M-Net on Dancing with the Stars SA: No confirmation of a 2nd season yet, says 1st season was 'crazy, chaotic, fun, scary, but so rewarding' - and brought the magic back for us.

M-Net (DStv 101) says it can't as yet confirm that there will be a second season of Dancing with the Stars South Africa but the pay-TV broadcaster's head of local content described the just-concluded first season of the BBC's glitter floor dance format's revival on M-Net, produced by Rapid Blue, as "a mixed bag" that was "crazy, chaotic, fun and scary but most of all rewarding" - and a show that "brought the magic back for us".

This past Sunday night, Kaye-Ann Williams, the head of local content and independent films for M-Net channels; Kee-Leen Irvine, managing director and executive producer at Rapid Blue; and winning dance pair Connell Cruise and Marcella Solimeo did a Q&A with the media at a press conference immediately after the conclusion of the live broadcast of the Dancing with the Stars SA first season finale on M-Net.

TVwithThinus asked Kaye-Ann Williams whether M-Net will be doing a second season and if so, when it will be scheduled.

"I can't confirm a second season just yet, we will go through a process and then make a decision after that," said Kaye-Ann Williams, the head of local content and independent films for M-Net channels at the press conference.

"With regard to the first season of Dancing with the Stars SA I think we started discussing this mid last year, and Jan du Plessis, M-Net channels director is such a fan of Strictly Come Dancing UK and so is Yolisa Phahle, CEO for general entertainment at MultiChoice, and so am I, that just, you know, the dream of being able to do this seemed quite big."

"So when we started our discussions we knew that doing this would be dependent on various 'ingredients' - the right judges, the right celebs, the right professional dancers, producers and all hands on deck."

"So this past season has been a mixed bag for us. It has been crazy, it has been chaotic, it has been fun and it has been scary. But most of all it has been so rewarding. Because in its entirety - from the cast and crew to the dancers and the pro dancers - everyone had been 100% committed."

"We are extremely proud of what has been accomplished by this entire group. From episode to episode you watch it, you analyse it, you ask 'what can we do better?', 'how can we raise it?', 'how can we raise the bar?' We constantly asked ourselves that and challenged each other to do that."

"So it was very robust as well in terms of raising the bar, so I feel, just as a brand exercise for M-Net, it brought the magic back for us," said Kaye-Ann Williams.

"For me it was one of our wildest dreams come true and we are extremely, extremely proud of what this entire production and this entire team has accomplished."

"Also the type of leadership that Kee-Leen Irvine has provided to this production - she is an executive producer of note. Uncomparable. And I'm so proud to work with Kee-Leen - you have been so committed and absolutely collaborative, and such a joy to work with and I am so proud of what you have accomplished and it's because you've steered the ship this way."

Kee-Leen Irvine said "there's certainly an appetite - South African viewers love local versions of international formats and their shiny floor shows so we do them well, I think, especially when we have the support of a client like M-Net".

"So we will always continue to do those, alongside the original local programming that Rapid Blue also does."

"This really, really has been the highlight of my producing life and I think all of the cast as well. We've learnt so much. And a lot of that learning has come from Jason Gilkison - he stretched us."

"I've had the most supportive client in M-Net that I've had in my entire life, and I'm going to get tearful, but from Yolisa Phahle to Jan du Plessis, and Kaye-Ann Williams and Terja Beney (commissioning editor), what you can do as a producer with the right client behind you, and the right team alongside you, it's just been phenomenal," said Kee-Leen Irvine.

"As a production company, every single person has walked away enriched on a number of levels through being involved with this show".

Choreographer and judge on the Jason Gilkison who also served as Dancing with the Stars SA's creative director, at the press conference said "it was an absolute joy to be here".

"The team that was assembled by M-Net and Rapid Blue were just so incredible to work with. And no matter what I said as creative director, there was never a question of 'there's no way we can do that".

"Everybody just threw all 100% of themselves into this. And it was a beautiful situation to be in as a creative director because suddenly every week we were all doing stuff we were so proud of. And it was just a lovely experience for me," said Jason Gilkison.

Lani Lombard, M-Net's head of publicity, said M-Net won't be releasing any voting results for Dancing with the Stars South Africa and that the new voting system that was introduced whereby viewers first had to register before they could vote was a highly secure and massive TV voting improvement.

"We had no glitches whatsoever throughout the season of Dancing with the Stars SA for live voting. This is incredible, if you look at the history of live voting, and in this country the problems that you had in the past with delayed voting, or volumes or technical failures. This is really a secure, controlled voting mechanism. We knew exactly how many people were registered and it made the process easier."

"And because of this we can move forward and do more live shows with live voting. Live voting just makes a TV show so much more exciting because anything can happen. We are completely convinced by the new voting system. It was just so errorless and so easy to compute," said Lani Lombard.

Dancing with the Stars SA on M-Net sparkles with a live TV surprise engagement as dance champion Ryan Hammond asks fellow dancer Angelique Allison to marry him.

Sunday's second episode of Dancing with the Stars SA broadcast on M-Net (DStv 101) at 17:00 delivered a live TV surprise engagement on the ballroom dance floor when the professional dancer Ryan Hammond surprised his fellow professional dancer Angelique Allison with a marriage proposal, saying "I want to dance the rest of our lives away".

At the end of Sunday's second episode of the Rapid Blue produced glitter floor format show, a made-for-TV moment happened with Angelique Allison, who was completely in the dark as to what was about to happen to her.

Of course choreographer Jason Gilkison, Dancing with the Stars SA head judge and the show's creative director, was secretly in on the plan and helped to carefully orchestrate the surprise romantic moment.

Following a carefully, and beautifully choreographed group dance number by the professional dancers in Dancing with the Stars SA - all dressed in black capes and hats and white gowns during a big band swing number from Frank Sinatra - Ryan Hammond and Angelique Allison ended up in front seemingly by co-incidence. 

The dance number was choreographed so as to end with Ryan Hammond, already on one knee and with Angelique Allison sitting on his right leg. The couple have been together for 3 years.

Hilariously, at the end of the dance number, co-presenter Chris Jafta was immediately up-close, glitter mic in hand as Ryan just started talking.

"Ladies and gentlemen," Ryan Hammond said - as Angelique got that "look" on her face and made silent eye contact with some of the dancers behind her - "a couple of years ago Angelique told me if I ever propose to her, she'd be wearing a nice dress, and there should be someone taking pictures".

Angelique's hand went to her mouth in shock as Ryan said "I thought it couldn't get bigger than this!" as he took out a small black box and opened it up to reveal a ring inside.

"Baby I love you very much. Will you marry me?" Ryan Hammond asked as Angelique said yes. Then they kissed and the ballroom dome's audience erupted in applause and cheers.

"Listen buddy, you've set the benchmark so high for guys, I think it's unfair what you did because now every single guy has to live up to your expectations," said Chris Jafta.

"It's Valentine's Day, we share the same dreams, and I want to dance the rest of our lives away," said Ryan.

This coming Sunday will be the first opportunity for viewers who have registered at mnet.tv/dwtssavote to vote for the favourite dancers.

Viewers' votes will be combined with the judges' scores to determine which two couples with the lowest scored will have to dance for their survival once more in the Dance-Off.

M-Net will announce the results of each episode on the same night in a special Dancing with the Stars SA live results show at 20:00 every Sunday night after Carte Blanche with the Sunday night blockbuster film starting at 20:30.

REVIEW. A rejuvenated Dancing with the Stars SA on M-Net is true 'Disney-glitter television', a dance-off menagerie filled with colour, strobe lights and beautiful bodies.

"This show should come with a glitter warning," said co-presenter Tracey Lange on Sunday evening - and she was absolutely right - in the revived, rejuvenated and improved Dancing with the Stars SA that took a giant leap forward in techni-colour projection and high definition in the jump of this ballroom dancing series from the SABC to M-Net (DStv 101).

Strictly Come Dancing SA, the title under which the glitter floor format show was known as over the course of 8 seasons on SABC2 and SABC3 was never a bad show. The Rapid Blue produced song-and-dance fest is now just even better as the BBC Worldwide format show transitioned to M-Net under the retitled Dancing with the Stars SA name.

It's now in high definition (HD), the revamped voting process is much improved, and everything has had the "M-Net glitter machine once-over", elevating the show's production values to pay-TV levels for a pay-TV audience, specifically for MultiChoice's highest-tiered DStv Premium subscribers.

With a (first-ever) rooftop ballroom, a live band and lead vocals, projectors casting full-colour images on the dance floor and walls to envelope the dancers and ballroom spectators in dancing diaramas and with a large video wall ensconced under circular arches, Dancing with the Stars SA is finally a South African version sporting pedigree specs similar to its UK and American counterparts.

Dancing with the Stars SA, produced by extremely skilled and veteran producers, clearly must have a bigger budget and it shows in a refinement of basically everything with the result that the M-Net viewer and DStv Premium subscriber get a TV show that's gone from fine as it was economy, to more attentive, better furnished business class.

While eagle-eyed observers would spy some first episode production jitters, brief glimpses of stage-fright and some technical problems that will surely be ironed out as the season rolls along, the show, done live from the top of the Hyde Park Corner shopping centre, shined bright in its first episode on M-Net.

Impacted by some sound problems especially towards the end, Dancing with the Stars SA was a colour and dance Sunday evening TV samba as celebrity and professional dancers entertained in what for the bulk of it felt like a wonderful 2-hour live Grease musical with a waltz and tango thrown in.

The co-presenters Tracey Lange and Chris Jafta are in tandem television jewels. Quite simply they make magical television together.

Not since eNCA's NewsNight with Jeremy Maggs and Iman Rappetti has South African TV had a couple being such a perfect fit in natural charm, backing each other up, imbuing the autocue with just enough of their own personality, and striking the perfect tone in both humour and unaffected delivery.

Whoever found Tracey Lange and Chris Jafta and thought of putting specifically these two together, deserve a mirror ball trophy of their own.

Together the twosome, who have individual experience of presenting TV magazine shows, are not just extremely natural and comfortable on-screen, but become a bigger, even better, and more powerful compound than their individual elements on TV's periodic table.

The four judges are all very likeable but the funny and effervescent judge and choreographer Jason Gilkison is clearly the high EQ head boy in this dance-off menagerie filled with colour, strobe lights and beautiful bodies.

Judge Tebogo Kgobokoe, back from Strictly Come Dancing SA, is clearly going to be the "strict one" and will provide added drama as the scoring reveals of the four judges and the numbers on their scoring paddles already turned into a little mini-drama of its own.

In variety and comedy television, timing is everything. In the first outing of Dancing with the Stars SA the pacing was fine, interrupted by somewhat halfhearted in-show audience applause at certain places but deftly smoothed over by Chris Jafta who at some points were a bit quick in transitioning from judge to judge in eliciting comments but will still adapt to their speaking patterns.

The costumes and set design are top notch, the professional dancers extremely talented, agile and skilled, and the band masterful in the rendition of instantly recognisable hits to accompany the dance acts.

Some camera angles felt oddly missing, as if the majority of cut to's were done from only one or a limited range of direction. Still, it is true "Disney-glitter television" - an immersive, highly entertaining variety TV experience that draws you in and manages to keep you spellbound.

The opening group dance number was explosive and so expansive in scope and filled with so many little details not seen on television, that some viewers would probably wish there were camera drones to capture even more different angles.

Dancing with the Stars SA is perfect TV viewing for Sunday evenings and definitely the most colourful programme in a very literal sense on all of South African television right now.

It's cute like a dog show filled with the same dramatic irony that the beautiful and beautifully dressed things have no idea what they're really in for, is filled with vibey music, and brims with more colours than Crayola.

In a world of Donald Trump, Cape Town running out of water and a lot of other troubling issues, the crystal TV palace of Dancing with the Stars SA on M-Net is a wonderful hidden hideaway, devoid of all life's problems for two hours on Sunday evenings.

From Swarovski crystals to wardrobe malfunctions, flying through the air and shedding their clothes – here’s everything you want to know about M-Net's Dancing with the Stars SA.

In Dancing with the Stars South Africa the sexy celebrity contestants and their dance partners will be shedding their clothes, someone will be flying through the air, and if there’s a wardrobe malfunction they need to keep on dancing.

M-Net held a press briefing over the weekend during which producers, judges and M-Net executives inside the specially-constructed ballroom dome on the roof of the Hyde Park Corner shopping centre in Johannesburg and answered all kinds of questions about the show starting today, Sunday, 4 February on M-Net (DStv 101) at 17:00 as a weekly live broadcast.

The briefing offered up some very revealing – and funny – answers ranging from the expensive costumes and what happens if there are injuries, to how long the contestants have been practising, the orchestra and how the contestants were chosen.

Is that shirt coming off?
Yes, the clothes are going to come off on Dancing with the Stars SA. Do you for want to see Suidooster actor and model Eden Classens shirtless during the course of the show? He was asked specifically this question and simply said ... "yes".


Injuries
TVwithThinus asked what happens if there's an injury during the show.

"If there's an injury, during a dance, if we've seen about 30 to 40 seconds of a performance and our head judge feels that they've seen enough to judge the dance, then they will judge the dance."

"We will then during that time establish how bad the injury is - whether they can perform the following week or whether they need to fall out of the competition," says Kee-Leen Irvine, executive producer of the show at Rapid Blue.


The costumes ... and Swarovski's
"The costumes cost more than a small penthouse," says Kee-Leen Irvine. "So I have a phenomenal head of wardrobe, Lynn Driver, that all of the cast have worked with. She's worked with me for many years now on all of our big shows."

"There's 78 costumes for the first episode. I won't tell you how much the Swarovski crystals cost but it's a lot. So Lynn oversees a team of about 4 designers, assistants and seamstresses and they turn around costumes in a phenomenally fast turn-around time."

"The costumes are such a high quality. We're so lucky also that the cast have all such phenomenal bodies. So the costumes are going to dazzle."


Someone is ... flying?
Jan du Plessis, director of M-Net channels, reveals that he screamed when he saw someone flying through the air!

"I have seen amazing stuff. There was one moment where I actually think I distracted one of the dancers where I screamed when a certain person was flying through the air.


If there's a wardrobe malfunction?
TVwithThinus asked if the show is going to be really live, live, or delayed live by a few seconds and what happens if there is a wardrobe malfunction like something popping open - or out - of those costumes.

"It really is live, live and if there is a wardrobe malfunction, they just suck it up and dance," says Kee-Leen Irvine.

Jan du Plessis, joked and said that because of the beautiful cast he hopes that there are actually wardrobe malfunctions.

Practising
TVwithThinus asked how long the contestants have been practising. You'd be surprised. The contestants have only been practising ... 3 weeks!
"They've been practising for what feels like 127 years, but they started 3 weeks ago," says Kee-Leen Irvine.

"What I do want to say is that after learning their dances, they've also had to do some group routines. Drill sergeant Jason Gilkison (choreographer and creative director and one of the judges) has been working them really, really hard. I do want to say as a producer I was in tears this morning because they've brought their AAA game. They were absolutely amazing to accomplish what they've have in 3 weeks - it's phenomenal.


Dancing the first episode
In the first episode of Dancing with the Stars SA today on M-Net at 17:00 there will be 6 contestants performing but there will be a group dance including everybody.
In the second episode it will be the next 6. And then from the 3rd week the show will have the live shows at 17:00 and then the live results show at 20:00.

There's an orchestra
Dancing with the Stars SA has a live orchestra and two vocalists.


How's it different from Strictly Come Dancing SA?

Strictly Come Dancing SA had 8 seasons on the SABC2 and then SABC3. It's the same show and show format but now improved since moving to M-Net as a pay-TV broadcaster and being made for DStv Premium subscribers.

"It's a BBC format but we're bring it M-Net's premium touch," says Kee-Leen Irvine.

The name-change says Kaye-Ann Williams, M-Net's head of local content, is because "we just wanted to differentiate ourselves and using the alternate title allowed us to do that."

"It allows us to differentiate ourselves and give our subscribers a premium experience."


How the contestants were chosen
"Each of the celebrity contestants needed to be relatable, they needed to have some resonance and represent our audience," says Kaye-Ann Williams. "Our subscribers need to be able to identify with whoever they see on screen and that's why we chose every single celebrity who we chose - they fulfill a certain category."

"We really went through a long, arduous selection process, and we are so proud of every single celeb and dancer that ended up in our final group".


Why Dancing with the Stars SA will only be on M-Net on DStv Premium
Dancing with the Stars SA is a premium entertainment experience. DStv subscribers on lower subscription tiers can upgrade if they want to see the show. "It's always a mission of M-Net to reach out to as many subscribers as possible, but Dancing with the Stars SA is definitely a premium offering," says Kaye-Ann Williams.

Who stays and who goes ...
will be in viewers' hands. Viewers need to register to vote and vote, says judge Jason Gilkison.

"One by one each week we'll lose one couple, eventually getting to our 3 finalists. But the power is in the viewer's hands. They're the one who have to vote. We can give scoring but viewers' voting will ultimately decide the winner".


It's not slave labour or a prison camp, but ...
Jason Gilkison hilariously quips "Kee-Leen gave me 45 minutes off last week. It's really, really intense".

"It's really going to be an incredible journey over three months. There's going to be incredible dancing on M-Net."

The dance floor ... tested
The dance floor is brand-new. "We had Jason Gilkison bouncing around the floor to see if he's happy with how it's sprung. We do replace the floor with every season of Dancing with the Stars SA," says Kee-Leen Irvine.


Super producers
Jan du Plessis thanked Duncan and Kee-Leen Irvine from Rapid Blue for making Dancing with the Stars SA and called them "the prolific husband and wife that I'm as scared as hell of - the guys from Rapid Blue. Your work on this show is incredible".

About Jason Gilkison he says "I'm so proud that through Kee-Leen's wheelings and dealings we've been able to convince him to come and stay with us and take us on this journey".

International choreographer Jason Gilkison to be part of the judging panel of M-Net's Dancing with the Stars SA.

International choreographer Jason Gilkison has who has joined the glitter floor dance competition show Dancing with the Stars South Africa as creative director, will also be a part of the judging panel.

Jason Gilkison as creative director on the Rapid Blue produced dancing show, will be overseeing the various couples' and the group choreography and the creative execution thereof.

Jason Gilkison has been creative director of choreography on Strictly Come Dancing on the BBC in the United Kingdom, and has also worked as judge and choreographer on So You Think You Can Dance in Australia and the United States.

"I can't wait to come to South Africa and start working on some big, spectacular dance numbers for the show," says Jason Gilkison. "This is going to be one fierce first season".

South African celebrities who will be taking part in Dancing with the Stars SA include TV presenter Thembisa Mdoda, actor Frank Opperman, actress Juanita de Villiers, former Miss SA and radio presenter Liesl Laurie, athlete Wayde van Niekerk’s mom Odessa Swarts, TV starlet Zola Nombona, music star Connell Cruise, Bafana Bafana legend Delron Buckley, ex-Springbok rugby player Thando Manana and netball player Vanes-Mari Du Toit.

Two further names will still be revealed by M-Net, as well as other judges. Dancing With The Stars SA will start on M-Net (DStv 101) on Sunday 4 February at 17:00.