The BBC has just announced a new dance competition for young people. It’s very well thought out, says Judith Mackrell, but that doesn’t stop it being a terrible idea.
Does the dance world need another competition? From the lofty heights of ballet prizes such as the Prix de Lausanne, to the busy international circuit of hip-hop competitions, to the scrum of celebrity judging, raw talent and audience manipulation that make up TV shows such as So You Think You Can Dance, young performers around the world are being pitted against each other in every conceivable way.
But a new entry has entered the field, and it’s a contender.
The BBC young dancer competition is being jointly organised by the broadcasting corporation and Sadler’s Wells, and it comes with the imprimatur of some of the dance world’s splashiest names. With Carlos Acosta as ambassador (a role as yet undefined beyond its publicity value), the panel judging the competition’s final include Tamara Rojo, Wayne McGregor, Matthew Bourne, Akram Khan and Kenrick “H2O” Sandy; and even the early rounds of the competition are to be judged by serious figures such as David Nixon, Seeta Patel and Sharon Watson... Keep reading on The Guardian
Does the dance world need another competition? From the lofty heights of ballet prizes such as the Prix de Lausanne, to the busy international circuit of hip-hop competitions, to the scrum of celebrity judging, raw talent and audience manipulation that make up TV shows such as So You Think You Can Dance, young performers around the world are being pitted against each other in every conceivable way.
But a new entry has entered the field, and it’s a contender.
The BBC young dancer competition is being jointly organised by the broadcasting corporation and Sadler’s Wells, and it comes with the imprimatur of some of the dance world’s splashiest names. With Carlos Acosta as ambassador (a role as yet undefined beyond its publicity value), the panel judging the competition’s final include Tamara Rojo, Wayne McGregor, Matthew Bourne, Akram Khan and Kenrick “H2O” Sandy; and even the early rounds of the competition are to be judged by serious figures such as David Nixon, Seeta Patel and Sharon Watson... Keep reading on The Guardian