DWTS Peta Murgatroyd Interviewed About Ballroom Dancing And Performing In “Sway”
Peta Murgatroyd talked with the Miami Herald about the new “Sway” show. She says it’s nothing like the Dancing With The Stars tour and it’s more theatrical. She also talks of how fun Ballroom dancing is and how it keeps you in shape. Lots more below….
“Ballroom dancing is no longer a thing your grandparents did, the dorky thing you didn’t want to admit you’re doing,” says Murgatroyd, 29, from rehearsals in Los Angeles. “This is something freaking amazing to do. Keeps you fit and healthy, and it’s an incredible art form that inspires people.”
Sway taps into that feeling and the ballroom revival fueled by the splashy TV dance shows.
“These kind of shows, like Dancing With the Stars and So You Think You Can Dance, brought it back for people to fall in love with again. [They have] given children and teens a greater purpose to be creative, so it’s good for the art form,” Murgatroyd says.
Sway, however, is not the Dancing With the Stars Tour redux. It’s more theatrical, Murgatroyd says. Divided into three parts, it delves into the lives of its pro dancers.
Sway opens with a debonair Dovolani leading a production number meant to evoke the nightclub scene of 1940s and ’50s Manhattan.
Val brings an emphasis on hip-hop, street and urban influences to the second act. Then Maks, with Murgatroyd, brings South Beach to the mainland for a fusion of salsa, rumba and cha cha.
“It’s about the three boys — Maks, Tony and Val — and their journeys to America, and what that means to them,” Murgatroyd says.
“It’s amazing because I have no roots in South America. I’m Eastern European, so it’s very strange that I’ve always been drawn to that culture, and it’s kind of exciting,” Maks said.
Murgatroyd, born in Auckland, New Zealand, and raised in Perth, Australia, similarly finds herself attracted to Latin rhythms.
“I must say my favorite dances in the show are during my section,” she says. “I love the passionate, fiery dances. I don’t get to tell my story about coming to America, but I get to do the dances I love like the salsa and rumba and cha cha. I like creating a story when I dance, and those dances do that with love and lust and anger and pain, and the cha cha is cheery. I like exploring those things. Perfect for Miami.”
To read more, see the Miami Herald. Show dates for “SWAY: A Dance Trilogy” is scheduled for December 3-6, 2015 (5 shows) in Miami. For tickets visit: www.swayshow.com.
ETA: Here is Local 10 with a sneak preview and interviews with Maks, Peta, and Rumer….
ETA2: Below Maks talks with the Examiner. To read the full interview, see this link. Note how they are ending “Sway” after the Miami run and are thinking of touring nation wide and do a different production.
JE: In this installment of “Sway,” You will reunite with your fellow “Dancing with the Stars” Season 18 co-champion: Meryl Davis. What is it like to have the opportunity to work with her once again?
MC: Meryl was a part of the last two SWAY productions. She loves performing with the cast and I love working with her. I think that we try to stay close as friends and maintain this relationship that was developed on DWTS. I think we have succeeded! We have a lot of mutual friends on that stage and she is going to have an amazing time as she did in the last couple of installments.JE: While Meryl and Rumer Willis (Val’s Season 20 co-champion) will be participating in this go-around of “SWAY,” would you like to have some of your former “DWTS” partners perform in future installments?
MC: (Laughs) I think we are good! I think that SWAY is now in its ultimate form. One of our main goals was not to turn SWAY into a Dancing with the Stars homage. Meryl, Rumer and everybody else from DWTS are characters in SWAY. We are not ourselves, we represent characters that drive our show’s storyline. We asked and attracted people that we thought could fill those roles and that was Meryl and Rumer. Zendaya also has done very well in previous installments, but unfortunately she was unable to participate this time around. There will be opportunities in the future where I could possibly work with my past partners. I am always open to working with them again.JE: If “SWAY” has a successful run in Miami, would a nationwide tour be in the foreseeable future?
MC: (Laughs) There has always been talk about taking the show nationwide. SWAY was the very first show that a lot of us had in producing a show of this size. We (as a company and creative team) know that we can do it. But, after this SWAY installment, we are going to go back to the drawing board. We have other ideas and scripts on the table that we want to entertain, if we want to go on that side of the business. We certainly feel like that Dance With Me as a production company can tackle a show of this magnitude successfully. However, I think we are going to end the run of SWAY after our Miami performances. These upcoming shows will be sentimental and it will be anchored by the South Beach vibe. It was always our ultimate goal to perform SWAY in Miami! The next step is probably going to involve a different production and that will be focused with a nationwide tour in mind. This show was not born to travel; it was created for us to experiment. This experience was just like baking a cake! The first time you made the cake too big, because you did not know your proportions. (Laughs) SWAY is way too big for both travel and production. We are going to trim it, use some ideas that we did not think that we could tackle and we are going to put on a show for everyone to love and fall in love with.
Tickets for the show are not going well apparently. Tons of spaces left for each show.
Dang! I would love to see the show here in Chicago. Perhaps their tickets are too expensive? They might be advertising wrong too, there is a massive Latino Latin dancing community down there. They should advertise on telemundo or something. I like the concept of sway, that it’s more theatrical. With that said, I really hope Derek and Julianne do another move tour, with a lot of Latin ballroom, I would be SO excited!
I’ve been to three Sways in New York and I enjoyed them all. Unfortunately, living in New Jersey, I just cannot fly down to Miami. Hopefully ticket sales will pick up since Art Basel is going on at the same time and maybe those folks will make last minute Sway ticket purchases. I also think Maks said a few weeks back that this might be the last Sway?
I reckon it’s the prices. I had a look and they are ridiculously expensive. If you’re putting five shows on in such a short space of time and charging what they are, you’re going to have empty seats. People just don’t have that kind of money especially at this time of year.
I read this to distract my self from the fact that my wisdom teeth need to be taken out….I had the consultation today and need to schedule it now….not happy………anyways this site made me happy again 🙂 . I looked up the prices just to see and I’m not one to be cheap in most cases but I could literally buy tickets to a Broadway show for much less.
Eeek Vin. I’m so sorry. I hope all goes well with it all and won’t hurt.
I was told they are going to numb it and all that good stuff so that’s a plus. And for some reason my sister wants to watch becuase she is pre med lol.
Sidenote: I was looking up Broadway tickets and apparantly Marlee Marlin is coming to Broadway! I forgot the plays name already but is a recival of a recent one. And it’s still cheaper than seeing sway lol.
There are very few people who can put on multiple showings of the same show in the same theater over a short time span – they ain’t Beiber. I don’t get why they insist on doing it the way they have been. The last NYC version didn’t sell well either. Do they not want to attempt a tour?? Are they not allowed because of their DWTS contracts?? And people are over the whole Meryl/Maks thing, now that they know it was a fake showmance.
This just doesn’t seem like smart business. I wonder who is advising them?
The tickets, especially good tickets but not M&G, are very expensive. Living about 90 miles north I thought it might be fun so looked into it months ago. Way too expensive. If I’m buying 3 tickets I want good seats. This was ridiculous. We’re going to NY at Christmas and will see two Broadway shows and I think it’s close in price (with terrific seats.) I got tix 20 minutes away for DWTS tour for great seats at fraction of cost. SWAY is very overpriced for Miami. Miami is a weird city; elderly on limited income, immigrant families and wealthy foreigners. Not many can support five shows in that venue IMO. Also I think since DWTS tour has many ppl’s favs and is in five (?) FL locations at cheaper prices hurts them at the holidays. And, JMO I think the whole showmance with MnM pushed the last few shows for those shippers. Now the truth is out and ppl aren’t flying to Miami right before the holidays. If I recall they gave away tix to NY shows. I think same thing will happen here.
Yep, they only managed to sell out one show of four in NY last time if I remember correctly. I think Heidi makes a good point about them touring, DWTS contracts probably play a part in that being a no go for now. Zendaya was also a big ticket draw for the first two Sways and she’s not been able be a part of the show since then.
Take into account the DWTS tour hits Florida in January as well like Liz says, a lot of DWTS fans have probably chosen to go to that instead especially with the lack of DWTS pros in Sway this time around. I see they’ve already sold out West Palm Beach, Orlando, Sarasota and added an extra Clearwater show. That tells the story I think.
Hope all goes well Vin 🙂
Wow, I just took a look at the prices. I’m freaking out. I can’t believe they are asking that much. The DWTS tour nor Move Live was that expensive. Also, most artists and even Madonna fill up seats for one show before adding additional shows. It’s no wonder Maks is talking of not doing Sway anymore. This isn’t the successful way to do things. Sad…they should have had someone like Live Nation handle it. I would love to see the show if it was closer to see Peta and Maks dance.
Vin, take care and I’ll be thinking of you! Keep us posted!
Check out a new update in the first post if interested. In a new interview, Maks says they are ending Sway but are thinking of touring nationwide next with something different.
I actually did attend the very first Sway in NY when they just did two shows – a matinee and an evening show, and I thought that was just right. While the back-up dancers really weren’t that good (as they pretty much just used their DWM instructors) the main stars were still incredible to watch and I thoroughly enjoyed myself. By the second go around, the show was already played out. Sure they brought on more DWTS pros, but it was the EXACT same show in the EXACT same theater during the holidays when people are spending money elsewhere. They threw in Meryl and Zendaya at the last minute and only their shows sold well. Only the DWM fam would have the balls to do the same show over and over again and keep making the ticket prices higher for a show that isn’t even high caliber.
Thing is, I don’t even know what they could do for the next installment. The Maksyl partnership has all but fizzled, Tony isn’t really a big draw, so then you have Val and whatever partner he has. They aren’t creative enough to do anything outside of ballroom. They have an obsessive ardent following of fans, but I don’t think it’s big enough to warrant a tour.
I also think it’s funny they always try and play it off like the shows sell-out. During the last NYC run, I had a friend up in the balcony that said they were giving away free tickets to sit closer to the stage – probably so they could fill up the floor seats.
It’s just arrogant to think anyone would pay those ticket prices even WITH Zendaya or Meryl (or Rumer) in the program. Are they insane? It’s kinda mind boggling. Logically, you make the prices reasonable and sell out the theater possibly multiple times, versus asking astronomical sums and not selling tickets. What MOVE did was start in smaller theaters (where DWTS still is) and lower prices, fewer VIPs. When they sold out most of the shows instantly, then THEN started adding show. The next year they changed the VIP structure to be a bit higher, with more options and going to larger theaters where they sold out fast and had to add shows the first time. Most of the shows on the tour sold out or were very close. Smart. Also smart is not going back to that well every single year – when they do come back, they will sell out again.
Sway’s premium VIP is more than $100 MORE than Derek and Julianne’s MOVE (and $50 higher than their guaranteed front row tickets with Meet and Greet) – as if. I could go to see two or three Broadway shows for that price. So why wouldn’t I?
Heh…DLT, I’ll never forget the attitude one of my friends got outside of Radio City Music Hall after seeing Derek in NY Spring Spectacular when she had the nerve to say “no thanks” to the dudes trying to push flyers on us. They must have had 3 or 4 guys swarming the crowd leaving the theater trying to pimp Sway. Yeah, they’ll trash talk Derek all day long but aren’t above using an audience there to see him to make sales.
This Miami gig is some kind of charity tie-in. My question is–Did Maks & Co. get paid up front? The story about the deal keeps changing: portion of proceeds, portion of PROFIT (quite different), 50% of sales, etc. They’ve been in Miami since Sunday. i wonder who’s footing the bill for that?
Many fans are disappointed that there’s no Sharna, Jenna, or Emma this time.
I am getting the terrible feeling that maks will be on the dwts live tour this summer….he seems like he would do anything to stay popular and that seems like his only option unless he does what Cheryl did and go to another network.
#11 M8 I agree with the Florida shows in January. We got great seats in West Palm Beach at the lovely Kravis Center for a fraction of the cost and a 20 minute drive. Plus we see many more of the cast including Sharna, Emma, Peta, etc so to me it was a no brainer. Even if DWTS tour wasn’t close, I decided way back not to pay those prices and make a 90 minute trip. Plus two of the shows I think, are on Wed and Thursday which are school nights. So knock out any parent who wanted to take a child (like me.) Miami draws from a huge area but it is a tough drive. Also, they would’ve been better off at the Hard Rock like MOVE did this summer when we saw them. Closer, right off I-95 and gets all the big shows. Plus it is in Hollywood so not as far south as their theatre. I wish them well because charity is involved but I think maybe two shows on the weekend would’ve been a better choice.
Update: December 29th is the big day….naturally only day available and apparantly it takes 3 or 4 days to really appear like I never was at the dentist so fun times lol. Batting a thousand lol.
Sounds like you bagged yourselves a great deal Liz. The Kravis Center looks an awesome theatre as well if google images are accurate.
The dentist sucks Vin but I’m sure it’ll be worth it in the end. At least you can enjoy Christmas beforehand.
@M8 Thanks! It’s a great venue and great orchestra seats. Three tickets under $300.00. Much better deal.