Dancing With the Stars 2024
Back Row: Rosie Jones, Sami Othmani, Daniel Cort, Riley Miller, Chris Forster, Gemilee Marquez, Armando Aseneta, Scott Wierman, Meghan Green and Joe Babkiewicz Front Row: Maggie Washo, Wendy Barrett, Sandro Virag, Monica Bohrer, Lori Price and Jessa Jeremiah
The Lowcountry’s best and brightest come out to shine for a good cause.
The Lowcountry’s best and brightest come out to shine for a good cause as 11 local celebrities will be taking the stage for Dancing With the Stars at Seaquins Ballroom. This spectacular event will be held at 7 p.m. May 19th at Hilton Head Island Ballroom Dance Studio, 1300 Fording Island Road in Bluffton. This event is already sold out, but it will air on WHHI On May 25th & 26th - and June 1 & 2 at 4pm!
Daniel Cort and Monica Bohrer
“It’s a challenge that I’m embracing with enthusiasm,” said another of the dancing stars, Daniel Cort. As a prolific local stage actor and board member at Main Stage Community Theatre (in addition to his full-time real estate career), Cort is no stranger to performing on stage. But that doesn’t mean he considers himself a dancer. “There are triple threats. I’m like a double threat, with a small dose of triple,” he said with a laugh. “I’ve had some shows that required me to dance but I had to work at it. But then, that’s the fun of this whole event.”
“I love to put on a show, so I’m excited for it,” said WJCL anchor Riley Miller. “I’m doing a salsa, so it’s a lot of moving, and a lot of dips. I’ve been working on my flexibility. My homework is stretching.”
Each comes into the event with next to zero dance experience, save for the lessons they’ve been undertaking with their professional dance partners at Hilton Head Ballroom Dance Studio. And each approaches their turn on the dance floor with no shortage of butterflies and excitement to be part of the Lowcountry’s own Dancing With the Stars.
“We did a similar event 14 years ago and it was amazing,” said studio co-owner Sandro Virag. “When the Kiwanis Club approached us, asking to do it again, we were so excited.”
For Virag, that excitement goes deeper than simply sharing the stage with local celebrities and showing the world the skill and grace of his studio’s instructors. For him, the spirit of Dancing With the Stars lies in the way it brings the community together for a common cause – supporting the Boys & Girls Club.
Sandro Virag and Riley Miller
“Kiwanis meets at our studio, and they see us rehearsing, so we kind of grew a big family in Bluffton and Hilton Head for this event,” he said, adding that Main Stage Community Theatre is providing stage dressing for the big night. “We teach at the Boys & Girls Club and work with Pockets Full of Sunshine, PEP … this is such a small community, and we help each other through the years. We’re giving this to Kiwanis to give back to the kids. I love to support the kids because we want them to learn.”
It is a night of giving back for Virag, but he also shares in his stars’ excitement for a night of terpsichorean magic. “They’re all pretty good dancers, and they’re all working really hard because they want to win,” he said. “We’re going to set the floor on fire.”
This event is already sold out, but it will air on WHHI On May 25th & 26th - and June 1 & 2 at 4pm!
Article Contribution by Barry Kaufman | Photography by M. Kat | Special thanks to https://celebrateblufftonandbeyond.com.