I got to sit down with them earlier this afternoon for an interview and let me tell you, they are extremely nice and a ton of fun!! They promised fans one, well really two, things tonight - a good time and lots of sweat (there are over 50 numbers in the show!).
The Season 8 dancers of So You Think You Can Dance in a pre-show interview at
The Arena at Gwinnett Center.
For Mitchell and winner, Melanie, tonight is a particularly special stop because they both will be performing in front of their hometown crowd. In fact, the group paid a visit to Melanie's house in Marietta when they got into town last night! Wondering what that's like? Well I asked both Mitchell and Melanie their thoughts on being back home in Georgia:
Melanie: I will be more nervous tonight because I will know the crowd. My dance teachers will be there and they're proud, but they will point out mistakes!
Mitchell: Yea, these are people who know your dancing skills and are excited for you, but are also used to pushing you to be your best. We want to make Georgia proud and we want everyone here to be proud of what we are doing.
Since this is only the 3rd stop on the tour, the group is just getting adjusted to life on the road, but they LOVE (and I mean, LOVE) the busses - especially the "magical buttons." One thing that isn't so great? Missing family. That was a unanimous, and very understandable, answer.
Our contest winner, Johnny Phelps, wanted to ask the group how their lives would be different if they didn't have dance and if they would still be the same person they are today. They all agreed that dance is their life and they couldn't imagine their lives without it. Mitchell went on to further answer the question by saying that he would probably be on a reality TV show (this would definitely be a successful option for you, Mitchell!).
I was curious to know what else this group might be interested in doing in the future...it comes as no surprise that most of it centers around dance and/or the entertainment industry:
Clarice - modeling/film
Ricky - tour w/ Cirque du Soleil
Nick - move to L.A. (he would play football if he couldn't pick dance)
Sasha & Mitchell - choreographer
Caitlynn - get into film/Disney channel
And Melanie is of course...DANCE!
So what else did our Georgia girl have to say?
How did she cope with often being dubbed as "the favorite" throughout the season?
Melanie: I tried to put that out of my head and take each week as it's own. I didn't need pressure from anyone else.
She also narrowed down her favorite performances from the season:
1. First performance
2. Duet w/ Sasha the "powerhouse" (using Melanie's term)
3. Total Eclipse w/ Neal
I know I am really looking forward to seeing this personable and talented bunch take the stage tonight! Who knows, maybe I will even pick up a few new moves. If you don't have tickets, we still have limited seats available, so get yours already (time is ticking!). You can get them here at the Arena box office.