ON TOP: These dancers from all across America have brought their “A” game week after week, now they make up the 20 best left in FOX’s reality dancing competition.
Superstar dancer tWitch comes back to the show as part of the All-Star team
FOX’s hit show “So You Think You Can Dance” (SYTYCD) is in its eleventh season and this year’s competition is heating up as the number of contestants has been whittled down to the Top 20 dancers.
The Sentinel was invited to an exclusive press day where we were able to catch up with the 20 remaining contestants, as well as some previous season “All-Stars,” back to mentor contestants through this challenging competition.
Season four runner-up Stephen “tWitch” Boss is one of those alumni back for his fourth run as an “All-Star” since his days as a contestant.
“Every time I come back, I kind of relive it,” expressed the star who admits he can gets very sentimental. “I know this is a huge turning point for a lot of them. For myself it was a huge platform, it shifted everything. I would’ve been in the Navy had I not made the show,” revealed tWitch.
Since his run to the finals in 2006 introduced him to a larger audience, the poppin’ hip-hop dancer has gone on to do several films, television spots and even a world tour.
Last year he served as FOX’s guest judge on the Star Quest stage at the Taste of Soul Festival; reaching an audience of over 100,000 locally in the Crenshaw community.
Even greater than the career boost though, the most amazing thing tWitch has gained from his experience on SYTYCD, is the love of his life.
Allison Holker, fellow SYTYCD alumni reached the Top 8 of season two and tWitch explained their story as “love at first sight” for him.
“It came out of nowhere…she’s just such an incredible person,” says tWitch who has a lot to thank the show for. “Dance has been the bridge…not only was I pursuing my passion, but I also found the person I’m going to spend the rest of my life with.”
The two wed in December of 2013 and both are back on the SYTYCD train as All-Stars, for the first time, as a married couple.
This season, two of those fortunate enough to have made the Top 20 are African American males — Stanley Glover 19, of Chicago, and Marcquet Hill 18, of Jordan, Utah.
Glover, a contemporary dancer, is excited to finally be in the city he’s dreamt of moving to since childhood. “I’ve just been soaking it all in since I got here,” says Glover, who admits he’s been mesmerized by the palm trees.
The Chi-Town native started dancing at 13 years old. The spark ignited when he passed a dance studio and took interest in the movements he saw. “I just stumbled across a studio one day,” he remembered, “I only wanted to do hip-hop at first because that’s what I thought I wanted to do, but that totally changed with time,” explained Glover, who says he would love to dance for Lady Gaga one day and show off some “monster-like” moves.
“When I found out I made the Top 20 I almost fainted. Like I started screaming because I was so happy that they chose me out of all the people they have seen. Being here right now means the world to me,” said Glover.
Just like Glover, many other dancers feel like this opportunity is a dream come true.
Hill started dancing only four years ago at the age of 14. “I have a lot less experience from everyone else. At times I feel like everyone has had a lot of time to work on their craft and I’m just like new to it. Like on the ballet side of things and the contemporary movements…but I make up for it with energy and performance,” says Hill, whose energy and performance have certainly been enough to impress the judges week after week.
Hill went to the SYTYCD New Orleans audition on a whim with fellow Top 20 contestant Brooklyn Fullmer. Both ballroom dancers, Fullmer invited Hill to New Orleans to audition with her because she needed a partner. Hill didn’t intend to audition for himself but ended up wowing the judges and landing himself a spot in the Top 20.
Like most of the youngsters on the show, Hill has grown up watching SYTYCD for the past eleven seasons. For Hill and some of the others, the show is actually what inspired them to begin dancing in the first place.
“It’s been a surreal moment since packing to come down here,” said Hill of actualizing his dream of being on the show, a sentiment shared by most of the contestants left. “People are going to be like, ‘Hey that guy is on So You Think You Can Dance!’ and I’m going to be like ‘yes I am!’“
The most promising contestants will make their way to the Top Ten as the season continues. So You Think You Can Dance airs on FOX every Wednesday night at 8/7c. Tune in to watch some amazing performances and see who’s crowned America’s best dancer.
