Americans love TV talent contests. But Brits make just as much great audition oriented programming, as this video shows.
It shouldn’t come as much of a surprise that Great Britain is so great at making talent shows.
After all, Susan Boyle, the Scottish singer who is a household name across America, first came to fame on Britain’s Got Talent, not America’s Got Talent.
This new talent contest, named The Greatest Dancer, is the latest thing in the UK that’s highlighting previously unknown performers.
The video below perfectly showcases this with a dance group that is wildly good. But what makes its skills even more impressive is that each member has autism.
At the start of the video, the kids and their teacher walk into The Greatest Dancer’s waiting room.
The teacher, Jonathan, introduces the act as being called AWA.
The kids in the room then explain that they all go to the same school.
One child’s mother explains that her son, James, is one of the members of the group and that the group’s name, AWA, stands for Autism With Attitude.
“He’s always been quite a solitary child, but dancing has opened his eyes to a lot in the outside world.” – Kim, James’s mom.
And then it’s time for James and the rest of the members of AWA to show to the world how good they are at dancing.
The lights go down and a live video of the kids plays to a panel of judges and an audience.
The way that the show works is that the contestants only appear in person on the stage if 75% of the audience votes to open a screen separating the performers from them.
“Right, let’s do this, guys. Let’s do this,” Jonathan says to the kids.
Then the song All Star, of Shrek fame, starts playing. The kids start moving, perfectly synchronized to the beat.
And then the song really gets going, and the kids speed up. But they never once miss a beat.
But then the song changs. The kids’ routine adapts seamlessly. And at this moment, enough of the audience votes to see the kids in person.
The song switches several more times, allowing the kids to show off their range of incredible skills.
By the performance’s end, all of the judges are smiling, and the crowd is cheering.
But no one is as emotional as AWA’s dance teacher. He can’t believe just how much the crowd loves his students.
Getting through to the next round isn’t about finding fame for these kids, their teacher or their relatives. It is an affirmation that they can express themselves like anybody else.
James’s mother explains that thanks to dancing, the children have been able to unite and form a strong familial bond.
“They just want to prove to everyone that regardless of your abilities and capabilities that you can achieve anything.” -Kim.
And of course, a lot of credit goes to Jonathan, the kids’ teacher who has helped each one hone their incredible skills.
When asked if Jonathan is a good teacher, all the kids are quick to reply.
“He’s a brilliant teacher.”
“He’s my favorite teacher.”
“He’s a great teacher.”
And then all the children go in for a group hug.
It doesn’t matter whether or not the kids win the show. Impressing a crowd with such an emotional and expressive performance is already a great achievement for AWA.
Please SHARE this with your friends and family.
