Paula Abdul and Jason Derulo are joining ‘So You Think You Can Dance’

Paula Abdul is coming back to the reality competition judges table. But she’s not bringing the magic back to “American Idol.” Instead, she’s joining Nigel Lythgoe and fellow new judge Jason Derulo on Fox’s dancing competition show, “So You Think You Can Dance.”

Abdul, who was a successful choreographer before she became a recording artist, will judge the dancing prowess of the contestants on the show’s upcoming 12th season, to air this summer.

Much like “Idol,” ratings for “So You Think You Can Dance” have dropped in recent years, with Lythgoe taking to Twitter last year to elicit more fan support for the show. To try to goose the ratings, producers have switched up the format a bit and will make the 12th season a face-off between stage dancers and street dancers.

People auditioning for the show will be divided into one of the two teams. Trained in contemporary, ballet, jazz or tap? You’re on Team Stage. Hip-hop, animation or breaking? You’re Team Street.

Abdul, as anyone who’s spent even a minute watching Fox in the past decade knows, was one of the original “American Idol” judges during the years when the show was a ratings juggernaut. She left in 2009.

She was a guest judge on “Dance” in its 10th season and last year served as a permanent judge for “So You Think You Can Dance Australia.”

She also had her own short-lived dancing competition show, “Live to Dance,” which aired on CBS in 2011.

Derulo also appeared on “Dance” last season as a guest judge.

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