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By Bret Federigan
Special to MSN TV
It's just hard to dislike Cat Deeley. As host of "So You Think You Can Dance," the former disc jockey and model continues to charm viewers with her good looks, easy sense of humor and gentle manner with contestants and judges. She's one of the many reasons for the success of FOX's vaunted dance competition reality series, which is now set to return for a fifth season. "So You Think You Can Dance" premieres Thursday, May 21, at 8 p.m. ET/PT on FOX. MSN TV sat down with Deeley during the show's audition tour stop in Seattle, and chatted about the audition process, her growing popularity on the show, and the upcoming season.
MSN TV: Any truth to the rumors that you're hotter than Ryan Seacrest?
Cat Deeley: No! (Laughs.)
Seriously, what is it about you that viewers have come to love so much?
Oh, God. I have absolutely no idea. I think what viewers see is that I do genuinely like the dancers. I am genuinely a part of their whole process. Always, the dancers from the previous season come around to my house for a July barbecue. They have hamburgers and beers and sit by my pool. And that's what we do. And I think that comes across. If it's real and if there's a natural affinity, then it's great.
And what is it about "SYTYCD" that has made it such a hit?
What makes the show successful is that human element. Everyone wants to connect to it. It can't just be that everyone who watches the show is a dancer or a fan of dance. Generally, it's the human element. On "American Idol," singing is the narrative that runs through the show. On this show, dance is the narrative. However, no matter where you're from or what your background is, we've all at some time had success or failure, trials and tribulations. And it's that thing that we identify with more than anything else. That's the fundamental success of the show.
And during this audition process, I guess you're looking for that human element.
I'm looking for personality. We need to find someone who's prepared to bring their personality, to be honest, to be charming. They've got stories. And they've got that certain something that will make them identified with the American public. They could be the best dancers in the world. But if they have no charisma, no one's going to get up off their couch and pick up the phone and vote. So what we need is people to be very open and out there. I've always done the line. It's amazing. You can see people stand out from the line. You have a chat. It's like slowly peeling the layers of an onion. When they come back for more interviews, I kind of find out everything about them: their home life, where they grew up, why they want to do what they do, anything.
Once the dancers make the first cut and dance for Nigel Lythgoe and Mary Murphy on the second day of auditions, what is your role then?
Well, my role is on those stairs (points to the staircase). And I sit there. At the beginning of the day, we go through lines of 10. And my producer and I sit together and go, "They look interesting. That's an interesting style. What is that? They have lots of personality." We mark people out. Certain people walk out onstage and have that certain star quality or charisma. My producer and I go, "Oooh, yeah. Let's talk to him." And then for the rest of the day, I sit on the stairs and basically go through everybody and find out everything about them. Their family history to why they want to be here to their dance abilities to their hobbies. Any interesting stories, accidents, background -- everything. When we edit the show down together, we have the whole human element to the dancers rather than just their audition and what they did onstage. You also know their background. And that automatically makes the audience identify with them a little bit more.
Isn't it possible, though, to still pass over an interesting backstory from a contestant who may not initially capture your attention?
There is always that chance. But quite often ...
Your eye's pretty good ...
Yeah. It's weird, though. You do always second guess yourself a little bit. You're like, "Have I missed anybody? Did anyone slip under the radar?"
I guess we Americans are too easy for you to read.
No, I'm just long in the teeth by now. I've been hosting for 12 years, not just on American TV, but back at home.
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