21 years after the first season, 14 years after the last, TF1 revived on Saturday evening one of the formats that marked television and an entire generation: Star Academy. And, Nikos Aliagas took great pleasure in once again presenting the show that made him famous 20 years ago. “I felt like I was 20 years younger,” he says on Europe 1.
“I am both an actor in history and at the same time a spectator”
“I had the impression of reliving a situation, or a scene from deja vu. But, ultimately, it’s something else. I have the same noise, the same codes, the same excitement of the credits, the applause, the blinding light. There’s a very particular tone to Star Academy. It’s something more playful, maybe less postural than other shows. It’s both fragile, which I often say, and powerful”, continues Nikos Aliagas for whom it was “very moving to see the kids in the audience”.
“They are 30 years old today and they said to me ‘we grew up with you’. So I am coming. And I am both an actor in the story and at the same time a spectator, because as a spectator, you watch your own life go by. I was thinking of the absent too, all those who are no longer in the adventure but who have written history. Alexia, Kamel, Oscar Sisto, Tiburce who unfortunately died, and I was thinking of Gregory Lemarchal”. Nikos Aliagas also had a nice emotion when he found one of the artists launched thanks to the Star Ac, even propelled… Jenifer, the first winner was on the set, very moved too. She came to sing a medley of her greatest hits and bring her little dose of nostalgia to each viewer.
Presentation of students and teachers
She was also there to meet the new promotion of students. The students were introduced in turn by a portrait. And, all of them then sang for the first time in their life on television, more or less well… This is the principle of Star Ac. It’s a school, so they still have room for improvement. But all have potential. We also discovered the team of teachers. The dance teacher, Yanis Marshall, even offered us a frenzied show, with part of his choreography in red stiletto boots, his little specialty.
“20 years later, we don’t talk much about audiences”
This evening, between presentation of the new and a good big dose of nostalgia, pleased the viewers a lot. Audiences were very good for the first prime. “Whether the audience is very strong or whether it is less strong, I trace my route”, reacts Nikos Aliagas at the microphone of Culture Media on Europe 1. “Because we talk little about audiences. 20 years later, we mainly talked about the duet that Nolwenn had made with such a star, human stories, love, friendship. That’s it, it’s what remains. The rest is also important, otherwise we’re not here to continue. We’re not going to lie to each other. But that’s not enough. The audience, yes, it’s very important for the group, for the teams, but it’s the quality that counts the most. It’s difficult to lay a program in a hurry all week with kids who have never sung in front of the TV. So it’s exciting”, concludes the presenter.
It will actually be necessary to confirm these hearings, past the effect of novelty of the first premium. And then we’ll see if the return also works on a daily basis. It is launched Monday evening at 5:20 p.m. on TF1.