'So You Think You Can Dance Canada' Recap: Top 20 Performances

I'm starting to think there's actually something to the old adage "practice makes perfect." When we last left our dancers seven days ago, I worried they wouldn't meet my how-to-move-and-groove expectations. I was wrong. A few of these dancers keep getting better and better with each week of training.

First up, Bree and Edgar. One word: Meh. I'm not familiar with dancehall; the judges seemed to love the moves, but I wasn't as convinced. Last week these guys did a hip-hop routine. I'd like to see them do something out of their element (ballroom, maybe?).

Then we moved to Amanda and Denys who, last week, danced a mediocre tango. This week, they delivered a strong contemporary performance -- Amanda's forte -- which blew my mind. It was magnetic, natural, raw, powerful; everything a good dance should be. I can very easily say it was the best performance of the night.

To describe the next routine, I can only quote Luther Brown: "It was like rough sex" (sorry, parents). Jera and Kirsten delivered an intense, rough, raw performance. The timing and moves were a bit off, but they definitely gave'r. In a complete departure from their ballroomy moves last week, Nathalie and Mackenzie danced a wicked hip-hop routine, and it was hot! They nailed every move and danced in almost complete synchronicity. They're the only pair on this show who have shown their range and versatility; keep your eyes on them, Canada.

As for the next dance from Yonni and Claudia... Ahem. No foxtrot should ever, ever be danced to Lady Gaga. The song really hampered this pair's ability to complete the dance's complicated steps. It was a contemporary attempt at a traditional routine; it failed miserably.

Not so for the next performance. Charlene and Jeff performed a beautiful, stylish, smooth, emotional, riveting routine that mixed classical and contemporary moves. The judges almost cried; I almost cried; the dancers were even close to tears. And it was completely different from their dance styles last week; they've definitely come the farthest in terms of skill in this competition.

The performance put on by Julia and Jesse is a good example of what happens when one dancer is in his/her element and the other is not. Julia is all about sexy, Latin moves; she nailed this routine. Jesse held her back; he was out of his element and it showed. It was awkward and uncomfortable to watch. (I completely disagree with the judges who kept saying Jesse "arrived" with this routine... Whateva!).

Sebastian and Danielle put on one of the more unique routines of the night -- a theatre dance that required a lot of flexibility, emotion and trust (those flips!). It was an incredible improvement from last week's Bollywood routine. Their performance was only topped in uniqueness by the crunk moves of Shavar and Janick. Crunk ain't easy and it requires a lot of upper body movement. I thought this pair could nail the moves, but they didn't.

The final performance of the night belonged to Kloe and Jonathan, who showed off their jazz skills. It was fun, light-hearted and... fine. It wasn't spectacular, nor did it suck. Yep, it was one of those.

Results are coming your way on Tuesday, Aug. 31 at 8:30 p.m. on CTV.

Random thoughts:

- I thought Mary Murphy had the most annoying judges' voice. I was wrong (seems to happen a lot this week!). The more grating judge's name is Jean-Marc Genereux. Dude needs to tone it down. How about a shout-out for NOT SHOUTING OUT FOR EVERYTHING!!!!!

Tweet me your thoughts @sarahkelsey.