Shake It Up (American TV series)

Did You Know?

• Selena Gomez performs the theme song, "Shake It Up", which was featured on the Shake It Up: Break It Down soundtrack.
• The series aired on Disney Channel (UK and Ireland) from November 12, 2010, to January 31, 2014.
• Kenton Duty was announced as not returning as a regular for season 3 but would make special guest appearances; he did not appear in any episode.

Production

Disney ordered the show as its first series starring two female friends as leads, with a dance-driven aspect. It initially carried the working title Dance, Dance Chicago and was described as the journey of two kids on a contemporary American Bandstand-type show. Veteran television producers Chris Thompson, a former writer for Laverne & Shirley and co-creator of Bosom Buddies, and Rob Lotterstein, who had worked on Boy Meets World, were assigned to develop the story.

Casting began in October 2009. Bella Thorne and Zendaya were cast as the two female leads, along with Camp Rock cast member Roshon Fegan in a co-lead role. On May 21, 2010, the title was changed to Shake It Up, production was announced to begin in July, and a fall 2010 premiere was anticipated. Gary Marsh, President of Disney Entertainment, said the Thorne/Zendaya duo were the most engaging best friends the network had seen.

Marsh noted that while buddy comedies have existed since television began, this was the first time dancing had been incorporated into the underlying premise of a sitcom. The concept has been noted as similar to Hannah Montana, and The Sun-Sentinel described Shake It Up as the same approach with dance. It is Disney's third series to feature a show-within-a-show, following The Famous Jett Jackson and Sonny with a Chance. Chuck Barney of the Contra Costa Times said the plots play out in typical Disney Channel style with uncomplicated story lines, broad humor and moral uplift.

Bella Thorne said the writing is very realistic and that she had gone through most of the problems depicted. Rosero McCoy, a choreographer for Camp Rock 2: The Final Jam, and Claude Racine served as choreographers. The series was shot at Los Angeles Center Studios.

Episodes

On June 5, 2011, a crossover episode of Good Luck Charlie called "Charlie Shakes It Up" aired. In it, Teddy, Amy, and Charlie visit Chicago and are mistaken for the Duncan Sisters on the show Shake It Up Chicago!. Rocky and CeCe figure out they are fakes, and after the truth comes out, the real Duncan Sisters show up. Deuce traps them in a janitor's closet, and Teddy, Amy, and Charlie perform. Only CeCe, Rocky, Deuce, Flynn, and Gary appeared in the crossover because Disney said only base characters were needed. The episode was considered part of Good Luck Charlie, not Shake It Up. A 90-minute movie, Shake It Up: Made in Japan, was announced at the 2011 Licensing International Expo and aired on August 17, 2012, as an extended season two finale.

Controversy

On December 23, 2011, Disney Channel aired a repeat of “Party It Up” where a supermodel told CeCe and Rocky, “I could just eat you guys up...you know, if I ate!” Demi Lovato, who had left Sonny with a Chance in fall 2010 for treatment, tweeted criticism of the network for making light of eating disorders, referencing her own experience. Disney Channel’s PR team replied that the episode, along with a So Random! episode featuring an eating disorder joke, would be removed from rotation for review. By 2012, the episode returned to regular airings with the line cut. Disney stated they never meant to trivialize eating disorders.

Reception

The series has earned mixed reviews. Tom Gliatto of People magazine gave it two out of four stars, writing that it does not shake up the kid-com formula but has more than the usual shiny-sparkly cuteness. It scores a 4.4 out of 10 on TV.com. The most watched episode is "Start It Up" with 6.2 million viewers, while the least watched is "Weird It Up" with 2.5 million viewers.

The series premiere garnered 6.2 million viewers, making it the highest-rated series premiere in Disney Channel's 27-year history, ahead of Wizards of Waverly Place (5.9 million), Liv and Maddie (5.8 million), The Suite Life on Deck and Austin & Ally (5.7 million each), and Hannah Montana (5.4 million). Among the 9-to-14 demographic, the premiere scored an 11.0 rating (2.7 million viewers), and among ages 6 to 11, a 10.6 rating (2.6 million viewers).

It also became the channel's highest-rated Sunday premiere for an original series in total viewers, kids 6–11, and teens 9–14.