ABC A DWTS cast member was upset by her pre-performance package.
A “Dancing With the Stars” season 31 contestant revealed that she was unhappy that production decided to air a pre-performance package about her time behind bars ahead of her week one dance.
“Real Housewives of New Jersey” star Teresa Giudice opened up about her feelings on the matter on the September 28, 2022, episode of her “Namaste B$tches” podcast. Giudice, who was eliminated from the show after having low scores and not enough votes during the second week of the competition, explained that she ended up getting very upset because the package that was shown before she hit the ballroom for the first time highlighted her prison sentence.
Giudice served 15 months behind bars after being convicted of fraud, according to ABC News.
Giudice was paired with pro Pasha Pashkov and learned her dance in just 10 days. She called the experience very hard — and while she managed to get her nerves to subside, Giudice couldn’t get her head right after watching the reel that was put together ahead of her performance.
Here’s what you need to know:
Giudice Said She Was ‘Upset’ While Performing Her Week 1 Dance
Giudice said that she was feeling “confident” before dancing in front of the live audience, but once she watched the video package that played, she kind of lost her cool.
“I wasn’t nervous,” she said, explaining that she kind of got all the nerves out during camera blocking. “I knew all my steps, I really did. So I felt very confident. What threw me off is that I heard on my package that’s right before I go on and they talked about me going to prison and that upset me,” she continued.
Giudice said that Pashkov warned her not to listen or pay attention to the package but she said it was hard to tune it out and it really “upset” her.
“I think that changed my whole mood,” she said. “Cuz I got upset, cuz it’s like, here I’m on ‘Dancing With the Stars’ and I don’t want people to judge someone just by that,” she continued.
She said that she “gave it [her] all” nevertheless, but the judges wanted her to show more “passion” and to have a “bigger” presence on the floor.
Giudice Said She Understands Why Her Prison Sentence Was Mentioned
While she wasn’t thrilled that her past came back to haunt her on DWTS, Giudice admitted that she understands why production decided to include that part of her life in the package.
“I was listening to it and then I performed. … It was right behind me, and then I went on,” Giudice recalled. “I was like, ‘Stay focused, Teresa. Don’t listen to it,'” she remembered thinking to herself. When her podcast co-host Melissa Pfeister asked if she said anything, Giudice said that she did.
“Well, I did say something, you know. But I think, they’re like, it’s just like the elephant in the room… just had to get that out of the way… Listen, I get it. It is part of my past. But I just want America not to judge me based on that,” she explained. The podcast was recorded before Giudice was eliminated.
“I’m going to put this in this week’s dance,” she said, referring to Elvis week. Giudice and Pashkov scored a 23 out of 30 week two, coming in second to last.
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