Birmingham, England, native Cat Deeley is also one of the foremost television presenters in the UK and has recently become one of the hottest new faces on American TV following her two hugely successful seasons hosting SO YOU THINK YOU CAN DANCE. Deeley was Jay Leno's first regular entertainment correspondent on "The Tonight Show" and recently performed the same duty for "Good Morning America." Deeley is a double BAFTA (British Academy of Film and Television Arts) Award winner and has won many other awards for her work on some of the UK's hottest primetime shows, including "Stars in Their Eyes," "CD:UK Live" (on which she appeared weekly for six years), "SMTV: Live" (which she hosted for three years), "Comic Relief Does Fame Academy," the "V Festival" (2004, 2005), "The Brits," "Record of the Year," "Elton John Live from New York," "The Latin Grammy Awards" and a one-hour special with U2, "When Cat Met U2," for ITV.

SHAKEFIRE: There’s a rumor going out that since Season 5 is airing this summer, and then Season 6 is going to air immediately following in the fall, is that true?
CAT DEELEY: It is true, yes.  We have been given Season 6 dates already, and they’re almost directly following Season 5, which is just great, you know?  It means that the show is so popular and Fox is 100% behind it, and it’s great. 

SF: Do you have those dates for Season 6?
CD: I don’t have the exact premiere dates, but I do know that we’re auditioning in Boston on May 28th for the next season.

SF: Okay.  Regarding the other rumor with you leaving the show, that sort of came out during auditions of this season.  Any truth to that or are you going to be sticking around as long as the show goes?
CD: To be honest, I haven’t even heard of these rumors, so you’re one up on me.  No, at the moment, I am more than happy doing the show, and I love it and I feel very passionate about it.  So, yes, I’m doing both Season 5 and Season 6.

SF: I was curious, during the audition process, did you notice that one city produces better dancers overall, or …
CD: You know what, it’s not that they produced better dancers, but definitely some cities produced more dancers, you know?  It’s more of the numbers, really, and it tends to always be on the east coast and on the west coast, because naturally that’s where dancers that are professionally trained, they always kind of gravitate to those areas because that’s where they go for work and for jobs and Broadway and all those kinds of things.  So, we always tend to pick up quite a few people in New York or around there and also LA., but the other cities that we visit, it’s amazing when you just get this real kind of gem that just shines from out of everybody else, in places like Utah, in Salt Lake City.  They really produce some great dancers, too.  So, I would say the only real difference is the numbers.

SF: Can you tell me what the most challenging part of being the host of the show is?
CD: The most challenging part without a shadow of a doubt is Thursdays and saying goodbye to people.  I hate it, because my whole thing with the show is that I get so close to the dancers.  I see them every single week.  I see how they grow.  I go through rehearsals with them.  I see things that even the audience at home don’t get to see, you know, I see when they’re really tired.  I see something’s going on with their family.  I see if they’ve got some kind of injury.  I’m also part of their journeys right from the very start.  Like I said before, as they’re lining up outside the theater to do their auditions and nervous and they’re scared, I see them then.  I see them grow to be the stars that they are and performing in the way that they do.  I also see how the audience in the studio react to them and this amazing buzz they get. 

So, to me, to say goodbye to one of them every single Thursday is just a nightmare.  My makeup artist is always like, “Okay, the waterproof mascara is going on today, and, by the way, do not cry, girl, because if you come off looking like a member of KISS, I am going to kick your ass.”  So, that’s always, always, always my hardest thing.

SF: Okay.  You mentioned that behind the scenes, you see what the viewers don’t see. 
CD: Yes.

SF: Joe does a really good job of portraying the dancers and showing that they have compassion for one another.  Is there a lot of behind-the-scenes drama?
CD: You know what, there’s always drama, because what we’re putting them through is so difficult, doing two shows a week, at certain points in the show they’re learning two different routines, they’re being paired with different people every week, which just in terms of trust issues and ... spin them around above their heads.  I’m always incredibly in awe of how trusting and they have to form this chemistry together almost instantaneously.  So, you do see things that go on.  I’m just left incredibly in awe. 

I have to say, when I first started the show, I thought it would be incredibly competitive between all the dancers, particularly when they’re lining up to do their auditions or whatever, I thought it would be really kind of cutthroat and highly competitive, but in actual fact there is a complete sense of camaraderie between them all, because in actual fact, when we get to the studio, nobody understands what they’re going through, the emotional and physical pressures on them as much as they do each other.  So, they can tell their families, they can tell their friends, they can try and express how they’re feeling.  When they have to see someone go home every week, it’s not the nicest feeling in the world, because they automatically become so attached to each other.  They’re taking ordinary people and putting them in this extraordinary situation.

So, it’s definitely difficult for them, but you know what, they’re team players, and that’s what we see behind the scenes.  You see the friendships that are formed., and all I see is friendships that are formed for life, because it’s like a pressure cooker, what we put them through.  We put them into the studio with lights and cameras and it’s live and it’s different routines every week and someone has to go home every week and it’s like a pressure cooker.  So, I think they have these relationships that will be with them for life.

SF: It’s going to be a lot of fun.  Tabitha and Napoleon and Sonya were just some of the really great new choreographers last season.  Will we see any new choreographers this season, perhaps some of the old dancers coming back, like Dmitry and Benji have in the past?
CD: You know what?  I think quite possibly they’ll all be.  We haven’t confirmed any choreographers yet for the show, because … our schedules and their schedules, and also getting the right balance of all different styles every week.  It’s a bit of a juggling act that we have to do, so we haven’t confirmed anybody yet, but you know our whole mission on the show is to entertain, surprise, and delight.  So, the people that you mentioned like Tabitha, Napoleon, and also Sonya will definitely be back. 

We’d also like to see some old faces that are back on the show, because the whole idea of the show is that it is a family and it very much is.  We don’t fake that for the screen.  That’s what happens.  All the dancers know each other.  On the Fourth of July, the dancers from the previous season come around to my house for a barbecue, and that’s what we do and we capitalize on that.  It is a family atmosphere.  There are a lot of friends there, and like I said before, friends for life.  So, absolutely.  We’d love to see some of the old contestants back.

SF: I’ve noticed in Season 2 that the prizes keep getting bigger and bigger and bigger.  For Season 5, what does the winner receive in addition to the money?
CD: You know what, we haven’t confirmed that yet, actually.  We really haven’t confirmed that.  I think that of course there is always the cash prize and of course there’s other things that come with it, too, but I think the most important thing, and this is what the dancers love about the show, is it kind of elevates them to that position, makes the public aware of them.  They then become up for tours and conventions and Broadway and movies and all that kind of stuff.  So, I think, yes, the cash prize and any other prizes that we give them are important, but I think that the thing that money can’t buy is the positioning that we give them across the entire United States.

SF: I don’t mean to put you on the spot, but how would you rate your dance skills?
CD: Terrible.  Did you notice how I didn’t even hesitate? 

SF: Yes.
CD: Literally, if I started dancing, most people would bleed from their eyes, I think. 

SF: I assumed you would have picked up a few things along the way.
CD: Oh, don’t assume anything.  Don’t assume anything.  No.  Absolutely not.  Listen, what I lack in talent, I make up for in enthusiasm if I’m on a night out.  Don’t get me wrong, I love to have a dance.  Can I actually do it and am I actually impressive?  Absolutely not. 

SF: My question is about your wardrobe on the show.  I love to see the dresses and the gowns.  Do you choose those yourself?  Do you have a wardrobe person that does that?
CD: I have had a wardrobe person, but I also get very heavily involved myself.  Like, I love vintage clothes, so I often go to flea markets or vintage shops and find things and change them or take straps or raise the hem or put a belt around.  I’m very, very involved, and this season, I’m going to be doing it all myself, because actually it works better like that, I think.  I love the fact that people wait to see what I’m wearing.  I know sometimes it is silly and sometimes it’s extreme and sometimes it’s completely out there, but I would much rather people either love it or hate it, but have an opinion about it, rather than just saying, “Oh yeah, I don’t really care.”  You know?  I would much rather people either love it or hate it and sit there and wait to see what I come out in. 

I also think it would be ridiculous if I was in a vest and jeans, I would just look ridiculous next to some of the costumes that the dancers have to wear.  Sometimes they’re dressed as matadors or angels and devils or clowns or whatever it is.  So, it would just look like the weirdest thing when they have to come over to me and I kind of put my arm around them and we go to the judges.  So, I embrace the silliness and the joy and the fashion and all that kind of stuff.  So, I hope the people at home do, too.  Love it or hate it, at least I make you have an opinion about it. 

So You Think You Can Dance premieres Thursday, May 21 at 8:00 p.m. with a followup premiere on Wednesday, May 27.