Mark Ballas’ ‘Dancing With The Stars’ Departure Explained: What Is The ‘DWTS’ Pro Tackling Instead?
Dancing With the Stars viewers were stunned and disappointed to see the official Season 23 partnerships revealed this week and discover that Mark Ballas was not in the mix of things. Early DWTS spoilers had detailed that he was likely “in” as a pro, and his supporters have been anxious to know what Ballas would tackle next. News is now emerging on this front, and fans will have a great reason to get excited about what lies ahead for Mark.
According to Entertainment Tonight, Mark Ballas is skipping Season 23 of Dancing With the Stars because he just landed a big gig on Broadway. The DWTS pro reportedly will be tackling a starring role in the Broadway show Jersey Boys, and he will apparently be moving to New York City soon where he will stay for a year.
Ballas will seemingly take on the lead role in the Jersey Boys production that is based on the behind-the-scenes story of Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons, the group known for songs such as “Walk Like a Man,” “Big Girls Don’t Cry,” and “Sherry.” Dancing With the Stars fans can see that this is a huge opportunity for Mark and this gig most definitely suits him well.
After the Season 23 announcement, with Ballas’ name somewhat mysteriously missing, DWTS supporters were quick to flood to Ballas’ social media pages and express their dismay and disappointment. The night before the Dancing With the Stars announcement, Mark had hinted at a big day ahead, but then he did not share anything more for a bit, leaving many to wonder if leaving the show had been his choice or not.
On Wednesday, Mark posted a couple of notes and photos on Instagram detailing that he was putting together something to share with his fans. What soon appeared what a heartfelt letter that Ballas had written to his supporters, thanking them for their love and promising news of a new venture soon.
“I am incredibly moved + grateful for all of your messages over the past 24 hours I know many of you are concerned + curious … I’ll miss competing + creating outside the box, however I am looking forward to this new chapter + venture that is beginning shortly. I will soon have news for you all on where you can find me, I hope to see many of you there.”
This production of Jersey Boys is not Ballas’ first foray into stage work, as he has done a couple of projects previously. Also, Mark is a passionate musician who has been focusing a great deal on building his musical career over the past couple of years. Moving to New York and doing Jersey Boys was surely too good an opportunity for the Dancing With the Stars pro to pass up.
As Dancing With the Stars fans know, Mark is a very close friend to fellow DWTS pro Derek Hough, and Derek has been embracing some stage projects as well. Derek originally was not expected to participate in Season 23 this fall due to his commitment to the upcoming Singin’ in theRain, but a scheduling shift allowed for him to return and he will be partnering with Marilu Henner.
Season 23 of Dancing With the Stars does have some buzzworthy celebrities and pros in the mix, with Cheryl Burke and Maksim Chmerkovskiy back and folks such as Ryan Lochte, Laurie Hernandez, and Rick Perry hitting the dance floor. There is no doubt that Mark Ballas will be missed this fall on DWTS, but his fans are thrilled to hear this news about his Broadway Jersey Boys gig and cannot wait to hear more from him about what else he has planned.
[Photo by Gustavo Caballero/Getty Images]
