Shane Sparks and Alex da Silva

You know how it feels when you’re watching a really great movie, only to have something so unrealistic happen that it jolts you back into reality? I’m having something like that happen to me with SYTYCD.

The reason: since the show first started airing, both Alex da Silva and Shane Sparks have been arrested for committing sex offenses. Da Silva was arrested in 2009 and charged with 4 counts of rape. Last September (2011), he was convicted on one count of rape and one count of assault with attempt to commit rape. Sparks was also arrested in 2009, on the even more disturbing charge of child rape. You can read the sordid details of the accusation here and here.

Season 2, Episodes 4&5: Vegas Week and Meet the Top 20

With Vegas week, SYTYCD Season 2 is finally getting started. This time around, 116 dancers made it to Vegas. Since 20 of them will make the show, they each have a little less than a 1 in 5 chance of making it. Doesn’t sound too scary when I put it that way, does it?

                

I should mention that the prize for this season is a little different. Instead of winning $100,000 and a year in a gorgeous NYC apartment, the winner of Season 2 gets a contract to perform in Celine Dion’s show in Vegas, a new car, and $100.000. I’ve always wondered what on earth Nick Lazarini did with that apartment to get them to change the prize. I like Nick, so I’m keeping my fingers crossed that they just decided it wasn’t the most useful way to jump start a dance career. I also have to mention that I love the irony of this being a show about finding a star – and then the prize is to be a background dancer for a “real” star.

Like most Vegas shows, this episode is all about drama. Dancing is hard! Lots of people get very sweaty! People get hurt (but never as badly as the teasers suggest)! I would watch the show even if no one got injured. Honestly.

Episodes 1-3: The Season 2 Auditions

We’re on Season 2, huzzah! Even if it is only the audition shows. I’ve decided to write one post on all of the audition shows, because let’s face it, who wants to read 3 posts about auditions? (And ok, who wants to write that many posts about auditions? Even the best of these episodes is not that interesting.)

But there is one thing about the Season 2 auditions that is unreservedly awesome. Cat Deeley is hosting! I didn’t realize it until I started doing this rewatch, but SYTYCD just isn’t SYTYCD without Cat. She gives the show its soul – chipper, warm, a little acerbic, and prone to goosebumps.

Season 1 Synopsis: What do I remember?

It has now been a few weeks since I have watched the Season 1 finale, and almost a year since I started this project (I’ll be faster with Season 2, I promise!). So the questions I now need to ask myself are: How does this season stack up? How much of it do I remember?

The truth is, I don’t remember very much from Season 1. In terms of the dancers, I remember Nick and Melody clearly, though with a little effort, I can dredge some of the other dancers (Ashlé, Jamile, Ryan, Destini, Blake) up from the mnemonic void. I can’t remember a single dance clearly. All I can remember is that Mary Murphy is a damned good choreographer, and needs to start choreographing again. Lauren Sanchez was an adequate host, but hiring Cat Deeley to host Season 2 was one of the smartest moves the producers ever made.

Episode 12: The Finale

The final episode of Season 1 makes it very clear this is a test run. Most of the show is pre-packaged filler, with some results thrown in. It kind of felt like the producers went “Oh, crap, we have to do a results show. What is that supposed to look like?” There are two new numbers created especially for the show, but otherwise the dancers just repeat some old dances. The dancers themselves (supposedly) chose their favorite dance of the season, but to be honest, none of the dances were really worth seeing again.

The two most interesting performances come from non-contestants. First, we have Anthony Bryant, otherwise known as “that dude from with the ribbon” from the auditions. He dances with his ribbon again, and it’s clear this guy is really good. I’m not surprised to find out he’s at Julliard. At the end of his performance, Nigel waves a little white ribbon in surrender. It’s a great PR move – no one has to apologize, and everyone saves face. The second performance is by a hip hop group known as the Gruvaloos (http://www.groovaloos.com/), which features some pretty impressive break dancing.