All About So You Think You Can Dance

Find Out How This Dance Reality Show Became a Success

Jul 13, 2009 Tara Carpenter

So You Think You Can Dance premiered in July of 2005 and quickly skyrocketed to the top of television ratings. Its popularity has brought dance into millions of homes.

So You Think You Can Dance is a dance reality show and competition that airs on the FOX television network. Its premise is similar to that of American Idol. Nation wide auditions are held in major cities throughout the US leading to the discovery of the next big star. This seasons auditions were held in Boston, Atlanta, Los Angeles, New Orleans, Phoenix and Salt Lake City. Contestants wishing to move on are from all walks of life and have backgrounds in many different styles of dance.

Once selected to continue to the next round the dancers work their way through rigorous auditions. Over the course of the reality show they are assigned to perform different dance styles which pushes them out of their comfort zones and tests their versatility.

Hip hop, jazz, ballet, lyrical, modern, salsa and other dance genres are represented during the season. Choreographers are brought in to teach routines to partners that are randomly selected. Throughout the show these partners perform the choreographed routines for a panel of dance experts that eliminate a male and female dancer weekly.

Between the top 20 and top ten dancers viewers have the opportunity to vote for partners rather than individuals. Dancers in the top ten are voted on individually. Dancers are eliminated based on the number of votes they receive. The winner is announced during the finale winning the grand prize of $100,000 cash, a new Hybrid SUV, a contract as a dancer in Celine Dion's Las Vegas Show and the title of "America's favorite dancer".

So You Think You Can Dance has spread worldwide. It was announced that there are spin off shows in New Zealand, Australia, Canada, Germany, Norway, South Africa, The Netherlands, Ukraine, Turkey, Israel, Greece, Poland and Malaysia with several other countries in the works.

So You Think You Can Dance is in its fifth season and continues to be one of the most successful reality shows on television. It was the number one rated show in summer 2006 and has stayed in the top five ever since.

Here is a list of the previous season's winners as well as finalists.

So You Think You Can Dance 1st Season 2005:

  • Nick Lazzarini- Winner
  • Melody Lacayanga- Finalist
  • Jamile Mcgee- Finalist
  • Ashlee Dawson- Finalist

So You Think You Can Dance 2nd Season 2006:

  • Benji Schwimmer- Winner
  • Travis Wall- Finalist
  • Donyelle Jones- Finalist
  • Heidi Groskreutz- Finalist

So You Think You Can Dance 3rd Season 2007:

  • Sabra Johnson- Winner
  • Danny Tidwell- Finalist
  • Neil Haskell- Finalist
  • Lacey Schwimmer- Finalist

So You Think You Can Dance 4th Season 2008:

  • Joshua Allen- Winner
  • Stephen "Twitch" Boss- Finalist
  • Katee Shean- Finalist
  • Courtney Galiano- Finalist

The copyright of the article All About So You Think You Can Dance in Reality TV is owned by Tara Carpenter. Permission to republish All About So You Think You Can Dance in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.
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