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2006-10-13 - 2:12 p.m.
I met Benji!
Wheee! Within 16 days, I met my two favorite boys in the entire world!!!
Of course I use the term "meet" very loosely. As you know from the video, my meeting with Clay barely consisted of anything more than "Hi! Bye!" But compared to my meeting Benji, you would think Clay and I had 3 hour conversation about the meaning AND origin of life. And made out afterwards.
Nevertheless, I saw Benji Schwimmer live and in person within a few feet of my being. I told him I loved him, I handed him my tickets, he signed them and handed them back to me. I MET HIM!!!
Last night I went to the So You Think You Can Dance tour in Duluth, GA. The show was beyond fantastic! It surpassed every expectation I had and they performed every routine I wanted to see, except for my favorite dance choreographed by Mia Michaels to Imogene Heap's "Hide and Seek."
But that's okay because the show was packed full of so much material that I almost felt as if I saw 2 shows. (There were 34 dances!) The dancers danced their asses off and looked fabulous! It was so much fun to be able to hoot and holler and scream during their performances unlike normal dance exhibitions where you just sit there and politely clap at the end.
This crowd last night was out of control for these dancers, even Benji said so himself.
"hahahaha...okay so we danced in Georgia tonight and it was bar none the best show we've done in terms of dancing. It was our biggest crowd, it was loud, it made us feel like michael jackson(late 80's style)...anywhoo...you guys are coolioso!!!!
Yay, I am coolioso!
Okay so everything about the show was amazing, exceptional, fun and sexy. I had a blast sitting between Amber and Robin going ga-ga over Benji Schwimmer.
After the show we were so hyped up that we all remarked that we wish we could go out dancing immediately after. Instead when we exited the arena we saw this area barricaded off with hundreds of fans circling it. We quickly learned that all of the dancers would be coming out to sign autographs. Eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!
Robin decided to go home since it was already past her bedtime, but Amber and I, and my mom, toughed it out.
Because we had been sitting in the 12th row on the floor, we were some of the last people to exit and therefore we were 3 people deep behind the barricade.
After what seemed like forever standing outside in the semi-chilly weather, the dancers arrived! They staggered them and therefore Benji (and Travis) were the last two. By the time Benji made it to us, we had been waiting for a little more than an hour. But it was totally worth it. Each dancer took the time to stand there and sign everything that was handed to them and some even took pictures with the fans. Especially Benji!
Amber was the only one who had brought a camera, but her battery was dead, so I had to rely on my cellphone again to document a once in a lifetime experience.
And I took a little bit of video, too.
The girls to my right were all dressed up like the Tranji (nerdy with suspenders and big glasses with tape). They were very cute. We had seen them before the show outside and told them how cute they looked. Once Benji saw them he died laughing. Then he stood up on the barricade and posed with them for a picture.
Then Benji moved on to our group. I didn't buy a tour book because I didn't like the picture they used of Benji (the old one from the SYTYCD website) and all of the merchandise (t-shirts, boxers, keychains, etc.) were generic So You Think You Can Dance stuff. No Benji anything! Boooo! Therefore the only thing I had for Benji to sign was my ticket. So I reached over the heads in front of me and he signed my tickets!
Amber hands Benji her ticket and says to him, "Benji, tu eres muy fantastico!"
Benji's face lights up and he says to her in Spanish, "Oh you speak Spanish!"
Amber tells him that she served her mission in Chile. He asks where in Chile. She tells him, I believe I heard Concepcion. At this moment, I cannot believe my ears, Amber is having an entire conversation with Benji Schwimmer! On top of me freaking out that (1) Benji is standing right there in front of us, (2) that, OMG, he's real, and (3) he is even more beautiful in person....I'm trying to pull the 2 years of high school Spanish I had (on top of my 4 years of French) out of my ass so that I can understand what they are saying to one another.
(I later found out that Benji told Amber that he's going to Chile to a telethon of some sort.)
Then it dawns on me that I could be videotaping this, too! I whip my phone/camera back out and start taping it. I only caught the very last thing Amber said to him - which was when she switched to English. Amber tells him that he's going to love Chile and its people so much.
Benji was getting politely mobbed and so we moved to the back and eeeeeeee'd together. The waiting was so worth the experience of seeing him up close and interacting with him.
Here's my sad attempt at having my picture taken with Benji.
I can't even begin to express how much he reminds me of Clay Aiken. The heart, the drive, the talent, the snark, the wit, the intelligence, the charm. Amber and I agreed:
Benji Schwimmer is the Dancing Clay Aiken.
We stood around for a few minutes just watching him interact with the fans. It was so hard to turn and leave knowing that we would probably never have that kind of opportunity again. But we all had to be at work at the crack of dawn the next day (yes even me - I was up at 6am the next day and at work at 7:30 am!)
I did call my BFF Lisa on the way home so that I could squeeeeee some more. She and I shared the Benji love all summer and I couldn't wait to tell her!
I am actually driving up to Greenville, South Carolina on Wednesday after work to see the So You Think You Can Dance tour again! It can't possibly be better than the Duluth show, but I do have seats in the 3rd row! Since my sister (who is accompanying me on this crazy SC trip) and I have to run out of the arena and drive back home all night to get up and go to work the next day, I won't be able to stay after and "meet Benji" again. But I'm honestly surprised and grateful for the brief opportunity I had Thursday night. I'm still amazed that these dancers were so generous to spend their time meeting and greeting their fans.
I didn't take any pictures at the Duluth show because I just wanted to enjoy every moment, but I have borrowed some pictures from fellow fans (at the Idolforums) who attended previous shows and snapped some amazing photographs. Enjoy!
southinkucan...dance.dance.dance.dance
opening number
Allison and Travis, I love them both!
squeee! OMG, it's him!
Each dancer took turns introducing the other dancers between each dance, but it seemed to me that Benji was the real Master of Ceremonies for the night. He was a real natural and so complimentary to everyone.
One of my favorites from the season...Too Much Booty In Da Pants
Too much something else in da pants, as well.
Awww, I love the Benjelle!
The Dancing Kimmie Gibbler!
Ivan and Allison dancing
The Argentine Tango
Ryan's solo
Travis and Natalie danced a routine that Travis choregraphed. Wow.
Benji and Heidi actually get to dance their speciality, West Coast Swing, on the tour.
Six dances later...here it comes.....
THE TRANJI!
Shake it boys.
This blows
my mind.
I don't know how they do that, but I like it!
3 dances later, it's Chicago!
OMG, Ivan was so freaking hot in this "Sexy Back" number! Yes, Ivan! He worked the runway.
Such a stud.
Benji channeling Zoolander!
Intermission
Ramalama band bang!!!
The costumes and wigs were even more fabulous in person. I leaned over and told Robin, "if I could wear any kind of clothes and wear my hair kind of way, I'd probably walk around like this."
Robin said she might do this for Halloween. I said, "Yes! You would make a hot dead slutty pirate woman!" I hope she does.
I love Natalie's hair with the red in it.
Dmitry. Allergic to shirts.
The Viennese Waltz. Not the Vietnamese Waltz.
I'm not crazy about this Statute of Liberty crown of spikes he's currently sporting, but I love that he enjoys changing his hairstyle frequently.
Travis' solo was amazing. He danced to Gavin DeGraw's version of "Let's Get It On" and it was hawt!
3 dances later, it was time to Black Mambo.
Then disco time!
Benji's solo was incredibly entertaining. But when he ripped off his shirt at the very end, I gasped and jumped up to my feet!
He can be such a naughty little thing.
I promise there was a lot more to his solo than the last second, but that didn't involve Benji Schwimmer's nipples, so you'll just have to take my word for it.
I wasn't a huge Ivan fan until I saw him perform live.
Hairspray! Love those plaid pants.
The whole ensemble came out and joined them for the encore.
The entire show was brilliant. I can't wait to see it again on Wednesday!
Last night I....met Benji Schwimmer!
