The show opened with a group routine by Tyce Diorio to Step into the Bad Side” from the 'Dreamgirls' Soundtrack. The judges loved it and commented on how strong and solid everyone was. Tyce is also the guest judge tonight and described each dancer in a single word each, Robbie – “brilliant”, Ivy – “spectacular”, Phillipe – “genius” and Jessie H - “sensational.” I thought this was solid, not great or anything that stands out in my mind though.
Ivy and Robbie were up first with a Rumba by Aric and Masha to Celine Dion and Andrea Bocelli’s “The Prayer.” Ivy always knew she “was capable to make Top 4” but knew she had to work extra hard to get here. Matt thought the piece was “effortless and seemless” and guest judges Tyce thought the couple did a “beautiful solid job.” Jason thought Ivy’s “float was just beautiful” and the couple dealt with the height issue very well. I found Ivy great in this and very believable. It was good to see Robbie do some ballroom and this would be his best one by far in my opinion. I didn't feel the chemistry between them but the dancing was good.
Jessie and Phillipe had a Jazz routine by Adam Williams to "3 Words" by Cheryl Cole feat. Will.I.Am. During rehearsals, Phillipe tweaked his shoulder while he was lifting Jessie H. Both dancers were hoping it wouldn’t affect any of his performances. Jason mentioned that he thought Phillipe’s journey as a dancer has been “ballistic. Tyce too couldn’t believe that he could actually achieve the routine knowing his background. He also thought the couple could have taken the routine “further to the wall" and Matt thought the unison was a “little out.” Bonnie loved the theme of young love getting together. I think this is definitely one of Adam's best routines. Unlike the previous routine, I thought they had good chemistry, there were some pretty intense moments. This looked really difficult to me and I thought Jessie was amazing and Phillipe did a great job partnering her.
Phillipe and Robbie had Hip Hop with Tiana Canterbury to “Take Your Shirt Off” by T-Pain. All of the male judges thought Phillipe was “out krumped by a contemporary dancer.” Matt thought that Robbie “smashed it, absolutely smashed it” and commented that the stamina died in the end a little bit. Bonnie disagreed with the boys and thought Phillipe “actually stood out.” During the ad break Phillipe took to the microphone and told the audience that “has worked so hard” because of Robbie. I'll admit, I wish this was Nick and Robbie. I agreed with all the male judges that Robbie seemed a little better here, I was surprised as I've never really enjoyed Robbie in Hip Hop.
Jessie and Robbie had Contemporary next centered around Avatar choreographed by their former dance teacher Jacqui Howard. The dance received a lot of praise and our guest Judge Tyce Diorio even comment “that was friggin’ amazing!” Tyce thought that the couple “caused a reaction that matched a reaction this film has caused.” The first words that came out of Jason’s mouth were “wow, wow, wow!” He thought it was by far “the hardest routine of the evening” and that they “smashed it out of the ball park.” And Matt Is known on the show as the “ice block”, he doesn’t get emotional but this time he was left a little “emotional.” Even though Bonnie hadn’t seen the film Avatar before, she still “felt the story.” I thought it was excellent, very technical and evenly matched, you can tell these two have known each other for years. Great choreography. I didn't really like the costumes or quite get into the story until the end but it was definitely the best routine tonight.
Ivy and Phillipe were up next with a Ludwig piece to “Love Lost” by Temper Trap. Ivy was praised for her “beautiful extensions” by Bonnie and thinks that there is no comparison between when Ivy was “starting out in the competition to now.” Tyce gave both dancers future advice to “bring themselves to the choreography.” Matt didn’t think this routine was Phillipe’s best and there were “simple moments” throughout the routine that he really liked. This fell a bit flat for me and was kind of awkward at the end. I felt a bit like Jason when he asked about how Ivy felt at the end, the smile confused me too. It seemed like neither of them knew how to act but I bet it was most likely exhaustion with so many routines. Ivy was very strong technique wise in this though. The Avatar routine was a tough act to follow.
Ivy and Jessie had Jazz by Squared Division to the Britney Spears track “Freak Show”. “WOW sexy ladies” were Matt’s first words. Tyce’s reaction was “that was filthy!” And this routine left him saying “I love So You Think You Can Dance Australia.” Jason thought that Jessie H stole the routine and Bonnie said that Ivy put everything she’s got into the routine. While this should have been a contemporary, I enjoyed this a lot more than I thought I would. I much preferred it to the guys routine actually. It was pretty hot! I love how hard they worked on this together to match each other, there were some great moments to show off their technique.
Having to perform their last solo for the 2010 SYTYCD season, each dancer got to pick a song from the year they were born in. Our Top 4 span 3 decades of music. Phillipe was first to hit the stage performing a routine from 1979 and Ivy stepped out in the 80’s with leg warmers and big hair performing a “cocktail” of a dance. Jessie H was next to take to the stage performing a contemporary piece to the 1990’s hit “Nothing Compares to you.” Robbie was last to take to the stage dancing his solo to Nirvana’s 1991 “Smells like Teen Spirit.”
I love that Jessie wore one pointe shoe in her solo, although she didn't use it too often but I think she was trying to show a mixture of her dancing background. The camera angles made it very hard to watch though. I also enjoyed Ivy's. I thought Phillipe's was entertaining. Robbie's didn't seem anything like it was in his rehearsal.
All of the judges think the 2010 Top 4 are “all so deserving” of the number 1 sport of 2010’s So You Think You Can Dance. Jason didn’t think that any of the dancers could wakl away from tonight disappointed.” It was a SPECTACULAR night of dance and our guest judge and choreographer Tyce Diorio finished the night by saying “I’m glad I was here to watch it.”
