(Fox)
The 2017 “So You Think You Can Dance” Academy Week continued on Monday’s new show. Get the full recap and watch videos of some of the performances below!
As Gossip Cop reported, the Dance Academy showcase for season 14 of “So You Think You Can Dance” began airing last week. The 100 dancers who were invited to Los Angeles for call-backs first had to perform solos for the All-Stars, past “SYTYCD” winners and standout finalists who will eventually be paired with this year’s Top 10 for the live shows. The pros who signed up are Gaby Diaz, Comfort Fedoke, Marko Germar, Jasmine Harper, Allison Holker, Jenna Johnson, Paul Kamiryan, Robert Roldan, Cyrus Spencer and Fik-Shun. Each is building a team of four contestants, but will ultimately partner with just one aspiring dancer.
After the solos, 70 dancers were left and off to hip-hop choreography with Nappy Tabs. Following those performances, frontrunners like Kaylee Millis and Dassy Lee were picked to join teams. Those who weren’t asked to join teams yet but weren’t eliminated had to move on to additional choreography sessions to prove their worth, as seen on tonight’s installment. The next challenge was contemporary with Travis Wall. The contestants had to master the Emmy winner’s combo routine, but could freestyle in the beginning.
Among those who nailed it was Taylor Sieve, whom Robert Roldan asked to join his team. Chaz Wolcott, who was a standout during the solos but struggled with the hip-hop task, and didn’t make enough of a comeback to survive the round. Meanwhile, duo Havoc and Klassic (also known as Huwer and Joseph) had to perform individually. Havoc didn’t impress but didn’t tank, and was asked to “dance for your life” to prove he deserved to stay in the competition, while Klassic was outright cut. Havoc redeemed himself and was rewarded with a spot on Spencer’s team.
At that point, 30 dancers were now on teams, and 18 were still in limbo when they headed into the ballroom session with Dmitry Chaplin and Jenya Shatilova, who created a cha cha routine. Despite a stumble, Jensen Arnold, the younger sister of former contestant and “Dancing with the Stars” pro Lindsay Arnold, burst into tears when Roldan told her afterward, “I think you’re my last puzzle piece.” The super-personable Alexis Gilbert similarly scored the final spot on Johnson’s team. The result wasn’t as good for some others from the auditions, like Dustin Payne, who was unfortunately booted.
By the time the group stage arrived, all the teams were full. Now it was a matter of dancing to keep your spot to hopefully be the one left standing with your All-Star. In fact, the pros had to cut contender each during this phase. Married couple Kristina and Vasily, both on Kamiryan’s team, openly clashed in a late-night rehearsal. Following their group performance, Vasily was the one axed. With Holker’s group, Kevin Davis Jr. admitted to struggling with three contemporary dancers.
But “all shined” come show time, to the point where she was moved to tears. “This is probably one of the toughest decisions I’ve ever had to make,” she confessed. And despite praising Davis’ performance, Holker said he would be the one going. That was the case, at least, until Johnson interrupted, saying she couldn’t let him go. She invited Davis to join her own team, even though that now meant she’d have to lose two people instead of just one.
With that double elimination, Gilbert was among those sent home. More shocking? Roldan opted to pass on Arnold, too. Next week, the brutal cuts will continue on the final day of the Academy. Check out video highlights below!
Only one more week of The Academy remains. RETWEET if you can’t wait to see who makes it to the live shows! #SYTYCD pic.twitter.com/TQlhjyVyma
— SYTYCD (@DANCEonFOX) July 25, 2017
