So You Think You Can Dance, Fox’s popular dance program aired the auditions in Austin, TX during last-night’s episode. The show features phenomenal dancers from all dance backgrounds including, contemporary/modern, ballroom, hip-hop, jazz,and tap to list a few. Contestants are challenged throughout several weeks with intense and rigorous training and performing. In the end only one will win.
After the auditions have traveled to select cities and the best of the best from each town are chosen, the contestants are then flown to Las Vegas. There, they learn pieces and work in groups and pairs and the judges then dwindle down the ample crowd of hopefuls to just twenty. The top 20 contestants then perform different choreographed pieces either in partners or solo in the hopes of wining the viewer’s votes. At this point the audience holds the contestants’ fate in their hands.
The winner attains prizes consisting of a cash reward, opportunity to travel the world and tour with the show, and lastly exponential exposure that many winners utilize for furthering their dance careers, in the realm of performance, choreography etc.
One very important thing this show does differently from other dance programs is that it exposes audiences to all those classes of dance previously mentioned as well as other very unique genres of dance like bone breaking, tutting, crumping, and b-boying. The chosen dancers enter the contest with one genre of dance in particular that they excel in, but throughout the course of the show they grow as individuals as well as dancers, achieving more than they knew they could.
The greatest achievement may have occurred during last night’s performance. A gentleman named Hampton “Exorcist” Williams returned to perform before the judge’s panel once more. His first audition was last year on season 9 but to no prevail. This year, season 10 The William’s family amazed the audience moving them to tears. The crowd roared with cheers and a standing ovation followed. That phrase a family that prays together stays together, may be true for one that performs together. The mom, dad, and daughter all THREE made it to Vegas. Austin ends on a high as do we. We’ll be looking forward to see what happens with the “Exorcist” and his family.
