The day after Sanford's Noelle Marsh was eliminated from "So You Think You Can Dance" was a busy one. The highlight: taping the "Ellen" show (it airs Monday on NBC 17 at 3 p.m.) where she and Nathan improv'ed together.
"It was awesome, I was so excited," Noelle says of the experience. "I was freaking out." She even got to jam a little with Ellen DeGeneres at the end of the show.
As you can tell, Noelle is OK with her elimination. Disappointed but OK. It was particularly disappointing because she conquered the genres she most feared, giving winning performances in hip hop and ballroom.
"You just learn that just can't expect anything on the show," she says. "You just do the best you can, and I think I did. So even though it's upsetting that I did well and I got eliminated anyway, I'm glad I can leave and know I did well."
Indeed, her elimination was a surprise, but in some ways, even the dancers realized anyone could go home. Noelle says that because they are all strong dancers it was going to come down to who America liked best, whose personality shone the most. "I didn't get a lot of camera time in the beginning, so maybe people didn't connect with me," says Noelle. "This is the search for the most popular dancer, not for the best dancer."
Noelle says she's heading home having gained a few things. Foremost, she says, are the friends she's made, the connection with her fellow dancers. "It's a bond stronger than people can imagine," she says. "It's insane how close we've become."
She says she's also taking away the knowledge she gained about where she can take her career as a dancer. "I have the confidence I can do it."
The good news is that as a top ten contestant, Noelle will get to go on the SYTYCD tour. "That was my main goal," she says. "I never wanted the show to end. Now I come back in a week for the finale and then I go on tour for three months."
And before she got on her flight to NC last night, Noelle was excited again. This time she was looking forward to seeing her friends and family and supporters in Sanford.
Assistant Features Editor Adrienne Johnson Martin would like to have her life turned into an animated cartoon. 
