This week’s episode of So You Think You Can Dance opened with an incredible hip hop and contemporary fusion audition by dancer Jalen Sands. If you thought you would be able to get situated and ready for all the talent in this episode before things really got going, think again. We started these auditions with our jaws on the floor.

Following Jalen were a comedic duet of brothers. Twins Trent and Colton Edwards convinced Nigel that if they weren’t into dance, these two could be a comedy act somewhere. But, lucky for us, they were incredible contemporary performers (and they’ve only danced for three years!?). Mary screamed “yes!” so loud that she followed it up with “ow.” We’ll be seeing them in The Academy.

“Clocks!” Laurieann said about the next dancer. “Your timing. That was everything.” Hip hop dancer Bryan “Clocks” Volozanin auditioned in Season 12 but was cut during the green mile. Now, he’s back with years of practice and even Jabbawockeez performances under his belt. As long as he can keep up in the other genres, The Academy will be a piece of cake for this talented dancer.

This week we got to see a lot of past SYTYCD favorites on stage again. No, they weren’t returning to audition. They were helping some new faces along, though. Ballroom dancers Sofia Ghavami, Vlad Kvartin, and Annie Lyn Sheketoff each brought along a star partner. Sofia danced with Kiki from Season 14. Vlad brought Magda from Season 15. Annie brought someone you might not know if you only just started watching the show over the past couple seasons–Ryan DiLello from Season 6! Did the All Star advantage work? Seems like it. All three got their golden tickets to The Academy.

In an interesting twist, Antonio Frias decided to audition as a salsa dancer–without a partner. Without the balance of a partner and technique that was a little on the weaker side, the judges didn’t push him through to the next round, but they did give him a little help from destiny (literally). A woman named Destiny volunteered from the audience to salsa with Antonio. It wasn’t enough to sway the judges, but it did make Antonio smile.

If you’ve been thinking that we need to see more tap, then you’re next favorite dancer just crossed the stage. Sydney Burtis began dance at three. Her mom wanted to give her a chance to socialize which her mild autism made difficult for her. Sydney’s first recital ended in tears, but her SYTYCD audition ended in a yes (four to be exact)!

The final dancers this week were a couple, but they didn’t audition together. Jarrod Tyler Paulson is handy in pretty much everything, but he’s an incredible dancer, too. His audition blew the judges away (and even had Laurieann hitting on him).

Once Madison Jordan, his girlfriend, took the stage (with Jarrod sitting in Nigel’s seat) Laurieann was even more impressed with her. Nigel said he can’t wait to audition their children, but we’re just excited to see them both in The Academy.

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Veronica Good has been with Showstopper Magazine since 2016. When she isn't keeping you updated on the latest trends, she is at home with her many pets or probably playing The Sims 4. Veronica has a BA in English and an MA in writing from Coastal Carolina University. She is also a writer of fiction and poetry, and her work can be found in Archarios, Tempo, and Scapegoat.