This past weekend on October 20, 2018, I attended the “So You Think You Can Dance” tour in Worcester, Massachusetts. In my own opinion, it was one of the best shows I’ve ever seen, from the energy of the performers to the dances they performed. If you haven’t seen the show (as I hadn’t), it is based on thousands of dancers auditioning for a spot to go to the SYTYCD academy. Eighty dancers are chosen out of the thousands who auditioned, and from those eighty, only ten are chosen to progress on to go on the show and perform. Those ten dancers are then chosen and then, it was America’s choice to vote for their favorite dancer and in this season, the winner was Hannalei Cabanilla. Hannalei is a contemporary dancer from Anaheim Hills, California and won the grand prize and the title of best dancer in America.

To begin the show, the dancers did a opening group hip-hop number, which showcased their dancing abilities and when I tell you it was an amazing opening number… I mean it was AMAZING. Each dancer was partnered up on the show and throughout the show, they danced with the partners they had on the T.V. show,  showcasing the dances they performed for the judges while competing to win the number one spot. The couples that performed on the show were Jesen Arnold (ballroom dancer) and Jay Jay Dixon (jazz dancer), Slavik Pustovoytov (animation/hip hop dancer) and Genessy Castillo (contemporary), Hannalei Cabanilla (contemporary dancer) and Cole Mills (ballroom dancer), Magda Fialek (ballroom dancer) and Darius Hickman (contemporary dancer) and Chelsea Hough (jazz dancer) and Evan Debenedetto (tap dancer). The show also brought two past season winners to host  and showcase their dancing abilities which I thought was awesome and they were Lauren Froderman (Season 7 Winner) and Cyrus Spencer (Season 9 Runner Up).

Each of the dancers brought such a variety of different dances to the tour that were show stopping. Every piece performed showed a story and that’s what caught my eye and drew me more into the performance. In the first part of the show, the dancers performed 17 dances, either together as a group, a duet with their partner or solo. The dances got better and better as the show went on. For the second part of the show, another 17 dances were performed which were totally different from the first part of the show. The first part showcased hip-hop, jazz and contemporary and the second half gave the audience a taste of broadway, salsa, contemporary and the cha-cha. My favorite pieces performed were “ Falling for You”  by Slavik and Genessy and “Takes a lot to Know a Man” by Darius and Lauren. These two pieces gave me goosebumps and made me tear up, as they were so compelling and moving to watch. They were so whimsical and the story they told were so breathtaking that they received standing ovations.

My personal opinion of this tour is that it is a must see whether you’re a dance lover or not. It is truly an amazing show to attend. Each piece gave you a taste of different dancing styles, as well as how the dancers perform together. Each dance drew the crowd in more and more and you could honestly watch the dancers dance the night away. If you have a chance to see the So You Think You Can Dance tour, I would highly recommend you go because it was one of the best shows I have ever seen and probably one of the best you will ever see too.