The judges provide critiques of each competitor's performance and determine nine of the ten people who enter the final shows.
[citation needed] Auditions began in 2002 and were held Zeist, Eindhoven, Hoofddorp, Rotterdam and Assen.
50 contestants made the second day of the theatre round where groups based on gender were formed to sing one pre-determined song: "Isn't She Lovely?"
Top 27 Format: 3 (2 Viewers & 1 Judges Choice) out of 9 making the finals each week + 1 additional Wildcard Season 3 started on October 22, 2005 with these notable changes: the two new presenters and the jury now consists of three members instead of the previous four.
Top 27 Format: 4 (3 Viewers & 1 Judges Choice) out of 9 making the finals each week + 1 additional Wildcard Auditions began in January 2016 and were held Novotel Schiphol Airport in Hoofddorp.
The songs were "Stay with Me" by Sam Smith, "Chandelier" by Sia, "Stitches" by Shawn Mendes, and "Hello" by Adele.
35 contestants advanced to the second theatre round where groups of three or four had to perform a pre-determined song, either "Marvin Gaye" by Charlie Puth ft. Meghan Trainor, "Never Forget You" by MNEK & Zara Larsson or "Sexy als ik dans" by Nielson.