By April 2008, ten finalists had been chosen to compete for the first prize in three major live evening shows with presenter Thomas Gottschalk. The two winners, a man and a woman, would appear as Rusty and Pearl respectively in Andrew Lloyd Webber’s hit musical Starlight Express. But everyone involved had to work hard until the grand finale on Friday, April 18, 2008.

In Duisburg, Munich and Bremen, thousands of applicants had to assert themselves in front of an expert jury. Uwe Kröger, Katja Ebstein and Alexander Goebel put the candidates through their paces. In addition to a melodious voice, dance skills, acting talent and stage presence were also assessed, all of which are part of a musical star’s toolkit.

On the three shows, the ten selected finalists had to showcase their individual strengths in their presentation of well-known musical songs and perform in front of an audience of millions. They received support from Thomas Gottschalk and his guests – major national and international stars who were on hand to offer the candidates advice and support. The jury assessed the performance after each appearance. But it was the ZDF viewers alone who decided who went through to the next round by voting.

Kevin Köhler and Anna-Maria Schmidt became the musical show stars of 2008. Kevin Köhler has been playing Rusty in the musical Starlight Express in Bochum since August 2008.