Lauren Luteran’s So You Think You Can Dance audition packs emotion

So You Think You Can Dance is often about the quality of the dancing that you see but, beyond that, it’s also about some of the specific stories you hear told. It’s about the way that dance makes you feel. We all love a comeback arc, where someone who has faced insurmountable odds finds a way to shine. That is Lauren Luteran on Monday night’s new episode of the series.

So who is Lauren? She is a young woman who was diagnosed with cystic fibrosis at an early age. As many of you probably know, this is a disease that causes most who suffer from it to live a very short lifespan, and forces them to deal with a number of difficult health ailments. Hearing her parents talk about concerns over her future was heartbreaking. Yet, she looks to dance as an escape and she’s been doing it for over a decade. Her contemporary routine tonight is set to “Marathon (In Roses),” and there is a lot of beautiful, lyrical movement in here. Her lines are stellar and she is able to deliver something that easily brings a tear to her eye. The leg lifts are stellar, regardless of who she was or what condition she’s battling.

There are times on this show when it’s nice to fall in and just revel in a moment or a single routine. We’re glad that this is one of those opportunities. We also praise the judges for allowing her to really have this moment and put her through to the next round.

Truth is, we don’t know what the future holds for Lauren on the show. The next rounds are incredibly intensive and physically and mentally draining. There’s a lot of time that the series can really focus on some of that down the road, but we’re not at that particular point right now. For the time being, we’ve got a wonderful opportunity to just enjoy what’s directly in front of us and that is a great, emotional routine from someone who wanted to inspire others and likely prove something to herself. She did that, and there’s a reason why producers chose for this audition to be at the end of the night. They knew that this was the moment viewers would be talking about some time.

The fact that we are 16 seasons into So You Think You Can Dance and still are being moved by some of these auditions? That really shows not only the strength of the brand but also the people who continue to what to be a part of it. There are still more dancers out there with stories to tell, and it is an ever-evolving ecosystem with more and more people coming in.

What do you think about Lauren’s So You Think You Can Dance audition? Be sure to share in the comments and stay tuned for more.