Viet Nam to launch own dance contest

Dance, dance wherever you may be: Nineteen-year-old dancer Melanie Moore won the So You Think You Can Dance 2011 competition in the US. The Vietnamese version of the dance competition will be launched next month. — File Photo

HA NOI — The Vietnamese version of the original American dance competition So You Think You Can Dance will be launched in big cities across the country next month.

Any Vietnamese professional dancer or person with dancing ability from 16-30 years of age can audition in Can Tho on July 21 or in Ha Noi from July 31-August 3.

Other selections will be organised in Da Nang from August 5-6 and in HCM City from August 11-14.

Former Dance Sport Champions Khanh Thi and Tri Anh will be among the contest judges. Earlier, they also judged the recent Vietnamese-version of Dancing with the Stars.

Other guest judges include hip-hop dancer Viet Thanh, who had a significant contribution to spreading the style in Viet Nam in 1990s, young female choreographer Tran Ly Ly and her Vietnamese-Canadian counterpart John Huy Tran.

Like the original format, the Vietnamese version will feature dancers from varieties of styles, including classical, contemporary, ballroom, hip-hop, street, club, jazz, and even many sub-genres within these categories.

After a selection process, where judges choose competitors from a wide pool of applicants, 20 finalists will be selected for the competition phase, where they will vie for votes from TV audiences.

Premiering in July 2005, the original So You Think You Can Dance was created by Simon Fuller, who is also the founder of high-rated reality shows American Idol and X-Factor. — VNS