Tonight, after the finale of Make Me a Supermodel (I'm on Team Holly, by the way), Bravo will premiere its latest reality series: Step It Up and Dance, which pits 12 aspiring dancers together in a contest to master styles from ballet to burlesque.
The show, which comes from the folks behind Project Runway and Top Chef and is hosted by Elizabeth Berkley, is just the latest of a huge crop of dance shows that have popped up both on network TV and cable in the past couple of years. There's Dancing with the Stars, of course, and So You Think You Can Dance, plus J. Lo's Dancelife, America's Best Dance Crew on MTV, Your Mama Don't Dance on Lifetime, and the rumored Dance Machine on ABC.
When I asked Jerry Mitchell, the famed choreographer who will serve as the mentor on Step It Up and Dance, why there were so many dance shows on the air, he chalked it up to a little bit of wish fulfillment. "Dance is like a bird flying for most people," he said. "It’s something everyone wants to do, but very few can." What do you think is up with the dancing craze? And are these shows getting your attention?
Photos courtesy of Bravo
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I agree that it is bubblegum programming - just something entertaining, not a lot of nutritional content... but if it encourages more people (esp kids) to actually get up and dance maybe we'll be a fitter and happier nation! We go through cycles like this, I remember dance being HUGE around the Fame/Flashdance era, and everyone I knew growing up in dance wanted to be Madonna or Janet Jackson (or at least a backup dancer!) and it seems good to expose more types of dance to more people... maybe more people will have some cultural appreciation for the skills of good dance troops.
1I do enjoy watching some of these shows, especially those that focus on amateur talent. Reality programming is never truly satisfying, but at least some of the dance shows are fun.
2I like the dancing competitions like So You Think You Can Dance...but I would definitely rather watch paint dry than watch dancing with the stars...I hate that show.
3I've watched a few So You Think You Can Dance and more of America's Best Dance Crew - but the others don't interst me at all.
4eh, they're alright. if i'm really bored, i'll watch them. otherwise.. i could care less if they are on tv.
5I am team Perry! Go Perry.
I like the dancing shows, that have real people...not the dancing with the stars, or Your momma cant dance, too gimmicky
6I agree with most of the comments above...I like watching real people dance (ABDC & SYTYCD)....dancing/ice skating w/ the "Stars" is dumb & so just a vehicle to make D-listers relevant again.
7I love the dancing trend!! I am not a huge fan of DWTS, but love SYTYCD and ABDC since it highlights the amazing dancing talent out there.
By the way, I'm totally on Team Perry too.
8I watch the two mentioned by the majority here: SYTYCD and ABDC.
I have no interest in the others. (Most others seem exceedingly cheesy.)
9Being an ex-dancer, I LOVE it!
10ABDC and SYTYCD hell yeah!!! Love those shows!!
11I'm just so tired of reality shows all copying one another's formats and premises. It gets really dull when you realize that half the shows on TV are all the same thing, just with different hosts.
12I love So You Think You Can Dance, but don't really care for any of the others...
13I didn't watch "So You Think You Can Dance" for a few seasons, thinking it would be a boring intelligence drainer, but it's actually very entertaining. It's living, moving art. I don't watch any of the other dancing shows.
14I dont watch any of them, too boring and dont care, but I had to vote love it because my mom adores them and watches them all.
I pretend I watch them, too so I can "talk" about them with her.
I just agree with whatever she says about the guys/girls
Shhhhh, dont tell!
15I'm glad that dancers are being brought forward in the American consciousness through these shows, but some of them are just bad. I know a lot of you like Dancing with the Stars, but that's not even good ballroom dancing. It's only enjoyable if you like the celebs on it, and the routines aren't even that challenging.
The two best dance shows on TV are So You Think You Can Dance and America's Best Dance Crew. SYTYCD pairs world-class dancers with some of the most innovative and talented choreographers in the states to create incredibly memorable 1 minute and 30 second pieces of art. Dance Crew is great for entirely different reasons: Dance Crew shows us just how good street dancing can be and interprets it in a lot of different ways. I'm so happy that Jabbawockeez won. Those dudes are SUPER talented and amazing performers.
I refuse to watch the abomination that is Your Mama Don't Dance for the same reasons I don't watch DWTS -- I have a true respect for the art of dance and I don't want it to be a joke. You watch YMDD to watch people screw up and dance really, really poorly. (I think we watch DWTS with the best intentions of seeing good dancing, but it never really happens.)
I probably won't watch Dance Machine, if it happens. But I'll at least give Step It Up and Dance a try.
16I love So You Think You Can Dance! I can't wait for it's return...though I am a little disappointed that it's coming back earlier than usual. I like that it's on in the dead of summer, when I have nothing else to watch on TV. Though, we really have nothing to watch on TV right now anyway...
17I just got hooked on dance shows recently (Dance Wars was the first I had ever watched). I am not watching Dancing with the Stars which I am totally enjoying since my boyfriend and I take ballroom.
18I was addicted to America's Best dance crew. Loved it!
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