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(S03E03) With one last stop in Atlanta, the audition tour for season three comes to an end. I think that's a good thing. The audition episodes aren't terrible or anything, but the sooner the show can get down to the serious competition, the better. That is where So You Think You Can Dance really shines.

Nigel and Mary were once again joined by Shane Sparks to take a look at what the South had to offer. All things considered, Dixie did pretty well for itself. There were a lot of good dancers, and a few not so good, but it all made for an entertaining night. The one thing that I thought stood out as being odd was the lack of contestants being put straight through to Vegas. It's probably more a quirk of how they decided to edit this episode than anything else. But it did seem like there were a lot more contestants that got the immediate yes in the other cities.

Anyway, on with the show. This one started out very much like the L.A. auditions as we met Caitlin Cucchira. Not unlike Lauren who led off the previous show, she's a cute 18 year old with a bubbly personality. She's also a very good dancer and she turned in a great audition. Shane said he loved her. Mary thought she was terrific. And Caitlin was one of the few dancers that got put straight through to Las Vegas.

Next up was Chris Crabb. He's an NSYNC obsessed teacher with a shrine to Justin Timberlake in his bedroom. Chris is a bit of a goofy guy, with some odd hobbies and some equally odd choreography. Mary called it movement 101. Shane didn't know what to say. Nigel didn't think there was any passion. It was a no for Chris.

Anthony Velez could be one to watch in the competition. His audition showed some real talent, but beyond that, you have to be impressed by his charisma and presence. The guy is a natural in front of the camera. Shane was hoping that he could do choreography, because he was very impressed. So impressed that his going on about it chased Mary and Nigel away. He then sat in for each of them, adding a very convincing Mary scream, and put Anthony through to the choreography round. There, he showed that he wasn't just a one trick pony and moved on through to Vegas.

Then came what I found to be the most surprising audition of the night, Brandon Norris. That was not what I was expecting from a clogger. Of course, that could just be because the vast majority of what I know about clogging comes from watching the ladies of the Coyote Ugly on their reality show (Wiggins should have won). Brandon was actually very impressive. There was a lot of dance in his clogging. Nigel called it fantastic. Mary agreed. Shane wanted to do a movie on clogging. After a stop at the choreography round, Brandon also got his ticket.

In one of the more entertaining performances of the night, Bryan came out and did an excellent robot. He's a little dude, a computer science major, and suffers from scoliosis. He's got a great attitude though, and you just want to root for the guy. The judges really liked him. Mary couldn't stop laughing and Shane was up stomping his feet. Nigel said that he didn't think Bryan was right for this competition, but he thought it was a brilliant performance. Shane, once again, was brought to tears. They sent Bryan on to the choreography round. He didn't make it to Vegas, but they did have a lot of encouraging words for him. Shane even brought up the possibility of using him in his next movie project.

Former football player Myles Johnson was up next. He took up ballet as he was trying to rehab a football injury and ended up giving up football to focus on dance. That didn't go over so well with his father. You could tell from the background video that it has put a strain on their relationship. He's only been at it for eight months, but he did show a lot of talent in his audition. The judges all agreed that he wasn't quite ready for this competition, but encouraged him to stick with it. Nigel wanted to move him forward to the choreography round to give him the experience though. There, he did enough to convince them to go ahead and put him through to Vegas.

Just as I started wondering why nobody was getting put straight through to Vegas, we met the unfortunately named Ashley Simpson. She clearly has had a lot of training, and it showed in what was a very good audition. Shane thought that she was strong and had a lot of control. Mary said it was fantastic and she has 'that thing.' Ashley got very excited when Mary suggested she be put through to Vegas. It was very cute. Nigel and Shane agreed and Ashley is moving on.

The excitement that Ashley brought to the proceedings quickly disappeared as Kippery Rigsby took the stage, leading to a rather uncomfortable series of judges comments. Clearly, Kippery wasn't going to make it. Everyone knew that from the get go. Nigel started in asking about her training and ended up discovering that she had paid $1400 for some dance workshop/agent thing. What really made it uncomfortable though was her exchange with Shane. He had lost patience with her at this point and told her not to go to an audition again unless they are looking for her type. She asked what her type was and he said something along the lines of overweight and can't dance.

That called for a little levity, and Jessica Diaz was back to provide. I'm pretty sure this is the same girl from the premiere who did the strange Jesus losing his crown performance. This time, she was a cat, complete with ears. Nigel was unsure about the outfit. Mary thought she was possessed. It was a very strange scene. Jessica didn't make it through, for the second time.

Finally, cattle rancher, and former Marine, Chris Garmon came out to audition. Chris is a charismatic guy. What he lacks in pure dance ability, he makes up for with enthusiasm. He put on a fun performance but it wasn't up to the level that we have seen in the other dancers. The judges were clearly won over by his personality, but they didn't put him through.

And with that, auditions are done. Next Wednesday it's down to business in Las Vegas as the field is narrowed to the final twenty.