Regionals: The Pressure is On! Taking the Next Step

Taking The Next Step is back.

Sam and Mark have joined me and the team to find the UK's

best young dancer.

Last time, Khyrese danced off with the incredible prize -

a guest role on the smash hit Canadian TV show The Next Step.

This year, over 2,300 dancers applied...

..from all over the UK.

Only the very best will perform for our formidable judges -

actor and dancer Jonny Labey...

Make us excited to watch you.

..founder of dance group Flawless, Marlon Wallen...

Just chill with it and then attack.

..and, returning as head judge,

professional dancer and former Pussycat Doll, Kimberly Wyatt.

You have got sass for days.

But who will make it all the way to Canada and win

the opportunity of a lifetime?

Let the challenge commence.

This is Taking The Next Step.

After months of rehearsing,

auditions are about to get under way.

I've been preparing for weeks and weeks.

I've been feeling pretty nervous.

I think I'm just too excited to be nervous.

The stage is set.

But only three yeses from our expert judges will secure a ticket to

Nationals and it certainly won't be easy.

The next step is unique,

because we blend acting and dancing and it's really,

really important that whoever wins is strong at both,

so the judges are going to have a really tough decision.

I don't envy them.

First to face the judges is 15-year-old Yasmin.

I dance mostly all styles, so

ballet, jazz, lyrical, contemporary, tap.

Just everything, really.

I couldn't really decide which style I wanted to do, so I thought,

why not mash it up?

Yasmin, come on through.

That's a lovely confident smile.

Hello. Who have you brought with you today?

-My mum and my dad.

-Hey, Mum and Dad, how are we doing?

-Feeling all right?

-Yasmin is almost ready

and the judges are getting comfortable.

It all comes down to this.

Go smash it, OK, and I'll be right here when you get back.

-Off you go.

-Which way is it?

It's that way.

-Hello.

-Hello!

-Hey.

-What's your name, how old are you?

My name's Yasmin and I'm 15 years old.

Well, I can't wait to see you dance.

Take the stage.

MUSIC: The Greatest by Sia

APPLAUSE

Ooh! Ooh!

How did that make you feel?

That was amazing.

Your technique is really good.

I can't fault you at anything.

I think it was just absolutely brilliant.

-Wow!

-You put so much heart and soul into your dance.

-Well done.

-Thank you so much.

Yeah.

Absolutely flawless.

Absolutely flawless.

No, seriously, that was just wow.

Like from top to bottom.

I couldn't say anything else.

It was just brilliant. Like great, great audition.

-Thank you.

-Jonny.

Yasmin, you're not just like Taking The Next Step.

You know when you, like, from the stairs and you run them up

in like, sets of four?

That's what you're doing.

Just your energy and commitment to dance is inspiring.

I don't have anything else to say.

You need three yeses to get to Nationals.

-Swoosh?

-Yes.

-Jonny?

-Yes.

-Yes!

Go and get your ticket, lovely.

Amazing job.

-Well done, well done.

-Really good.

-Smashed it.

-Thank you.

-Thank you.

-See you at Nationals.

Well done!

Oh, my goodness. I bet you want to hug Mum and Dad, as well, don't you?

-Well done.

-That's what we want to see.

-We'll take that.

-Yeah.

We'll take it.

You smashed that out of the park.

I was crying, Mum was crying, Dad had a little tear.

There was a little tear there, as well.

-My gosh.

-How was that for you?

That was amazing.

She's... She can walk onto The Next Step and just become a returning

-character.

-That was sick.

-See you at Nationals.

-Woo!

-Wow!

So we are off to a flying start and Yasmin has set an incredibly high

standard for the rest of our auditions.

The Next Step is so popular in the UK,

it was inevitable the superfans would be out in force.

What inspired you to start dancing?

-It was The Next Step.

-I love the show.

I watch it every day.

My sisters are, like, always watching it,

and we're all watching it together. It's really nice.

You're The Next Step family.

-Yeah.

-I really like Sloane, because she's more my style.

I love Eldon and Michelle.

-Michelle.

-Michelle.

What is it that you love about Michelle?

When she dances, she brings so much fire to the stage.

Eldon can do like a million turns

and I want to be able to do that some day.

And for these super fans, it's not just any prize on offer.

The winner of this competition will travel to Canada to appear on the

hit show The Next Step.

They will join the cast and make a guest appearance in a brand-new episode.

The winner of Taking The Next Step is actually going to be

here in studio A with us and we're going to have so much fun.

The winner will be able to meet the cast, be on set and dance with us.

I'm so excited to meet them.

One superfan hoping to make it all the way to Canada

is 11-year-old Luke. He is so obsessed by the show,

he's already met the cast and had his own T-shirt made.

Sponsored by The Next Step!

How long have you been dancing for?

Probably about one and a half years to two.

-Really?

-OK. So not long, then?

-No, not long.

Luke's dressed to impress,

but with less than two years' experience, can he wow the judges?

Hello, mate. So.

Is that the cast on your shirt?

-Yeah, I went to go and meet them.

-Amazing!

Hello, cool. What do you like most about them?

-Everything.

-Everything.

-Just the package?

-Yeah.

I'm excited to see you, Luke, mate, so the floor is yours.

Thank you.

MUSIC: Dancing On My Own by Calum Scott

Oh! My goodness.

Flips and that are amazing.

APPLAUSE

For me, with the ballet technique,

I think the tension goes into your shoulders a little bit and you hold

yourself a little bit up here.

But apart from that, I think it was a really strong audition, mate.

We're going to see what Swoosh says.

The fact that you just came in and you were confident from the get go,

already you got my attention.

When you took the floor, you really just owned the floor and, yeah,

that was a very, very strong audition.

-Well done.

-Thank you.

-Kimberley.

Is there anything on the floor?

Because you were looking at the floor the whole time!

You've got to look up.

You've got to really perform out, OK?

OK, so, Luke, you need three yeses to get through to Nationals.

So we'll go over to Swoosh first.

-Swoosh.

-It's a yes from me.

-Thank you.

Kimberly?

I think you've got some room to grow.

There's real work to be done.

But loads of potential, so mine is a yes.

Thank you.

With two yeses, it all comes down to Jonny.

Come and get your ticket, dude.

APPLAUSE

-Well done.

-Yes!

CHEERING

Well done! Keep working hard, so when we

see you at Nationals, you're on point, OK?

LUKE YELLS

LAUGHTER AND CHEERING

He's hilarious.

What have you got to say to him?

So, so proud. I can't say. I can't say, I can't speak.

-Bless you.

-Well, go and celebrate. We'll see you at Nationals.

-Thank you.

-Good lad.

-Well done.

-See you later.

So it's first time lucky for Luke and he's off to Nationals.

But not everyone is appearing in front of our judges for the

first time. In Cardiff, we met 13-year-old Esha.

Come on through. How are you?

-Good, thank you.

-Welcome back, by the way.

-How have you been?

-Good, thank you.

A successful audition in series one saw Esha through to the Nationals.

Now, let's talk about last time,

because you got very, very far indeed. You did really well.

So how did it feel to then not get through?

It was a bit disappointing, but I knew that I can improve from that

and then I can come back and work harder this year.

And have you been working really hard?

-Yes.

-What have you been focusing on?

I've been focusing more on my technique, this year,

so hopefully it will be better.

I was rooting for you, honestly.

It was so close, wasn't it?

But just not quite enough. So, hopefully, this year you can do it.

Three yeses. Do you think you can do it?

-Yeah.

-High five.

Go smash it. We'll be right here waiting for you, OK?

-Off you go, good luck.

-Love you.

Love you.

-Hello.

-Hello.

You look quite familiar. Have I seen you before?

Yes, last series.

What would it mean for you to get through to Nationals this year?

It would mean the world to me.

I would love it so much, I can't explain.

Well, take that inspiration and let's see you dance.

MUSIC: Because Of You by Kelly Clarkson

Oh, beautiful.

You're really strong, your technique has definitely improved.

It was lovely to just see you kind of come to life in this.

I think you did a brilliant audition and it is a yes from me.

Thank you so much.

-Yes.

-There was a section where you stumbled and you had like a thing

which didn't quite go the way that you've rehearsed.

-Yes.

-The only reason I noticed is because you showed it in your face.

There was a bit where you let your guard down.

Because you've got this beautifully connected dance which you did and

it's amazing, then that moment just sort of,

oh, I don't know, it's tricky.

-Give her a chance.

-Give her a chance.

I'm going to say no today.

Oh, no!

You are a phenomenal dancer.

-Thank you.

-And there is so much more to come from you.

-OK.

-Yeah? But well done.

-Thank you.

-Thank you.

Keep working as hard as you are.

You're onto something fantastic. Keep dancing. Thank you.

-Thank you so much.

-Well done.

-No worries.

-With the standard of competition higher than ever,

the judges are proving hard to impress.

Back for his second year in a row

is 12-year-old Otto from Gloucestershire.

So, we've met before.

And how did it go last time?

I wanted to have three yeses and get through to Nationals, but,

unfortunately, that didn't happen,

so I've been working really hard to improve on my technique and,

hopefully, fingers crossed, I might get through this...

Fab. Well, I can't wait to see this improved technique that you've been

working on. The floor is yours.

MUSIC: Cheap Thrills by Sia

Well done, Otto.

You need three yeses, as you know, to get through to Nationals.

-Swoosh.

-It's going to be a yes from me.

-Jonny?

-I'm a little bit in two minds.

I thought it was an amazing audition and I can really see that you've put

in a lot of work.

However, there was a performance thing that I still think you can

build upon. For me today it's going to be a no.

I'm sorry.

Otto, lovely, it's a no today, but your improvement is phenomenal.

-Thank you.

-Thank you, Otto.

-Well done.

-With two noes in a row,

it's clear that Jonny is not easy to win over.

As a star of EastEnders and winner of Dance, Dance, Dance,

Jonny knows exactly what he's looking for.

You sort of did the same expression the whole way through.

Your focus was down the whole time.

'He wants more than just a dancer,

'he is also looking for someone who can act.'

We are looking for an artist as well as a dancer.

I'm excited to see you act.

Head casting director now, is that what I am?

'And it's fair to say he knows talent when he sees it.'

So quick, so energised, so...

So on it.

Your facility is ridonculous.

Can 15-year-old Casper from East Sussex wow all three judges

and claim his ticket to Nationals?

-Hello.

-Hello.

-Hello.

-How are you?

-Really good, thank you.

Familiar face.

'I came to the audition last time'

and then Kimberly, the main judge, she said that

I need to work on my technique.

What would it mean to you to get to Nationals?

I don't know, it would just...

It would just be crazy for me.

It would mean so much.

-Amazing.

-Awesome.

Well, I can't wait to see you dance.

Go for it.

MUSIC: Palladio

-Whoo!

-APPLAUSE

Casper, I'm really glad I told you to work on your technique,

cos good grief!

-Yeah!

-Wow, what an improvement.

-Thank you.

-That was amazing.

Really good work.

I loved your piece, your tricks, your choreography.

-Who choreographed your piece for you?

-I did.

What?! Yes!

-Amazing stuff.

-Thank you.

I thought that was a solid audition, mate.

-To be honest with you, that was brilliant.

-Thank you so much.

-Really, really good.

-I mean, you've turned into like a technical Trojan.

That was a piece from someone that should've graduated

from a full-time college.

All right, technical Trojan, you need three yeses

to get through to Nationals.

Yeah.

-Swoosh.

-Technical Trojan, it's a yes.

-Thank you.

-Jonny?

Yeah, man, I'm definitely there, it's a yes from me.

I couldn't be more proud, so I'm going to take this yes,

I'm going to come and give it to you personally, cos I'm that proud.

Thank you so much.

Such a phenomenal work. Oh, my God!

Work really does pay off, doesn't it?

-Good job, you.

-Thank you so much.

-Really well done.

-It's been amazing.

-Thank you all.

-Yeah.

-Thank you.

-Aw!

No worries.

'So, the hard work has paid off for Casper as he continues to Nationals.

And it's not just advice from our judges

that's inspiring dancers around the country.

The reason I took up dance is because I really like The Next Step

and they were such an inspiration.

I really, like, look up to Lukas McFarlane,

cos I feel like when he dances, he tells a story.

And who inspires the cast of The Next Step?

My biggest inspiration in dance is people that I dance with,

so Briar, everyone on the show, my dance team at home,

everyone that I am surrounded by is inspiring me every day.

The Next Step cast train in a variety of different styles

and here at Taking The Next Step,

we welcome dancers of all disciplines.

From commercial to contortion.

And from ballet dancers to B-boys,

we've seen them all.

And street dancers are no exception.

With strong performers in every city we visited.

In London, we met ten-year-old street dancer Harry.

-Hey.

-Yo.

-How's it going?

-I'm good, thank you.

Cool. So what are you going to be dancing today?

-Pardon?

-What are you going to be dancing today.

-What style?

-Street dance.

Well, and break dance, kind of like.

Cool. All right, well, the floor is yours.

I'm looking forward to it.

# So fresh

# Top five, no less... #

Whoo! Look at his energy!

# Wanna hear TT on the KDA

# With the Katy B and that's it Oh, yeah... #

His facial expressions are great!

# You got me feeling for your power... #

Whoo!

# Turn the music louder Let me feel it

-# Oh-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh

-Rumble, go hard, no rest, c'mon

# You got me feeling for your power

# Turn the music louder

# Let me feel it Oh-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh

# Yeah, what a face, what a mixture

# Bare likes when I'm lookin' at your Insta

# What, last night was a picture

# In the pool getting busy with the mixer

# So right, so fresh

# Top five, no less.. #

Oh, my goodness.

We all need a bit of Harry in our lives!

Wow, that was a bit unexpected.

You came in, you seemed so nervous and shy

and the music comes on and you just become something else

and I think that's absolutely brilliant.

My answer is a yes for you,

cos I think I really love your style,

I love that you bring you to the dance floor.

Yeah, man, I'm with it, a yes from me.

Oh, he just needs one more. Come on, come on.

I'm on the fence, I'll be honest with you,

because you still have a lot more room for improvement.

I'm not too sure that you're ready yet.

So after two enthusiastic yeses, Swoosh is still unsure.

Has Harry done enough?

So it's going to be a no from me today.

OK.

But take this no as a stepping stone to take yourself to the next level,

because I can see you've got a bright future ahead of you.

Oh, come on, mate.

-Awesome, awesome job.

-You did your best, mate.

-You did your best.

-Yeah.

Take this off!

He was good. His potential is definitely there.

-Yeah.

-But the standard is just...

It's not there yet.

As the founder of the dance crew Flawless,

Swoosh has some seriously high expectations of our street dancers.

Megan from Swansea is up next,

hoping she can do enough to get three yeses.

Any of the judges that you're excited to see?

I'm really excited to see Swoosh,

because he dances with Flawless

and he's judged me in a few competitions, as well.

Really? OK, so we really want a yes from Swoosh today.

MUSIC: Higher Ground by TNGHT

Go on, Megan.

Catch your breath.

Megan, I really enjoyed that.

I think you brought it today.

-Yeah.

-From me it would be a yes.

-Thank you.

-Thank you so much.

Swoop, what did you... Swoop!

-Swoop.

-Swoop!

LAUGHTER Swoosh, what did you think?

Megan, wow, you're a firecracker.

There's still a lot of room for improvement at this stage.

I wanted to see just a little bit more foundation.

I do like you, though.

I do like you, because you do have...

-Give her a yes, give her a yes.

-..some great qualities

and I think that there is, you know, there is some spark in there.

For me, today, it's going to be a no.

OK, thank you.

Unfortunately for Megan,

Swoosh's no means she won't be advancing to Nationals.

Hoping to have some more luck with the judges is

13-year-old Keanu from Fife.

-Hi.

-How are you feeling?

-Very excited and very nervous.

What would it mean to you to get through to Nationals?

Oh, it would mean, like, the world to me.

I love the show and, yeah...

-OK, well, the floor is yours.

-OK.

Take it.

# Check this out

# Get down now, jump up and twist

# Bad girls we do it like this

# Jump so high now you can't resist

# Follow me, follow me right Jump!

# Won't stop we got the vibe now

# Bass so big we knock them right down

# All your hype can't get them hyper

# Follow me, follow me right

# Your sound is a

# Dibby, dibby, dibby, dibby, dibby

# Dibby, dibby, dibby, dibby

# Dibby, dibby, dibby sound

# Dibby, dibby, dibby, dibby, dibby

# Dibby, dibby, dibby, dibby sound

# Let go now set the vibe free and

# Come closer, wine it with me and

# Take it high and move your body and

# Follow me, follow me right now. #

-Hey. Hey.

-APPLAUSE

You're out of breath like I'm out of breath.

I'm out of breath, but I'm out of breath for you.

You went so hard on that,

like, I can tell how much this means to you.

I think you'd be a really good asset to the show,

I think you could bring a lot of drama,

I think you could bring a lot of...

I think you've got a character about you.

Yeah, that's right. Yeah, that's right.

I'm going... I'm going to give you a yes.

Thank you.

You've got a quality about you and that is undeniable,

so, you know what, it's a yes from me.

Thank you.

I do think that there's still a lot work to be done.

But I'm going to give you a yes.

Hurray!

I think mum's excited.

SHE SCREAMS

-Thank you so much.

-Well done.

-Well done, lovely.

Thank you.

SHE SCREAMS LAUGHTER

And the yeses for our street dancers keep on coming.

It's a yes from me and you're going to Nationals!

Hey!

Really great. Great job.

-You're going to Nationals.

-Whoo!

-Well done, lovely.

-Well done.

-Thank you so much.

-Thank you.

In London, 12-year-old Chicane is next to face the judges,

rocking the slow-mo.

The style of dance that I do is like very street and urban

and I'm hoping to wow the judges with my flow, basically.

-Hi.

-Hey.

-Hello there.

-Hey.

What's your dream as a dancer?

My dream is to help other people, like younger people like me,

like, to show them that dancing isn't just for certain individuals,

like, everyone can dance.

-I can't wait to see your skills.

-Thank you.

# No-one can hold us down again No way

# No-one will touch our crown again

# We don't follow no crowd

# They follow us

# Don't follow no sound

# It follows us

# Unorthodox

# We call our own shots

# No-one can hold us down again

# No-one will touch our crown again

# No-one can hold us down again

# Unorthodox

# We call our own shots. #

-APPLAUSE

-Yeah.

Wow.

Love it, man. Love it, love it.

I can see you that you like you're popping and you're waving, etc, etc.

I can tell that the nerves was getting the best of you

at some points.

When you come into an audition,

try to find that same feeling that you get when

you hear music in your bedroom and you just go full out.

-Yeah.

-You know? Just take those points on board.

-Jonny.

-I like you, Chicane.

I think you're great. I'm a yes, mate.

Chicane, I'm a yes as well.

Thank you.

'With two yeses, it's now all down to Swoosh.'

-Swoosh.

-Ooh!

-Come on, Swoosh.

-SWOOSH LAUGHS

For me, I love the fact that, you know, you have a passion

for wanting to effect change for other people's lives.

It's the same dream and passion I had when I started Flawless

and it's me looking and seeing what it used to be like

when I was your age.

-Yeah.

-Do you see what I'm saying?

-I'm going to give you a yes.

-THEY CHEER

Boom!

I'm going to give you a yes,

but what I need you to do is dance from your heart, yeah?

-Thank you.

-All right, well done. See you at Nationals.

Ooh, sorry. We're going. Boom.

-Nice one, dude.

-Good job, man.

-Thank you.

-Good job.

Yay!

It's been a long day for everyone,

but three yeses means Chicane has danced his way to Nationals.

Ooh!

-Feeling good?

-Yeah.

-Why are you crying? Is it happy tears?

Yeah. I just... I want to dance again now.

You want to go again?

But you've got through, look what's in your hand. What is that?

-The ticket to Nationals.

-Yeah, yeah. You're off to Nationals.

-Well done. Amazing audition.

-Thank you.

London's been really interesting.

Yeah, London's been good.

-But we ain't finished yet.

-We ain't finished yet.

-It's only beginning.

-# It's only just begun. #

Next time...

Hello, superhuman back.

THEY LAUGH

Wow!

You're a little rocket, aren't you?

Your ability to do what you can do with your body is amazing.

I don't think I've ever seen anyone moonwalk on their knees before.

-Same person just walked...

-Yeah.

Definitely a twin.

Come and get your ticket.

You've got that look.

It's literally like you could just go...

..bloop.