By Mark Ballas, Special for USA TODAY
Last season,Dancing With the Starsprofessional and two-time champion Mark Ballaschronicled the ups and downs of Team Ballin (his nickname for himself and partner Bristol Palin). Ballas, 24, who is also a musician, is back with his USA TODAY journal once more, this time as part of Team KanenBall, which has him teamed with Disney Channel actress Chelsea Kane. You can find his dispatches here on Wednesdays following the Tuesday night results show, and on weekends when he'll let us know how practice for the next performance is going.
By Adam Larkey, ABC
Done, done, on to the next one: Their first live performance in the books, Ballas and teammate Chelsea Kane are hard at work on their Jive for Monday's show.
By Adam Larkey, ABC
Done, done, on to the next one: Their first live performance in the books, Ballas and teammate Chelsea Kane are hard at work on their Jive for Monday's show.
March 25
Is it Monday yet? Most people don't look forward to Mondays at all. That's certainly not the case with me as I never have a "case of the Mondays"! Monday is our day to shine and to put all of our hard work from the week on display for the masses. We focus on training hard during the week so we can give our best performance on the Monday show. That way we're at peace with the decision of the fans on Tuesday's results show. No regrets!
The competition is really heating up now that the first show is behind us. Instead of weeks to get a dance performance-ready, we have only a few days. That's a considerable difference, of course, and it really creates a sink-or-swim scenario for the celebs. The pressure increases, and so does the scrutiny of the judges and fans.
Our in-season rehearsal schedule goes like this: after the Tuesday result show, I choreograph the dance for the next week. Then on Wednesday, I teach the dance to my partner. Thursday we repeatedly go over the dance to learn it forward and backward. On Friday, I put the finishing touches on the choreography, to make it really pop. On Saturday and Sunday, we squeeze in rehearsal time when we can to keep the dance sharp, but we also have interviews, wardrobe fittings, camera blocking, and other requirements. Then on Monday, we have dress rehearsal with the whole cast before going live at 5:00 p.m. That gives us about four days from the conception of choreography to being performance-ready on Monday!
As I mentioned the last time I wrote, we have the Jive this week. That dance typically is difficult for the celebs (and anyone) to pick up, especially quickly. It's considerably faster than the Foxtrot that we had in Week 1. As a dance teacher I try to slow down the choreography into its basic steps, then I compare those steps to what Chelsea has already learned from our Foxtrot training. Chelsea is a really quick study and picks up the choreography after a few passes. Then we have to tweak it, personalize it, coordinate our movement, perfect it, and perform it.
Our jive is going to be really fun ? it's very unconventional. When I think about it, it might be the most detailed Jive I've ever done in eight seasons on Dancing With The Stars. I'm really looking forward to breaking it out this week! I'm thrilled with how well Chelsea has picked up the choreography and really owned it. Our song is a cool number that I've always really liked, which helps to become engaged in the dance.
Despite our rigorous schedule, I do get some time away from dancing. For those new to this journal, I've been a musician for as long as I've danced. I started ballroom at age ten, which is when I started Flamenco guitar lessons. For me, music and dance go hand in hand and you can't have one without the other. On Thursday night, I played an acoustic show at the House of Blues on The Sunset Strip. Derek (Hough) came out to support and it was a really fun show. It?s always great to get out of the office and relax. Performing music does that for me.
Time to rehearse with the other half of Team Kanenball. Is it Monday yet?
March 23
What an exciting night! The first show is always a lot of fun. After three months of wondering whom my partner would be and another three weeks of rehearsals to teach her the Foxtrot, I'm so happy that Season 12 is finally here!
I'm so proud of Chelsea. She did an amazing job on Monday night. Dancing With The Stars is quite daunting, even to a performer with her extensive resume. It's one thing to learn and nail down a routine in rehearsal. It's a completely different animal to perform and execute that choreography in front of 20 million people.
Chelsea didn't miss a step, which was exactly what I was hoping for. I thought her personality really came through as well, and the judges rewarded us with a great score! And to be the first up only adds to the challenge. We learn the order of the lineup the day before, so we had 24 hours to get those butterflies in our stomachs under control. On the flipside, the rest of the show was a blast after we performed and scored well.
During the rehearsal weeks before the season premiere, I'm really focused on my partner and don't see or interact with the other teams much. Some of the couples train out of town, and we're all on different schedules. It was awesome seeing the other couples perform finally. Now that we've got our feet wet, I'll be seeing the other cast members daily and can't wait to spend time with them, and sizing up who my competition is!
It's tough to say which couples will do well overall based on one dance. Some people excel at Latin techniques; others are great with fast choreography; some shine with slower steps. But I will say that Ralph (Macchio) and Kirstie (Alley) really nailed their dances on Monday! I also really liked Romeo (Miller) and Chelsie (Hightower)'s dance and Hines (Ward) and Kym (Johnson) look to make a strong run. Judge Len was hilarious with his comments to Hines!
Those of you that follow me closely know that I'm recently obsessed with the DJ Deadmau5 (pronounced "Dead Mouse"). Well this past Saturday night I went to his secret concert in downtown Los Angeles and had so much fun! Derek (Hough) and Chelsea joined me and it was a night that I'll not forget anytime soon. Just like we all remember our first concert experience, I'll certainly remember my first Deadmau5 show. It's inspiring me to learn how to make music like he does. Maybe I'll name myself DJ Living Rodent? Kidding!
Okay, back to dancing with Miss Kane. This week, we have the Jive. We've been working on this dance for a week or so already, and I'm really looking forward to getting it performance- ready in the next few days. I have all the confidence in the world in Chelsea after she came out and danced her heart out on Monday. So please tune in on Monday and don't forget to vote from your phone, your friend's phone, your parents' phone, your daughter's phone, your neighbor's phone, and even a stranger's phone and vote for your inside man, Team Kanenball!
March 18
Welcome back! I'm so happy to be able to share my thoughts and inside information with you again this season. Last Fall, Season 11, was a blast and I'm really looking forward to Season 12!
It's been nearly four months since I've checked in, so let me catch you up on what I did in between Seasons 11 and 12. Right after the whirlwind of the finals and traveling to New York for Good Morning America and The View, I went straight into the ballroom dance theatrical show Burn The Floor for three weeks. That was an extremely fun production and I can't wait to do another run with them soon.
Starting in January I did a six week music tour to support my new CD HurtLoveBox. We traveled throughout the East Coast and Midwest, enduring many blizzards and extreme weather. I played 33 shows in 35 days, in 16 states and the District of Columbia. It was a grueling trip, but so worth it ... That's rock 'n' roll, baby!
After the tour, I took a relaxing vacation (my first in four years) back to England to see my Nan. I was raised in England, but haven't been back to visit my family and friends since I started Dancing with the Stars. It was a lot of fun and it makes me miss everyone I saw even more, but the trip was exactly what I needed to recharge for another run at the Mirrorball Trophy!
At the end of February, we met our partners and I was thrilled when I found I'd be partnered with Chelsea Kane. She works really hard, is full of energy, has a sense of rhythm and is absolutely lovely. Chelsea's been so much fun to spend time with ? it's impossible to be in a bad mood around her! We get along great, although, I do annoy her by constantly sending her photos of this DJ I've become obsessed with, Deadmau5. He wears gigantic neon mouse heads, which I find hilarious.
When Chelsea found out I was shooting a music video for Hotwire a few weeks ago, she offered to be in it. We had a blast filming, especially since Chels just goes with the flow. The video will be released in a few weeks and I'm super excited about it.
Back to dancing ? I'm looking forward to wowing the judges and the fans this season with her ? I think we make a great team.The Foxtrot is our first dance and we've been working to perfect it these past two weeks.
I haven't spent a lot of time around the other couples yet, but as soon as the show starts, we'll be hanging out a lot. Some of the teams that I think will do well this season are Hines and Kym (the footballers always do well), Chris and Cheryl (the only other multi-champ on the show), Romeo and Chelsie (he can move and has to avenge his father), and Petra and Dmitry (welcome back D!).
Here's what I'm aiming for this season: having fun, entertaining everyone, and making a run at my third Mirrorball Trophy.
Katharine McPhee Gwen Stefani Leighton Meester Christina Ricci Bijou Phillips
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