The Greatest Dancer – the latest competitive television show from Simon Cowell – has been met with devastating reviews on Twitter, with many viewers expressing annoyance at the way the voting system works.
Although Cheryl, Matthew Morrison and Oti Mabuse are the show’s judges, it’s audience members who have the deciding vote on whether a dancer proceeds to the next round – should over 75 per cent of the audience be impressed, then the contestant moves on.
Twitter users have noted that the voting system means that there’s no professional judgement being made, leading to dancers with the “flashiest” moves going through and not necessarily those showing technical prowess.
“You could be forgiven for thinking The Greatest Dancer would be about finding the greatest dancer,” wrote one Twitter user. “Nope. No professional judgement. Just audience voting. This means that the most talented dancer so far did not get through! It’s about finding the most liked dance.”
Another added: “You should only have dancers in the audience because non dancers do not understand the strength that goes into ballet! They don’t understand how technical it is, it’s the most beautiful dance there is!”
Other social media user criticised the show’s format and reliance on chatter between the three judges and the audience, with the majority of comments being aimed at Cheryl.
Praise was saved for the actual dancing that took place, particularly for one ballet dancer who did not get through to the next round, and for Mabuse.
The BBC’s gamble to lose The Voice to ITV and instead run The Greatest Dancer on Saturday night proved bad for ratings, as The Voice was watched by 4.8 million people (5.3 million viewers including ITV plus one) compared to The Greatest Dancer‘s 4.6 million viewers.
