World of Dance advanced six dance acts to the next round during Tuesday night's broadcast of the NBC reality competition series' second season executive produced and judged by Jennifer Lopez.
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The episode featured Jennifer And her fellow judges Grammy Award-winning singer Ne-Yo and six-time Dancing with the Stars champion Derek Hough sending six dance acts from "The Qualifiers" round to "The Duels" during the third episode of the season.
The judges decided to advance The Ruggeds, a breaking act in the Upper category; Josh & Taylor, a hip-hop act in the Junior division; Lock N LOL, a locking crew in the Upper division; Michael Dameski, a contemporary dancer in the Upper category; Rascals, a hip-hop crew in the Junior Team division, and Elektro Botz, a popping trio in the Upper division.
Junior (1-4 people) and Junior Team (5 or more people) competitors are under the age of 17, while Upper (1-4 people) and Upper Team (5 or more people) dancers are age 18 or older.
The competition consists of five rounds -- The Qualifiers, The Duels, The Cut, The Divisional Final and The World Final. The World Final will feature the four division winners going head to head for the $1 million grand prize.
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After a dance act takes the stage, Ne-Yo, Jennifer And Derek individually determine a score from 1-20 points in each of the following five categories: Performance, technique, choreography, creativity, and presentation.
In The Qualifiers round, the highest score a dance act can receive is 100 points from the judging panel; however, a total score of 80 points or higher is required for a dance act to move on to the next round.
The Ruggeds received a total average score of 83.3 points from the judges. Ne-Yo scored the group 82 points, Jennifer gave them 83 points, and Derek scored them 85 points.
Ne-Yo admitted the group had an issue with transitions, as they needed more dancing in between. And Derek said a couple guys were not in sync during the number. However, Ruggeds still made it to The Duels.
Josh & Taylor earned a total average score of 93.3 points after receiving 94 points from Ne-Yo, 94 points from Jennifer, and 92 points from Derek.
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Jennifer said the dance was "magical," almost like it was an interpretive dance. And Ne-Yo pointed out every piece of the song meant something significant. Derek added they had creative use of the prop the whole way through.
Lock N LOL received a total score of 81 points from the judging panel. Ne-Yo scored the group 80 points, Jennifer gave them 79 points, and Derek thought she deserved 84 points.
Jennifer gushed about how the dance was "pure entertainment" but their choreography could become repetitive. Ne-Yo added they lost energy halfway through the performance.
Michael Dameski walked away with a high total score of 92.7 points. Ne-Yo gave Michael 90 points, Jennifer awarded him 95 points, and Derek decided to score them with 93 points.
Derek said he could see Michael's passion throughout the dance and it was "unbelievable." Jennifer added the performance was beautiful, as he almost looked like he was flying and kept her on the edge of her seat. Ne-Yo also called the dancer "a beast."
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The Rascals racked in an average score of 84.7 points, having received 83 points from Ne-Yo and Jennifer, as well as 88 points from Derek.
Derek said the Rascals were clean and had excellent execution. Jennifer found them adorable, saying the kids exuded love but need to be more controlled and polished onstage by toning down their obvious adrenaline.
And Elektro Botz earned a total average score of 89.0 points from the panel. Ne-Yo scored the guys 93 points, Jennifer gave them 88 points, and Derek scored them 86 points.
The judges agreed Elektro Botz showed so much personality despite their robotic movements. Jennifer explained they delivered a great narrative and "smashed it," and then Derek pointed out their movements were "crystal clear" and the tricks were strong.
About The Author: Elizabeth Kwiatkowski