So You Think You Can Dance: Season 8, Episode 22 :: Winner Announced

Aug 11, 2011

Kenny Ortega (director of High School Musical) and Katie Holmes join the judges panel on the finale of So You Think You Can Dance Season 8. Episode 22 aired on August 10, 2011.

So You Think You Can Dance: Season 8, Episode 22 :: Finale

Courtesy of FOX

This week, each of the final four contestants - Melanie, Marko, Sasha and Tadd - performed a whopping five routines! That's one solo, one with an all-star, and one with each of the three remaining dancers.

Marko

Marko struggled with the lifts in his disco number with Melanie, but redeemed himself during his Broadway performance with Sasha for pulling off his character as a nerdy waiter. The judges were swept away by his contemporary piece will all-star Lauren, and he finished with strength and athleticism in his hip hop number with Tadd.

Sasha

Choreographer Sonya created a jazz piece that she called her “ode to Sasha.” Sasha and all-star Mark received high praise from the judges. Next, Sasha become a beautiful, sophisticated women in her Broadway number with Marko. Unfortunately, her cha-cha with Tadd fell short for the judges. But her contemporary routine with Melanie about lonely housewives put her back in the game. Kenny Ortega loved the way they used the picket fences to represent prison bars.

Tadd

All-star Joshua outshined Tadd in their hip hop routine. Nigel said Tadd looked too sweet. His cha-cha with Sasha was even worse. Tadd, particularly, couldn’t cope with the style. His Broadway routine with Melanie about a cheating boyfriend put him back in the judges’ good books. His final hip hop, or “stepping,” performance with Marko about miners mining for gold was “solid gold” for Mary Murphy.

Melanie

Melanie’s disco number with Marko was sizzling and electric, and her contemporary routine about unrequited love with all-star Robert was even better. Kenny Ortega admitted that desperately wants to work with Melanie. In her Broadway routine with Tadd, she brought her character to life even before she started dancing. Her final performance with Sasha was extremely powerful.

Winner Announced

Just as we predicted, America voted according to the judges' comments. The incredibly talented Melanie Moore took the win with 47% of America's votes.

Melanie
Sasha
Marko
Tadd

Have Your Say

Who was your favorite contestant on So You Think You Can Dance Season 8? Let us know in our comments section below!