#sytycd13

[kelly-sweeney]

Jordan is so pretty

[sytycdinternational]

Throwback to US13: Kida, Tate, Emma, Tahani, Ruby and J,T.

[sytycdopinions]

#68: “I Love It” (Daniela & Sheaden, Cha-Cha) - Umaria Diallo

This is the point in the list where I start to like all of the dances, so obviously I enjoyed most of the work these kids were able to produce this season. I’m glad that although the producers obviously knew Daniela was going, they gave her a bunch of opportunities to show herself off in the last week (each dance she got was a style she excelled in). Sadly, this choreography had to be watered down for Sheaden, but I was actually pleasantly surprised with what he was able to pull off here. For a Hip-Hop dancer with little-to-no cross-training, Ballroom is probably the style that provides the biggest struggle, because there’s really no way to fake it like a lot of them can with Contemporary and Jazz. His frame and footwork were pretty off, but he brought great energy and supported Daniela pretty well. I really commend Daniela for making choreography that was so simple for her look so dynamic and interesting. It didn’t look like she ever treated this dance like it was beneath her, and that’s a great attitude to have. Overall, this dance is simple and has its problems, but it’s fun and energetic, so I don’t care...I love it (sorry, I had to).

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#69: “Change is Everything” (JT & All-Star Robert, Contemporary) - Robert Roldan

It’s so weird to hear this song with actual music behind it now, haha. JT and Robert had a lot of great dances together, but I was a bit underwhelmed by this one. It think Robert did a decent job with the choreography, but this could have used a lot of technical cleaning. JT seemed to be struggling with his balance for the majority of the piece, and in his solo bits he kept cutting his lines short. I wish Robert would have choreographed a Jazz dance for JT actually, since JT is a Jazz dancer. I think that would have suited him better, because he really seemed to struggle with those held extensions and his control in general. A fast, sharp Jazz piece would have shown him off more.

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#70: “Jailhouse Rock” (Tahani & Jake, Jive) - Emma Slater & Sasha Farber

This is the dance where I realized that the judges would be harsher on Tahani than the rest of the contestants in this season. This dance is pretty bad, but I don’t think it’s Tahani’s fault like the judges suggested, but more the fault of poor choreography. Jake’s technique is obviously stronger here, as it should be since he’s in his style, but Tahani is doing pretty good job technically as well. She did a good job of getting that bouncy feel. This dance just isn’t very interesting in itself, so no matter who danced it, I don’t think this would have been a very good piece. That’s just my opinion, though.

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#71: “Malhari” (JT & All-Star Marko, Bollywood) - Nakul Dev Mahajan

I feel bad having all of these JT routines at the bottom, but he was the contestant I found to be most noticeably weak outside of his style. It’s understandable because of his age, but that doesn’t change the fact. JT has a habit of cutting off his lines before they finish completely, and next to a dancer like Marko it’s especially apparent. I’m also just not a huge of the song or the choreography. Though I think this dance was a mess overall, there are moments that I love. Like when the beat first drops, I love the moves they do together. Both of them look so good in that part. I also love that jump they did together after. That was the strongest I have ever seen JT jump, and I was shocked that he was able to do such a technical one so well.

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#72: “Dessert” (Emma & JT, Hip-Hop) - Nappytabs

I lost it at JT’s pimp-walk entrance. I could not take a Willy Wonka Hip-Hop dance seriously with that kind of entrance. This choreography is a mess, and I’m really disappointed that Nappytabs didn’t want to challenge JT more outside of his style. Emma looks like she’s doing the best she can to make this look good, but there’s really no saving this choreography. Then there’s that whole “Make it rain!” bit...why was that necessary? I’d be so upset with Nappytabs if I was part of the clean-up crew for this show, because there was no reason to dump all of those balls across the stage when the dance was already over.

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#73:  “Bom Bom” (Tahani & JT, Cha-Cha) - Emma Slater & Sasha Farber

I normally refrain from saying any routine featuring kids is bad...but this dance is just bad, there’s no other way around it. It’s not really Tahani or JT’s fault -- though their lack of Ballroom technique was very apparent -- because the choreography, the song, and the costumes weren’t really doing them any favors. Even if Paul and Ruby had been given this dance, I don’t think I would have liked it. That said, Tahani and JT were a mess together. Their technique was off, their timing was off from each other, and I just didn’t feel a genuine connection between them. The one saving grace in the routine is that Tahani and JT are such great performers individually and don’t give away any of their struggle in their faces. I wish I had better things to say about this, but I agree with the judges that this routine left them exposed.