Dancing with the Stars pro Jenna Johnson knows how intimate dances can appear in the ballroom. For the contestant’s significant other, that can be a concern. While pro dancers know that is just part of the job, celebrities and their real-life partners might not.
Jenna Johnson strives to make her DWTS significant others “feel safe”
Jenna’s partner for Season 33 is Bachelor star Joey Graziadei. Joey, who is engaged to Kelsey Anderson, was so concerned about this issue that he requested a pro who was in a relationship. Of course, Jenna is married to fellow pro Val Chmerkovskiy. And if Joey thought that would eliminate him having to showcase his abs, he underestimated Jenna!
Recently, Jenna was a guest on the Trading Secrets podcast. “I think it’s our job to make sure that we can do everything in our power as a partner to make our partners’ significant others feel safe and part of the experience,” Jenna explained. “To be open with our rehearsals, show them videos, make them feel part of it, so it doesn’t feel like there’s this hidden thing happening.”
Once her partner’s significant other watches a rehearsal video of her “yelling at him for four hours,” it reassures them. As for how professional dancers deal with jealousy? It’s just part of the gig. “This was just part of my training. So I think that obviously as dancers we are a little bit desensitized to how intimate it is,” Jenna explained, “and how completely foreign that is for somebody stepping into our world for the first time.” She added, “It’s just part of our craft and our artistry. But I can totally understand how abrasive that visual is for a significant other to see or to watch.”
Jenna continued, “You don’t want to see two people that are so cold and want nothing to do with each other. But I think they also appreciate dance and art and chemistry and how magic that partnership can really be and flourish to be,” she added.
Kelsey addressed people’s reactions to Joey and Jenna’s chemistry in a TikTok. “So many people are like, ‘Kelsey, why is Jenna touching your man like that?’” she said. “And honestly, I don’t know, maybe because it’s her job. Maybe because she’s a professional dancer and she has to touch him to dance,” Kelsey added. “That’s my girl right there,” Jenna wrote in the TikTok’s comments.
Dancing with the Stars Season 33 will not air on Tuesday, October 1st. It will return with two episodes on Monday, October 7, and Tuesday, October 8 at 8/7c on ABC and Disney+. The dances will be taped for Monday’s episode, and a live show will air on October 8, when another elimination will take place.
TELL US – WHAT DO YOU THINK OF JENNA’S APPROACH TO MAKING HER PARTNER AND THEIR SIGNIFICANT OTHER’S FEEL SAFE? ARE YOU ROOTING FOR JOEY AND JENNA?
