Every year there are a few tell-tale signs that summer has arrived; the subway ride to work suddenly feels like you are at the pit of the earth, everyone starts wearing the same popular sunglasses of the year, I start to have panic attacks and Mary Murphy pops out her pearly whites (aka huge veneers).
“So You Think You Can Dance” has resumed its monopoly on my summer TV experience in all of its tacky glory. The crown jewel of this guilty pleasure is Mary Murphy who gives Paula Abdul a run for her money in the “Who’s The Wackiest Judge in the Middle?” competition. While Paula claps like she’s a seal on heavy sedatives, Mary Murphy cackles like she’s a witch who couldn’t put down the laughing gas and I love every minute of it. I propose a celebrity death match between the two although the probability of either being able to do anything but clap with lazy eyes, spew rambling endearment or scream like there’s a porcupine under their butt is rather low. Some would argue that would be enough for them to each spontaneously combust after mere seconds. While Mary Murphy never ceases to bring some laughs, the show as a whole seems to become increasingly crueler as the seasons pass.
It’s no secret that cruelty creates enjoyable reality TV but sometimes it’s just amazing how far past the line the producers can go. Last year it was the belittling of ribbon dancer Anthony Johnson who went to NCSA with me, and this year the list seems to be rapidly increasing. Obesity, insanity and physical ailments are all ripe for exploitation. Going through the talent pool during the audition rounds of any of these shows is always tedious because they neglect showing the people whose talent passes them through in favor of people like this mask wearing golden tied “jump dancer.”
Even though I’ve lessened my TV viewing a considerable amount over the past year, I still hold a place for this guilty pleasure, which has welcomed itself back into our homes this week. If only we could fast forward through these boring audition episodes and get to the actual competition already. Hidden among the seizure paced editing I spotted former ABT dancer Danny Tidwell turning up a storm, which only makes me more curious to see how far he will get. He’s such a talented dancer in so many styles, I can’t imagine that he won’t be incredibly successful throughout the competition.



























