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'Superstars of Dance' Waltz onto NBC
NBC is a little bit late to the dancing-show party, but the network is hoping that its entry into the genre makes up for its tardiness with the sheer skill that will be on display.
Superstars of Dance, which premieres Sunday (Jan. 4), will bring together some of the best professional dancers from eight countries for a competition that will try to determine which nation cuts the best rug. It's the brainchild of Nigel Lythgoe, the former American Idol executive producer who also oversees FOX's So You Think You Can Dance.
"Dancing With the Stars, that's a bunch of celebrities who would like to dance. My own show, So You Think You Can Dance, is a bunch of kids who would like to be dancers," Lythgoe says. "And this is professionals that have been doing it, have made their living through it. A lot of them are world champions in their specific genre, and it's a lot of different cultures coming together. And I think that's what's the most exciting part of it for me."
The show will look something like an Olympic competition for dance. Each of the eight nations -- the United States, Argentina, Ireland, Russia, South Africa, India, China and Australia -- will have solo, duet and group competitors who will face off against one another while also earning points for their country. Judges from each country will determine who moves forward in each round.
Michael "Lord of the Dance" Flatley and MTV personality Susie Castillo host the show. Flatley says he's been fascinated by the wide array of dance styles he's seen so far.
"It's a really nice mix of cultures," Flatley says. "When you see the precision of the Irish team and the speed at which they tap in unison, almost like an Irish Army. And then you see the Groovaloos from America that just are all over the stage popping and jumping and hopping and spinning, and doing back flips -- [it's] just a sensational mix. It's intoxicating."
The divergent styles, though, can make the judging a little tricky. Lythgoe has decided to leave the audience out of the judging -- partly because he figured American viewers would naturally favor the home team, and partly because pros might be better able to take into account the differences between, say, "Riverdance"-style Irish dance and the gravity-defying routine the Shaolin monks perform for China.
"At the end of the day, if you're going to try and include countries in it, you want to throw the boat open to entire countries. It just doesn't make sense," Lythgoe says. "... It's funny because it's very similar [to the Olympics]. You know, we've got a shot of the contestants waiting as the judges speak and their little faces are, What are they going to say?"
You can see what the dancers say -- and do -- when Superstars of Dance premieres at 9 p.m. ET Sunday on NBC. It moves to its regular timeslot at 8 p.m. ET Monday. Until then, you can check out Zap2it's Superstars of Dance photo gallery.
I think this show is going to be astounding. I love the fact that I will be exposed to and will be able to learn about other cultural dances and traditions. I agree that the average audience member would not be able to judge the skill level of dance styles they haven't been exposed to so I think it is a good idea to remove the audience from the judging. I do think that they should have an audience favourite category though. I will definitely be watching on Sunday.
Blurt | Jan 2, 2009 12:31:56 PM | #Sorry - yawnfest. Do we really need another dance show, whether from pros or amateurs? A definitive no.
It seems about exciting as attending a local heritage festival, which isn't any good without the beer.
Modwild | Jan 2, 2009 12:57:04 PM | #Superstars of Dance has to hit for NBC as they need a promotional tool for its shows. Superstars of Dance looks interesting, but I'm afraid to watch until I see the ratings b/c I wasted my time watching American Gladiators only to see it drop later in the year and Circus of the Stars was a big bomb. Got Talent is the only reality competition show worth watching b/c you know the ratings will be high on that network.
Superstars of Dance is one of the few reality competition that looks worth getting into, but like I said I might not be watching Sunday Night until I see the ratings on Monday. Ever since I first heard about it being like the Olympics, I said to myself that was a great event. I love watching spectacles where everybody's watching at the same time. Hopefully this delivers and word gets out how great it is.
Hot Pocket | Jan 2, 2009 3:49:52 PM | #It's cool to see so much dancing on TV, it's like free advertising to us smaller studios that teach dance for a living.
However, these shows are so damn boring and typical of the hype without substance TV is known for.... why not let the dancers dance and put it all together for a good cause like feeding the children or other when a couple wins top prize.
As usual, I won't be tuning ing to any of these new shows.... I am too busy on the dance floor gettin gy groove and wondering how all this can be turned into help for others less fortunate.... c ya!
ballroomisback foolz! | Jan 3, 2009 11:23:08 AM | #This is billed as an Olympic-type competition with participants from widely different countries. However, in the Olympics everybody is doing the same stroke so that there is a clear "winner." In this show, it sounds like everybody is doing their own thing, and there's really no way to judge one against the other. It's all purely in the eye of the beholder. Sorry, but I don't see a lot of equity in this, so a lot of people will disagree with the decisions the judges make and will be disappointed .
Suzy Q. | Jan 3, 2009 5:47:03 PM | #One word..
BORING
Donna | Jan 3, 2009 11:53:23 PM | #2 words...
looks terrible.
I am 97% sure that the first group's footwork was canned. The guy from UK danced on wood and you could hear the floor mic noise in the BG.
Andy | Jan 4, 2009 6:42:01 PM | #The dancing is great in superstars of dance. The judges and the commercials SUCK.
| Jan 4, 2009 8:20:23 PM | #Horrible show. Very boring. Is is Michael Flately or Lawrence Welk hosting? Painfully dull and slow-moving. Amaturistic all the way around. puppet "judges" Utter waste of time!
Shame on you NBC
I feel like I just got rick-rolled by NBC. so glad i decided to watch all of 24 before i moved over the show.
Harry | Jan 4, 2009 9:08:18 PM | #I'm just wondering.. was there a specific reason for only those 8 countries participating? I felt like I wasn't really seeing the best of those countries and missing out on other great, if not better, dancers from other countries.
michelle | Jan 4, 2009 9:36:40 PM | #Fire the director & send the judges back to their countries. As a professional dancer married to a director I can easily and accurately state that this show is the MOST AWFUL DANCE SHOW EVER. How can you shoot dancers with a long shot on the camera? Michael Flatley is flat, too. Terrible. Horrible. Disgraceful.
ShahiraHalawi | Jan 4, 2009 10:32:23 PM | #Great dancing.
Appalling camera work.
Uninspiring music.
Incomprehensible judging. Come on, at least give us a CLUE why there are 4 point spreads between judges?
I found it rather boring.
jewel | Jan 5, 2009 1:05:22 AM | #Superstars of dance is a complete waste of airtime! The fact that only eight countries have been included is already unfair enough, and then adding obviously biased and unfair judging... that really does it. The cabaret routine was absolutely breathtaking and yet the couple recieved three 7's. I simply can't make any sense of that. At least some routines such as the argentine tango routine were judged accurately. I was so excited for this show but I just can't see how it is fair to judge between a tap dancer and a ballroom dancer. Nigel usually makes good production decisions... I mean I love So You Think You Can Dance!!! What happend? I am so let down by this show!!!
Jill | Jan 5, 2009 1:27:54 AM | #YAWN CITY! This is a world competition?!? I've seen better street performers. All the judges have gotta do is give other countries a low score... like Ireland did. Yes Ireland's footwork was canned sounds. WTF?!? Oh and that Indian duet? UUUg. I could do that in my sleep and put 1000% more heart into it. AND The Last group from China... that's acrobatics... not dance.. sorry. You can put them in the same category and make them compete. "bah, eight" ... not even... I give it a 3.
Rj | Jan 5, 2009 7:08:35 AM | #FLATLEY was FLAT !! This show needs a LOT of help to make it. The dancing was so so, and the judges were even more boring. Flatley is a dancer, not a host. He was stiff, reading his lines, monotone, half-dead in other words.
Rizz | Jan 5, 2009 7:48:51 AM | #Lythegoe: Let's throw any ole piece of garbage at em; we need a hot dance show going again!
2nd producer: Who will we get to host it?
Lythegoe: I know, that guy who dances all the time, he is gooood!!!
2nd producer: But the bloody mate caunt host!!!
Lythegoe: Yeah, but he can breathe!! That's all we need!
Rizz | Jan 5, 2009 8:00:59 AM | #Points to some countries for actually showcasing native dance forms. I'm from the USA and I've never seen whatever it was the US soloist was doing.
claude | Jan 5, 2009 8:35:50 AM | #Was very disappointed with this show- it might have been okay in an exhibition format but you can't compare these styles of dance!
Will not be wasting my time watching it again.
The first performance were the Irish group.... so fake and imitated.... yikes...
I was very disapointed that the irish group did not have an original idea of their own....
The performance was an exact, exact duplicate of Michael Flatley's CELTIC TIGER performance right down to the last detail maneurism hand waving and running around the stage that the main front character did....
down to the last exact same movements that Flatley performed in his CELTIC TIGER show.....
This was copied and should not have earned that many points...
sure the group are very good dancers.... but should have had their own original creation, not a copied one....
I went to see the original performance of CELTIC TIGER on stage in person and bought their video and have watched it over 50 times and still have the dvd at home, so thats why I know what I'm talking about....
Nigel, Nigel, Nigel. Whatever were you thinking?!!!
Without a doubt the worst dance production I have ever seen.
I expect so much more from you. You never disappoint ... until now.
I am in total agreement with every negative comment above.
Please, take it off the air before it does any more damage to the world of dance production.
Nana24 | Jan 5, 2009 2:26:25 PM | #SuperSnores of dance. The director should be fired. The cameras are bouncing all over the place and not focusing on the dance. Many times the dancers were out of frame. We don't need to see close ups of the dancers' faces. We want to see the fancy footwork and the amazing phyicality of their art. Flately is snore as the host. Pacing is lame. We also don't need have the scores reiterated after every performance...take a hint from the olympics Nygel.
This one is a flop.
I wanted so badly to scream directly at the producers!! How could those camera shots be so pathetic as to choose cheesy closeups of only a single person over shots of footwork or shots of the dancers all in one frame. Do they know nothing about filming dance? A competition? Really? We're just not that stupid.
c | Jan 5, 2009 4:26:56 PM | #
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