I grew up dancing. I never competed, but from the time I was in kindergarten until I graduated high school, I was always in dance lessons – ballet, tap and jazz. I loved it! Never in a million years did I think that many years in the future I would be right in the middle of a dance lesson with “Dancing with the Stars” pros Brandon Armstrong, Alan Bersten and Gleb Savchenko – but that's exactly what happened!
About ten years ago I tried dancing again in the “adults class”. It made me realize how much I missed dancing and I made some good friends in the process. After experiencing this “pro” lesson, I'm feeling the urge to start again!
While in Los Angeles for the red carpet premiere of Disney’s THE NUTCRACKER AND THE FOUR REALMS, I had a chance to visit Gleb's dance studio, Pro Dance LA, which he owns with his wife Elena Samodanova. It's a beautiful studio and I so wish I lived in LA and could take lessons THERE!
The hour we spent at Pro Dance LA was one of the most fun hours I have ever spent on a press trip. The guys first answered all of our DTWS questions. All three were so outgoing and open and also FUNNY – making our time together fly by. You can read all the details in my Dancing with the Stars Pros Interview.
We then jumped into the lesson with the pros teaching us a dance to “Fall On Me” by Andrea Bocelli & Matteo Bocelli from The Nutcracker and the Four Realms Soundtrack.
All 3 of the pros first walked us through the dance lesson. While they can be super funny and silly while chatting, they got serious when it came down to dancing!
I think my highlight was when Gleb started to waltz with me for a few bars of the song. I may have actually felt a bit faint!
After learning the dance as a large group, we broke down into three smaller groups, each with our own dance pro. Brandon was the pro for my group and he gave us our own spin on the dance routine, adding a pretty curtsy at the end. Check out our performance:
Dancing with the Stars Tour: This winter, you can catch the DWTS Pros on the road with “Dancing with the Stars: Live! – A Night to Remember”. I'm super excited that they'll be coming to Minneapolis in February. You can see if their coming to your city and buy tickets HERE. The tour delivers a spectacular night of show-stopping dance performances from world-renowned dancers including Brandon Armstrong, Alan Bersten, Witney Carson, Artem Chigvintsev, Val Chmerkovskiy, Sasha Farber, Jenna Johnson, Gleb Savchenko, Emma Slater, Hayley Erbert and Britt Stewart, with more surprise casting to be announced.
“The Nutcracker and the Four Realms” arrives home instantly with never-before-seen extras and deleted scenes on Digital and Movies Anywhere, and on 4K Ultra HD, Blu-ray™ and DVD Jan. 29, 2019.
Bonus features include a discussion with American Ballet Theatre’s Misty Copeland about her role as the enchanting Ballerina Princess, her personal history with “The “Nutcracker” ballet, and her inspirational and historic rise within the world of dance. Extras take viewers on the set of “The Nutcracker and the Four Realms” to meet both new and reimagined characters, and discover how the Land of Sweets, Land of Snowflakes, Land of Flowers and mysterious Fourth Realm were created to such dazzling effect. Deleted scenes provide a look at magical moments that didn’t make the final version of the movie.
Kathleen says
How very cool, you got a dancing lesson. I’d love to learn to dance more but I’m nervous about learning in front of a group. Good for you that you had fun with it instead of overthinking it like me. lol.
Brianne Tursi Manz says
This had to be a lot of fun! To be able to have a dance lesson from the pros from Dancing with the Stars is a wonderful experience! This looks awesome.
Kelly Stilwell says
How fun! I loved meeting them a few years ago, but I didn’t get a lesson! Lucky you!
Cathi Crismon says
This is over the top awesome!
I grew up dancing and have always been a fan of Dancing With The Stars. What an incredible opportunity to be able to dance with the pros.
I took my granddaughter to see The Nutcracker and we both loved it.
Audrey says
What an incredible experience. To be able to take part in a dance lesson from the pros from Dancing With the Stars had to be so much fun, yet probably tiring, in a good way!
John Smith says
I didn’t realize at first these were the pros–how cool! I’d have a very hard time doing steps or “moves,” but I would like to try just for the exercise!