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Who Are the Most Famous Professional Ballroom Dancers? Here Are Some of the Top Names
Bravo is taking audiences into the glamorous and competitive world of ballroom dancing, where the cha-cha, the rumba, and the pasodoble reign supreme.
It’s nearly impossible to look away as the women of Dancing Queens take the stage, given all their glitz, glam, and glide. The competitive world of ballroom dancing is a fascinating one, both in and out of the realm of reality television, and Bravo is taking us there for an exclusive look.
The cast of Dancing Queens, featuring Colette Marotto, Donie Burch, Gaëlle Benchetrit, Leonie Biggs, Pooja Mehta, and Sabrina Strasser, gives viewers a front-row seat into the rigorous demands of elite dance, as well as their attempts to juggle family and their daily responsibilities, separate from their high-heeled (and costly) passions.
There is a difference between amateur and professional ballroom dancers, though. Let's dive in and learn about some of the most influential ballroom dancers out there.
1) Fred Astaire
One of the names most synonymous with ballroom dancing is the late and great Fred Astaire, who, along with long-time partner Ginger Rogers, graced the Golden Age of Hollywood with his onscreen moves, helping to revolutionize cinema. The Nebraskan-born Vaudeville performer was a staple in what’s referred to as the “American Smooth” category of ballroom dancing, which includes the waltz, tango, foxtrot, and Viennese Waltz.
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Although the ladies of Dancing Queens focus on the “International Latin” category, which includes the cha-cha, samba, rum a, pasodoble, and jive, there’s no denying Astaire was an icon.
2) Yulia Zagoruychenko and Riccardo Cocchi
Since 2007, Yulia Zagoruychenko and her dancing partner and husband, Riccardo Cocchi, have dominated the world of Latin dance, reigning as 10-time undefeated winners of the World Professional Latin Dance Champions. Of their many accolades, the pair won nine consecutive Latin dance championship titles at the US Open Dance Champions between 2008 and 2016, hanging their dancing shoes in favor of retiring in 2019 when winning their tenth in Miami.
Zagoruychenko, who also credits Fred Astaire as one of her inspirations while growing up in Russia, and the Italian-born Cocchi (the son of two ballroom dance coaches) are well-known in “DanceSport” (competitive dancing). They continue to be active on Koros, where users can download an app for instruction by some of the best dancers around the world.
3) Charlotte Jorgensen
Considered to be one of the best of ballroom dancing’s “standard” category (which includes waltz, tango, Viennese waltz, and the quick step), Charlotte Jorgenson climbed the amateur ranks of DanceSport before going pro in 1994 (in Dancing Queens, the ladies are also amateurs, though their male partners are professional, often referred to as Pro-Am dancing).
Jorgensen, of Denmark, moved to London to pursue her talents in the 1980s, later partnering up with the King of Foxtrot,” Andrew Sinkinson. The duo landed as finalists in many competitions, including the British Open, the UK Open, and the European and World Championships.
Jorgensen appeared in ABC’s Dancing with the Stars’ first season and now works as a dance instructor based in Massachusetts. She is also a board member and spokesperson for Dance 4 Health, a program aimed at using ballroom dancing to combat childhood obesity and diabetes.
4) Donnie Burns
Heralded as the “Michael Jordan” of ballroom dancing, Scottish Latin professional dancer Donnie Burns — who also appeared on Dancing with the Stars — was a force to be reckoned with. He and former pro dancing partner, Gaynor Fairweather, won in 16 World Professional Champions, landing Burns on the Guinness World Records for having a 20-year undefeated run, not just in Latin dancing, but in all of ballroom dancing, according to Russian magazine Posta.
Today, he is helping his young son, Domenico, get into dancing and acts as the President and Chairman of the DanceSport Committee for the World Dance & DanceSport Council.
5) Edyta Śliwińska and Alec Mazo
Polish dancer Edyta Śliwińska made a name for herself after winning first place at the International Grand Ball in San Francisco in 2001 and at the Holiday Ball in Las Vegas that same year. Married to her dance partner, Alec Mazo, she and Mazo were heavily featured on Dancing with the Stars. Śliwińska previously partnered with boxing legend Evander Holyfield, actor Joey Lawrence, and Geraldo Rivera, just to name a few, while Mazo — who won the first season with soap opera actress Kelly Monaco — also appeared for five seasons.
Śilwińska’s dancing has taken her elsewhere on television, including CSI:NY and WWE Raw, according to her IMDB page. Mazo also had small parts on CSI:NY and The Curious Case of Benjamin Button.
Śkiwińska and Mazo have two children.
To see more competitive ballroom dancing, tune into Dancing Queens, premiering on Bravo Tuesday, May 9 at 9/8c and streaming the next day on Peacock.
