SALT LAKE CITY — “So You Think You Can Dance” judge Nigel Lythgoe gave some advice to Utah ballroom dancer Ezra Sosa last week: “Try and figure out what you need to do to appeal to America.”
Because while Sosa has continually impressed the judges throughout the show’s 16th season — which really should be the deciding factor — when it comes to getting audience votes, the dancer has been at the bottom.
And since reality shows like “So You Think You Can Dance” are more often than not a popularity contest, the audience determined who from the Top 6 would move on to the Top 4.
Sosa didn’t make the cut.
But he gave it his all Monday night. Before performing his first dance of the night, Sosa expressed gratitude to his supportive mom, who suffered a stroke a year ago.
“I just thought I was going to lose my mom forever and I just couldn’t bear the thought of that,” he said with emotion. “I’m so grateful that she’s here today. Her No. 1 priority has always been family. Every single day she’d tell us to never forget where you come from, and I take that to heart.”
Sosa put a lot of heart into his first performance of the night — a duet with “So You Think You Dance” all-star Gaby Diaz, the season 12 winner. Sosa was wiping away tears as all four judges gave him a standing ovation.
“Constantly you’ve been in the bottom, and week after week you’ve always used that pain as something as an opportunity to overcome and win,” judge Dominic Sandoval said. “And to me, that is what makes a winner. Not winning this show.”
From there, Sosa went on to perform a duet with his dance partner on the show, Madison Jordan. Like Sosa, Jordan was also in the bottom when it came to audience votes last week, before being saved by the judges. For Sosa and Jordan, a lot was riding on this performance.
The duo performed a disco routine to Sylvester’s “You Make Me Feel,” and all of the judges commented on the “sparkle” in the performance — literally and figuratively.
Sosa — whose sister, Stephanie Sosa, made it to the Top 10 before being eliminated — performed one last dance with his fellow male contestants before hearing the Top 4 results.
And then came the verdict: Sosa and Jordan would be going home.
While disappointed, Sosa didn’t seem all that surprised, and above all, he was grateful for “So You Think You Can Dance” — grateful that it took him out of his comfort zone and made him feel “free and alive.”
“I just feel so honored to be here and to show my love for dance to America,” he said. “And not only that, but to share the stage with such amazing contestants, but mostly to share it with my sister. This is a dream I’ll never forget.”
“So You Think You Can Dance” airs on Fox at 7 p.m. on Mondays.