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“Dancing With the Stars” fans miss one professional dancer who was only on the show for a short time but made such a strong impression — Lacey Schwimmer. Read on to find out why fans are clamoring for her to return.
Fans Think Lacey Schwimmer Was ‘Ahead of Her Time’ on ‘Dancing With the Stars’
In a Reddit thread, “Dancing With the Stars” fans have been talking about how much they miss pro partner Lacey Schwimmer and how ahead of her time she was on the show.
“I wish that Lacey Schwimmer would come back,” wrote the original poster, to which one user replied, “I absolutely adored her! She was so sassy and fierce.”
“It’s too bad that she wasn’t on the show now,” wrote another fan. “Her partnering Chaz Bono is so underappreciated, especially during a time when I don’t know if any of the others pros would have defended him the way she did.”
Several fans cited her creativity in her dancing and called her “ahead of her time” on the show.
Indeed, “Dancing With the Stars” has changed a lot since the seasons Lacey was a pro. She danced on seasons seven, eight, nine, 11, 12 and 13, partnering with Lance Bass (3rd place), Steve-O (8th place), Mark Cacascos (6th place), Kyle Massey (2nd place), Mike Catherwood (11th place) and Chaz Bono (7th place).
One fan pointed out that she won’t return because the judges couldn’t stand her, which is a reference to her partner Lance Bass on an episode of “Overserved With Lisa Vanderpump.”
On that episode, Lance, Lisa and fellow guest Vivica A. Fox all talked about their experiences being on “Dancing With the Stars” and both Lance and Vivica said the judges just didn’t like their pro partners. But Lance went one step further and said one of the judges actually admitted to him that they didn’t like Lacey, the quote-unquote “bad girl of ballroom.”
“[Schwimmer] was new, she was the bad girl of ballroom and the judges just hated her and we felt it. We made it to the finale … and then we go have drinks at one of the judges’ houses and they had a little too much to drink and one of those judges was like, ‘You know we can’t stand your partner?’” said Bass, adding, “I’m like, ‘Why am I working my a** off then?!’”
What Is Schwimmer up to Now?
On Instagram, Lacey is constantly posting photos and videos from her dance convention, Lacey’s Ballroom Project. On the project’s official website, Lacey says her training is for any dancer of all ages and abilities.
The website reads:
Whether you are a trained ballroom professional or a jazz dancer just starting out, The Ballroom Project caters to all with a focus on proper education of technique, basics, and combos. The term ‘ballroom’ is an umbrella to many different dances such as cha cha, waltz, tango, swing, salsa, foxtrot & samba, to name a few. We will focus on a variety of these styles to fully enhance each dancers vocabulary. Our faculty of famous ballroom professionals are truly world class in their specific genres and by the end of this dance packed day you will not only take away fun combos, but actual knowledge and skill in ballroom!
But that’s not all Lacey has been doing to keep busy since her time on the show. She is dating a singer named Frankie Moreno, who has been notching No. 1 hit after No. 1 hit on the iTunes charts, according to a 2021 profile by the Las Vegas Sun. And Lacey helps him write a lot of them!
The story reveals, “Most of the No. 1s were co-written by his writing partner Gianna Adams and others were co-written with his brother and bandmate Tony Moreno and his girlfriend Lacey Schwimmer, a dancer known for her turns as a finalist on ‘So You Think You Can Dance’ and ‘Dancing With the Stars.'”
That is wild — we had no idea Lacey could write music! Also, it sounds like Lacey and Frankie are the real deal. In an Instagram birthday post from 2019, Lacey said she was “grateful” she had gotten to spend six birthdays with him, which seems to imply they’ve been together since 2013 — and based on this Las Vegas Sun article from 2012, they may have met on “Dancing With the Stars” when Frankie performed live for Lacey’s dance with Kyle Massey.
In March 2019, she had a little mini “Dancing With the Stars” reunion when Frankie was performing at the same venue as fellow pros Emma Slater and Sasha Farber. At the time, Lacey wrote on Instagram, “When your boyfriend and fellow shakers have a show in the same venue! You make time to say hello! Loved seeing you guys!”
“Dancing With the Stars” has not yet been renewed for season 31. If it is renewed, it will return in September 2022.
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