“I’m Having a Ball”: Where Is Dancing Queens’ Donie Burch Now?
After reconnecting with the joy of dance at Millennium, Donie Burch paved the way for powerful positive changes.
The previous weeks of competitions, confrontations, twists and turns on Bravo’s Dancing Queens led up to a nail-biting climactic Millennium championship in Dallas. For Donie Burch it proved to be “a win” — and it set the stage for dramatic changes. Here's where Donie is now.
Where Is Donie Burch Now?
Thanks to her own personal growth and dance pro Val Chmerkovskiy, who advised her to focus on joy, Donie danced at the Texas competition with more delight and excitement than she has in ages.
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“I should be enjoying it and living my best life,” she said. “YOLO.”
Millennium was all about feeling “sexy and free” for Donie and her longtime professional partner Ilia.
“I have a new mindset for this competition,” she said.
There were 16 contestants in Donie’s category. When the elimination round was over, Donie and Pooja Mehta didn’t advance to the field of six finalists. Instead, they watched as Sabrina Strasser, Leonie Biggs, Colette Moratto, Gaëlle Benchetrit, and amateurs outside of Dancing Queens competed for top honors.
Donie took her placement in stride.
“I can’t lie and say I wouldn't love to make it to the final,” she said. “I haven't missed a final at a comp this year yet. But today was one of the first days that I really enjoyed being out on the floor again. So it feels like a win for me.”
After the last cha-cha, Sabrina won first place, followed by Gaëlle in second, Leonie in third, and Colette in sixth. The other top finishers were Lindsay Keatley in fourth place and Tina Broccole in fifth.
Donie took pride in her Millennium performance and thanked her mom for being there to support her. “I did have fun,” said Donie, who added that she stayed true to herself and that would make her late father very happy.
“Every competition I like to think of my dad watching down on me and I’m sure he was proud of me today,” said Donie. “No matter what the results, I love doing this and I love performing, so I’m just gonna keep on doing this.”
Six months after not making the final at Millennium, Donie has had invigorating and impressive fresh starts. Donie lost 10 pounds after Millennium and found a new partner after Ilia moved out of New York City.
Her new partnership with Orlov is working: Donie placed first at her two latest dance competitions.
“I’m having a ball,” she said.
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