Lebanese dance company Mayyas have won America's Got Talent season 17, taking home the $1 million prize and the chance to headline a Las Vegas show.
During the emotional two-hour finale show on Wednesday, in which the results from public voting were revealed, the 11 finalists performed for a final time on the America's Got Talent stage. Mayyas, took the stage alongside fellow finalist dancer Kristy Sellars for a mesmerising performance to a backdrop of gold lighting. Judge Simon Cowell gave the performance a standing ovation.
Watch the moment Mayyas wins 'America's Got Talent' here:
On Tuesday night, the troupe performed a moody routine in white, feathered outfits, featuring sparkling globes. The performance won a standing ovation from the crowd, leading Cowell to say the act was "astonishing".
Last week, they made a triumphant return to the America's Got Talent stage for the semi-finals. Their hypnotic performance was praised by judges, including Cowell.
"Every single one of us in this room, I promise you, are going to remember this moment," Cowell said of the September 7 performance.
"This is not just going to change your lives, and this is going to sound very dramatic, this is a performance that changes the world. It was as good as it gets ... respect."
Watch Mayyas's full 'America's Got Talent' semi-final performance here
In June, the group made their America's Got Talent debut and impressed judges Cowell, Heidi Klum, Howie Mandel and Sofia Vergara so much they received a golden buzzer and fast track to the live shows.
However, the successful audition was not the female troupe's first talent show appearance.
The crew was founded in Beirut by Nadim Cherfan, who is also the act's choreographer. Cherfan started dancing aged 14 and attended workshops in the UK, the US and India. He launched his own dance classes in studios around the Lebanese capital in 2012, before forming the Mayyas.
In 2019, the group appeared on the sixth series Arabs Got Talent and went on to win the series. In the same year, they participated in Britain's Got Talent: The Champions, an international spin-off of the talent show on UK TV.
Their 2019 Arabs Got Talent win came with a new car and a 200,000 Saudi riyal ($53,333) cash prize.
Despite not making it past the semi-final on Britain's Got Talent: The Champions, Cowell — a judge on both shows — described the act as "genius" and his fellow judge, English comedian David Walliams said: "It was one of the most beautiful things I have ever seen. This is one of those acts where it only works if every one of you is doing their piece perfectly and every one of you did.”
On Britain's Got Talent: The Champions, the Mayyas were one of 45 acts who competed in a pool that featured global talent hailing from the UK, India, the Philippines, South Africa, Spain, Singapore and more.
Speaking to The National after their Britain's Got Talent: The Champions experience, Cherfan said he was satisfied with the experience. "We wanted to go there and show what we can do because that was important to us," he said.
"The best part of it all was that we were invited to perform alongside winners from around the world. To be included in that is special."
MBC's Mazen Hayek said that their stint on the show and international success was an inspiration for the whole region.
"They are symbol of resilience," Hayek said. "Reaching Britain's Got Talent: The Champions is another token of that resilience and an example of that there is nothing impossible when there is talent and determination. They are the perfect embodiment of Arab youth for whom the sky is the limit."
During their America's Got Talent audition, the group explained their name, saying it "is a word in Arabic that means the proud walk of a lioness".
Vergara also asked the group about life in Lebanon right now, to which they replied: "Lebanon is a very beautiful country, but we live a daily struggle."
Another dancer said: "Unfortunately, being a dancer as a female Arab is not fully supported yet."
When asked about their dream, they said that being there "on the biggest stage in the world" is their "only chance to prove to the world what Arab women can do, the art we can create, the fights we fight".
Back in 2019, Cherfan had his sights set high, telling Arab News: "I would love to one day choreograph for Beyonce.
"She’s a huge inspiration and amazing dancer, and she’s the number one entertainer in the world."
Watch Mayyas' full 'America's Got Talent' audition here:
— A version of this article was first published on June 23, 2022
CREW
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1. Domestic VAT refund amendments: request your refund within five years
If a business does not apply for the refund on time, they lose their credit.
2. E-invoicing in the UAE
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3. More tax audits
Tax authorities are increasingly using data already available across multiple filings to identify audit risks.
4. More beneficial VAT and excise tax penalty regime
Tax disputes are expected to become more frequent and more structured, with clearer administrative objection and appeal processes. The UAE has adopted a new penalty regime for VAT and excise disputes, which now mirrors the penalty regime for corporate tax.
5. Greater emphasis on statutory audit
There is a greater need for the accuracy of financial statements. The International Financial Reporting Standards standards need to be strictly adhered to and, as a result, the quality of the audits will need to increase.
6. Further transfer pricing enforcement
Transfer pricing enforcement, which refers to the practice of establishing prices for internal transactions between related entities, is expected to broaden in scope. The UAE will shortly open the possibility to negotiate advance pricing agreements, or essentially rulings for transfer pricing purposes.
7. Limited time periods for audits
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Conflict, drought, famine
Estimates of the number of deaths caused by the famine range from 400,000 to 1 million, according to a document prepared for the UK House of Lords in 2024.
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Dr Miriam Bradley, senior lecturer in humanitarian studies at the University of Manchester, has argued that, by the early 1980s, “several government policies combined to cause, rather than prevent, a famine which lasted from 1983 to 1985. Mengistu’s government imposed Stalinist-model agricultural policies involving forced collectivisation and villagisation [relocation of communities into planned villages].
The West became aware of the catastrophe through a series of BBC News reports by journalist Michael Buerk in October 1984 describing a “biblical famine” and containing graphic images of thousands of people, including children, facing starvation.
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Citizenship-by-investment programmes
United Kingdom
The UK offers three programmes for residency. The UK Overseas Business Representative Visa lets you open an overseas branch office of your existing company in the country at no extra investment. For the UK Tier 1 Innovator Visa, you are required to invest £50,000 (Dh238,000) into a business. You can also get a UK Tier 1 Investor Visa if you invest £2 million, £5m or £10m (the higher the investment, the sooner you obtain your permanent residency).
All UK residency visas get approved in 90 to 120 days and are valid for 3 years. After 3 years, the applicant can apply for extension of another 2 years. Once they have lived in the UK for a minimum of 6 months every year, they are eligible to apply for permanent residency (called Indefinite Leave to Remain). After one year of ILR, the applicant can apply for UK passport.
The Caribbean
Depending on the country, the investment amount starts from $100,000 (Dh367,250) and can go up to $400,000 in real estate. From the date of purchase, it will take between four to five months to receive a passport.
Portugal
The investment amount ranges from €350,000 to €500,000 (Dh1.5m to Dh2.16m) in real estate. From the date of purchase, it will take a maximum of six months to receive a Golden Visa. Applicants can apply for permanent residency after five years and Portuguese citizenship after six years.
“Among European countries with residency programmes, Portugal has been the most popular because it offers the most cost-effective programme to eventually acquire citizenship of the European Union without ever residing in Portugal,” states Veronica Cotdemiey of Citizenship Invest.
Greece
The real estate investment threshold to acquire residency for Greece is €250,000, making it the cheapest real estate residency visa scheme in Europe. You can apply for residency in four months and citizenship after seven years.
Spain
The real estate investment threshold to acquire residency for Spain is €500,000. You can apply for permanent residency after five years and citizenship after 10 years. It is not necessary to live in Spain to retain and renew the residency visa permit.
Cyprus
Cyprus offers the quickest route to citizenship of a European country in only six months. An investment of €2m in real estate is required, making it the highest priced programme in Europe.
Malta
The Malta citizenship by investment programme is lengthy and investors are required to contribute sums as donations to the Maltese government. The applicant must either contribute at least €650,000 to the National Development & Social Fund. Spouses and children are required to contribute €25,000; unmarried children between 18 and 25 and dependent parents must contribute €50,000 each.
The second step is to make an investment in property of at least €350,000 or enter a property rental contract for at least €16,000 per annum for five years. The third step is to invest at least €150,000 in bonds or shares approved by the Maltese government to be kept for at least five years.
Candidates must commit to a minimum physical presence in Malta before citizenship is granted. While you get residency in two months, you can apply for citizenship after a year.
Egypt
A one-year residency permit can be bought if you purchase property in Egypt worth $100,000. A three-year residency is available for those who invest $200,000 in property, and five years for those who purchase property worth $400,000.
Source: Citizenship Invest and Aqua Properties
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