The Top 20 performed again last night on So You Think You Can Dance 2012. After all was said and done, the bottom three girls and the bottom three guys were announced. The decision was left up to the So You Think You Can Dance Season 9 judges and they could only save one guy and one girl. In the end, the judges sent home Alexa Anderson, Janaya French, Nick Bloxsom-Carter and Daniel Baker. Their stints on SYTYCD 2012 may have been cut short, but they still made it farther than thousands of other dancers who auditioned for SYTYCD Season 9. In a press conference call with GossipandGab.com and other media reps, the three eliminated dancers spoke about their experiences on So You Think You Can Dance 2012.
Q. Todd, GossipandGab.com: You danced with the San Francisco Ballet and quit to do So You Think You Can Dance 2012. Will you be going back to that now or pursue a different avenue?
A. Daniel: I didn’t quit to audition for the show. That was embellished. I just left to explore the commercial dance world and I just thought the show would be great exposure to try and break into that. One day I’ll go back to ballet, but right now I am exploring and dabbling my feet into different things.
Q. Todd, GossipandGab.com: Who was your favorite choreographer to work with this season?
A. Nick: The Argentine Tango with Leonardo and Miriam. That whole process was such a dream. They were both so lovely to work with. Every time we danced, they had such good things to say about us and so much fun to work with. For group choreography, I loved the Christopher Scott routine. I’ve never worked with him before. Coming as a ballroom dancer, I’ve never really heard of him. Just to meet him, he’s so cool, he’s so chill. He’s just a normal guy, but he’s a genius and it was awesome to work with him.
Q. When you danced last night, all the judges agreed they could not take their eyes off Amber and that you partnered her well, but do you think that routine allowed you to show off your skills as well?
A. Nick: I loved that routine. I feel like that routine, it’s an Argentine Tango, and you are drawn towards the agility and the fierceness of the woman and the man is there to show that intensity. So, I think I did my job very well. That is my job. The guy is the frame and the woman is the picture and that’s what we are taught being a ballroom dancer. I thought I danced really well and I loved it.
Q. It’s a very different format this year and just wondering what you thought of it?
A. Janaya: I kind of like the new format. It’s hard because we didn’t get to experience the old format, but from what we got to experience, we were together as a Top 20 longer than any other season, which was nice. We got to do more than usual, so that part was nice.
Nick: This format was very nice to us dancers, because we were able to perform so many more times. We were on that stage a lot and I really enjoyed it.
Daniel: I kind of liked it. It’s a shame I didn’t get a chance to dance for my life, but it seems like the judges already had their minds made up. It’s one less chance America gets to see you dance, but I liked the fast pace of it. I don’t know if it felt too rushed because I wasn’t watching it at home, but I wonder what America thought about the new format. America doesn’t seem to like change, no matter what show it is.
Q. Do you think it’s fair that the judges know who are in the bottom three before even performing your duo that week?
A. Nick: When we do perform, I think it is kind of nice because the judges can change their mind. They know who is in the bottom three, but they don’t tell you until after you have performed, so your performance can sway their minds either against that or for you. It can change how they see you in a positive way. No matter what, America voted you into the bottom three. I liked how they did know, but they didn’t tell you until after.
Janaya: I didn’t actually think that they knew when I went out to perform because I had too much on my mind, but it was just more of another shot we had. They did not seem to enjoy my performance the first week and I was much more successful this week and they did acknowledge that. They can watch a little more intently to decide if you are the one they want to save or not.
Q. There were two of the three ballet dancers in the bottom six last night. Do you think it is because America does not like that genre or more because of the dances you had the first couple weeks?
A. Daniel: I could think about it in so many ways, but there is no way of ever knowing. It’s a combination of many things. I definitely didn’t think there would be three ballet dancers in the Top 10, but in terms of the two ballet dancers in the bottom this week, I was kind of surprised.
Q. Do you have any future plans to go from this experience?
A. Janaya: I just hope with this experience, it’s obviously going to help. I was already out in L.A. and looking for jobs, so I just hope the networking with the people I got to work with on the show, which I never would have been able to work with especially in such an intimate setting if it weren’t from this opportunity I was given. From here on out, I hope I have more opportunities to work with them and work more people. I’m still going to dance. Nothing about this changed my mind about it, if anything it kind of lit a fire under me.
Q. What’s the most challenging thing you experienced once you started performing live on the show?
A. Janaya: I think the most challenging thing about the show was the mentality you have to have to make sure you are strong and positive. Everybody is wanting something from you, so it is a lot on your mind all the time. I had to try a lot harder than normal to stay positive, so I wouldn’t be down on myself all the time.
Nick: Before doing this show, I thought I was a strong individual. After doing this show, you have to keep your mind in a positive area. You have to be mentally strong. There is no room for mistake on TV, you have to be perfect. There is so much stress and pressure that we have to go through, you have to be 100% clear-minded. I feel it was a great learning experience and we all did that well.
Join us next week on GossipandGab.com for our So You Think You Can Dance 2012 LIVE recap. Bookmark us or friend us on Facebook or Twitter for all our latest updates. Read more from Lead Writer Todd Betzold at his Blog.
I’m surprised that Daniel wasn’t more disappointed that there were two ballet dancers in the bottom six considering that is the style of dance he chose and supposedly loves so much. All of them were so positive in the interview though, and that will certainly help their chances of becoming successful in this competitive world of the arts.