"

What did you think about tonight? I feel like people stepped it up a notch (um, as it were). I'm afraid for some of the more surreal performances, but I can't name one huge misstep.

(Photo courtesy of Fox)

But hey, Melissa went on to great success on Dancing With the Stars, and now she's engaged for real this time. So who's laughing now?

You can read more here.

After the group dance, head judge Nigel Lythgoe acknowledges the tragic losses of Ed McMahon, Farrah Fawcett and, of course, Michael Jackson. He says that he himself went into dancing because of Michael Jackson, and they even air a bit of the "Thriller" video.

After the break, they get right started with results, bringing five couples to the floor. Asuka and Vitolio are first; they are in the bottom three. Brandon and Janette learn that they're safe. Randy and Evan are, too, thanks to their "cheeky" performance, as Cat puts it. Jeanine and Phillip? Also safe. In this group of five couples, that leaves Ade and Melissa, who eventually learn that they are also in the clear.

The special guest dancer tonight is the Rage Boys Crew, a group of b-boys that is made up of, well, boys, some of whom are clearly in the single-digit age range. Very cute.

Then, it's solo time. Asuka has the usual awkward partner-dancer-doing-a-solo problem going on. Vitolio looks very strong but somewhat manic all over the stage. Karla shows about 10 times as much energy and range than she did last night. Jonathan does a lot of tricks, but his actual dancing isn't that exciting. Caitlin and Jason have to wait until after the break.

Caitlin, who also has a gymnastics background, manages to incorporate her tricks into, you know, actual dancing. Jason kicks butt.

The judges are excused to figure out who's getting ditched, and in the meanting, the Veronicas perform. The audio is a little funky during the performance -- some of it is really loud, some, not so much.

Cut time! Nigel calls Caitlin forward: "YOu are without doubt growing in confidence each week. We think you gave the best solo tonight." Whew, the Annapolis/BSA grad dancer is safe, though I think she was confused at first. Nigel says Karla was a little bit desperate tonight, falling out of pirouettes. He tells Asuka she is a beautiful performer, but they don't think she's growing in the competition, so she is out. That means that Oxon Hill, Md., dancer Karla is also safe.

Nigel says they weren't unanimous with the guys. He calls Vitolio forward, and says he doesn't always follow through, that they will expect bigger movements from him based on his preparation for said moves. Jonathan is told that last night wasn't good and that his solo was lots of gymnastics, but not enough dancing. Nigel says that Jason's solo also seemed desperate and didn't dance for his life, but he is good enough to stay. Nigel yells and says they need to hurry up because they are running out of time. Vitolio is safe, and Jonathan is out.

I think these two cuts are pretty good. I totally agree that Asuka didn't seem to show much growth and that Jonathan was full of tricks, but not enough dancing most of the time. What say you?

At the very end of the show, Cat announces that Fox is rebroadcasting the American Idol Top 13 from this season, which was all Michael Jackson tunes. This, by the way, is the first time Fox has ever rebroadcast an episode of AI.