The first episode of
Strictly Come Dancing 5 premiered on SABC2 last night (Thursday 2 October), with 10 new celebrities lining up prove they have what it takes to win the competition.
Celebrities from various sporting and entertainment disciplines will battle it out on the shiny dance floor of the Carlton Centre Ballroom for the next 10 weeks, after taking their first dancing steps with professional dancers as their coaches/partners only two months ago.
In the season premiere only the male celebs danced for the judges' scores, although it was the first of two non-elimination shows. The women danced as a group in the second half of the show, but were not given scores by the judges.
Voting lines for viewers opened as the show concluded, but there will be no elimination until episode three. Judges will score the female celebrities in next week's episode.
The first episode saw the male contestants perform the waltz – a floating style, characterised by elegant rises and falls, and beautiful topline, with partners never breaking their hold (that's the idea, anyway - Adil certainly struggled with that last part).
Funnyman Rob van Vuuren and his partner Mary Martin broke the ice with a competent effort to “Come away with me” by Nora Jones. Van Vuuren, smartly attired in a grey suit, was complimented on his footwork and the couple on their interesting choreography and use of the whole dance floor.
Judge Dave Campbell advised him to be more assertive and in control in future routines.
The judges were not as blown away by Lebo “Shugasmakx” Mothibe’s first attempt and advised the rapper to work a lot harder.
Judge Tyrone Watkins motivated him by saying that any person can dance, but that a lot of effort and time needs to be put into acquiring the skills. What he meant to say was "Get off your ass, switch off your cellphone and put in some work, dog. You suck."
Their routine was done to the tune of Lionel Richie’s “Three times a lady”.
Rally driver Gugu Zulu delivered an elegant routine that pleased the judges. They suggested more hard work on his posture – “keep your bum under your shoulder”, advised judge Salome Sechele.
“You light up my life” by Whitney Houston was the accompaniment for their dance.
Radio DJ Adil More was commended for seeing his routine through, after a tumultous few weeks in rehearsal and hiccups during their performance.
The preview clip for Adil's dance indicated that at one point during rehearsals with his partner Robynn Soules, he apparently decided to quit the show. He stayed on in the end, but his performance indicated that he has a long way to go to stay in the competition - if he actually even wants stay.
The judges were merely “satisfied”, and suggested a more concerted effort and more commitment during rehearsals. Andrea Bocelli’s “The Prayer” was performed.
Gladiator Garth Collins enjoyed the challenge and made light work of the footwork the style requires. The judges suggested a more relaxed posture, but complimented his overall effort.
The judges’ scores following last night’s episode were as follows:
Rob van Vuuren and Mary Martin: 27
Garth Collins and Hayley Bennett: 24
Gugu Zulu and Sarah Cooper: 23
Adil More and Robynn Soules: 19
Lebo “Shugasmakx” Mothibe and Seipati Nthoesane: 17
The five female celebs were dressed to the nines and impressed with a group Salsa to the beats of Christina Aguilera’s “Carwash”.
Isidingo’s Hlubi Mboya will hope that first impressions do indeed last, after immediately catching the judges’ eyes. So did 5FM’s voluptuous Anele Mdoda, who’s bootilicious curves, dressed in shocking pink, showed that she’s in this competition to win it.
She got down and dirty and is definitely an early audience favourite. Judith Sephuma has her work cut out for her to get rid of the stiffness the judges found hard to swallow.
Wheelchair-bound Mukhtar Lee and leg dancer Danielle Matthews performed a rendition of the Cha Cha Cha as part of the live show. Mukhtar and Danielle are the current Western Province and South African Champions (2007/2008) and were also Silver Medallists in the Wheelchair World Cup Championships 2007 held in Holland.
Young hip-hopper MJ also performed his hit “Done Did It” along with a troupe of b-boys.
Next week the female contestants will perform individual Cha Cha Chas for judges’ scoring, and the men a group Mambo.
The elimination of contestants will only start from episode 3 onwards. SMS (send couple number below to 34766) and IVR hotlines (083 913 4766) open for public voting at the end of each week’s show.
Results from episodes 1 and 2 will be added to episode 3’s voting for the first elimination.
COUPLE 1 – Hlubi & Khutso
COUPLE 2 – Rob & Mary
COUPLE 3 – Tessa & Grant
COUPLE 4 – Shugasmakx & Seipati
COUPLE 5 – Judith & Eksteen
COUPLE 6 – Gugu & Sarah
COUPLE 7 – Cindy & Jonathan
COUPLE 8 – Adil & Robynn
COUPLE 9 – Anele & Brandon
COUPLE 10 – Garth & Hayley
The 5th season of Strictly Come Dancing will air on SABC2 every Thursday (from 2 October) from 19h30 to 20h30, with an hour-long break in between before resuming at 21h30.
The first part (19h30-20h30) sees the contestants show off their various dancing talents to gain votes from the public and judges, while the results are revealed during the second part (21h30-22h00).
The winning celebrity/professional dancer couple, taking over from previous winners, Emmanuel Castis and Lindsey Muckle, will be crowned on the show's finale on 4 December.
National radio stations 5FM and METRO FM, and online portal TVSA, are the
official media partners for Strictly Come Dancing 5.
| STRICTLY COME DANCING 5: EPISODE 1 |
Rob van Vuuren and Mary Martin
Lebo “Shugasmakx” Mothibe and Seipati Nthoesane
Gugu Zulu and Sarah Cooper
Adil More and Robynn Soules
Garth Collins and Hayley Bennett
Anele Mdoda and Brandon Eilers Le Riche
Hlubi Mboya and Khutso Khunou
Cindy Nell and Jonathan Broadway
Tessa van Duuren and Grant Esterhuizen
Judith Sephuma and Eksteen Traut
|
|
|
|