An outstanding triumph brought millions of Lebanese a few days ago to jump up in cheerful euphoria in front of their TV screens. And for a good reason!
After six seasons of challenging competition for the best of the bests, the Lebanese dance group Mayyas won the top position to bring home the prestigious regional title of Arabs Got Talent.
It was a fierce contest between the nine finalists of the famous reality-TV talent show, all allocating their best performances for the title.
Broadcasted live from Beirut on the Dubai-based pan-Arab broadcaster MBC, the winner was announced in the final episode.
Rightfully so for having earned it big time, our all-female Lebanese dance troupe won it with flying stars.
Voted by the majority of the television audiences via SMS as their favorite team, the Mayyas Group recorded with their triumph a first-time-win for Lebanon in these regional competitions.
In addition to becoming widely famous, the Lebanese dance group won a cash prize of SAR 200,000 (around US$ 54,000) and a brand new car.
“We will open a school for contemporary dance with the prize money,” Mayyas Group’s leader Nadim Sharfan stated at receiving the prize.
After stealing the show several previous times with their extraordinary performances, the Mayyas Group took a more traditional route for the final episode.
With dance moves straight out of the 1950s and 1960s, a team of the Mayyas’ dancing girls wearing all green created a dancing peacock on stage, while others appeared with their bodies painted in gold as they took on the roles of warrior women.
The jury of the show — composed of Lebanese singer Najwa Karam, Egyptian comedian Ahmed Helmi and Dubai television executive Ali Jaber — were highly impressed by the final performance, expressing it openly.
The Dubai television executive, Mr. Jaber, went on saying after the show, “That was world-class. It was very creative and it is just great to see so many wonderful talents coming from Lebanon. This shows the importance of Arabs Got Talent to the region.”
The Mayyas’ victory wasn’t a surprise at all. They have been astonishing, from the very start, both the jury and the regional audiences.
The Lebanese nation expected it yet it doesn’t make our prideful happiness any less.
With a quick glance back, we remember their first performance in the second episode when they got the golden buzzer at delivering an expressive dance that mixed the Chinese folklore with oriental music.
That was one of the several times our Mayya’s Group immersed the jury in awe.
Arabs Got Talent is a regional reality-TV talent show that is adapted from an American format. It is produced by the MBC and was first broadcast on 14 January 2011.
It features a number of talented contestants (Singers, comedians, dancers, etc) where they compete for winning through audience voting and the expert judgments of the jury.
A heartfelt congratulation to the Mayya’s Group and its leader. We wish them all the very best, and more extraordinary performances to come.
