Photo Credit: Jerry Metellus
Just when you thought Maks and Val’s dance tour couldn’t get any better, they are gearing up for this year’s show that promises to be even hotter than ever.
The dancing duo is kicking off their Confidential tour on Monday and this year, introducing Maks’ wife Peta to the troupe for a whirlwind nationwide eight-week dance tour. Best known for their sexy ballroom dance performances on ABC’s ‘Dancing with the Stars,’ Maksim Chmerkovskiy, Valentin Chmerkovskiy and Peta Murgatroyd, are excited to take their new show, Maks, Val & Peta Live on Tour, on the road. Two years ago, brothers Maks and Val hit the road with their dance production Our Way. This year, joining them in their brand new show Confidential, will be Mrs. Chmerkovskiy, two-time ‘Dancing With The Stars’ Mirror Ball champion.
From March 19 through May 16, the dancing trio will hit 49 cities to showcase their love of dance, love and life. They will be performing at the Wang Center in Boston on Friday, April 6.
Photo Credit: Jerry Metellus
We caught up recently with Maks (co-founder of Dance With Me dance studios) to discuss how he became interested in ballroom dancing, his upcoming tour with his wife and brother and how he has changed since getting married.
Tell us a little about the Confidential show kicking off next week and why you wanted to do this with your wife and brother.
Val and I did a tour called Our Way over the summer of 2016. It was also a 49-city tour and the reason we did that was to pay homage to our Brooklyn upbringing while talking about where we came from. People have known us from ‘Dancing With The Stars’ onward, and in the process, we have created something beautiful that has resonated with a lot of people, who came out to see us on our last tour. It’s a very cathartic experience. With this tour, I am now introducing my wife and she gets to tell her story. She’s a ballerina by trade, but has found a passion for ballroom dancing. For people who don’t know us, it tells the story of our lives with triumphs and downfalls. It’s important for us to be honest. We don’t just speak it; we dance it. We have an incredible cast of dancers who are some of the best. How do we top an incredible performance from last time? Confidential an incredible production that supersedes all expectations. I’m blessed, thankful and grateful that I get to travel with my family and we are able to take our baby on the road this time.
It’s going to be a whirlwind tour of 49 cities in just about eight weeks.
That seems to be our standard schedule that we have gotten used to. Peta and I thought of what our life is now that we have a one-year-old. We think so far ahead, plan and pre-plan now down to how much fun are we going to have. That’s important to us. We’ll earn our downtime. We had to sit back and think about this. Neither one of us ever had a nine-to-five lifestyle like my parents had their entire life. We don’t have to wait until the weekend; we can go out on a Wednesday night if we want to. We work really hard all the time so after the tour, we are really able to enjoy our downtime. We wanted the tour to speak something that’s personal and chose stories that represent all sorts of families. We have the opportunity to tell our story to those who will listen. In return for two hours of your time, we are going to work hard to give an incredible performance.
You’re coming up on your one-year wedding anniversary. How has marriage changed you?
All of my friends left (laughs). Peta flew out for a day of press in New York and we’re in rehearsals 12 hours a day and I went to where Peta is. Our life is 100 million miles per hour. That made me really think about this. I really am in love with Peta and just want to be where she is. She is an awesome person to be around, and that’s really special for us.
When did you first become interested in Latin and ballroom dancing?
I don’t think I ever was (laughs). I wasn’t necessarily a dancer by passion, but more of a trade. I emigrated from the Ukraine when I was 14 and handed out newspapers as one of my first jobs, but that wasn’t reciprocated by anything else. My dad worked in a pizzeria, but that was not for me. I walked into a Russian restaurant when I was 15 and told them I wanted to dance. The show breaks out at midnight and I performed that night. They gave me $25 per show cash and I did it three days a week. I wanted to ask for a raise at one point, but the owner was a big, massive dude that I was too afraid. That’s when I started to take ballroom dancing competitively. So, the answer to your question is that I dance now because I wanted a raise at one point (laughs).
Do you think your son will be a dancer?
I hope not. There are better things to do with his life. I am grateful beyond belief for everything that has come my way, but that’s my life. I get to support what he wants to do. Peta and I are on the same page. We want to give him lots of opportunities, but discipline as well. I want him to be successful, and in order to do that, he has to push harder so he can achieve that goal, whatever that may be.
Photo Credit: Jerry Metellus
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