So you think Arabs can dance? Say it together now: na’am.
The Arab version of hit TV show So You Think You Can Dance is finally coming to the Middle East. Called Yalla Nor’os, the show will premiere on Fox Movies from September 28, with an audience-voted final winner walking away with a $100,000 (Dh367,295) prize.
The judging panel will include Egyptian actress and ballerina Nelly Karim; Charles Makriss, the founder and artistic director of Makriss Dance Ministry; Egyptian actress Rogina; and ballroom dancer and instructor Pierre Dulaine. The 11-episode show, which will air every Sunday at 9.30pm in the UAE, will be hosted by Lebanese actress Rita Hayek.
Contestants will dance off every week for votes from TV audiences across the region with viewers taking part via SMS. The eventual winner will be selected via the votes along with inputs from the judges.
The Emmy Award-winning So You Think You Can Dance was created by Simon Fuller and Nigel Lythgoe in 2005 in the US and is now franchised to more than 25 countries. The show sees contestants from a variety of dance styles enter an open audition to demonstrate their moves. Their number is then whittled down and a few contestants are selected to move on to the live TV stage.
20 finalists
In Yalla Nor’os, the judges will select the top 20 finalists who have made it through to the competition’s main phase. These dancers will then get to perform duet and group dance numbers across categories in front of a live audience. A contestant will then be eliminated each week.
“Airing for the first time ever on TV in the region, Yalla Nor’os is sure to prove a big hit amongst dance enthusiasts across the Middle East, many of whom have been devotedly following the US show since its inception,” said Sanjay Raina, general manager of Fox International Channels Middle East.
