Idol Chatter & Voice Views

Well, we’re just two weeks away from the start of Season 11 of American Idol.

And if you want to start circling dates on your calendar … well, the show pretty much laid out your viewing schedule for the next two months with a release issued yesterday.

Most notable: Remember how contestants who survived Hollywood then headed to Vegas for one last chance to impress the judges  last year?  It occurred right before the judges made their selections for the semifinals.

Well, that additional round of competition will be back again for Season 11, set for Wednesday, Feb. 22, in a two-hour episode labeled “The Performance Challenge.”

And it appears the semifinals will be follow the same format as last year, with guys performing during one two-hour episode one night and girls doing the same on another. That will be followed by a two-hour Thursday results/wild card show on March 1.

Idol returns with a two-hour premiere on Wednesday, Jan. 18.  Audition shows continue the next night, then again on Sunday, Jan. 22, after the NFC championship game.

As for those Pittsburgh auditions that took place in mid-July … they’ll be aired on Thursday, Jan. 19.

Here’s the complete rundown:

Wednesday, Jan. 18 (8 to 10 p.m.): Season Premiere, Part 1
Thursday, Jan. 19 (8 to 9 p.m.): Season Premiere, Part 2
Sunday, Jan. 22  (10 to 11 p.m.): Audition Episode following NFC championship game
Wednesday, Jan. 25 (8 to 9 p.m.): Auditions Episode
Thursday, Jan. 26 (8 to 9 p.m.): Auditions Episode
Wednesday, Feb. 1 (8 to 9 .m.): Auditions Episode
Thursday, Feb. 2 (8 to 9 p.m.): Auditions Episode
Wednesday, Feb. 8 (8 to 9 p.m.): Auditions Episode
Thursday, Feb. 9 (8 to 9 p.m.): Hollywood Round, Part 1
Wednesday, Feb. 15 (8 to 10 p.m.): Hollywood Round, Part 2
Thursday, Feb. 16 (8 to 9 p.m.): Hollywood Round, Part 3
Wednesday, Feb. 22 (8 to 10 p.m.): Performance Challenge
Thursday, Feb. 23 (8 to 9 p.m.): Semifinalists Announced
Tuesday, Feb. 28 (8 to 10 p.m.): Semifinalists Perform
Wednesday, Feb. 29 (8 to 10 p.m.): Semifinalists Perform
Thursday, March 1 (8 to 10 p.m.): Results Show; Judges’ Wild Card Picks Revealed
Wednesday, March 7 (8 to 10 p.m.): Finalists Perform
Thursday, March 8 (8 to 9 p.m.): Results Show; First Elimination