Dancing with the Stars
This blog is dedicated to all the Dancing with the Stars fanatics because we know there are many of us. We’ll talk about some interesting fun facts about the show: how did it originate, how many seasons so far, champion couples, how much does the winner make? Of course, we included a great video to keep you inspired and on your toes for your next lesson here at Bella Ballroom Dance Studio.
Although Dancing With the Stars is an American favorite, the initial concept comes from England. The British started a series called Strictly Come Dancing (known as just Strictly to its fans), which started in 2004—a year before the U.S. created its own version.
Dancing with the Stars premiered on June 1, 2005. On September 16th, 2019 the twenty-eighth season took place. It has been an absolute success!
As of now, a total of 321 celebrities have danced in the 28 seasons of the series so far.
For each season, celebrities are paired with a professional dancer who trains them and competes alongside them in different dances each week. A total of 46 professional partners have appeared alongside celebrities.
Sundays are for spray tans at DWTS. I think we should find a way to apply this here at Bella Ballroom, spray tan for staff and clients!
The show’s head makeup artist Zena Shteysel has said “we have what we call spray tan Sundays, where everyone comes in on Sunday to get tanned. We have two body makeup artists who take care of the whole cast. We also use the South Seas Island Glow Body Bronzer to give shimmer at the base and make everything look flawless.”
Age Facts
During the 23rd season DWTS witnessed the youngest competitor to walk out with the first place trophy. Laurie Hernandez, an Olympic gold medal-winning gymnast, became the champ at the age of 16.
In contrast to this, singer Donny Osmond has the record of the oldest competitor. He won first place at the age of 52.
In terms of dancing, we can apply the saying “age is just a number”. It’s all about practice, preparation, and of course fun!
Now in terms of non-winning competitors, the youngest competitor was 14-year-old movie star Willow Shields from the huge movie series Hunger Games. How impressive to handle that pressure at such young age.
On the other side of the spectrum, Cloris Leachman is the oldest participant. She competed in 2008 at the age of 82 years old. Of course, she was the crowd’s favorite contestant.
Don’t let age interfere with dancing and having fun!
Money, money, money!
The average contract just for participating in the show generates a base salary of $125,000 for pre-show rehearsals and the finale.
Keep in mind that bonuses are added incrementally:
- $10,000 per week for weeks three and four.
- $15,000 for week five.
- $20,000 per week for weeks six and seven.
- $30,000 per week for weeks eight and nine.
- $50,000 per week for weeks ten and eleven.
If we add these numbers, we can see that the champion walks away with a total of $360,000. Not bad!
Other Interesting Facts
Costume designers Daniela Gschwendtner and Steven Lee calculate they have made around 13,000 outfits during the 28 seasons of the show.
The style that has been danced the most is the Cha-Cha. This beautiful Latin dance has been danced 238 times.
There are two songs that have been danced to the same amount of times: “Crazy In Love” by Beyonce & Jay Z and “I Wanna Dance With Somebody” by Whitney Houston.
Both songs have been danced 10 times each during the show so far.
Winners from every season:
- Season 1 Kelly Monaco & Alec Mazo
- Season 2 Drew Lachey & Cheryl Burke
- Season 3 Emmitt Smith & Cheryl Burke
- Season 4 Apolo Anton Ohno & Julianne Hough
- Season 5 Helio Castroneves & Julianne Hough
- Season 6 Kristi Yamaguchi & Mark Ballas
- Season 7 Brooke Burke & Derek Hough
- Season 8 Shawn Johnson & Mark Ballas
- Season 9 Donny Osmond & Kym Johnson
- Season 10 Nicole Scherzinger & Derek Hough
- Season 11 Jennifer Grey & Derek Hough
- Season 12 Hines Ward & Kym Johnson
- Season 13 J.R Martinez & Karina Smirnoff
- Season 14 Donald Driver & Peta Murgatroyd
- Season 15 Melissa Rycroft & Tony Dovolani
- Season 16 Kellie Pickler & Derek Hough
- Season 17 Amber Riley & Derek Hough
- Season 18 Meryl Davis & Maksim Chmerkovskiy
- Season 19 Alfonso Ribeiro & Witney Carson
- Season 20 Rumer Willis & Valentin Chmerkovskiy
- Season 21 Bindi Irwin & Derek Hough
- Season 22 Nyle DiMarco & Peta Murgatroyd
- Season 23 Laurie Hernandez & Valentin Chmerkovskiy
- Season 24 Rashad Jennings & Emma Slater
- Season 25 Jordan Fisher & Lindsay Arnold
- Season 26 Adam Rippon & Jenna Johnson
- Season 27 Bobby Bones & Sharna Burgess
- Season 28 Hannah Brown & Alan Bersten
Top 10 Dancing with the Stars Contestants
Whether you have seen every single season twice or you haven’t seen any, Bella Ballroom can get you Dancing with the Stars ready for any event! Let us show you the joy of dance!
-Carlos
