The Ultimate Dance Battle (''TUDB'') is a Dutch and

Flemish Flemish (''Vlaams'') is a Low Franconian dialect cluster of the Dutch language. It is sometimes referred to as Flemish Dutch (), Belgian Dutch ( ), or Southern Dutch (). Flemish is native to Flanders, a historical region in northern Belgium; ...

dance competition Competitive dance is a popular, widespread sport in which competitors perform dances in any of several permitted dance styles—such as acro, ballet, contemporary, jazz, hip-hop, lyrical, modern, musical theatre, tap, and improv—before ...

and reality show for professional level choreographers and dancers. In The Netherlands the show airs on the Dutch television network

RTL 5 RTL 5 is a Dutch free-to-cable television channel that was launched on 2 October 1993. It mainly broadcasts American films and hit series but also reality shows, comedy, travel, international shows and local productions including '' Expeditie Rob ...

, and in Belgium on the Flemish channel 2BE. American choreographer

Dan Karaty Daniel Quinn Karaty (born October 1, 1976) is an American TV personality, actor, producer, dancer and choreographer. He has performed with and/or created routines for pop superstars such as Jessica Simpson, Britney Spears, Kylie Minogue and * ...

(who has participated in various production and judging roles on other talent competitions, including ''

So You Think You Can Dance ''So You Think You Can Dance'' is a franchise of reality television shows in which contestants compete in dance. The first series of the franchise, created by '' Idols'' producers Simon Fuller and Nigel Lythgoe, premiered in July 2005 and ha ...

'', ''

The X-Factor ''The X Factor'' is a television music competition franchise created by British producer Simon Cowell and his company Syco Entertainment. It originated in the United Kingdom, where it was devised as a replacement for ''Pop Idol'' (2001–2003) ...

'', and ''Holland's Got Talent'') is credited as creator and executive producer of ''The Ultimate Dance Battle'' series and he also serves as its main officiator. The show is presented by Sean D'Hondt and

Lieke van Lexmond Lieke van Lexmond (born 6 February 1982) is a Dutch actress and television presenter. She is known for playing the roles of Eva Prins in the television series '' Goudkust'' and the role of Charlie Fischer in the soap opera ''Goede tijden, slecht ...

. Choreographer Isabelle Beernaert and her team "Heart2Beat" won the first season of the series in spring of 2011.

Format

The show diverges from standard dance competition shows in that the choreographers participating are as much contestants as the dancers. A season begins with an audition phase during which choreographers pick and vie with one another for dancers from a common talent pool in order to form teams with which they will tackle routines from different dance genres, including hip-hop,

modern Modern may refer to: History * Modern history ** Early Modern period ** Late Modern period *** 18th century *** 19th century *** 20th century ** Contemporary history * Moderns, a faction of Freemasonry that existed in the 18th century Phil ...

ballet Ballet () is a type of performance dance that originated during the Italian Renaissance in the fifteenth century and later developed into a concert dance form in France and Russia. It has since become a widespread and highly technical form of ...

, ballroom, and

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a m ...

. Each week, viewer votes determine which two teams will compete in a sudden death battle and Karaty decides which team survives to compete in the next round. The winning team receives a 50,000 Euro prize package which is split between the choreographer and dancers, with half going to the former and 5,000 to each dancer in the team. The contestant status of the choreographer, the professional status of the dancers and an increased focus on behind-the-scenes drama differentiate ''The Ultimate Dance Battle'' from the other dance-themed show Karaty participates in,

Auditions

Initially, hundreds of professional dancers participate in open auditions overseen by Dan Karaty and other producers who choose the best candidates to participate for the first televised auditions. These remaining dancers are then drilled in several different styles and Karaty ultimately chooses 50 to advance to the next stage, the team selection auditions. In this round, dancers are introduced by Karaty and perform solo auditions in front of all five competing professional choreographers. Any choreographer who wishes to have the dancer on their team is able to extend an invitation. If only one of the five choreographers picks a contestant they are automatically assigned to the team, but if multiple choreographers choose the same dancer, then it is that dancer's choice which team they will ultimately be placed on. If no choreographer chooses the auditioning dancer, he or she is cut from the competition, except in cases where a choreographer, or Karaty in his role as head judge, chooses to put them on “on hold” until after all dancers have auditioned, in case any teams still require additional dancers.

Dance Camp

Once every choreographer has recruited a team of exactly five dancers, the ''Dance Camp'' phase of the competition begins. Teams are housed together in a single dwelling with their choreographer and over three weeks, practice daily as they participate in three waves of challenges in different styles of choreography. After of challenge pieces, Karaty and guest judges evaluate the performances and pick two winning teams. The choreographer of a winning challenge is then offered the opportunity to switch one of their team's members with any dancer on any other team, though they are not required exercise this option. After three weeks of challenges and shake-ups, the competition enters its main phase

The Live Shows

The main competition begins as the teams, now in their final forms, begin competing with one another in earnest. Each week from here-in, each team is assigned a different style (which may or may not be their choreographer's specialty) and must put together a routine in that genre and perform it on that week's “Live Show”. At-home viewers then vote via phone for their favorite teams, with the two that pull the fewest votes being forced to participate in a dance-off against one another, with Karaty selecting the winner each week, the losing team being eliminated from competition. After 4 of these shows, the winning team is decided solely by viewer vote.

Seasons

Overview

Season One

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ultimate Dance Battle Dance competition television shows Dutch reality television series RTL 5 original programming VTM 2 original programming