The Daily Star - Stay Tuned
Issue link: https://www.ifoldsflip.com/i/67428
The Daily Star, Oneonta, N.Y., Friday, May 25, 2012 2 coverstory By Andrew Warren TV Media D time of year again, when dance fans across the nation pull out their dancing shoes and get ready for another ex- citing season of "So You Think You Can Dance." The spotlight shone on this im the lights, crank up the music and move to the rhythm. It's that New 'Dance' format features two-hour episodes Shaking it up nounced that the traditional second episode of the week, in which hopes were dashed when the voting results from the previous night were re- vealed, would not be return- ing for this season. Instead, the single, two-hour weekly episode is being reworked to incorporate both the perfor- mances and the voting re- sults. year's new batch of hopefuls starting with last week's pre- miere. The previous eight sea- sons have witnessed thou- sands of aspiring dancers get- ting their hopes dashed on the dance floor before a panel of judges, while a few have had their dreams come true. The ninth season promises to serve up more of the same. In a format that's similar to the enormously popular sing- ing competition show "Ameri- can Idol," auditions have been held in cities across the country, from Los Angeles in the west to Atlanta in the east. Auditions for "Dance" were also held in Salt Lake City, Dallas, and New York City. This week's episode -- air- ing Wednesday, May 30, on Fox -- wraps up the audition component of the season. Last week's premiere aired on Thursday, but the series set- tles into its regular Wednes- day time-slot now that "American Idol" has wrapped up. Cat Deeley returns to host Season 9 of "So You Think You Can Dance" In what's become fairly standard in the reality format, viewers and judges are treat- ed to a parade of dancers -- some who have the skills, and some who seem to have been born with two left feet. As al- ways, the panel of judges is on hand to offer sparse praise and biting critique of the hopefuls. "They need a little more than just a passion to do it; they've got to have some- thing called talent," said se- ries creator and executive producer Nigel Lythgoe in an interview with Oprah.com. Lythgoe also sits behind the judges table as one of the ex- perts who makes the final de- cision of whether or not a contestant continues to the next level. The ninth season of "Dance" will be ushering in what could be the biggest shakeup to the show's format since the second season. Up until now, the show aired two weekly episodes -- one for performances and one for results. In the first epi- sode, the young men and women would take to the dance floor, hopefully daz- zling viewers and judges alike as they dipped, twirled, and leaped across the stage. It was their time to impress, as the judges are critical, and Lythgoe especially has a repu- tation for demanding perfec- tion. Details are still being ironed out, but Lythgoe has hinted at a few different ideas that are being bounced around. In an interview with "Dance Informa" magazine, he mentioned that the new format would likely allow dancers to perform at the be- ginning, then the results of the previous week's vote would be announced. The bottom three couples would then dance for their survival, and it would be up to the judges to make the final call. These details are not, howev- er, set in stone, and things can change quickly in the indus- try. Despite this rather signifi- cant change, longtime fans shouldn't worry that the show will be too different for their tastes. The familiar face of Cat Deeley returns to her hosting duties, a role she's gracefully filled since the sec- ond season. At the judges table, Lythg- oe returns to his seat, and ballroom dance champion Mary Murphy returns as well. Murphy has been a resident After the judges made their calls on the best and worst performances, it was then up to the viewers to vote for their favorites. The results of the phone-in polls were revealed during the next evening's show. In January, it was an- judge for several seasons, but she missed a season to recov- er from thyroid cancer. As in previous seasons, weekly guest judges will join the two permanent seats in critiquing the performances. The winner last season was fan-favorite Melanie Moore, the short-haired dancer from Marietta, Ga., who started generating buzz almost from the moment she first stepped onto the dance floor. This diva of dance effortlessly mas- tered every style of dance in the competition, and it paid off for her: she ended up win- ning the competition with a whopping 47 per cent of the vote, easily edging out the other three finalists. Moore, who began dancing when she was only two years old, wowed both the judges and audiences with her cha- meleon-like ability to master virtually any dance style, de- spite being trained mainly in the contemporary style. Indeed, having the ability to adapt to various dance styles is probably the not-so- secret weapon to advancing in the competition. After be- ing selected by the judges to become finalists (typically a top 20, although this format has been toyed with in the past), the contestants are split into male/female pairs. Each week, the dance part- ners are assigned a style of dance and given minimal time to master it before they're thrust onstage in front of the judges and TV cameras. Chirstopher's Coins 2 x 2 hollywoodQ&A By Adam Thomlison TV Media Q: What kind of car did Columbo drive? A: It was hard to tell under the dents and the paint job (or lack thereof), but the beaten, sputtering car Columbo drove en route to solving cases was a Peugeot 403 two-door con- vertible. French carmaker, the two-door convertible model was, in fact, somewhat rare. Columbo, played by Peter Falk, brags about that fact in the Season 5 episode "Identity Crisis," say- ing there are only three of them in the entire United States. The first seven seasons (though the episodes were all film Reports differ on whether it was a 1959 or 1960 model, but most agree there was little difference between the two. Though the Peugeot 403 was mass-produced by the length, and ran weeks apart, they were still officially divided into seasons) of "Columbo" ran on NBC from 1971 to 1978, but the series was picked up again a decade later, with new episodes premiering on ABC starting in 1989. When the revival was announced, Universal reportedly had to go hunting for the original car, which had been sold. It was found in the possession of James and Connie Delaney of Findlay, Ohio, who reportedly bought it after NBC dropped the show. Have a question? Email us at questions@tvtabloid.com. Please include your name and town. Universal struck a deal with the Findlays to borrow it for filming, but the couple refused to sell it. A/Krazy Tom's 2 x 3