Helen Richey (dancer)

Last updated

Helen Richey
Bornc. 1945 (aged 78) [1]
London, United Kingdom
GenresBallroom dancer, Latin dance
Occupation(s)Dancer, TV personality

Helen Richey (born c. 1945) [2] is a former competitive ballroom and latin dancer and is now a dance coach and judge. She appeared as a judge in the Australian television series Dancing with the Stars from the 1st to the 15th season.

Contents

Biography

Richey was born c.1945 in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. She started dancing at a very early age, studying Ballet and Tap. At 15, she won the coveted Lily Ellison Award and two years later she met her future husband Robert, taking up Ballroom and Latin dancing. After winning the Australian Rising Stars Ballroom Championship, they travelled to the United Kingdom to further their dancing careers. Originally planning to visit for six months, they stayed for 27 years.

Her competitive career included becoming undefeated All England Latin Champion as well as the South of England Latin Champion and the Imperial Latin Champion. In the major international events, Helen was placed third in the World Professional Latin Championship, equal third in the British Professional Latin Championship, runner-up in the United Kingdom Professional Latin and was twice placed third in the International Professional Latin Championship. For seven consecutive years, Helen was a Grand Finalist in the British Professional Championship, one of the most prestigious events. She was also Australia's official representative in the World Championships in both the Ballroom and Latin Styles for over 10 years and was a regular semi-finalist in the Ballroom Style.

After retiring from competitive dancing, Helen has become one of the world's leading coaches and most sought-after adjudicators. She has judged the national dance championships of almost every country in the world. Helen has coached World Champions, British Champions and Australian Champions. Many of the professional dancers in all of the series of Dancing with the Stars have been trained wholly or in part by Helen.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ballroom dance</span> Set of partner dances

Ballroom dance is a set of European partner dances, which are enjoyed both socially and competitively around the world, mostly because of its performance and entertainment aspects. Ballroom dancing is also widely enjoyed on stage, film, and television.

Paul Killick is a British professional ballroom dancer and an International Latin American Dance Champion. He appeared in the first two series of the television show Strictly Come Dancing. Killick specialize in Latin dance and has won The World Cup, World Trophy, World Masters, World Series, Universal and British Professional Latin American DanceSport Championships.

Lilia Andreyevna Kopylova is a Russian professional dancer.

Karen Hardy is a British professional ballroom dancer, coach, teacher and adjudicator. In 1998 she won the professional International Latin American Dance Championship with Bryan Watson. She also won the United Kingdom Open, British National, European and World Masters championships. She now runs a dance studio at Imperial Wharf, London.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dmitry Chaplin</span> Russian ballroom dancer and reality TV contestant (born 1982)

Dmitry Chaplin is a Russian dancer, choreographer, and actor, best known for being a Top 10 finalist on the second season of the dance competition series So You Think You Can Dance. While competing on the series, he became known for performing shirtless, with one solo routine having him rip off his shirt. In 2009, Chaplin was nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award for his choreography.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kym Herjavec</span> Australian ballroom dancer and TV performer

Kym Herjavec is an Australian professional ballroom dancer and television performer who appeared in the first three seasons of the Australian version of Dancing with the Stars as a professional dancer, before moving to the U.S. version of the franchise from 2006 to 2015. Johnson returned as a professional to the U.S. series in 2017 for its 24th season. She also served as a judge on the Australian version of the show from 2013 to 2015. She is married to Robert Herjavec.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Anna Trebunskaya</span> Russian-American dancer (born 1980)

Anna Olegovna Trebunskaya is a Russian-born American professional ballroom and Latin dancer, known for her appearances on Dancing with the Stars. She now lives in Los Angeles and dances in the International Latin style.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Michael Mead</span>

Michael Mead is a professional ballroom dance champion and choreographer.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Toni Redpath</span>

Toni Redpath is a professional ballroom dance champion and choreographer.

Lacey Mae Schwimmer is an American ballroom dancer and singer. She is best known as a fourth place finalist of the third season of So You Think You Can Dance. She is the daughter of noted dancer Buddy Schwimmer, as well as the cousin of Heidi Groskreutz, who placed fourth on the second season of So You Think You Can Dance and younger sister of Benji Schwimmer, the winner of the show's second season. She participated in the seventh season of Dancing with the Stars as a professional dancer paired with Lance Bass of 'N Sync, in the eighth season of the show paired with Jackass star Steve-O and in the ninth season paired with actor and Iron Chef America host Mark Dacascos. Schwimmer returned to Dancing with the Stars for its eleventh season and she was partnered with Disney Channel star Kyle Massey and in the 12th season, paired with radio host Mike Catherwood. In the thirteenth season, she was paired with transgender activist Chaz Bono. Schwimmer did not return for season 14 of Dancing With The Stars.

Hanna Karttunen is a Finnish professional Latin American and exhibition dancer. She also trained in ballet as a child, having a love of dance from a very early age.

Nicole Cutler is a professional ballroom dancer and former World Amateur Latin-American champion. She was born Nicole Westdyk in Durban, South Africa and after taking up ballet at the age of four, first tried out ballroom and Latin-American dancing at the age of twelve.

Elena Grinenko is a Russian professional ballroom dance champion, choreographer, and instructor. She is best known as one of the professional dancers on the American television series Dancing with the Stars.

Mark Wilson is an Australian professional ballroom dancer and former dance teacher. He is a television personality, best known for being an original judge on the reality TV show – Dancing with the Stars appearing for the first ten seasons. In 2021, he returned as a judge with other former original judges Paul Mercurio, Todd McKenney and Helen Richey, along with original host Daryl Somers.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Shirley Ballas</span> British ballroom dancer

Shirley Annette Ballas is an English dancer and television personality. She specialises in the International Latin division, where she won several championship titles which earned her the nickname the Queen of Latin. In 2017, Ballas was appointed head judge on the BBC One dancing competition show Strictly Come Dancing.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kathrin Menzinger</span> Austrian dancer (born 1988)

Kathrin Menzinger is an Austrian dancer. Menzinger and her partner won the World Championships in Latin Showdance in 2016 for the second time.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Peta Murgatroyd</span> Australian and American professional Latin dancer

Peta Jane Murgatroyd is an Australian and American professional Latin dancer. She performed in the international tour of the dance production Burn the Floor, including its Broadway run. She is best known for her appearances on the American edition of Dancing with the Stars, which she and her partners have won twice.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sergei Chislov</span>

Sergei Chislov, born November 4, 1960, in Moscow, USSR, is a 3-time USSR Professional 10-Dance champion, certified International Dance Adjudicator of World Dance Council (WDC), ballroom dance coach, USSR Master of Sport in ballroom dancing, choreographer, and a film actor. As of 2013, he lives and works in Miami, FL, United States.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ellen Ekkart</span> Dancer and choreographer

Ellen Ekkart is a Belgian professional dancer, dance teacher, choreographer and coach. She specializes in Latin and ballroom dancing.

Rebecca Scott is a British-born ballroom and Latin dancer and choreographer from Solihull, England.

References

  1. "The nostalgia is real! Dancing with the Stars' original judges take a stroll down memory lane ahead of the new season". 28 March 2021.
  2. https://www.telegraph.co.uk/tv/2006/08/13/strictly-australian-judge-helen-richey-len-goodman-replacement-i/.{{cite web}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)[ dead link ]