Benji Schwimmer - So You Think You Can Dance 2006

So You Think You Can Dance 2006

After returning to the United States from Mexico, Benji learned that his promised sweetheart had broken up with him. He stated on the show that he had learned about this when he saw that his name was not on her wedding invitation. To combat the resulting depression, Benji returned to dancing. He was shown a video of the performance of Nick Lazzarini, the 2005 winner of So You Think You Can Dance (SYTYCD), and decided that he would audition, along with Heidi and her former dance partner, Dmitry Chaplin, for the 2006 season of the show. All three were among top 10 finalists. Benji and his first dance partner, Donyelle Jones, successfully competed through the entire first part of the season without ever being in the bottom three. Both made it to the top four. Benji was named the winner on August 16, 2006.

During the course of the show, the judges routinely said that, while Benji was not necessarily the best technical dancer in styles other than his own, he was clearly an outstanding performer and entertainer.

The prizes for winning the competition included a car, a one-year contract to perform in Celine Dion's Las Vegas show, and $100,000 USD. However, in an interview for Seattle Times, Benji stated that he had turned down the Dion contract.

Starting in September 2006, Benji and the rest of the top-10 finalists performed in a North American tour (see So You Think You Can Dance (Season 2) for details). Most of the dates sold out within hours. Seattle sold out within 30 minutes and New York sold out within 11 minutes).

The following year, Benji was invited to perform on the opening of season three and to become the first SYTYCD alumnus to choreograph on the show. His west-coast swing choreography of a high-octane number, "The Rockafeller Skank," brought both the audience and the judges to their feet. Executive producer and head judge, Nigel Lythgoe, said that the piece finally invoked the magic that was lacking in the new season. The swing piece became a crowd favorite on the national tour in 2007.