Our judges for the Boston auditions: Nigel Lythgoe, Mary Murphy and her still-feathered hair, and Adam Shankman, who isn't directing any Tom Cruise abominations this year, so he can sit around and do what he does best for a change.

THE BEST

Jennifer Jones (21, Philadelphia, PA) is taking a break from winning an Oscar for The Song of Bernadette (dig my hip references!) to appear on the show. Her story is one I'm both surprised we don't get more of on SYTYCD and surprised Nigel let us hear about even just this once: the strictures and body pressures of ballet led Jennifer to an eating disorder. She got better, she says, and changed to jazz, where she wasn't fighting her body so much. She carries a lot of emotion in her when she dances, and Nigel rightly calls out her incredible face. He says TV will love her, which I suspect is true. She could be a huge star. Vegas.

Tony Tibball (21, Ozone Park, NY) reminds Nigel of Jakob Karr and Billy Bell, so you won't be surprised to learn that I totally flipped for him. He's got impeccably pointed toes and a charming backstory featuring a family full of charming working class stereotypes who opened up a dance studio. His pirouettes freak Adam out, though Adam does express his desire for the SYTYCD choreographers to rattle Tony up a bit. We'll be seeing more of him for sure.

Anthony Savoy (24, New York, NY) is a professional dancer playing hooky from his troupe, and it certainly pays off since his gorgeous lines and soft feet (Nigel: "Have you heard him land yet?") are wildly impressive. He's a formidable opponent for anyone this year. Nigel thinks he has a great performative quality. They "send him to choreo," but it's only a fakeout to show up awful Anthony Bryant (more on him later). He's totes Vegas.

Kate Kapshandy (23, Hoboken, NJ) has a Giuliana Rancic quality to her, but let's not hold that against her. She's a ballroomer who brings Season 5's Maksim Kapitannikov with her as her partner. As endorsements go it's not bad. She's a sharp dancer, and first this season to earn Hot Tamale honors from Mary: "You HAVE IT, girl!" This is all well and good, but can't we just give Maks another shot too? Adam, for his part, proclaims her "sex on a stick." Nigel rightly questions that rather perplexing metaphor before comparing Kate to the professionals on Dancing with the Stars, leading Adam to deliver a pretty spectacular Bruno Tonioli impersonation. Good times all around.

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