Star Academy Lebanon
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Star Academy Lebanon (also known as Star Academy LBC and Star Academy Middle East, a more correct term as the majority of the students are not Lebanese but from many diverse Arab countries) is a reality TV show started in 2003 that features a group of 16 young male and female candidates from all over the Arab world. It is the Arabic adaptation of the French television show Star Academy produced by Netherlands company Endemol, based in the Spanish format called Operación Triunfo.
Contents |
[edit] Overview
Based in Beirut, Lebanon, the show is aired for 4 months on the Lebanese TV station LBCI. Hosted by Hilda Khalife. The show's concept consists of an academy and candidates/students where it is also talent competition to introduce a new artist among the 16 candidates. Talents are not restricted to singing only, but for acting and dancing as well.
It is divided into two formats: each day a program presents moments of the everyday life and training of the candidates (what they are called), and a prime show every Friday evening, which is live. In addition an affiliate TV station films them 24/7.
The concept of the show is training the students in several disciplines: singing, acting, vocalizing, theatre expression, musical culture and gymnastics. Then, each week (usually on Tuesdays) the three weakest students are nominated. The nomination is done by the teaching staff after the candidates undergo an evaluation test the day before (Monday). Around the end of the week (Friday), a special live show called Prime is broadcasted. During the prime show, the candidates perform and sing either by themselves or with guest artists. The 3 nominated candidates' initial voting is through the public. Ever since the nominations, people vote through phonecalls and text messages. The one with the highest percentage of votes returns back. The left two candidates are to be voted by their fellow candidates and one of them returns. The remaining candidate leaves the academy. When the candidates' overall number reduces, the nomination comes down to two students. By this, it's completely up to the public to vote who is in and who gets out.
The show proved to be immensely popular, once attracting nearly 80% of the Lebanese adolescent population, and one of the more popular shows throughout the Arab world. LBC, the network airing the show, reaped huge profits from the show (but have been unable to replicate the show's success with other reality based programming).
The show received intense criticism when it started off, which led some people to falsely believe that it would not succeed. An Islamist Bahraini MP, Mohammed Khalid, denounced the participants as 'scum'[1] and objected to it being filmed in the Gulf Kingdom: 'Bahrain is a country, which respects Islamic values and it should not be a stage for such disrespectful and shameful acts' he said. This debate also caused the indefinite postponing of the Middle Eastern edition of Big Brother, otherwise known as Big Brother - Al Raiss.
[edit] Seasons
[edit] Star Academy
The first season of the show made its debut on early December, 2003. It quickly became a popular show. Tickets to show became harder to get as the show went on. The students, particularly the Top 8, became household names, and the those that made the Top 8 became instant stars.
The winner was the Egyptian candidate, Mohammad Attia. The eight finalists were Mohammad Attia (Egypt), Bashar Al Shatti (Kuwait), Sophia El Mareekh (Morroco), Bahaa' El Kafy (Tunisia), Ahmed El Sherif (Tunisia), Myriam Attallah (Syria), Mohammad Khalawi (Saudi Arabia) and Cynthia Karam (Lebanon). They went on a Pan Arab. They performed concerts in Dubai, Kuwait, Cairo & Alexandria, Amman, Damascus and many more. The first season ended on the 4th of April.
Many of them released albums ranging in success. However, the most successful has been Ahmed El Sherif (Tunisia), despite coming in 5th place. His album has been the most successful of any student from Star Academy thus far, and has also dwarfed the albums of any of the contestants from rival show "Superstar" on Future TV.
[edit] Star Academy 2
The second version featuring same settings as the previous one, and started on 31st December 2004. The show ended on the 15th April. The final prime featured Hisham Abdulrahman (Saudi Arabia) and Amani (Tunisia). Hisham won by a close 51.85% to be crowned as the winner of Star Academy 2, and taking the $50,000 and the 2005 Ford Mustang GT.
The show was stalled for one week when former Lebanese prime minister Rafik Hariri was assassinated on the 14th February; also for three successive times, the weekly prime was interrupted by explosions in Lebanon, on the 26th March, the 1st of April and on the 8th.
Season 2 is regarded as the weakest season overall, even if the problems with the explosions are not factored in. The quality of the students was seen as very substandard overall, and most were thought of being lazy and untalented. Few seemed to take their classes seriously and (with the exception of Amani and a few others) fewer still seemed to improve as the show went on.
Amani was arguably the best of the candidates, and many feel she should have won. In addtion, many felt other candidates deserved to outlast Hisham, like Zizi (Egypt) or Ahmed (Kuwait), who were also considered more talented than Hisham. How Hisham ended up winning is a mystery to many fans. Amani did end up being hired in a musical and released her own album eventually.
[edit] Star Academy 3
The third version of Star Academy started off in mid-December 2005. Dramatic changes have been noticed. A new set of teachers and new classes (like Arabic Poetry) were introduced. Also, the usual number of 16 Candidates (8 Females, 8 Males) was changed to become a total of 10 Males and 9 Females, (19 Candidates overall). It remains to be seen whether this new number will be used in Season 4.
As the Final Prime concluded, Joseph Attieh from Lebanon had won the third season of Star Academy. Joseph claimed around 55% of all the votes. Joseph is the first Lebanese candidate to win in Star Academy Middle East since it began.
Joseph walked away with his new title, as well as prizes like $50,000 and a Toyota Yaris.
After the substandard second season, many saw Season 3 as a return to form and vast improvement. Besides Joseph, there were many other talented students this year, among them Hani (Egypt), Shayma (Tunisia), Hanaa (Morocco), Fadi (Palestine), and Khalifaa (United Arab Emirates). This season was also unsual for 2 reasons: the Gulf males did not dominate the voting as in previous years, and 2 Christian males (Fadi and Joseph) made the top 8.
[edit] Star Academy 4
Auditions for the 4th season of Star Academy are currently running throughout the Arab countries. The age range this time is between 16 and 25 years old.
Season 4 will begin on December 15th, 2006.
