Photo credit: FOX/Michael Becker
My heart can’t take much more… these eliminations are tough. I have to say I was shocked to see Ruby Castro in the bottom two, but then who would I replace her with? Someone has to go each week.
I want to say a couple of things about Sheaden Gabriel based the two weeks I interacted with him. He really had his full heart in the show and I appreciate the hard work he put in to improve. Each week, I saw a marked difference.
He also had a wonderful partnership with Marko Germar. Marko believed in him and I know Sheaden felt it, so cheers to both of them on a successful run on So You Think You Can Dance: The Next Generation.
I was given a seat in the studio this week and I was thrilled to feel the energy of the room. I was able to tweet my initial thoughts on Dance Networks’s Twitter account, but here are a couple of other things to note.
1. Dwindling Audience?: There were a lot of empty seats in the studio this week. They were in the back which cannot be seen by TV cameras, but still… it bummed me out.
2. Goodbye: If you missed my tweet, DOUBLE ELIMINATION next week. Remember, the show is on hiatus for two weeks during the Rio Olympic Games.
3. Voting: The woman sitting next to me ugly cried during J.T. Church and Robert Roldan’s piece choreographed by Travis Wall. It was gorgeous, but it made me think that J.T. is going to last longer than a lot of us originally thought.
The woman also said she thought Ruby would go home soon… and sure enough, Ruby was in the bottom two. Sometimes the average viewer, not the super-fan, offers more insight to the show than you can imagine.
4. Broadway: I spoke with Warren Carlyle on Monday and he will not be back to the show this season. If you remember, he choreographed for the auditioning contestants at The Academy. The good news is that he’s very busy choreographing the Broadway revival of Hello Dolly with BETTE MIDLER.
Spencer Liff is also done for the season. Will we see Al Blackstone or Josh Bergasse in the mix soon or someone new?
5. Interviews: It was a quick press line this week because the kids only had about 15 minutes left of their working day remaining. Remember, FOX has to abide by child labor laws.
In California, the kids can work for eight hours ONLY if school isn’t in session. Once school begins, the work day is even shorter.
I will be at National Dance Day in Los Angeles on Saturday doing coverage for Dance Network. Stay tuned to my Twitter account for more information.