It's no secret that if a celebrity signs up to do Dancing With the Stars, they are in for quite a commitment and a ton of work. From rehearsals that go on for hours to crazy, hectic schedules, super early call times, and more, it's not an easy gig.
In order to truly appreciate all the hard work that goes into being a contestant or a professional dancer on Dancing With the Stars, it's necessary to take a look at the routine they go through each week. From meetings with producers, costume fittings, and camera blocking, it's a lot to get done in such a short amount of time.
With COVID precautions in place, things are a little bit different with everyone having to isolate themselves from the other dancers and contestants, but in general, things are pretty similar when it comes to the weekly tasks to get done.
8 Production Meetings
When a celebrity and their professional partner come up with a dance, they meet with the production staff to discuss how it's all going to come together on show night. They discuss everything from the costumes to the sets and more. This is an impressive feat to get done. Why? Imagine having to put together fifteen different productions in one week. Fifteen different lighting setups, sets, etcetera. Crazy! Of course, the production team is responsible for putting everything together, but the ideas usually come from the celebrities and the pros.
7 Costume Fittings
Each week the dancers and the celebs must try on their costumes to make sure they fit. They are custom-designed for each person, of course. Professional dancer, Witney Carson, stated on her Instagram story that the costume people are some of the nicest people and that she loves working with them. These people have been working on the show for years and have dressed so many celebrities!
6 Rehearsals
Probably the most grueling part of the week is when the celebrities learn and rehearse their dances. The professional dancers choreograph each routine themselves and then teach it to their celebrity partners. For the celebrities who don't have much dance experience, it can be a challenge getting them to get their moves just right. The rehearsal times vary depending on when they are scheduled for studio time. Some rehearse as early as 8:30 in the morning and some rehearse late into the night.
5 Tanning
Every Sunday, the day before the live show, each of the celebrities as well as the professional dancers get spray tans to darken their skin tones for their performance. According to BeautyPackaging.com, it only takes five minutes to spray each cast member. They all line up every Sunday to get their tan, which develops overnight. A lot of fans of the show wonder how everyone has such a perfect tan and there's the answer. Weekly tanning!
4 Camera Blocking
Every Sunday, the day before the live show, the celebrities and their professional dance partners do camera blocking for the cameras. This is so the cameramen and the director know where the dancers will be on the dance floor at which moment and they can map out how they are going to film each routine. They use all the lights and the pyro during the camera blocking and it is a chance for the celebrities to go through their dance a few times on the actual dance floor used on the show. Each couple gets about thirty to forty minutes each to camera block their routine.
3 No Free Time
According to professional dancer, Lindsay Arnold, there is no free time once the season gets going. There's always something to do during each week, whether it's choreographing the next dance, rehearsing and perfecting it, or coming up with creative ideas for the live performance. It's obvious that things get pretty hectic during the season, which is why a lot of celebrities turn down offers to be on the show. It's a huge commitment!
2 Show And Tell
Before COVID, the celebrities would do a show and tell in front of each other and perform their dances so that they could see what each other came up with each week. According to James Van Der Beek, it was a great way for the cast members to bond with and support each other. With COVID restrictions in place, however, they haven't been able to do this, which is disappointing. The professional dancers and celebrities have to isolate from each other during the season so that in case someone gets COVID, they don't spread it to another cast member. This way if someone gets sick, they only have to kick one pair off the show and not two or more.
1 Live Show
Every Monday night during the season is when Dancing With the Stars does their live show from CBS Studios in Los Angeles. In order for the show to air at 8 p.m. live on the east coast, they must go live at 5 p.m. on the west coast. The cast members usually have pretty early call times in order to get their hair and makeup done and into their costumes. They each also have to run through a dress rehearsal before the live show.