Reality TV show dances into Everett

When Lacey Schwimmer, one of the top four finalists on "So You Think You Can Dance," flew into Southern California, she was shocked to see clouds of smoke and cars covered in ash.

"We've been out of the loop for about six months," Schwimmer said, referring to her time taping and touring behind the hit program. "It's kind of crazy to come back into the real world."

With that brief California visit over, Schwimmer's back on the bus, leaving reality behind with the show's other top 10 finalists. The troupe plans to perform some of the program's most popular numbers during a Wednesday show in Everett.

On the TV show, contestants performed in front of a studio audience and judges -- a jazz hands version of "American Idol." Now on tour, they have to waltz away in front of thousands of screaming fans.

"It's crazy," Schwimmer, a perky 19-year-old, said. "You don't really realize what's going on until you walk out on stage."

It's been an interesting experience for the finalists, plucked from near anonymity to dance in front of more than 7 million television viewers, and now playing packed arenas.

While many of the show's contestants had training in dance, TV brought them a rare sort of attention. Dance, after all, usually doesn't attract fans like this -- the sign-waving, MySpace-posting variety.

"You never play arenas, and you're never the headliner of the show," said Neil Haskell, who also finished in the show's top four. "Say you're on a tour. You're backing up an artist, so people never know your name, people never know who you are."

Kiss that anonymity goodbye, Haskell. People run up to the 20-year-old in shopping malls, screaming, he said. He was quick with a wisecrack during the TV show's run, but he said he deals with those Beatlesque moments calmly in person.

"You just have to remember that some people sometimes don't realize that we're exactly like them," he said. "I'm not any different than who I was last year at this time."

During the Everett show, the performers plan to wear microphones, introducing the dance numbers and showcasing a bit of personality.

"I throw a couple bad jokes in every once in a while," Haskell said. "Just little cheesy stuff."

Joking aside, some of these dancers sound a bit road weary. Haskell, a New Yorker, answered the phone during an afternoon break in Texas, saying he's having fun, but is tired. Schwimmer, meanwhile, took her trip to San Diego, where she has family, so doctors could look at her knee.

"Every dancer has injuries," she said. "I don't know one person that doesn't have something wrong with them. It's just something that you have to take."

Haskell and Schwimmer -- who may do a flower routine together during the Everett stop -- both speak glowingly of their fans and the opportunity to perform. But both are also looking forward to getting home before Christmas.

"It's good to be not on a bus after being on a bus for, like, three months," Haskell said.

Reporter Andy Rathbun: 425-339-3455 or e-mail arathbun@heraldnet.com.