Addison Linhardt, a junior at Helias Catholic High School, has a hard time finding any boys her age who can dance the tango, or any ballroom dance for that matter. That hasn't stopped her, though, and on Wednesday evening, she landed the ultimate dance partner in Jonathan Roberts, a professional ballroom dancer known for his seven seasons on "Dancing with the Stars."
Roberts spent all of Thursday at the Capital Ritz giving private dance lessons to other professionals and amateurs from Jefferson City and throughout the state. He made the trip to Jefferson City at the invitation of his friend, Larinda McRaven, a professional ballroom dancer for the past 25 years who lives in Jefferson City and, like Roberts, also judges professional competitions and trains competitors across the country.
"Jonathan and I have known each other for 20 years," she said. "I've been trying to get him here for a while, but he's been more accessible now that he's not currently on the television show."
"Jonathan doesn't have a lot of airs or attitude, and he's very easygoing and down to earth for people who are just starting out as well as more advanced dancers."
Michael and Lucy Fitzgerald drove in from St. Louis for their private lesson with Roberts. The couple, married for 10 years, own a dance studio and compete professionally in the tango and waltz.
They worked with Roberts earlier this year near his home in San Diego so he could choreograph a new routine that they will soon take to competitions. In dance, it can be the most subtle turn or tilt of the head that can make a dramatic difference in the presentation. Roberts checked their movements and offered some tips.
"It's all about light and shade," McRaven said. "There's the slow, soft things along with the fast and zippy movements. Jonathan's an amazing choreographer, and he's a storyteller. He gives the dancers he works with a lot of imagery and helps them emote."
Dancing for 21 years, Roberts didn't start until he was 19, considered fairly late for the profession. Growing up in northern California, he went to see "Scent of a Woman," starring Al Pacino.
"I saw that hot tango scene (between Pacino and Gabrielle Anwar), and it stuck with me," he said.
On the ticket stub for the movie was an offer from a local dance studio for a free lesson. He went, and that was the beginning of a very successful career. Roberts joined the hit ABC reality show "Dancing with the Stars" in 2004 and partnered with tennis star Monica Seles; Heather Mills, ex-wife of Paul McCartney; and Marie Osmond, who finished third in the fifth season.
"Anyone can learn to dance," he said. "You might not become a world champion, but you can become more confident in your movements."
Being a champion, he said, requires a combination of technical and performing skill and chemistry between the couple. At one time, he danced professionally with his now ex-wife, Anna Trebunskaya. But in 2008, he and partner Valentina Kostenko became the World Professional Smooth Champions. McRaven and her former dance partner, the late Steven Hevenor, were North American champions and four-time U.S. National Professional Open finalists.
Roberts was very complimentary of McRaven's talent as a dancer and a coach, but he also asserted it's important to bring a guy's point of view to the dance.
"Here we're boss. Every time you give the ladies a choice you're wrong," he said. "You have to be a dictator when you're dancing, and guide and lead, get them to follow you. And just remember 90 percent of all the mistakes are yours."
He dispenses his expertise to the dancers despite their varying levels of talent in the waltz or tango in the same calm, laid-back way. He stands back and observes and also demonstrates a move if needed.
"There's no need to shout and yell," he said. "I try to make sure that everyone leaves a lesson feeling positive because they received the right amount of new information and technique that they need at the moment."
In the swing workshop, Roberts demonstrated some basic moves and asked the participants to try them out, switching partners every few minutes. Many of the participants had their chance to dance with Roberts, including Linhardt, a student of McRaven's, and other locals like Theressa Ferguson, longtime artistic director of Lincoln University's Dance Troupe, and Dr. Jennifer Su, an OB-GYN and daughter of the owners of Capital Ritz. Others came from studios at the Lake of the Ozarks, too.
At the end of the 45-minute workshop, he posed for photographs with the large group as well as individual ones, and then began more private lessons that would end around 10 p.m. This morning, he sets off for Denver where he'll have another day of lessons and workshops.
"This was great for the dancers in the area," McRaven said. "My goal is to bring as much exposure and build up the Jefferson City dance community."