A nice write-up of the show with some comments from JC.

I don’t usually watch shows like America’s Best Dance Crew. So You Think You Can Dance is something I would usually rather YouTube than sit through. Last week actually, as I was watching clips from the audition show in order to prepare to cover the taping of the live premiere, I still wasn’t convinced that this was anything more than a good link to share the next day. “OMG! Did you see that Kaba Modern routine? You have to watch this shit!” But now that I have interviewed the judges and seen the crews perform in person, I’m hooked.

The first thing I noted (after, “JC Chasez is much hotter in person than I expected him to be!”) was how seriously the judges take their jobs...

Follow up:

...This show, at its core, is about the kids. I come from PR, so I understand “messaging” and I know that these guys were probably prepped in regards to what to say to people like me, but it doesn’t matter because I believe them. I honestly think they want to help these crews succeed because they want to reward these kids for choosing dance as their outlet. They want to praise them for their hard work and encourage them to get better. They want to give them constructive feedback that they can use to improve their routines. And they want to give the best crew a big chunk of money at the end because they know it will make a difference in their lives.

One of the things I really appreciate about the judging style of this show vs. a show like American Idol (Sorry, Randy Jackson!) is that the judges are really there to instruct, not insult. JC, especially–no stranger to dancing with a group–gave really helpful comments during the audition show, so when I had the chance to talk to him before the premiere, I asked him about it. “When they approached me to be a judge, I had a goal in mind. My goal was to be as insightful as I could and to be as honest as I could. And hopefully, I think, they’ll get the most out of that… Now, it’s all subject to opinion and that’s all it is really, is my opinion, but I really feel like with some of these notes they can improve and they can push themselves to be better.” If you watched last week’s episode you’ll see that he’s a little tougher on them than he was during the auditions, but groups like Fysh & Chicks, who I really like, need to hear it when their hands are sloppy if they want to win so hopefully they know that JC’s comments come from a place of caring.

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