ABC fires up "Dance Machine"

By Nellie Andreeva

LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) - ABC, home of the hit reality series "Dancing With the Stars," is engaging in more fancy footwork.

The network has ordered five episodes of "Dance Machine," which is described as a dance competition featuring real people competing for a cash prize. The show is now casting for a January production start.

Although the networks are expected to add more reality programming for midseason in case of a lengthy writers strike, the deal for "Dance Machine" was well under way before the walkout began Monday.

Details about the premise of the show are being kept under wraps, but the casting call notice stresses that "you don't have to be a trained dancer to take home the cash -- all you need is lots of energy and the willingness to leave it all out on the dance floor. We are looking for all types of people -- from the cool 21-year-old hip-hop dancer to the sassy salsa-dancing grandma!"

Reuters/Hollywood Reporter