On the scene at the inaugural edition of Dancing With the Stars Con in Palm Springs, EntertainmentNow caught up with veteran “DWTS” pro Val Chmerkovskiy.
One of the highlights of the fan convention promises to be a special performance on the night of August 1, and he admitted that preparing for the show had been tough.
“It was a lot. But again, we wanted to give the fans a new experience, as much as we can give,” he shared.
“We got to build out two new completely brand new dances and performances. Tonight we have the Glitter Games, which is an interactive game with our fans and all the celebrities coming back,” Chmerkovskiy continued.
“So we got a lot in store,” he added. “It took a lot of effort to put it together. So hopefully our fans like it.”
Leaning Into His Partners’ Strengths
EntertainmentNowOver the course of his numerous seasons on the show, Chmerkovskiy has partnered with many celebrities — not all of whom have entered the competition with a background in dance.
“You know, the contestant has a lot to do with it, right? I’m only as good as my partner,” he explained.
He likened the process to being an artist, with his dance partner the “paintbrush” he uses to craft the performance. “If I have someone who has certain strengths those are the strengths that I’m going to try to paint with,” he said.
“And yeah, I try to customize my work to be a reflection of who I’m working with,” Chmerkovskiy added.
“It’s not what I want to create, it’s what feels right for them, and what kind of stories they want to tell,” he said. “So I really let that dictate the process, and then I do my best to put something out there.”
A Family Affair
For Chmerkovskiy, “Dancing With the Stars” isn’t just a job, it’s also akin to a family business.
His wife, Jenna Johnson, is a pro dancer on the show. In addition, his brother, Maksim Chmerkovskiy and his wife, Peta Murgatroyd, are likewise veteran pros on the show.
He finds it a “a huge privilege” to work alongside his family.
“I mean, my work, first of all, takes up a lot of my time because it’s also my passion,” he said. “I’m excited to do this, I want to do this. And so that would take me away from my famly quite a bit. The fact that I get to do both, I get to do what I love at the highest level and at the same time do it alongside the people that I love, that’s the dream.”
He concluded by stating, “So yeah, it gets hard sometimes because besides our familial connections we’re also standalone artists that want to be considered as such, and celebrated as such. So sometimes that can create a little bit of of a challenge, but for the most part it’s a small price to pay for the luxury of doing things that you love with the people you love.”
