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Watch So You Think You Can Dance Australia online: Episode 9 Final 18 Performances

After the shock departure of Jesse & Max, our Top 18 were painfully aware they could be just one bad performance from elimination – and it showed. Some stepped up while others faltered but the judges were divided on who had advanced and who had faded. The Bottom 3 is bound to be tight. If you want to save your favourites, you’ll need to vote! Judges agree to disagree Everyone loved Gianne & BJ’s Contemporary routine, and Ben seemed the unanimous choice for “best male partner” but after that opinions were as diverse as the genres danced. Loredo & Chanelle’s salsa wowed everyone – except Jason Coleman. Three judges felt Talia had dipped but Bonnie disagreed. Jason C thought Damien excelled while Amy disappointed but Jason G thought the opposite. If the experts can’t agree, how will Australia decide who deserves to make it through to our Top 16 #1 Kat & Danny – “The most difficult job"” While they pulled off some more spectacular lifts, Kat & Danny were unable to reach quite the same heights this week with an Aleeta Blackburn-choreographed Jazz/Disco routine. Guest judge Jason Gilkison felt they had “the most difficult job” this week but he’d “enjoyed every second of it”. Bonnie thought it was “absolutely great” but sensed Danny hadn’t been completely happy and encouraged him to “work with your partner”. Matt thought they had great energy and looked “very comfy” together – an observation reflected in Danny’s blog this week. Jason C thought it was “really good stuff” but could see them preparing for their lifts “from the looks on your faces”. #2 Gianne & BJ – “Like dancing through fields of flowers” A few misplaced tassels aside, Gianne & BJ performed strongly last week and followed it up with a Debbie Ellis contemporary piece that seemed to win dance of the night award from both judges and the studio audience. Featuring a hat that could easily have caused concerns, the routine transported Matt back in time and he imagined them “dancing through fields of flowers”. Bonnie had been “nervous” about Gianne tackling the Contemporary genre but said “You are sunshine” and felt it was “just beautiful, beautiful, beautiful”. Jason C too had been surprised by Gianne, saying “Your line is more than I knew about you as a dancer” and thought BJ had been “light, lyrical and lovely”. In fact, he had “no faults at all with it” while Jason G felt it had been “mesmerising”. #3 Lamb & Timomatic – Fuelling the rumours Last week, Lamb & Timomatic had been so convincing with their romance, Bonnie and Nat were sure something was going on. According to Lamb's blog, they're not. Dancing to Ne-yo’s “Miss Independent”, the couple’s Cha Cha routine will only add fuel to the fire. Bonnie declared her “Miss Sultry Lamb” and felt they still looked “very cosy”. Jason C said connection was important and “you two have got that going on”. He queried whether it was a Cha Cha and Jason G said it was more of a “Reggaey Samba with a bit of Tango”. However that was not their fault but the “discrepancy” of the choreographer, Michael Glikman. He liked the way Tim used his “soft body” but was concerned that he “lost his personality” in the partner work. Lamb, however, could “transfer easily over to the Latin side” because she was “sexy, strong and sassy”. Matt also thought Lamb was a “verry verry sexy lady” and that they were “charismatic” but wanted “more attack”. #4 Stephen & Ash-Leigh – “Better news this week” Stephen and Ash-Leigh “copped a caning” last week and Matt was pleased to report he had “much better news this week”. Dressed in period costume and dancing a contemporary piece choreographed by SYTYCD old-boy Marko, these survivors from our first Bottom 3 finally found the chemistry that had been sadly lacking last week. Jason G liked their mix of “quirkiness” and “elegance” and Matt thought Stephen was “fantastic”. Bonnie felt Ash-Leigh had “gone so far forward” and Jason C thought there was “excellent commitment to that routine” and there was “nothing I can pick on”. Bonnie also felt that Stephen was a “fantastic partner” and Ash-Leigh agreed that he’d “helped me so much this week”. #5 Chanelle & Loredo – Magic or a “mess” Loredo was delighted to be injury-free coming into week 2 but their rapid-fire salsa chorey by Oliver & Luda had totally “freaked” Chanelle. However everyone seemed to think they had pulled off a spectacular success – except Jason C. Jason Gilkison could “not believe this is only the 2nd week” and said salsa dancers “spent a lifetime” trying to perfect what they just did. While Loredo had been sure that the audience would have eyes only for Chanelle’s hot pink “OMIGOD” dress, Jason G said he was “the stand out”. His “energy” and “rhythm” had been “sensational”, while Chanelle, he felt, needed to be careful not to “take the lead”. Matt thought it was one of the most difficult routines we’d seen this season and he had “totally bought it – amazing!!!”. Bonnie loved it – particularly an element where Chanelle fell onto Loredo’s heel and he flicked her up – which had taken 4 hours to perfect. The one dissenting voice was Jason C who thought it was “a bit of a mess” but Loredo had “come out of it better than Chanelle”, who had failed to hold her upper body. Who was right? Was it magic or a mess? #6 Amy & Damien – One was good but which one? Dancing to a Hip Hop routine by Travers Ross, Amy & Damien were both way out of their element. The choreographer had been “pretty worried” in rehearsals but Matt was again pleased to report “better news”. “There was nothing contrived” about Amy’s performance and he’d absolutely “loved it” but warned Damien to finish off his moves. Bonnie thought Amy looked “sensational” and that they’d done “a really good job” considering it was out of their world. But the two Jasons – for the second dance in a row – had wildly divergent views. Jason C thought Damien had done “nice work” but had wanted Amy to “go harder” whereas Jason G thought Damien had been “a little contrived” and “annoying” while Amy had been a “powerhouse”. Not only was she sexy – her sexiness had “subtlety”. Who was right? Mr C or Mr G? #7 Ben & Pania – Good News and Bad News Ben & Pania moved into a more tender space this week with a Rumba by Brendon Humphreys. Bonnie loved the music – Cyndi Lauper’s take on “Walk on By” – and the way Ben “held those moments” but had good news and bad news for Pania. She is a “great dancer” but “Australia doesn’t actually know you yet”. Jason C was concerned there was “no joy” in this “dance of love” but Pania explained it was about two people who can’t be together. He felt that the “toughest Hip Hop chick” had been on an “amazing journey” and had watched her a lot - which was a credit to Ben because that is “the job of a good male partner”. Jason G said the Rumba was more “the dance of lust” and declared Ben “the best partner in this whole competition”. Matt agreed: “All the girls that get to dance with you should feel very very lucky”. He also felt Pania was “the one to watch for this competition”. #8 Penny & Charlie – Flying High Penny & Charlie were always facing an uphill battle to match last week but their frisky pilot and hostie Jazz routine still managed to maintain their crowd favouritism. Jason C thought Charlie was “fantastic” and that he’d shown his Jazz training while Penny had revealed her “lack of core strength”. Jason G said it hadn’t had the impact of last week because “I could see you thinking” but their “infectious personalities” had made it “wonderful to watch”. Matt encouraged Penny to find more “light and shade” but felt the routine had been “all about Charlie”. Bonnie warned Charlie that during the Bob Fosse elements he needed to be “as masculine as you are”. #9 Talia & Emmanuel – “Fingers crossed” With a Hip Hop routine by Nacho Pop, Emmanuel was on home turf while ballerina Talia couldn’t have been more out of her element – and, according to three of the judges, it showed. Jason G thought Talia had a “brilliant grasp of technique” but she had to learn “how to deconstruct yourself”. Matt had never felt Talia had looked like a ballerina trying to cope with other genres – until now. Emmanuel was “great” once he got into his character but Matt had been “watching Talia with my fingers crossed”. Bonnie disagreed, feeling that this “wonderful ballet dancer” had relaxed into it and that Emmanuel had such “wonderful charisma”. Jason C had been unconvinced by the routine, feeling that “nerves got the better of Talia” and he had “musicality issues” with Emmanuel. He wasn’t “sitting in the music” and that was now “two weeks in a row”. Who will stay? Who will go? The Top 18 performances were much more even than the first week of the Finals, ensuring that the voting will be incredibly tight. Absolutely no couple is safe and if you want to ensure your dancer’s jaw doesn’t drop like Jesse’s did last week, you need to show the love and vote.

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