91Èȱ¬

The 91Èȱ¬ announced today, 13 October, 2009, that the winning act of 91Èȱ¬ Three's forthcoming series, Move Like Michael Jackson,will win a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to perform at the official tribute concert.

The concert, which is due to take place in London next June, will be hosted by Jermaine Jackson and the rest of the Jackson family and will include an array of global superstars.

The six-part dance series, which is to be hosted by 91Èȱ¬ Radio 1's Reggie Yates, will see a nationwide search to find Britain's most talented and original dancers who can demonstrate they have the spirit, showmanship and technical ability of the great man.

Open auditions will take place in Manchester on 17 October and London on 24 October and will be judged by dance agent supremo Mark Summers, who was most recently responsible for finding the world's most talented dancers for Michael Jackson's This Is It tour.

In addition, Mark will be scouring Newcastle, Cardiff and Glasgow between 19 and 30 October searching out other potential candidates.

Between them they will choose just 16 hopefuls to go through to the studio shows, who will then be whittled down to six by Jermaine Jackson, Mark and one other for a place in the live final.

The finalists will be guided through their studio performances by none other than multi-award-winning choreographer and dancer Lavelle Smith Junior, who worked on Michael's Bad, Dangerous and History tours, plus numerous videos, including The Way You Make Me Feel, Black And White and Scream.

Aimed at finding dancers who best embody the spirit of Michael Jackson on stage, the show will include competitors from all backgrounds, individuals and group performances. The winner won't necessarily be the dancer who simply mimics Jackson's choreography, but rather someone who can move like him, creating and inventing their own iconic steps and styles to most impress the judges and viewers.

Move Like Michael Jackson was commissioned by Karl Warner and will be made by Gogglebox Entertainment and Fever Media. The executive producers are Karl Warner for 91Èȱ¬, Adam Wood and Mat Steiner for Gogglebox Entertainment and Richard Hopkins and Louise Rainbow for Fever Media.

Move Like Michael Jackson will transmit later in the year and will be stripped across one week.

Notes to Editors

Auditions are open to anyone aged 16 and over. For an application form email dance@fevermedia.co.uk, call 020 7428 5632 or for further information visit www.bbc.co.uk/tv/comingup/movelikemichaeljackson.

Audition venues:

Manchester auditions will take place at the Triangle Shopping Centre from 9.00am until 6.00pm.

London auditions will take place at Westfield Shopping Centre from 9.00am until 6.00pm.

Jermaine Jackson: Jermaine Jackson is the fourth child of Joseph and Katherine Jackson, born 11 December 1954 in Gary, Indiana. Jermaine was the original lead singer of the Jackson Brothers – an earlier incarnation of The Jackson Five – until 1968, when younger brother Michael began assisting with lead vocals. He remained the co-lead singer with Michael for many years. Jackson and his brothers signed with Motown Records in 1968. As the co-lead singer of The Jackson 5 after his brother Michael, Jackson sang notable parts of I Want You Back, I'll Be There, I Am Love, Dancing Machine and many other Jackson 5 songs. In 1975, after six years performing with his brothers, Jermaine split from the Jackson 5 to continue his solo career at Motown Records while the other Jackson brothers left to sign with Epic Records.

Reggie Yates: At only 25, Reggie is rapidly establishing himself as one of the most talented and versatile young performers/presenters on British TV. He's been nominated for a Children's Bafta for best presenter, entertained the nation on Comic Relief Does Fame Academy and was a regular face on the 91Èȱ¬'s Top Of The Pops. He can currently be heard hosting the Radio 1 Request & Chart Show on Saturdays and Sundays from 4.00-7.00pm. Reggie is also an accomplished actor – he recently landed himself a lead role in Trinity for ITV2, has starred in Doctor Who and did two series of the drama UGetMe, and comedy The Crust (both C91Èȱ¬) to name a few. If that's not enough, he DJs up and down the country and even runs one of the biggest monthly club nights in London!

Lavelle Smith Jnr: Lavelle is a five-time MTV Video Music Award winner for Best Choreography. Award-winning videos include: Michael and Janet Jackson's Scream and Beyonce Knowles Crazy In Love. After being spotted by the late Michael Jackson, Lavelle became a dancer before moving into choreography and went on to work with Michael on three of his world tours – Bad, Dangerous and History.

Mark Summers: Mark began his career as an aspiring actor and trained at stage school before moving into casting for advertisements, music videos, films and theatre both in American and Britain. Credits include: 1999 hit film East Is East and music videos for the likes of 50 Cent, Beyonce, Madonna, Kayne West, Justin Timberlake and Goldfrapp.

CP

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