This is How We Do It The Next Step

Previously on The Next Step...

You look beautiful.

It's moments like these that I wish he was my boyfriend.

Michelle's really pretty,

but is it really necessary for my boyfriend to tell her that?

Elite is definitely our main competitor.

It's been The Next Step's goal to beat them

for as long as I've been here.

My glove gets caught in my feather, and I know,

right at that moment... We're done.

-We just lost because of me...

-Riley...

-We just lost!

We have a chance in getting the Wild Card spot.

'The troupe that will be facing Seeds in the semifinal is...

'The Next Step!'

CHEERING

Finally, my team is able to go up against Seeds.

I have two very excited dancers with me.

These are the co-captains of The Next Step, Michelle and Emily.

And they have just discovered that they have snagged

the coveted Wild Card spot, moving them into the semifinals.

-Congratulations, ladies - how do you feel?

-Thank you.

I guess the only way to describe it is "excited".

I mean, it's definitely not something we expected

-or planned for even, but...

-No, not at all. I mean...

Being the Wild Card is kind of a special feeling.

'We've never made it this far.'

Competition starts to get fierce, right about here,

because you're facing off against a very focused, determined team -

Seeds - and as I understand, this is not actually going to be

the first time that you've faced off against them - is that true?

It is not the first time.

Nope, this will be our second, actually.

'I mean we've already lost to them once

'and they weren't even really trying.'

So what if they beat us again? That'll be humiliating.

We've gotten stronger as a team and we're ready to compete against them.

Great. Now, the two of you are co-captains of The Next Step.

That's not a very commonly seen phenomenon in the dance world.

Can you tell me a little bit about your relationship as co-captains?

NERVOUS LAUGHTER

-Our relationship, um...

-Was a turbulent one...

-Yeah.

-..but now it is... smooth sailing.

It's smooth sailing, for sure.

So there's never tension between the two of you?

-Never!

-Not really.

-Never.

We just have to let everyone know

that we do have a good relationship and in the end, we are friends.

We're not really putting on an act anymore.

I really do like Michelle.

-Thank you.

-Thank you.

-That's Emily and Michelle,

co-captains of The Next Step,

about to head in to the semifinals. Stay tuned.

MUSIC: Stand Up by Jessica Lee and Kit Knows

I'm here with Amanda, the captain of the team from Elite Dance Academy

and they have just come off of a tremendous win,

scoring, in fact, the highest score in the competition so far.

Amanda, congratulations. How are you feeling right now?

Uh, we feel good. We're very proud of each other

and so confident in going into the finals.

Elite is in the final round, after beating Dance Inc in the semifinals,

so now they're walking around like they own the place.

Sometimes over-confidence can make a team falter though,

when they get into the big rounds.

You sure that's not going to happen to you?

No. That won't happen to us.

And in fact, we're so confident,

that we have already bought our plane tickets to Nationals.

Amanda bragging that they've already

"won Regionals" is uncalled for.

It makes my insides curl up.

I mean, who is that full of themselves?

You bought your plane tickets, for a competition that you haven't yet qualified for?

-Yes, we have.

-Well, that is confidence. Thanks so much, Amanda.

Congratulations to you, as you carry on in the competition.

-Thank you.

-Stay tuned for more action.

5, 6, 7, 8...

Great job, Giselle.

-1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6...

-Oh, hey.

Be careful, uh...

Hello.

I mean, how rude is that?

I don't care how good you think you are,

you don't just walk through someone's rehearsal!

Aww.

Cute costumes, guys(!)

Is your grandma missing her curtains?

And who did your make-up - a clown?

You guys, should just all get a job at the circus.

That'd be great.

And I'm just standing here, frozen.

I... I literally can't speak.

And Emily,

did you finally find a group that you can keep up with?

Amanda, don't you have your own team to torment?

What? Emily can't stick up for herself, now?

Why does it matter?

Whatever. Have fun.

I've had enough of this Amanda girl.

I mean, who does she think she is?

She needs to stop picking on Emily.

It's enough.

Are you OK?

Eldon, are you not going to go talk to her?

Eldon, bro, go!

Can you please take this seriously?

Yeah, sorry.

Well, I don't know what to do!

She is your girlfriend. Go talk to her.

Go, Eldon. Go.

Fine.

I'm kind of embarrassed to say it, but...

I kind of forgot I was her boyfriend.

So clueless!

I don't understand how he cannot be serious at a time like this.

This guy kills me.

Every time I just joke around with her,

she kind of takes it so badly.

She's just got to loosen up.

I feel like a lousy boyfriend,

but honestly,

I don't even know why I can't connect with her.

It's just not how it used to be.

Just ignore Amanda.

She's just mad that you came back to The Next Step.

Eldon, there's more to it than that.

Looking at her and watching her

and hearing the way she talks to people and...

It just reminds me of the old me -

how I used to be.

I've liked Emily for a really long time...

and now that I'm finally dating her...

..I guess she's not the girl I thought she was.

It's just hard to look at her.

It's like, if I get in a confrontation with her,

the old Emily will just come screaming back out and...

..I don't want that.

I know you're strong enough to get through any of this.

Eldon is boyfriend of the year.

I... I mean, he's the best.

He talks me through everything. He stands by me, I...

I just trust him, so much.

You really think so?

Yeah.

OK, well, um...

We should probably get back.

There was kind of a weird moment,

where I went in to kiss Eldon and he kind of...

dodged me.

-Yeah, you're right.

-Let's go.

I do like Michelle a lot more and...

I don't want to kiss Emily

and make her believe that I still like her.

MUSIC: Girlz Trippin by Jordan Francis

Right now, we're seeing Seeds perform and they're doing well.

Their formations are tight, their choreography is clean

and they have a lot of passion.

I just hope that we can beat them.

Whoever wins between Seeds and The Next Step

will be going up against Elite in the finals.

They're a bunch of talented kids, they really are.

Completely different from us, but very talented.

I mean, it's anybody's game at this point.

CHEERING AND APPLAUSE

What did you think of that end to that routine...

-Great performance.

-..that was something else, wasn't it?

Really high energy throughout.

Really, really nice to see Tony back in that spot, too.

'In their semifinal round...

'Seeds has scored...

'91 points!'

CHEERING AND APPLAUSE

91 is one of the highest-ranking scores

that we've seen from this Absolute Dance Regional competition.

Well, you can see the performances keep getting better.

You know, with each elimination, the stakes are higher and they have to bring their A-game.

-Congratulations. Good job, guys.

-Thanks, guys!

-That was a good performance man!

-Thanks!

-Great job, Seeds.

Not better than my crew, though!

Oh, OK, Compass!

Go and dance your little punky moves. Good luck.

-I'm going to punch you.

-Good luck, guys!

Seeds has really set the standard pretty high for The Next Step.

Now the question is, yes, how will The Next Step, you think, respond to that?

I feel like, with the adrenaline...

That score of 91,

they're going to come out and really kill it.

91 points!

That is the first time Seeds has ever scored that high!

And we've never scored that high.

Look, you guys, it's really important

that we dance with passion and I do stress the word "passion".

That's passion with three "S"s(!)

And guys, not only that, we've come so far - not just as people...

But as a team (!)

-OK! Take this seriously, James! Yeah?

-Yeah.

'Like, we're having a pep talk,

'right before we're about to go on stage...'

and he just ruins it, by being stupid.

We've trained so hard.

'When Riley tells me to take things seriously,

'for, I think, the third time today, it's kind of just annoying.'

I feel like she doesn't understand me.

-A-TROUPE:

-One, two, three!

Next Step!

A-TROUPE CHEER

We've never made it to the semifinals before,

so this is uncharted territory.

Go, go, go, go!

I mean, it feels weird to go up against Seeds,

but it feels good, because I know we're going to beat them.

Man, these kids we raise, eh? Love them.

KATE GIGGLES

If we beat Seeds, right now,

we'll be competing against Elite in the finals.

I really hope we get the chance to show Elite what we can really do.

We're down to the semifinals,

here at the Absolute Dance Regional Championships.

And Stacey Tucci - only two squads

have managed to score in the 90s.

Of course, one is Elite.

The second squad was Seeds.

That looked really good in this semifinal against, uh,

The Next Step dance studio.

And I think, really, what's exciting here is,

The Next Step has never made it to the semifinals before,

at a Regionals.

So their hearts must be going right now,

they are kicking it into high gear

and I'm expecting some of their best dancing.

MUSIC: Stutter by Marianas Trench

Everything needs to be bigger, 20 times more energy...

We're going to do whatever it takes to nail this routine.

I'm very confident that The Next Step will beat Seeds

in the semifinals.

I want to prove to them that what we showed them in the dance battle

is a little bit of what we can actually do.

Look at that turn sequence!

-I mean, that's so difficult!

-Wow.

I don't think you can understand how difficult that is,

to get all those turns.

And the gentlemen too, the athleticism in the choreography,

-like... Wow! Right there.

-Whoa.

There's not a spare moment on that stage that's not being used.

You get the sense that the audience is really pulling for this crew...

I have a feeling they're really pulling for them -

they want them to win.

Woo!

CHEERING AND APPLAUSE

-Way to go, guys - you killed it!

-Amazing!

KATE AND CHRIS CHEER

The Next Step dance studio.

All they have to do - it's a simple task, yeah -

is score better than 91 points!

-Yes!

-Ah! You guys!

A-TROUPE CHEER AND LAUGH

Seeds is a hip-hop troupe and this is a more technical troupe,

so you're really comparing apples and oranges here.

'Yeah, I'm actually feeling a little bit sorry for the judges!'

Just wait.

What are you doing?

I just wanted to say, I'm sorry for earlier.

Oh, don't sweat it. It's no problem.

'When Riley apologises, it really just makes me realise...'

that she does understand me

and she just doesn't take it very well when she's under stress.

But if I were to send you, let's say, a text message,

it would probably say

"This is who I am...

"LOL. Winky face."

Uh, what?

I don't stress over things and you have to accept that.

OK, yeah. I can live with that.

But you also have to know who you're dating

and I do stress.

Can you send me that in text message form, so I don't forget it?

-Just... I'm just kidding! We're good, right?

-Yes.

It's good to have somebody who really gets me

and I mean, we both really accept each other for who we are

and I mean, it's nice to have that.

'Will The Next Step dance studio please take the stage.'

OK. Good luck, guys! Good luck, good luck, good luck!

Go, go, go, go!

'To move onto the finals and face Elite,

'The Next Step will have to beat Seeds' score of 91.'

I know it's going to be a tough race.

We're waiting to hear if Seeds is going to beat us.

This past year, I've learned so much.

You know, I came to this town, I... I didn't know anyone,

but, you know, now...

These people are my family.

I learnt that having a connection with your team

can mean everything in winning a competition.

If there's one main lesson, it's that...

If there's something that you want to get -

a goal, a trick,

or a girl...

Don't let anything come in your way.

Just go get it.

'And The Next Step scores...

'..93 points!'

CHEERING AND APPLAUSE

I feel kind of bad for my friends, but...

I feel better for my team.

I'm not actually too sure what's going on with Eldon,

but I kind of don't want to ruin this moment for myself, so...

I'll just talk to him about it later.

All right, I am here with Kate, the owner of The Next Step studios

and Chris, who's the head choreographer.

Now, Chris and Kate, you are in for a very exciting final round here,

-up against Elite Academy.

-Mm-hmm.

What are your feelings about the match that we're about to see?

Uh, I think it's going to be epic. They're great!

And we're confident that we're going to take them to the ground.

"Take them to the ground"? Those are harsh words, Chris.

And now we are going to speak to their rivals today,

studio owner and head choreographer, Lucien of Elite Dance Academy.

Come on over here, Lucien. How are you today?

I'm doing great, how are you, Lisa?

Tell us what your strategy is for the match we're about to see.

Well, the strategy is just having the best ideas,

having the best dancers...

-Sorry! Hi. Hi, Lucien, how are you doing'?

-I'm great. How are you?

Good! So, you think you have better dancers than we do?

It's kind of obvious, Kate. I mean, we've proven it.

Oh, it's obvious? Really?

You know what, I haven't seen your mom around, is she... Is she around here?

Didn't she own the studio before? Oh, no - she quit. That's right.

-Sorry.

-Don't bring my mom into this!

Kate, I think it's time for us to leave now.

I'm just, I'm just saying you're talking about the best dancers,

-you know, you've got like, a history, you need a history to have best dancers.

-Just wait! You just wait.

-I mean it. Finals.

-You need a history, girl. And you know the apple...

-the apple doesn't fall far from the tree, does it?

-Wow. Wow. Wow.

We deserve to be here.

We belong here and we're going to kill it and take it all.

And I'm also completely terrified.

Stutter was insane last night. I had so much energy while I was doing it!

-Yeah. Yeah, it felt really good.

-The crowd was amazing!

'It's the morning of the final round...'

and we've been given some time on stage to rehearse,

before this afternoon, when we go head-to-head with Elite.

It feels awesome, going to the finals,

because, you know, we have worked so hard this year

and you know, it's finally paying off.

-Congratulations once again, for getting this far, guys.

-Woo! Yeah!

'Right now, we just have to pull it together as a team...'

and just give our best performance we've ever given.

Yeah, you guys did a phenomenal job with Stutter yesterday,

it was amazing.

But this is Finals, OK? So we need to up our game, big time.

Each dance troupe comes to Regionals with two routines.

It's hard choosing what routine you want to use

for the regular competition and the finals.

I'm feeling a little nervous.

I mean, we used our best routine first,

so now we have a pretty good routine that needs a lot of work.

So we just got to figure something out.

Also...

Elite's going to have an airplane in its final performance.

-I saw it when I was there.

-What?

Of course Lucien would have a plane, on the stage, in his routine.

How big is this plane?

It's a big plane.

Oh-oh-oh!

It's a prop plane.

Oh, you mean with propellers?

No, I mean it's fake!

LAUGHTER

Oh. Well, I mean, I guess that makes sense.

I mean, how are they going to get a plane in this building?

Right, Emily? I mean... Duh.

Are...

What?!

Anyways, we can't worry about what anyone else is doing.

We have to worry about ourselves.

Yeah, but how are we going to top an airplane?

A PROP airplane.

Really?

OK, OK. All planes aside,

-I really think that we should focus on Michelle and Eldon's duet.

-Yes.

Actually, that's a genius idea!

Let's move your duet from the centre of the dance to the very beginning.

Right off the top, it'll be super powerful.

I just said Elite has an airplane.

How are we supposed to ever counter that with a duet?

That absolutely makes no sense.

-Uh, yeah.

-Yeah, Emily, have you seen them?

-The duet is amazing!

-It's so emotional.

-Yeah.

Is this what everyone wants?

-A-TROUPE:

-Yeah.

I have been noticing

a few things between Michelle and Eldon,

so I don't exactly...

want them dancing a lover's duet together.

Fine. Consider it done.

Perfect.

But you know, this is Regionals

and that duet requires a lot of chemistry.

Do you guys have it?

-Yeah.

-Yeah.

All right, then.

I'm not totally oblivious to what's going on around me.

So I would really rather they didn't go up on stage,

in front of an entire audience

of our friends and family

and display whatever is going on between them.