Another week and another injury. Clearly the dancers on So You Think You Can Dance this season are going for it more than ever before. This week Ashley got hurt during Monday rehearsals and was didn’t dance. Her injury was bad enough that she wasn’t even in the audience last night. As with Alex last week, she’s automatically in the bottom three. It’s going to be a difficult choice on the other two this week because everyone stepped up their game and everyone peaked in one way or another.

I loved how engaged Cat was last night. She’s been talking more, and giving more opinions, this season than ever before and I like this change. She’s an advocate for the dancers, she’s engaging the All Stars more when they are standing next to the dancers and offering support to them. I love her even more this season than I already did.

I hope they keep the trend of having the boys dance together. It’s happened a few times this season with great success and last night proved that even more with Jose/Dominic and Kent/Neil pairings. Of course the Alex/Twitch combination from a few weeks ago will stand as one of the best dances ever on SYTYCD. They need to pair up the girls too, which is probably not going to happen this season since there are so few left at this point.

Like last week, each dancer performed with an All Star they’d not previously danced with and then performed with another contestant. Here’s my top three from last night:

• Jose (Tabitha & Napoleon D’uomo hip hop). Jose in his style is smoking’ hot. This breakin’ style hip hop was stellar. The moves were fierce and complex, especially Jose going up in the air and landing on Dominic’s feet. The bit with the sword seemed like an afterthought, but the battle to get to it was very cool. Note: This was supposed to be Jose’s dance with another competitor, but with the odd number of contestants, he was paired with an All Star.
• Robert (Travis Wall contemporary). This was dedicated to Travis’ mom as she struggles with illness. Robert and Allison danced the beautiful choreography perfectly. Travis captured what it’s like to want to fix someone and this dance will stand with classics like Mia’s “Addiction” and Tyce’s “Breast Cancer” from seasons past.
• Lauren (Tiana Liufau Tahitian). Here was something completely new for SYTYCD and it wasn’t the kiss of death that some ethnic dances can be (like the Russian folk dance). This was strong, aggressive and down right hot. I have to admit that this was less about Lauren and more about Mark because he was looking oh so good.

Here’s a look at the rest of last night’s performances, in the order in which they appeared:

• AdéChiké (Liz Lira salsa). This was a little to posed sometimes. It was as if they had to pause for a moment to get to the next move so that affected the musicality a bit. Overall though AdéChiké and Anya did a great job here and AdéChiké seemed to find the right performance mode for this super complex salsa.
• Jose (Joey Dowling Boradway). The judges came down hard on Jose here saying that is lack of training showed here because his personality wasn’t evident. Well, his personality wasn’t evident because it wasn’t appropriate for the piece. I thought he nailed the performance aspect and while his technique was flawed at times it was still quite well done. This was far from the train wreck the judges made it sound like.
• Billy (Louis Van Amstel jive). Louis put together a super hot rock and roll routine. I loved how he used the Meatloaf duet to let Billy and Anya really play off each other. Billy nailed the performance here too, really finding the connection with Anya. It was everything he should’ve had in the “Footloose” performance in week 1.
• Kent (Tyce Diorio Broadway). The judges comments confused me here. Neil outdanced Kent every step of the way here. Kent did a perfectly fine job, but this number belonged to Neil. It looked like Kent just wasn’t dancing as big as his All Star partner. It was a good routine, one of Tyce’s better Broadway numbers, but Kent needed to leave more on the floor.
• Lauren & Billy (Many Moore jazz). The choreography let these two down a bit. For a story about shoes with magic powers, neither Billy or Lauren were doing things that were too complex. They did, however, dance the routine great and infused it with a lot of fun. A solid “performance” number from them both and more proof that Billy is growing on the performance side very nicely.
• Kent & AdéChiké (Dee Caspray contemporary) Few things can be more beautiful and powerful than two male dancers doing contemporary. In many week’s this would have made my top three, but the fact that it wasn’t there doesn’t mean that I didn’t love this dance. It fit Kent and AdéChiké very well and they nailed the complex choreography where they chairs were additional partners. I didn’t quite get the “story” side of it, but the piece was wonderful nonetheless.
• Robert (Doriana Sanches disco). Robert was supposed to be with Ashley but with her injury he danced with All Star Kathryn for this number that felt like I was watching Dance Fever…and that was a very good thing. This number was a great closing one for the show with the high energy and fun. Robert rocked the performance and this, along with his earlier contemporary piece, should keep him safe this week.

It’s hard to pick two to join Ashley in the bottom three this week. I’d love to see AdéChiké there, of course. I hope Jose’s fan base keep him out of danger since the judges were extra hard on him with the Broadway number. I’m thinking we’re going to see previous bottom three people, like Robert, Billy or Lauren. Everyone hit high notes this week, so we’re getting to the point where the cuts really hurt.

Results update: And there goes Ashley since she needs more time to heal. As usual I’m wildly disappointed that AdéChiké escapes the bottom since there are dancers far better and more engaging than him. I wasn’t so surprised about Jose given the Broadway number last night but was sad to find Billy there since he really had a great night.

I loved the Alvin Ailey performance. It was an edgier number than I’m used to from them and I loved it. Twitch and Comfort together again was also a treat.

I’m psyched the Season 7 tour is coming to Radio City. We are definitely going. They said it’s going to have dancers from the All-Stars and Seasons 6 and 7, so it’s going to be fab!

So You Think You Can Dance Season 7 started competition last night with a live performance show instead of a pre-taped one. It was clear from outset it was live as Cat introduced Jose as Ade and we were treated to some sloppy camera work during the dancer’s introductions. Luckily that was the end of the issues and the rest of the show seemed to go off without a hitch. I am sad that they don’t seem to be adding Season 6 highlights into the opening titles this year. Last Thursday Season 5 dances were removed, but generic dance stuff is in its place rather than Season 6 dances.

I love Mia Michaels on the judging panel. The energy and insight she brought to the table was fabulous. Her and Adam in particularly are a wonderful combination. I was disappointed that the choreographers weren’t at the table like they were in last week’s intro show. I liked the insight last week they provided.

Let’s get into this week’s dances. On the whole the show was great, but there was a lack of performance in several dances. The judges hit it on the head saying that there was a lot of great technique but some of the dancers just didn’t bring the spark of performance and that’s a shame because it adds so much no matter the style.

Here’s my take on the dances, beginning with my top three for the night:

• Alex (Sonya Tayeh contemporary): Absolutely amazing. Sonya choreographed stunning movement and Alex, along with his All-Star Allison, were extraordinary. The piece, set to Jeff Buckley’s version of “Hallelujah,” was powerful, technically stunning and packed with emotion and chemistry between the two dancers. It’s among the most brilliant pieces ever done on SYTYCD and with it Alex has set the bar for the performance level for this season and seasons to come.
• Robert (Sean Cheesman African Jazz): I didn’t see this coming from Robert, who comes off as such an adorable goofball. He and Courtney looked like they had a joy dancing this number and the movements were strong and created some great pictures as they moved across the stage. My only gripe is I wish the music had been more powerful to accompany the movement.
• Christina (Sonya Tayeh Jazz): Sonya was on fire this week as she crafted a quirky jazz dance for Christina, who had the benefit of All-Star Mark (who specializes in quirky). Two things I loved here: You forgot that Christina was a salsa dancer as she embraced this style and these two, despite the quirky movements, made the whole number into one gorgeous fluid piece.

The rest of the recap is now in the order the dances were performed:

• Billy (Tyce Diorio Broadway): I was very mixed on this piece. I’m not always a fan of Tyce’s Broadway choreography and this piece was one of those for me. It felt very rah-rah cheerleaderish and I don’t feel it captured Billy’s strengths. That said, I did enjoy seeing Billy dance completely outside his style and at a rapid pace, which he will certainly need if he ever pulls a salsa, jive or any of the other speedy dances.
• Jose (Tabitha & Napoleon D’uomo Hip Hop): This was a good number, but I didn’t feel that Jose really found his inner fierceness, especially when compared to Comfort who rocked her performance. The choreography was outstanding and I liked the inclusion of the jumps and holds which were well done.
• AdéChiké (Travis Wall Jazz): There was a serious lack of chemistry and performance here. All-Star Kathryn gave everything she had from her movements and commit to the character, but AdéChiké was mostly getting through the moves. He did the moves great, but it could’ve been so much more if he had connected with the character and Kathryn.
• Melinda (Tony Meredith & Melanie Lapatin Jive): I disagree with the judges here. I thought this dance was quite good. Yes, Melinda had some technical issues getting the Jive right, but she sold it and overall the entire performance package came off great. I thought occasionally her face looked more “nervous/scared” than “fun” but I enjoyed this a lot.
• Alexie (Tabitha & Napoleon D’uomo Hip Hop): This was a long way away from Alexie’s jazz/contemporary style and it looked like she was trying to perform the hip hop as if it was jazz. It kind of worked here because of the more lyrical feel of the choreography. However, you only had to look at Twitch to see how it should be done to know she wasn’t doing it quite right.
• Lauren (Mandy Moore Pop Jazz) This was disappointing. Lauren had a strong partner in Ade and yet this fun piece of choreography fell a little flat because there was no chemistry between them and no real performance from Lauren outside of some mugging to the audience.
• Kent (Tony Meredith & Melanie Lapatin Cha Cha) How adorable is Kent? So far outside his style and yet he danced this so well and kept up with his All-Star partner Anya. I thought his hands were occasionally out of whack (but maybe I’m wrong about that because the judges didn’t say anything about that). This was fun and it had great chemistry.
• Ashley (Tyce Diorio Contemporary) This was the disappointment of the night. This number should have been as goosebump worthy as Alex’s but it fell flat because Ashely only brought technique to the dance floor and left all of the emotional content elsewhere.

After all of that, I would put Ashely, Lauren and AdéChiké in the bottom three and would send Ashley home.

Results show update: Well I don’t know what America was doing voting for people who at least gave passable performances while keeping disappointments like Ashely and AdéChiké firmly in the competition. I was sad to find Melinda and Christina in the bottom three. Alexie wasn’t a total surprise and I’m okay with her exiting under the circumstances.

Meanwhile, it was awesome to see Come Fly Away and Usher. I could’ve lived with out Justin Bieber though…snooze.

It’s summer and So You Think You Can Dance is back with a new season–one that looks like it is going to be incredible.

The rules have changed this season: there’s no top 20. It’s a top 11 (which was supposed to be a top 10, but luckily they expanded it or there was going to be a revolt). There’s also the All Stars who will partner and mentor to the contestants each week. Check out the All Stars:Twitch, Kathryn, Allison, Neil, Ade, Lauren, Mark, Dominic, Courtney, Anya, Pasha and Comfort

The rehearsals and Vegas week were excellent, especially since they were done in a few two hour episodes instead of dragging out for weeks like they did in the fall. I will say I didn’t like the way they travelled around to deliver the news. That took way too long and was a little boring. Just do it in the studio. Overall I love the top 11 too. The one swap I’d make is AdéChiké for Anthony. Anthony rocked Vegas and, even while in pain, got stunning praise from the judges. I don’t understand how he was not picked. I’m really happy that both Billy and Alex made it since they were favorites in the past who just missed being on the show.

Here’s the top 11:  Lauren, Jose, Billy, AdéChiké, Melinda, Christina, Robert, Alex, Kent, Ashley, Alexie

The Top 11 were introduced tonight in a show where they got to dance in their own styles and not be judges. Wade and Amanda Robson choreographed a stunning opening number featuring all the All Stars and all of the top 11. Based on Alice in Wonderland, it showcased everyone awesomely. After that, the dancers were split up into genres. Being the only b-boy, Jose got to throw down with the great Twitch,Dominic and Comfort in an excellent Tabitha and Napoleon piece. Kent and Lauren got to do a Travis Wall contemporary piece that was beautiful and moving.

Mia Michaels made her choreography  return by working with Billy, Alex and Ade in a magical piece about time. I’m so glad she’s back on the show. It’s going to be great with her creating pieces and serving as a judge. Welcome back, Mia!

The other contempary folks: AdéChiké, Robert and Ashley got to work with Sonya for a delightful lyrical jazz piece. As the sole ballroom contestant, Christina performed with Anya and Pasha. I thought this number was a little weird since ballroom isn’t really made for odd numbers. That didn’t stop it from being fun to watch though.

It’s going to be a kick-ass season. I’m torn about who I think is going to win because everyone is so incredible. I think all of the guys are definite contenders and among the girls I love Lauren, Melinda and Ashely. Next week the competition and voting starts. It’s going to be fun!