Post by ericcantona203 on Jun 14, 2006 21:00:21 GMT 1
By Bill Keveney, USA TODAY
So You Think You Can Dance has nowhere near the audience of American Idol, but it has something its hugely popular Fox cousin doesn't: an elimination show in which low-rated competitors must perform for their survival.
The top 20 performers of 10 men and 10 women begin the weekly finals rounds with performances in a two-hour show tonight (8 ET/PT) and eliminations Thursday (9 p.m. live ET/tape-delayed PT).
The bottom three couples, as ranked by viewer votes after tonight's show, will dance individually to try to stay in the contest; the three judges will eliminate one male and one female dancer.
Dance co-creator and judge Nigel Lythgoe, who is an executive producer of Idol, explains the pressure of those live performances: "America has put you in the bottom. Now, you dance again solo, and these three will decide whether you go or stay."
Dance also has a new host: Cat Deeley, an English TV personality, replaces Lauren Sanchez, who is expecting a baby. Deeley says she's amazed by the talent, but the winner will need something more. "We're trying to find America's favorite dancer," she says. "We're after the one with big character, charisma, that indefinable thing you can't put your finger on."
Competitors also have to prove their versatility in a variety of genres, from ballroom to hip-hop. Elimination shows will feature group performances by the finalists and appearances by such stars as Rihanna, Natasha Bedingfield, Chris Brown and pussycatcat Dolls.
Dance is drawing more viewers in its second season. Compared with the first four episodes last year, the show is up 26% in viewers (averaging 10.1 million) and up 31% in ages 18 to 49, an advertiser-desired demographic.
The show also has attracted more competitors, more than double the roughly 2,000 who auditioned last year, Lythgoe says. Last year's winner, Nick Lazzarini, and runner-up Melody Lacayanga joined Evolution, a professional dance company in California. Other finalists also have enjoyed a career boost.
That was an incentive to audition this year. The winner receives $100,000, a car and a year's contract to dance in Celine Dion's Las Vegas show, A New Day ... .
Mary Murphy, a Dance judge who also choreographs the ballroom performances, says the finalists have a higher talent level than last year's crew. "Last year, nobody knew what (the new show) was. A lot of great dancers would have held out," she says. This year, "so many more dancers came out."
So You Think You Can Dance has nowhere near the audience of American Idol, but it has something its hugely popular Fox cousin doesn't: an elimination show in which low-rated competitors must perform for their survival.
The top 20 performers of 10 men and 10 women begin the weekly finals rounds with performances in a two-hour show tonight (8 ET/PT) and eliminations Thursday (9 p.m. live ET/tape-delayed PT).
The bottom three couples, as ranked by viewer votes after tonight's show, will dance individually to try to stay in the contest; the three judges will eliminate one male and one female dancer.
Dance co-creator and judge Nigel Lythgoe, who is an executive producer of Idol, explains the pressure of those live performances: "America has put you in the bottom. Now, you dance again solo, and these three will decide whether you go or stay."
Dance also has a new host: Cat Deeley, an English TV personality, replaces Lauren Sanchez, who is expecting a baby. Deeley says she's amazed by the talent, but the winner will need something more. "We're trying to find America's favorite dancer," she says. "We're after the one with big character, charisma, that indefinable thing you can't put your finger on."
Competitors also have to prove their versatility in a variety of genres, from ballroom to hip-hop. Elimination shows will feature group performances by the finalists and appearances by such stars as Rihanna, Natasha Bedingfield, Chris Brown and pussycatcat Dolls.
Dance is drawing more viewers in its second season. Compared with the first four episodes last year, the show is up 26% in viewers (averaging 10.1 million) and up 31% in ages 18 to 49, an advertiser-desired demographic.
The show also has attracted more competitors, more than double the roughly 2,000 who auditioned last year, Lythgoe says. Last year's winner, Nick Lazzarini, and runner-up Melody Lacayanga joined Evolution, a professional dance company in California. Other finalists also have enjoyed a career boost.
That was an incentive to audition this year. The winner receives $100,000, a car and a year's contract to dance in Celine Dion's Las Vegas show, A New Day ... .
Mary Murphy, a Dance judge who also choreographs the ballroom performances, says the finalists have a higher talent level than last year's crew. "Last year, nobody knew what (the new show) was. A lot of great dancers would have held out," she says. This year, "so many more dancers came out."