When the new season of “So You Think You Can Dance” premieres on March 4, it will be full of changes both on-screen and behind-the-scenes. On the minds of many will be the absence of the late Stephen “tWitch” Boss, who sat on the judging panel last season after being a beloved competitor and All-Star in previous seasons and whose death was widely speculated to be a factor in the show not returning to its usual summer slot in 2023. Bossa’s widow, “SYTYCD” All-Star Allison Holker, joins the new but familiar panel of judges for Season 18 together with Maksym Chmerkovskiy from Glory and returning to Dancing with the Stars. Season 17: Judge JoJo Siwa. (Siwa replaced Nigel Lythgoe on the panel after the executive producer quit the show afterwards allegations of sexual abuse which were submitted by Paula Abdul and others.) All-Star Comfort Fedoke also joins the jury for auditions.
The jury is not that new. After the audition round, 10 dancers will compete in challenges designed to reflect a freelance career in commercial dance, such as performing in music videos, football halftime shows, or Broadway numbers – a departure from sound stage dancing in short rotation style routines , signature of the show. Instead of the audience voting live for their favorite dancers (filming has begun in Atlantaand not in Los Angeles, as in previous years, in early December), the eliminations will be entirely up to the judges.
Perhaps the most eyebrow-raising aspect of the show’s new format. While in previous seasons short behind-the-scenes packages of rehearsal footage and interviews introduced each routine, this season “viewers will get a documentary-style inside look at the dynamics of the contestants, following them throughout the competition as they go through their personal and competitive journeys, including daily struggles, new relationships, personality clashes and more,” it said in a release. What will seemingly more “reality television:” means for the show’s dancers, and will the winning contestant’s title still be “America’s Favorite Ballerina,” with voting seemingly out of the public’s hands? Fans will have to tune in to Fox (or the next day on Hulu) to find out.