The long anticipated celebrity reality show Dancing Stars begins today, Monday September 22, at 8pm on prime time Bulgarian television.

The professional dancers have been selected for this grand production of bTV and the names of participating celebrities revealed. Until now they were kept a secret by the producers but, on the eve of the inauguration, their names were disclosed.

Galena, a famous Bulgarian folk star, Iliana Raeva, ex-Bulgarian world and Olympic champion in gymnastics, Todor Kolev, actor and comedian, Neshka Robeva, also a household name in Bulgarian gymnastics, Andrei Batashov, Elena, also a folk star, are some of the celebrities to participate.

It was revealed today on BTV that some of the stars are very nervous prior to the grand opening and that some have lost up to eight kilos due to stress.

The producers are aiming to reach a wide spectrum of viewers after having gathered three generations of Bulgarian celebrities, actors, comedians, singers, and athletes.

Meanwhile, selection for the dancers for this new show has been rigorous. Some of them are Bulgarian dancers who live and work overseas, predominantly in the US, but have returned to Bulgaria especially for the event.

Among those who have worked in the United States are Mark Balas, a renowned American choreographer. This year Balas won the sixth edition of Dancing Stars in America with the US Olympic figure skating champion Christy Yamaguchi.

There will be a casting today which will feature all the dancers who will participate in the bTV show. So far, enormous interest has been shown by politicians, athletes, musicians and actors from across Bulgaria, as well as by the general public.

The project will have a "touch of class". It will be massive in scale and will feature unprecedented lighting effects, bTV has stated. The decor of the show is said to be in accordance with standards set by BBC Worldwide.

The dancefloor itself will be 14 by 9.2 metres with "a gittering surface suitable for real stars". Costumes have been supplied from overseas, and among them are brand names such as Valentino and Jean Paul Gaultier.