Irvine 6th-grader taps his way onto Fox TV show

Eleven years old with focus, Jack Eliot Hinds has a vision for his future, and he’s taking steps to get there.

Using his stage name Jack Eliot, the sixth-grader at University Elementary School in Irvine will make his national television debut in his tap-dance audition for the Fox show “So You Think You Can Dance: The Next Generation,” which airs its season premiere at 8 p.m. Monday on Fox/11.

The latest talent-search reality show seeks aspiring young dancers ages 8 to 13 to complement adult hoofers who were winners and finalists on “So You Think You Can Dance,” the previous version of the program.

“I watched the show my whole life,” Jack said, “and to get to be on it was really awesome.”

The tap dancers’ auditions, taped in February, required three rounds in groups of eight. Other performers auditioned in jazz dance, hip-hop, ballroom, break dancing and contemporary styles.

After the three sets of auditions, with hours of waiting between stage times, Jack was rewarded with a chance to dance solo before the three-judge panel of Paula Abdul, Nigel Lythgoe and Jason Derulo. That performance will be seen during the premiere.

“I was the last person in the audition to get the ‘golden ticket,’ ” Jack said proudly.

“It was extraordinary getting to perform my solo in front of all three of those amazing people,” Jack said.

“I’ll be honest, it was quite nerve-wracking,” said Jack’s mother, Robyne Hinds, a single mother of five who volunteers at Focus Dance Center in Irvine to offset the cost of Jack’s lessons.

“Dance competitions are long 12-hour days, so it teaches the kids discipline and time management,” she said. “We just love the sport overall.”

Though Jack is versed in other forms of dance, he opted to focus on tap for the TV show, even if his specialty might not be considered cool around school.

“Every once in awhile, people think that dancing is for girls in general,” said Jack, who first tagged along to the dance studio with his older sisters when he was 3 years old. “I’ve been made fun of about it. I do have some friends that encourage me.”

He lists tap dancers Gregory Hines and Gene Kelly among those he admires.

“He’s a natural performer. I think just his overall charisma and appearance brought him through the cut,” Robyne Hinds said of her blond-haired boy, who also enjoys surfing, basketball and playing drums. “They were calling him the ‘surfer tapper.’ He just doesn’t fit the mold. He totally has a different look. He’s a unique performer.”

Jack wants to use dancing to break into acting, and his network TV debut is only the start of what figures to be an exciting summer before he starts seventh grade. Producers from Nickelodeon saw Jack’s dancing and have already taped a segment with him for a new program called “All In With Cam Newton.”

The program will debut Friday with Newton, the MVP quarterback of the NFL’s Carolina Panthers, taking a day to mentor talented students like Jack.

Spending a day with the football star made a big impression on the young dancer.

“He was amazing,” Jack said with a laugh. “I expected him to be more serious, but he acted like a total big kid. He was hilarious.”