Superstars of Dance
Nigel Lythgoe of "So You Think You Can Dance" fame is trying something new. He's launching a new dance competition show on NBC January 4, 2009, called "Superstars of Dance."
"We're bringing class to NBC," he says. We'll see. Some of these reality spinoffs have not worked at all. But Lythgoe has shown some great insight in the past, so I'll give him the benefit of the doubt.
Lythgoe's global dance competition will bring together leading professionals from eight countries for judging by a panel of judges from around the world. He claims that they're the best dancers of each respective nation. It will feature a combination of dance styles, just like in SYTYCD. I think the international competition element will be quite intriguing. Not sure from what I've read if there will be any audience voting aspect to the show, but it doesn't sound like it.
Co-hosts are Susie Castillo ("House of Payne") and Michael Flatley ("Lord of the Dance"), who Lythgoe hails as "the world's best-known dancer." Lythgoe, an executive producer, is best known to viewers as a judge on his Fox dancing contest, "So You Think You Can Dance."
The countries scheduled to participate on "Superstars" are Ireland, India, Argentina, China, Russia, South Africa, Australia and the United States. I'm not sure who picked the countries, but I guess we'll find out when the show airs. Perhaps it's no surprise that Irish dancing made it into the competition, given Michael Flatley's involvement, but I find that a bit disappointing personally. Ireland? Seems very much out of context to me, when other countries have done so much more with dance overall. Australia, also, seems a bit of an unusual choice, but at least they have a strong legacy. They used to play a huge role in the dance world, but have been hiding in the background for the last 10 years or so.
Flatley describes it as "an intoxicating mix of cultures." I'll be tuning in January 4 to see if the show lives up to the hype. Click here for a YouTube promo.
"We're bringing class to NBC," he says. We'll see. Some of these reality spinoffs have not worked at all. But Lythgoe has shown some great insight in the past, so I'll give him the benefit of the doubt.
Lythgoe's global dance competition will bring together leading professionals from eight countries for judging by a panel of judges from around the world. He claims that they're the best dancers of each respective nation. It will feature a combination of dance styles, just like in SYTYCD. I think the international competition element will be quite intriguing. Not sure from what I've read if there will be any audience voting aspect to the show, but it doesn't sound like it.
Co-hosts are Susie Castillo ("House of Payne") and Michael Flatley ("Lord of the Dance"), who Lythgoe hails as "the world's best-known dancer." Lythgoe, an executive producer, is best known to viewers as a judge on his Fox dancing contest, "So You Think You Can Dance."
The countries scheduled to participate on "Superstars" are Ireland, India, Argentina, China, Russia, South Africa, Australia and the United States. I'm not sure who picked the countries, but I guess we'll find out when the show airs. Perhaps it's no surprise that Irish dancing made it into the competition, given Michael Flatley's involvement, but I find that a bit disappointing personally. Ireland? Seems very much out of context to me, when other countries have done so much more with dance overall. Australia, also, seems a bit of an unusual choice, but at least they have a strong legacy. They used to play a huge role in the dance world, but have been hiding in the background for the last 10 years or so.
Flatley describes it as "an intoxicating mix of cultures." I'll be tuning in January 4 to see if the show lives up to the hype. Click here for a YouTube promo.
