In what has to be a stunning reversal of events, NBC’s other singing show The Sing-Off is finding its’ way back on to the airwaves in the fall of 2013.
The show’s return was announced via a casting call from show judge Ben Folds, who posted it via his Facebook earlier today. A new production team is supposed to be involved, as Entertainment Weekly notes that Mark Burnett Productions (who also does the Voice and has been a juggernaut in the reality genre for the past decade) is working to revamp season 4.
The show, which ran for three seasons between 2009 and 2011, was cancelled when NBC opted to double down on its’ hit competition franchise, The Voice for the 2012 season. It’s most notable winner was YouTube sensation Pentatonix, known for putting a futuristic spin on the a capella genre.
This is a stunning surprise in a year where networks are suddenly looking to bring back old favorites such as CW returning Whose Line is it Anyway? (without Drew Carey, but with many of the show’s original favorites).
I for one, enjoyed the original series, which encouraged creativity in arrangement and overall musical talent versus the never-ending audition process that plagues shows such as American Idol and The Voice. It should be interesting to see if they bring back the full panel (i’m going to go out on a limb and say that Folds is involved seeing how he publicized the casting call).