The much anticipated DundaStar Live performances kicked off last Friday at Rainbow Hall in Kicukiro with a show titled "DundaStar End of Year Live Performance”. The live shows are the next stage of the four-month long talent search programme designed to identify and nurture raw talent among Rwanda’s youth. The talent search started with local auditions which were held around Kigali in November, with contestants having to impress a panel of judges to proceed to the final stage of the competition, the live performances. The reality TV show and talent search is for both singers and dancers, with the contestants free to participate in either category or both. The finalists for season 1 include ten dance groups, four solo dancers, and eleven musicians. The show is scheduled to hold weekly eliminations until the grand finale.The show started at 7pm, and for two hours the audience was treated to performances that one might think are done by professionals. But it was raw talent, and it was a competition where every contestant/group had to bring out the best of the night’s theme. For the end of year performance, dubbed "Happy Holidays”, contestants were supposed to inspire a mood of relaxation, partying, and general happiness. The Judges for the evening were Tony, Cynthia, and Herve Kimenyi of the Comedy Knights. After every performance, each of the Judges would comment on the performance, and assign their score. For the first show, only the judges were voting, but the organisers reported that as the show progressed, the in-house audience and eventually the general public would vote for their favorite performances. That evening, two musicians, one solo dancer and one dance group had to be eliminated. After tallying the marks from the Judges, Dan, a solo dancer; Street Campers, a dance group; Olivier a singer, and Big Bang, a rapper, got the lowest marks from the judges and had to drop out of the competition.