Heavy/Getty Chelsea Hobbs and Tamera Mowry-Housley will star in Hallmark's "Dance Moms"
Tamera Mowry-Housley and Chelsea Hobbs are doing a happy dance over the just-announced premiere date of their new Hallmark movie. The much-buzzed-about project, “Dream Moms,” will debut on May 13, 2023, which is Mother’s Day weekend.
Rumors have been swirling about “Dream Moms” for months, fueled by both actresses dropping clues on social media that they were working on a movie requiring singing and dancing. On January 31, Hobbs posted on Instagram that she was preparing for a physically-demanding role and, in a since-deleted Instagram post on February 15, Mowry-Housley wrote that she was in Vancouver, working on “something fun with singing and dancing!”
On the same day, “Dream Moms” director Jessica Harmon posted a photo in her Stories of a film crew surrounding Hobbs, who was in costume on a stage. And on February 25, co-star Roger Cross posted a photo with Mowry-Housley and Harmon, writing, “Not sure it’s work when I’m working with these two gems”
The movie, which is about two moms who decide to pursue their dreams later in life, boasts many firsts. In new social media posts celebrating Hallmark’s official announcement, Mowry-Housley and Hobbs both excitedly revealed that it is the first musical they’ve worked on.
Meanwhile, “Dream Moms” is also the launching pad for Hallmark star Ashley Williams’ Make Her Mark program, according to ET Online, which is aimed at growing the number of female directors through hiring and mentorship initiatives. As part of the effort, Hallmark actress and aspiring director Crystal Lowe shadowed Harmon, learning the ropes throughout the filming process.
Tamera Mowry-Housley Rediscovered Love of Singing on ‘Masked Singer’
Mowry-Housley celebrated the official announcement of “Dream Moms” on March 29 by posting a selfie of herself from her trailer on the set, dressed in a silver sequined dance costume. She also shared photos with cast and crew members behind the scenes. The role is a dream come true for the lifelong performer, who told Entertainment Weekly she started out as a singer in an ensemble called Voices before she and her sister Tia landed their 1990s sitcom, “Sister Sister.”
TV acting and hosting quickly took priority, she told the outlet, so when she was invited to appear as the singing shell on “The Masked Singer” in early 2021, Mowry-Housley said she hadn’t performed on a stage in 20 years.
She said, “I was terrified! Oh my god. First, I feel honored. Secondly, I haven’t sang on stage in over 20 years, what is this? But I knew it was something that I always wanted to do, to sing again.”
That experience planted a seed for Mowry-Housley, who rediscovered how much she loves singing and stage performances. When Entertainment Weekly asked if she’d like to pursue more opportunities to sing, she emphatically said she would.
“I would love to do maybe a gospel album or a musical, like playing one of the three sisters of ‘Hamilton’ would be a dream. Doing a Disney animated film would be a dream. Oh, you never know. Never know.”
According to ET Online, Mowry-Housley will sing three original songs written specifically for “Dream Moms.” The song titles are “Dream That Dream,” “Bring It Back” and “So Right.”
Chelsea Hobbs Says She’s Proud of Pulling Off Dancing Role in Her 30s
In her own post about the upcoming film, Hobbs — who last appeared as Jonathan Bennett’s sister in “The Holiday Sitter” — wrote, “This is what allllll the dancing was for, and just WAIT until you hear Tamera’s voice. 👼🏻 Tune in Mother’s Day!!! 💕♥️💕🎶😊”
According to a 2010 profile of Hobbs on Runway Live, the actress has been dancing since she was little. At age three, she was already dancing in programs several hours a day, six days a week. In her post, Hobbs referred to “Dream Moms” as her most physically demanding project since she starred on ABC Family’s “Make It Or Break It,” a series about teen gymnasts that premiered in 2009.
The mom of three wrote, “I feel pretty grateful and proud of myself for pulling this off while not in my twenties 😝 💃🏻🩰”
According to ET Online, “Dream Moms” follows two moms who once dreamed of performing on Broadway. Danielle, played by Mowry-Housley, had been an off-Broadway performer and backup singer while Claire, played by Hobbs, was once an aspiring dancer. The demands of motherhood caused their dreams to fizzle, though, with little time to spend on themselves or their passions.
However, when Claire begins taking classes at a local dance studio, the center’s owner connects her with his sister, hoping the two will compete together in a nationally televised talent contest as a way to keep tapping into their forgotten passions. Based on the logo in Hobbs’ photo, the made-for-TV competition is called “America’s Next Superstar.”
Meanwhile, Lowe posted many behind-the-scenes photos and videos on social media during the three-week shoot as she learned about all the things that go into making a Hallmark movie, and that a director must be aware of, from lighting to cameras to technology.
In one post, she wrote, “It’s incredible what our crews do to make your movies so beautiful. Every department is a crucial part of storytelling. This job is so precise and specific and so much is riding on you. I’m in awe of our crew everyday.”
Lowe revealed on Instagram at the end of filming that she dove so deeply into learning, that she got sick, “lying on the floor as a puddle of exhausted mush.” But the fatigue didn’t dissuade her from wanting to keep growing as a director, chasing her own dreams like the characters in “Dream Moms.”
“I’m still counting the minutes…seconds…till I get to do it again,” she wrote.