Mark Ballas
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| Mark Ballas, Jr. | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | Mark Ballas, Jr. |
| Born | May 24, 1986 Houston, Texas, USA |
| Origin | London, England |
| Genre(s) | Pop/Rock |
| Occupation(s) | Actor, Singer, Dancer, Guitarist |
| Years active | 1990–present |
| Label(s) | unsigned |
| Associated acts | Disney Dancing With The Stars ABC Almost Amy |
| Website | Official Site |
Mark Alexander Corky Ballas, Jr.[1] (born May 24, 1986 in Houston, Texas) is a professional ballroom dancer on the ABC program Dancing with the Stars. At a young age he moved to London, England, where he began his performing career. His parents are Corky Ballas and Shirley Ballas.
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[edit] Early Life
At the age of 4, he was enrolled at the Italia Conti Academy of Dramatic Arts Associate School, where he was trained in singing, dancing, and acting.
When he was 10, he became British Juvenile Ballroom and Latin American Dance Champion.
At the age of 11, he earned a full time slot at the Academy, as well as earning a full scholarship to the college. In 2005, he was awarded "Performer of the Year". He then moved on to win championships at The British Open to the World, The US Open to the World, and The International Open to the World. With his former partner Julianne Hough, he won the Junior Latin American Dance Championship and the gold medal at the Junior Olympics.
As an actor, Ballas played the lead role of Tony in the musical Copacabana, and was the lead dancer in the UK national tour of the Spanish musical Maria de Buenos Aires. He was also the understudy for the role of Ritchie Valens in the UK national tour of Buddy, The Buddy Holly Story.
[edit] Almost Amy
He began playing the guitar at the age of 4, and at the age of 12, he began to write and perform his own music, playing guitar, drums, and bass. With his best friend Derek Hough, he formed the band Almost Amy. The Hough siblings and Ballas had their own pop music trio called "2B1G(2 Boys 1 Girl)" as the siblings mentioned on Entertainment Tonight on October 11, 2007.
[edit] "Dancing with the Stars"
On the 5th season of "Dancing With The Stars," Ballas was paired up with Cheetah Girls star Sabrina Bryan. On October 30, 2007, the pair was voted off the show. The announcement was met with shock from the judges and the live audience. An AOL poll voted their elimination "2007's most shocking TV moment." The next week, the remaining dancers and celebrities showed their continued support and affection for Bryan by donning her signature cheetah paw-print tattoo. For the second-to-last week, Bryan and Ballas were invited back to the show to perform, another first for any couple.
After weeks of speculation among the fans and entertainment news of a budding romance between him and his DWTS partner, just a week after they were taken off the show on November 5, 2007, Sabrina Bryan, in an interview with TV Guide, admitted that she and Ballas are dating. It was announced that Ballas' partner for Season 6 of "Dancing with the Stars" would be Olympic Gold Medal-winning figure skater Kristi Yamaguchi. In the first week, Kristi and Mark received a 27 out of 30 for their foxtrot, the highest score to be received on the first week in the entire series. Together, they continued to top the leaderboard for 6 weeks straight, a new record on DWTS. However, they came in 2nd in the 7th and 8th week of competition, ending their streak. Kristi and Mark were at the top of the leaderboard for 8 of the 10 weeks of competition, a new DWTS record. They also mantained the highest average as of Week 10 with a 28.3 average including a perfect 90/90 score for the finale, both DWTS records. Kristi and Mark's lowest score, a 26, was also the highest "low" score ever for any contestant throughout the seasons.
On May 20, 2008 Ballas and Yamaguchi won the 2008 Season of "Dancing with the Stars." According to the judges, they had set the standard for the entire season and were the most consistent couple not only in Season 6, but in all the seasons of DWTS. Kristi and Mark have commented that they would like to perform on the winter DWTS tour if asked.
Mark now maintains the highest average for pro dancer on DWTS at 27.95.
[edit] Performances
With celebrity partner Sabrina Bryan:
| Week # | Dance/Song | Judges' score | Result | ||
| Inaba | Goodman | Tonioli | |||
| 1 | Cha-Cha-Cha/ "Don't Cha" | 9 | 8 | 9 | Safe |
| 2 | Quickstep/ "They're Red Hot" | 9 | 8 | 9 | Safe |
| 3 | Jive/ "Shake, Rattle and Roll" | 9 | 9 | 9 | Safe |
| 4 | Paso Doble/ "You Spin Me Round (Like a Record)" | 10 | 10 | 10 | Safe |
| 5 | Rumba/ "Me and Mrs. Jones" | 9 | 9 | 10 | Safe |
| 6 | Foxtrot/ "I'm a Woman" | 9 | 8 | 8 | Eliminated |
With celebrity partner Kristi Yamaguchi:
| Week # | Dance/Song | Judges' score | Result | ||
| Inaba | Goodman | Tonioli | |||
| 1 | Foxtrot/ "The More I See You" | 9 | 9 | 9 | N/A |
| 2 | Mambo/ "Hey Baby" | 9 | 9 | 9 | Safe |
| 3 | Tango/ "Rio" | 9 | 9 | 9 | Safe |
| 4 | Paso Doble/ "Blue Monday" | 10 | 9 | 10 | Safe |
| 5 | Rumba/ "Say" | 9 | 10 | 10 | Safe |
| 6 | Jive/ "Rip It Up" | 10 | 10 | 10 | Safe |
| 7 | Viennese Waltz/ "I'm With You" Cha-Cha-Cha/ "Don't Stop the Music" |
9 10 |
8 8 |
9 10 |
Safe |
| 8 | Quickstep/ "Billy A Dick" Samba/ "Volare" |
9 8 |
10 9 |
10 9 |
Safe |
| 9 Semi-finals |
Tango/ "Midnight Tango" Jive/ "Nutbush City Limits" |
10 9 |
9 9 |
10 10 |
Safe |
| 10 Finals |
Cha-Cha-Cha/ "Dancing on the Ceiling" Freestyle/ "Workin' Day and Night" Jive/ "Rip It Up" |
10 10 10 |
10 10 10 |
10 10 10 |
WON |
[edit] References
- ^ Date of birth found on the Texas Birth Index 1926–1995, under Ballas, Mark Alexander Corky, on 24 May 1986 in Texas.
[edit] External links
| Preceded by Hélio Castroneves & Julianne Hough |
Dancing with the Stars (US) winner Season 6 (Spring 2008 with Kristi Yamaguchi) |
Succeeded by 'Current Professional Champion' |
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