Move Like Michael Jackson

Contents

Host

Reggie Yates

Co-hosts

Dance Experts: Mark Summers, Lavelle Smith Jr.

Judges: Jermaine Jackson, Mark Summers, Jamelia

Broadcast

Fever Media and Gogglebox Entertainment for BBC Three, 14 to 20 December 2009 (6 episodes in 1 series)

Synopsis

Reggie Yates hosts a week of programmes to find a dancer to perform at the Michael Jackson Memorial event in 2010.

The first two programmes cover the nationwide auditions as so-called dance experts Mark Summers and Lavelle Smith Jr. attempt to find dancers who show the same attributes as the late Michael Jackson. Well, not all of the same attributes, obviously. The auditions follow the usual format for such programmes, featuring a mixture of good and bad performers, and far more than your Recommended Daily Allowance of, 'Got to give 110%', and, 'Chance of a lifetime'. Over the course of each programme, a number of dancers and troupes are picked to progress onto the callbacks. Here, they are whittled down further to leave eight acts. The second audition programme follows the same format, giving 16 acts to progress to the semi-finals.

In the studio-based semi-finals, each episode sees eight acts compete. Each act is paired off, to participate in a dance-off. This often entails a single dancer being paired with a troupe, which sees a little unfair. In each dance-off, both acts are given an opportunity to display their best Michael Jackson dance moves, but also attempt to evoke the creativity in dance for which he was famous. After each act performs, the judges, Jermaine Jackson, Mark Summers, and Jamelia give their verdict. After each act in a pairing has performed, Jermaine Jackson alone, decides who progresses to main dance-off at the end of the episode. The initial dance-off is repeated a further three times with the other acts to leave a total of four contenders to compete in the main dance-off.

In the main dance-off, all four of the remaining acts takes to the stage at the same time, and each is given a chance to free-style in front of the judges. After each act has performed, the judges once again voice their opinions, before Jermaine Jackson decides which two acts progress to the grand final. The above process is repeated in the second semi-final, leaving four acts for the grand final.

The grand final starts out much like the semi-finals, with the remaining four acts being paired off to participate in two dance-offs. Again, once the judges have given their views, Jermaine Jackson decides which acts progress. This narrows the field to two finalists, who must each perform again, but on this occasion they cannot dance to a Michael Jackson song, but must still exhibit his dance traits. After each act has performed, a public phone vote is opened, as it is they who will decide who the winner is. Once the votes have been counted, and after a customary bit of filler, the winner, who receives a trophy in the shape of Michael Jackson's famous sequinned glove, and the chance to perform at the memorial event is revealed.

Champions

Animaniacs

Web links

BBC programme page

Wikipedia entry

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