mia michaels

Last week, the competition began on 'So You Think You Can Dance,' and along with it came some pretty astonishing praise for one of the contestants. Alex Wong was paired with "All-Star" Allison Holker on a Sonya Tayeh contemporary piece, and he proved that he is definitely one of the best dancers of the season.

Judge Mia Michaels went so far as to claim that he had just performed the single greatest performance of not only any season of 'So You Think You Can Dance,' but also of any edition of it worldwide. Did Alex's performance really top all of the great and memorable ones from the past?

We chose 10 performances that have stuck with us through the years, most of them resonating so powerfully they've earned names. While impressive and beautifully danced, whether Wong's routine will join this illustrious group will remain to be seen.

We've moved on from the auditions and the contestant-selection portion of the show. Now, we're actually at the real competitive dancing section of 'So You Think You Can Dance' (Wed., 8PM ET on Fox). So, let's get right to it.

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This will probably all make more sense if you've read our previous column about 'So You Think You Can Dance.' And if you haven't read that, then, hey -- maybe you should go read it!

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How many contestants would you like to see on 'So You Think You Can Dance' (Wed., 8PM ET on Fox). Would you like ten contestants? Twenty? A million of them?

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It's another night of failed contestants on 'So You Think You Can Dance' (Wed., 8PM ET on Fox). Once again, there's laughter and there's tears as a new group of so-called "dancers" perform badly for our enjoyment.

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Well, it's audition time again on 'So You Think You Can Dance' (Thu., 8PM ET on Fox). Which means that -- for good or for ill -- we are once again subjected to the worst that the dance world can offer. While many great dancers appear on the show, we'd like to take a second to focus on the not so good ones.

Terrible auditions ranged from a guy who unwisely shook his butt while dressed in an 80s outfit ... to a guy who wore pieces of broccoli over his nipples (seriously). But perhaps the worst tryout was reserved for 19-year-old Daria Kopylova. She creepily did a highly sexy dance routine ... with her own father. It was such an awkward performance that finally -- mercifully -- the judges forced her to stop.

As if 'So You Think You Can Dance' hasn't switched things up completely this season with the return of judge Mia Michaels and the addition of 10 All Star dancers, the performances are now going to be live, host Cat Deeley told TV Squad at yesterday's season 7 junket.

"We're going to be live all the time," Deeley explained. "So whereas before we've done a pre-recorded performance show, and then a live results show, this year we're doing both live, which I think is brilliant. Me, I love doing live because it gets your adrenaline going. If something big happens, there's no way we can stop it. It's going to be that real water cooler version of, 'Oh my God, did you see what happened last night on "So You Think You Can Dance?''' Whatever happens, happens, so you've just got to watch."

We all know that the guest judges on 'So You Think You Can Dance' can tango with the best of them, but occasionally, even the most accomplished choreographers want to trade the toe-tapping for a more verbal form of the rumba.

Following the news that former judge Mary Murphy will be ditching the judging table full-time to provide more choreography in season 7 (Murphy will still serve as a guest judge), The Wrap is now reporting that previous guest judge Mia Michaels will be stepping up to fill her spot (and her initials) alongside returning experts Nigel Lythgoe and Adam Shankman.

Get ready for the 'Real Housewives of Beverly Hills.'

According to the Hollywood Reporter, Bravo has given the go-ahead to four new series, including a Beverly Hills edition of its popular 'Real Housewives' franchise. (We're already imagining a crossover episode with the nearby 'Real Housewives of Orange County.')

Also getting the greenlight are 'Miami Social Club,' a reality series that chronicles the lives of Miami socialites, but apparently has nothing to do with Bravo's other Miami-based series, 'Miami Social,' 'Million Dollar Decorators,' about high-end designers, and the New York-based 'Pregnant in Heels.'

On last night's special Monday episode of So You Think You Can Dance, producer/judge Nigel Lythgoe displayed an empty chair, just in case, he said, a special guest decided to grace them with her presence. The chair was marked with the name "Paula Abdul." (On a side note, SYTYCD was on basically in place of House -- how can such a popular show go on break so often?).

The current slate of judges, including Lythgoe, Mary Murphy, and Adam Shankman (in for Mia Michaels), seems perfect. Other than the fact that I wish I had the technical know-how to develop a filter that would detect when Murphy is about to sound like a claxon and automatically adjust the volume of my TV, I enjoy all three judges. And, as I've said before, I actually feel like I'm learning something from the show when they critique the dancers. When they need another voice, they have Debbie Allen, the sometimes overly loquacious Lil C, and a few others who can easily step in.

(S06E09) Tonight, we started with 38 dancers, and by the end of the hour, the Top 20 stood revealed. I'm never quite sure how to take these episodes; American Idol always has one, as well. For the most part, it's just contestants walking in front of the judges and hearing "Yes" or "No." For those of us who've been watching since the beginning and finding our early favorites, it can be a little tense and exciting.

But then I think about someone who's never watched the show, and who's maybe tuning in for the first time tonight. What a boring hour of television they would be in for. You barely get any snippets from the good dancers who make it through. Mostly it's just a parade of faces you don't know and lots of crying.

But before we get to the tears, we need to get excited. For the first time, and to give everyone a more even playing field going into the first performance show, this Monday at 8pm ET, FOX offers a special non-elimination episode where the Top 20 get to show us their stuff.

Mia Michaels, no longer a part of 'So You Think You Can Dance'? Say it ain't so!

Sadly for fans of Fox's popular dance-competition show, it is indeed so. Choreographer and semi-regular guest judge Mia Michaels broke the news of her resignation on her Facebook and Twitter pages today, writing (on Twitter), "THANKS SYTYCD AND LOOK FORWARD TO WHATS AHEAD FOR ME...LOOKOUT WORLD!!!!!"

Through five seasons, Michaels has choreographed some of the show's best-known and most beloved contemporary routines, including Heidi and Travis' "Bench Dance" (set to Celine Dion's 'Calling You') and Katee and Twitch's "Door Dance" (set to Duff's 'Mercy'). Both dances earned her primetime Emmy nominations for choreography.

So You Think You Can Dance may never be the same again. In all-capitalized Twitter messages, Mia Michaels has announced that she is quitting. The last of the three messages read:

"THANKS SYTYCD AND LOOK FORWARD TO WHATS AHEAD FOR ME...LOOKOUT WORLD!!!!!"

It's really weird seeing that Mia has been not only an anchor for the choreographers and judges, but she has been so enthusiastic about season six being on of the best seasons. She has also left a message on her Facebook account with similar sentiments.

Mia Michaels wasn't the same strict choreographer last night in Vegas' callbacks. She was calm and organic with her teaching.

(S06E07) So many judges, so little time. Tyce DiOrio, Mia Michaels, Debbie Allen, Adam Shankman, Mary Murphy and Nigel Lythgoe all sat in judgment of the 152 dancers who survived the audition rounds. The pace of the show picks up dramatically when we get to Vegas, and somehow I had myself convinced they were going to cram the entire week into tonight's one-hour episode.

Thankfully, I'm an idiot. Vegas Week continues next week for you and me. In fact, we only got through the first two days. But in that time, we lost nearly half of the contestants including several early favorites, and certainly some favorites of mine.

The more I see of these dancers, though, the more excited I am for this season. I thought last season suffered from the blands through a lot of it, despite some amazing choreographed performances, but there are a lot of really dynamic personalities already shining through.