‘The Traitors’: Get to Know ‘Dancing with the Stars’ Pro Mark Ballas

Tapping his toes to the finale! Mark Ballas might be one of the most popular dancers on Dancing with the Stars, but he is flying under the radar on Season 4 of The Traitors.

Ballas, a Faithful, is the second DWTS pro to compete on the Peacock show. Maksim Chmerkovskiy competed on Season 2. Ballas has lasted a lot longer than Chmerkovskiy and has not been suspected of being a Traitor.

The 23 competitors this season are Ballas, Eric Nam, Candiace Dillard Bassett (The Real Housewives of Potomac), Rob Rausch (Love Island USA) , Tara Lipinski, Johnny Weir, Mark Ballas (Dancing with the Stars), Kristen Kish (Top Chef), singer Erin Nam, Donna Kelce, Porsha Williams (The Real Housewives of Atlanta), Caroline Stanbury (The Real Housewives of Dubai), , Lisa Rinna (The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills), Dorinda Medley (The Real Housewives of New York), Ian Terry (Big Brother), Tiffany Mitchell (Big Brother), Rob Cesternino (Survivor), Natalie Anderson (Survivor), and Yamil “Yam Yam” Arocho (Survivor), Maura Higgins (Love Island USA), Colton Underwood (The Bachelor),  Monét X Change (RuPaul’s Drag Race), Stephen Colletti (Laguna Beach), Michael Rapaport, and comedian Ron Funches.

Here is what you should know about the dancer as he tries to make it to the finale.

Early Life/Dance Beginnings

Although Ballas was born in Texas to dancers Corky and Shirley Ballas, he spent most of his childhood in England. His mom is British, and while living there, he attended Italia Conti Academy of Theatre Arts in London, where he had a full scholarship. It was there that he met his best friend and DWTS judge, Derek Hough.

Ballas won the championships of the British Open to the World, the U.S. Open to the World, and the International Open to the World. He won the Junior Latin American Dance Championship and the gold medal at the Junior Olympics with his partner, Derek’s sister, Julianne.

DWTS

Ballas has competed on 31 seasons of DWTS. Although he has made it to the finale multiple times, he has only won three times. He is tied for the second-winningest pro with Val Chmerkovskiy. Hough holds the record with six. During his time on the show, the dancer has been nominated for an Emmy for Outstanding Choreography, but has never won. Ballas most recently competed on Season 34, so he may return for Season 35.

His Acting Career

Ballas’ filmography is quite small, but memorable. He, along with both Hough siblings, played extras in Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone. He also made a guest appearance on Samantha Who? in 2008. The dancer also starred in Mark and Derek’s Excellent Flip on HGTV in 2015 with Hough. The show only lasted one season.

Broadway Success

Although Ballas hasn’t acted in many shows or movies, he has done quite a lot of acting on stage. His first role was as Tony in Copacabana. He was also part of the U.K. national tour of the Spanish musical Maria de Buenos Aires, and the understudy for the role of Ritchie Valens in the U.K. national tour of Buddy, The Buddy Holly Story.

In the U.S., Ballas played Frankie Valli in Jersey Boys in 2016. The dancer also played Charlie Price in Kinky Boots in 2018.

His Marital Status

 

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Ballas is married to singer/songwriter BC Jean. They met in 2012 at a singer/songwriter party and began dating shortly after. Jean is best known for writing the song “If I Were a Boy,” which was recorded by Beyoncé. They got married in 2016 and share one child, a son named Banski, who was born in 2023.

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Multi-talented

Ballas may be known for his dancing skills, but he also sings and plays the guitar. He used to be in the Ballas Hough Band with Derek, which was formed in 2009. They released one album, BHB. The band parted ways to focus on solo careers.

He released his solo album, HurtLoveBox, in 2011, and an EP, Kicking Clouds, in 2014.

Along with Jean, he is currently in a duo called Alexander Jean, taken from their middle names. The pair formed in 2015 and have released three EPs and multiple singles, including covers and Christmas songs.