Archive for September, 2009
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Executive Producer & Judge Nigel Lythgoe Talks About Adam Shankman & Season 6 Changes.
On a recent press call, Executive Producer and Judge Nigel Lythgoe discussed Adam Shankman, Season 6, and more.
Although Season 6 is the first fall season of So You Think You Can Dance, Nigel promises that they aren’t changing too much about the already successful summer seasons to cater to a fall crowd of viewers. One change that we’ve announced is the addition of Adam Shankman as a resident judge. That means Tabitha and Napoleon, Lil C, Mia Michaels, Tyce Diorio, etcetera will most likely not be sitting on the judges’ panel this year. Nigel said, “It’s always difficult to put them in because I want them choreographing, and the minute they choreograph, they’re not allowed to be a judge…We will still have an open chair. I would still like Paula Abdul to pop in. I would still like guest judges to pop in when they can. Jennifer Lopez has said how much she loves the program. I would love her to come in and sit down. We tried it with Ellen. It was very successful. I just don’t want four judges every week.”
With each season of So You Think You Can Dance, the judges always mention how the bar is constantly being raised. “The standard of dancing is just improving all of the time,” Nigel stated. “All I’m seeing is this exponential growth that, all of a sudden, we’ve brought street dancing and formally trained dancing together and it’s exploded. Whereas the formally trained dancers didn’t want to take chances, the street dancers will do anything and, therefore, they’re teaching the formally trained, and the formally trained are turning around and teaching the street dancers lines and elevation and things, and it’s absolutely fantastic to see. It’s a great joy for somebody that felt dancing was stagnant for so many years to see this happen, and I’ve really seen a huge growth in five years. A formally trained dancer would never, ever jump onto the back of their head from a standing start without hands. There has always been this fear and knowledge of ‘no, I’ll hurt myself if I do that,’ whereas an untrained dancer will just go for it. So mixing those two things together, we have something very exciting, which I think has brought integrity back into the world of dance and everybody realizes that you have to be an athlete nowadays to be a dancer.”
Nigel opened up about the dancers on Season 5 versus the dancers he hopes to see on Season 6. “I thought technically [the Season 5 dancers] were superb and I would like to certainly keep that standard, that level of dancing, but I would like whoever we have this year to bring personality with it and bring charisma.” Nigel admitted he’d be a very happy man if he can achieve the perfect combo of Season 4’s personalities with Season 5’s technique.
As you saw in the Season 6 premiere, a lot of talented tap dancers have auditioned this year. Nigel said that tap dancers and ballerinas have come out of the woodwork, possibly because they were inspired by Season 5 ballerina Melissa. Will So You Think You Can Dance see their first tapper in the Top 20? “I think two or three of them will possibly even get into the top 20. They’re that good,” Nigel shared.
Recently, it seems like America is having a love affair with dance. Nigel always talks about his goal to promote dance as an art form and make it entertaining. “To be instrumental in trying to bring that back is absolutely fantastic, and it’s not just in this country. [SYTYCD] is the number one show in Australia, and the number one show in Canada. It’s a global phenomenon at the moment…all different forms of dance are coming through around the world and it’s just been out of the spotlight for so long. So to be a part of that movement and feel instrumental in it, to be frank, is absolutely wonderful. I’m so passionate about it. I’m so pleased that we can even start charitable foundations now to bring dance to people who can’t afford it…I would love it to be a legacy that’s followed up on long after this program is gone.”
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So You Think You Can Dance Performers in Emmys® Telecast
On the 61st Primetime Emmy® Awards live telecast, So You Think You Can Dance choreographers Tabitha and Napoleon D’umo choreographed a routine that showcased reality TV show dance and included some SYTYCD alumni. Season 4’s Joshua Allen, Katee Shean, and Mark Kanemura, and Season 3’s Hok Konishi and Dominic Sandoval danced on the Nokia Theater stage.
Last week, So You Think You Can Dance took home two Creative Arts Emmy® Awards. Tyce Diorio won the Outstanding Choreography trophy for his “Adam and Eve/Silence” piece. Costume designer Soyon An won a Juried Primetime Emmy® Award for her costume designs.
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Adam Shankman Joins Mary Murphy & Nigel Lythgoe as New Judge on So You Think You Can Dance!
Adam Shankman
Acclaimed producer, director and choreographer Adam Shankman has joined SO YOU THINK YOU CAN DANCE as a third judge. Shankman, who has been a guest judge and choreographer on SO YOU THINK YOU CAN DANCE since 2007, will sit alongside Mary Murphy and Nigel Lythgoe and draw upon his expertise to critique the dancers throughout the competition.
Shankman, who serves as a guest judge on this season’s audition episodes, will join the judges’ panel beginning with the Top 20 performance show Tuesday, Oct. 27 (8:00-10:00 PM ET/PT).
“SO YOU THINK YOU CAN DANCE is one of the most important things to happen in the last decade for the art form,” said Shankman. “Choreography is how I found my way into this business, and I’m proud to be a part of the show. As a filmmaker, it’s an honor to be able to recognize choreographers and dancers, and to be able to bring all of this amazing work into America’s homes. These kids challenge themselves every week, and it’s great for people to see how terrific these dancers are.”
“I am extremely happy that Adam has agreed to be a resident judge,” said Nigel Lythgoe, Executive Producer/Co-Creator, SO YOU THINK YOU CAN DANCE. “We love bantering and bickering, and yet he still finds a way of capturing the sensitivity of every story told on stage. He is a consummate professional with a passion for dance and a discerning eye, which makes him perfect for us. Plus, it must be remembered, it takes a slightly crazy person to work with me and Mary.”
Adam Shankman is a master of comedy and one of the most loved and commercially successful filmmakers of his generation. His recent credits include “Bedtime Stories” starring Adam Sandler and Keri Russell, “17 Again” starring Zac Efron and “Hairspray,” the feature film adaptation of the Tony Award-winning Broadway musical. Shankman also directed the hit viral video “Prop 8: The Musical” for FunnyorDie.com, which was honored by GLAAD and has been viewed over 4 million times.
Shankman’s directorial debut was “The Wedding Planner” starring Jennifer Lopez and Matthew McConaughey. He followed that project with “A Walk to Remember” starring Mandy Moore and Shane West and “Bringing Down the House” with Steve Martin and Queen Latifah. His other credits include “The Pacifier” starring Vin Diesel, “Step Up,” “Step Up 2” and “Premonition” with Sandra Bullock. Shankman’s upcoming films include “Step Up 3-D,” “Going The Distance” starring Drew Barrymore and Justin Long and “The Last Song” starring Miley Cyrus.
Congratulations, Adam!
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Familiar Faces on the Video Music Awards
Did you catch some familiar faces on television while watching Sunday’s Video Music Awards? The awards show included a tribute to Michael Jackson, during which Janet Jackson took the stage to perform. Her back-up dancers included So You Think You Can Dance choreographers Tyce Diorio, Wade Robson, Laurieann Gibson, and Dave Scott.
When recording artist Lady Gaga took the stage she was joined by So You Think You Can Dance Season 4 finalist Mark Kanemura. In addition to being one of Lady Gaga’s back-up dancers, he also got to perform a little solo with her.
Nice moves, Tyce, Wade, Laurieann, Dave, and Mark!
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Tyce Diorio Wins Emmy® for Choreography: the 2nd Emmy This Year for So You Think You Can Dance
Congratulations Tyce Diorio on winning the Outstanding Choreography Emmy® award at the 2009 Creative Arts Primetime Emmy Awards. This is the first Emmy® win for the choreographer and the fifth win for So You Think You Can Dance. Tyce received the award for choreographing the “Adam and Eve / Silence” contemporary piece danced by William Wingfield and Jessica King during Season 4. Judge Mary Murphy called the dance “one of the most amazing pieces I’ve ever seen on the show.” Will and Jessica returned to So You Think You Can Dance’s fifth season to perform the Emmy® nominated number on a results show.
Tyce joins So You Think You Can Dance costume designer Soyon An as the 2009 Emmy® Award recipients for the show. Read more about Soyon’s win, which was announced separately.
SYTYCD earned five nominations for the 2009 Primetime Emmy® Awards:
Outstanding Choreography:
“Bleeding Love” – Tabitha & Napoleon D’umo
“Mercy” – Mia Michaels
“Adam and Eve / Silence” – Tyce Diorio
“ A Los Amigos” – Dmitry ChaplinOutstanding Makeup For A Multi-Camera Series Or Special (Non-Prosthetic):
Episode #421/422A
Amy Elizabeth Strozzi, Department Head Makeup Artist
Heather Cummings, Key Makeup Artist
Tifanie White, Additional Makeup Artist
Marie DelPrete, Additional Makeup ArtistThis was the most nominations the show received in one year. Here are the stats:
2009 – 5 nominations, 2 wins
2008 – 4 nominations, 1 win
2007 – 2 nominations, 2 winsTotal: 11 nominations, 5 wins
Tyce Diorio has been performing on television since age 17 when he won “Star Search,” setting a record with a perfect 4-star rating each week, the first time it had happened on the series. Originally from Brooklyn, NY, Diorio attended New York City’s famed High School of the Performing Arts and following that moved to Los Angeles to work with Paula Abdul to dance on her “Under My Spell” world tour, as well as in her videos, commercials and award show appearances.
Janet Jackson, Ricky Martin, Jennifer Lopez, Mya, *NSYNC, Kelly Osbourne, Céline Dion and Toni Braxton are just a few of the artists Diorio has traveled the world with and performed with onstage. Diorio has worked on numerous feature films including “Showgirls,” “Starsky and Hutch,” “Mr. and Mrs. Smith,” “Robin Hood: Men in Tights,” “13 Going on 30,” “Flintstones Viva Rock Vegas” and “Epic Movie.” In addition to SO YOU THINK YOU CAN DANCE, his television credits include “That ’70s Show,” “The Tyra Banks Show,” “The Academy Awards,” “The American Music Awards,” “The Billboard Music Awards,” “Fame” as well as “Annie” and “Cinderella” directed by Rob Marshall. Diorio also had the great privilege of starring in the Tony Award winning Broadway hit “Fosse” and “Chicago.” Most recently Tyce was a featured performer in Sony pictures’ “Every Little Step.”
Diorio has choreographed routines for Paulina Rubio and Tobey Maguire; commercials for iPod, Mc Donald’s, Sylvania and Road Runner DSL; and a musical entitled “Just Another Man.” Diorio works privately with Katie Holmes and Tobey Maguire, and also choreographed the music video for Paula Abdul’s single “Dance Like There’s No Tomorrow.”
Diorio lives in Los Angeles, CA.
Congratulations, Tyce Diorio!
Read more about Soyon An’s win.
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So You Think You Can Dance is Different from Other Shows
We caught up with So You Think You Can Dance judges Nigel Lythgoe and Mary Murphy to ask them how their show differs from the other dance shows out there.
Nigel Lythgoe:
It’s pretty obvious – I don’t know any other dance show out there that deals with all of the different genres of dance as we do. I don’t know any other dance show that shows the choreography in the way that we show it or the choreographers. I also don’t know any other dance show that deals with the public. We have kids – ordinary kids, and some who came from the streets – who want to become professional dancers. The other dance shows are based on one genre – just hip hop or just ballroom. We also have real talent.
Mary Murphy:
It’s all done with extraordinary dancers. There’s not a professional paired with an amateur. It’s not just amateur-amateur. These are all dancers that are going to make it their life. This is something that they have a true passion for. They haven’t been asked to do it just to lose weight or to advance their career. This is their life. Whether this show was on the air or not, dancers will dance just about anywhere because they feel the need that they have to. So when you have such commitment and such passion, I think it is so very different then any dance show out there, and the fact that we’re asking them to switch from one dance style to the next is incredibly difficult. I’ve tried it myself and I can tell you once you get your body moving into a specific way, it doesn’t really want to change. It’s very hard and we ask them to do it in 5.5 hours. They go from hip hop to Quickstep. A ballroom dancer may have to dance hip hop and a jazz dancer may have to dance Krump. It’s unbelievable and it never ceases to amaze me that a lot of the dancers seem to pull it off at a fairly professional rate. Every once in a while, a dancer like Brandon and Janette do an Argentine Tango that looks as good as any Argentine Tango dancers you’ve ever seen in the world.
Cat, Nigel and Mary Discuss the New Fall Season of So You Think You Can Dance
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New Fall Season Starts Wed Sept 9: New Schedule for Audition Shows.
After a spectacular fifth summer season of So You Think You Can Dance, television’s hottest dance competition series makes its fall debut when it returns for an all-new sixth season on Wednesday, September 9 (8:00-9:00 PM ET/PT) on FOX. Hosted by Cat Deeley, So You Think You Can Dance continues to amaze viewers as dancers skilled in everything from Hip-Hop, Krumping, and Popping to Salsa, Jookin’, and Jive compete to be named America’s Favorite Dancer.
For Season 6, judges Nigel Lythgoe and Mary Murphy will be joined by rotating guest judges as they travel across the country to audition dancers who represent the rhythm of America. View the schedule below to see when the episodes featuring auditions held in Atlanta, Boston, Los Angeles, New Orleans, Phoenix, and Slat Lake City will air.
Those dancers talented enough to get a ticket from the judges to Las Vegas for call-backs will air in mid-October. The call-back rounds conclude when the judges announce the Top 20 finalists made up of 10 guys and 10 girls, who will continue in the competition and compete for America’s votes.
Here is the Season 6 schedule of when the auditions will air. All times ET/PT.
Wednesday, Sept. 9 (8:00-9:00 PM) Audition Episode
Wednesday, Sept. 16 (8:00-9:00 PM) Audition Episode
Wednesday, Sept. 23 (8:00-9:00 PM) Audition Episode
Tuesday, Sept. 29 (9:00-10:00 PM) Audition Episode
Wednesday, Sept. 30 (8:00-9:00 PM) Audition Episode
Tuesday, Oct. 6 (9:00-10:00 PM) Audition Episode
Wednesday, Oct. 7 (8:00-9:00 PM) Las Vegas Round
Wednesday, Oct. 14 (8:00-9:00 PM) Las Vegas Round
Wednesday, Oct. 21 (8:00-9:00 PM) Las Vegas/Top 20 ChosenMark your calendars now so you don’t miss a move! While you’re waiting for Season 6 to begin, find out what Cat, Nigel, and Mary have to say about the new fall season of So You Think You Can Dance.
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Cat, Nigel and Mary Discuss the First Fall Season of So You Think You Can Dance
Season 6 of So You Think You Can Dance marks the first fall season for the show. After being on the air for five summers, Cat Deeley, Nigel Lythgoe, and Mary Murphy talk about what to look forward to for the fall season debut.
What about the fall season are you most looking forward to?
Cat Deeley: I’m just looking forward to seeing how we do, actually. I’m very, very excited. The fact that Fox has this faith in us and are putting us on then is amazing. Obviously, they see the show’s strength and want to capitalize on that. As far as watching the show, people are still incredibly passionate about it, so it’s going to be very, very interesting to see if it does stick or if we move back to summer. Either way we are a hit in the summertime so it’s good. I’m excited about it. It will be interesting – a new slot, a new time, a new challenge. I think it’s going to be good.
Nigel Lythgoe: From what I’ve seen so far from the dancers, the generally high standard is going to be maintained from last season. But I think we have more personalities ready to break out, so that’s what I’m looking forward to from the dancers. From the choreographers, I’m looking for them to be as inspired as they were in Season 5 and take on as interesting subjects as they took on. We’re looking at doing a group competition on our results show. I’m not sure yet what form that’s going to take, but I would like to see Latin American formation team dancing, clogging, hip hop, tap troupe, and anything and everything that gives a reason to enjoy dancing. And it will help brighten up the results show.
Mary Murphy: We’re definitely going to add 20 new amazing dancers and characters to this cast. I think that’s one of the biggest changes, because me, Nigel, and Cat remain the same. I’m sure we’ll have some new guest judges this year, we always do, and new choreographers on the show. I know there is some talk about something different going on during the results shows. It was so fun when we had Ellen, and the JabbawockeeZ, and the different musical artists, so we try to make results shows entertaining even though we do lose two dancers. Sometimes we have such a great time with the group numbers and guest performers and guest singers that we almost forget we’re about to lose two dancers. It’s like a party up until that moment.
Hear more from Cat, Nigel and Mary as they discuss the recently concluded Season 5.
Check out the schedule for season 6 audition episodes.
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