She was a Fly Girl. She took off her top and shaved her head to tour with Madonna. And she’s the only judge on ABC’s “Dancing With the Stars” whom we can understand completely. Now, Carrie Ann Inaba, the reality-show choreographer, is directing the first “Dancing With the Stars” tour. The 38-city tour features five couples from past seasons of the competition. Inaba recently chatted about the tour, the show and her biggest love.
What can fans expect from the tour?
The goal for me was to try to bring the TV show to all the people who didn’t get a chance to come and watch it live in L.A. We want to allow them to have this experience because it’s so much fun. You get to dress up. Think of it as a night on the town and think of it as an elegant cocktail party all at the same time.
The ‘dancing’ finale had huge ratings. What do you make of that?
What happened to our little dance show? It’s such an honor that people have tuned in. I know it sounds a little dorky, but my whole world revolves around dance. I’m not obsessed. (She glances at her publicist.) OK, I’m obsessed.
It seemed like Jerry Springer was touched by the experience. Did you sense that?
Oh, yes. In class, when I work with people, I see these breakthroughs all of the time, and it’s a beautiful thing. It’s not necessarily about people becoming fantastic dancers, but they find this new side of themselves, and it’s the most rewarding experience.
It’s hard to get a word in with your fellow judges Len Goodman and Bruno Tonioli, right?
Hmmm. Yep. In the first show, I was intimidated by them because you see their rapport is amazing. It’s like they’re soul brothers or halves of the same person. Now, I feel really close to them and I really miss them. The three of us, the one thing we all share is that we love dancing. No matter what comment is coming out of our mouths or what criticism, it’s always coming from a place of love so that our show never feels negative.
Why don’t you sit in the middle?
Len is the head judge. Plus, he’s the tallest so he looks good in the middle. He and Jerry Springer are the most charming people I’ve ever met in my entire life. He’s constantly coming into my trailer and reciting poetry and then reciting it again. And Bruno yells at him to shut up! Half the time, I don’t understand what they’re saying.
DANCING WITH THE STARS: THE PERFORMERS
When: 7:30 p.m. Friday Where: Allstate Arena, Rosemont [DANCING LINEUPS SUBJECT TO CHANGE]
Season 2 winners Drew Lachey and Cheryl Burke
Season 2’s Lisa Rinna and Louis van Amstel
Season 3’s Joey Lawrence and Edyta Sliwinska
Season 3’s Harry Hamlin and Ashly DelGrosso
Season 3’s Willa Ford and Maksim Chmerkovskiy
ALSO APPEARING
Jerry Springer
Kym Johnson
Joey McIntyre
