Fed: Dance judges to join contestants on stage for finale

AAP General News (Australia)
04-25-2008
Fed: Dance judges to join contestants on stage for finale

By Katherine Field, National Entertainment Writer

SYDNEY, April 25 AAP - The judges of So You Think You Can Dance are going to have to
pay attention and heed their own advice to show off their best moves in this weekend's
grand finale.

After a long few months, the hit Network Ten show will wind up on Sunday night when
Jack, Rhys, Kate or Demi will be crowned "Australia's Favourite Dancer".

The top 20 dancers will return, and in a unique move, the judges Jason Coleman, Bonnie
Lythgoe and Matt Lee will take to the stage for the opening dance.

"We the judges and the choreographers are actually performing in the opening number
with all the dancers," judge Jason Coleman told AAP.

"It's very exciting."

For Coleman it'll be a chance to get back into the limelight he loved for so long in
a different arena.

"I've been a dancer for 20 years, in my whole life I've been affecting people that
way, but basically doing it in theatres," he said.

As the final approaches, hip hop dancer Jack is the favourite with bookmakers having
him at $1.75 to win, but flamboyant Rhys is closing in at $2.50.

The most experienced dancer of the bunch Kate is at $5.50 while Demi is dead last at $14.

Coleman said he believed it was anybody's title, but said Demi shouldn't be underestimated.

"She's a reality TV dream," Coleman said.

"She's a joy. You can feel her kindness and her warmth."

The show has been a ratings winner for Ten, pulling in around 1.3 million viewers since
its debut.

Ten has said it intends to keep the show around for many more years, and Coleman said
he wanted to stay on board.

"I want to be involved with it as long as it runs," he said.

"(I'm) so honoured, so honoured to be at the helm of something that's so important
to our dance family."

For now, he said, the dancers were dying to find out who will win.

"The electricity in here is just amazing, the top four dances are all beside themselves
just to find out what the result is," he said.

After the show, Coleman said he plans to open the biggest dance studio in the southern
hemisphere, in Melbourne.

AAP kaf/it/cdh

KEYWORD: DANCE (PREVIEW)

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