Welcome to Danielle Wick, a podcast slowly transforming like a young caterpillar looking to fly.

I am Danielle Fischel, a TV director, a podcaster, a mom of two, a former ballroom dancer, and the new owner of the teen Beat trademark, an element of my new podcast, debuting in January right here on this feed.

But first, before we fully flip the switch, I'm still on the prowl interviewing some of my favorite personalities from the Dancing with the Stars universe, hoping to get a closer look at the phenomenon that was.

Season thirty four.

I am just weeks away from joining the show's live tour, where I will.

Travel city to city for about thirty.

Days, hosting and dancing all of the country, and once in Canada, acting like some sort of fox trotting circus.

Carney.

Sure, I'm a little nervous, but at least I'll be crammed in a small bus with some of my absolute favorite people and living off just protein shakes, peanut butter and rice cakes.

But in the meanwhile, I'm continuing to talk to past contestants and professionals from the twenty year history of the show and today I am sitting down with one of the best and most outspoken legacy superstars who may not have been in the ballroom every week this year, but I was just as glued to her social media as I was the three judges' scores.

After growing up, winning numerous dance championships and completing a run on Broadway, she joined Troop in season twelve and then was upgraded to Pro a year later, and it didn't take long for her presence to be felt.

She won the coveted mirror Ball in just her second season alongside former football player Donald Driver and became one of the most popular dancers.

On the show.

Later paired with fan favorites like James Maslow, Nick Lache and Tommy Chong, and her mirror ball got a friend in season twenty two, when she finished first again, this time with model Nile DeMarco.

She left the show in twenty twenty.

Three and entered an entrepreneur era with her own self tanning line, Peta Jane, and now just launched a podcast, The Penthouse with Peta A bit of a lightning rod for attention this past season thanks to some hot takes and her husband, another former pro, Max Schmerkovsky, who has never once said out loud, I don't have an opinion on that, and we love him for it.

And the rest of her family tree is still very much on the dance floor because her sister.

In law and brother in law are a little.

Duo you might know as Jenna Johnson and Valschmerkovsky.

So this week I'm excited to welcome to Danielle with one of my all time fits.

It's Peter Murgatroyd.

Peter, thank you so much for sitting down with me.

Thank you.

You have always been one of my favorite dancers.

No, truly, you have always been one of my favorite dancers.

I can never take my eyes off of you.

But then this past season I had so much fun listening to your podcast and getting to see you and recognize you as an incredible host.

Thank you so much.

That means a lot coming from you, honestly.

Thank you.

You really very much impressed me.

Thank you.

I honestly, that wasn't something that was kind of on my dream board, wish list or anything.

I was approached by a couple of producers and they were like, listen, like let's do a female led podcast, and let's see how it goes, and if you love it, like it?

And again I was very.

Is it the word trepid, just like tredacious, trepidaceous.

Going into it, I was like, oh my god, what if I suck like I What if I can't remember my questions?

What if I can't segue into the next you know what I mean?

I had never trained it.

I've never trained in hosting nothing right, but.

It's been really fun and meeting new people that come in, like all the different you know, celebrities and stuff.

It's been really fun.

Well, you're really good at it.

And before we get into your story, I wanted to touch on this past season a little bit.

Yeah, it really seems the show just has seemed to have been catapulted into a new pop culture realm.

Why do you think this twenty year old show has had such a big new audience and has felt Has it felt different to you this year?

Yeah?

I mean okay, so if we go way back, this show was birthed just purely on ballroom dancing, right.

Just the very basics.

I mean, have you ever seen the first stage that they ever created?

I mean, compared to what we have now, it's just like it's on another level.

I think why it's stayed so popular and so amazing for people to watch is because everybody can watch.

The generational people.

I mean, it's it's literally from like babies to grandparents are watching our show.

And dance gives people hope, It makes you feel something, It makes people happy.

When you enjoy us when you watch it.

I mean, there's nothing better than watching two people dance together and like getting down and like it's so fun.

I mean, you know you would have had the best time with Pash.

He's the best.

He is amazing.

Yeah, I mean, and now it's just it's on another level with social media.

I think it was not this season, but the one before where we started doing all the stuffs.

That's when it all started, right when it started to explode.

This season just blew it out of the water, right, you're right.

Last season, Alona was one of the people who was really helped helped bring in the TikTok and social media again to the show.

And Riley she was really heavy on TikTok at that year, so she did an amazing job.

You're right, You're right, Riley Ezra bringing in this young TikTok kind of generation was very influential in opening the show up to a whole new generational kids.

It amazes me, like you said, the show being generational.

Both sets of my grandparents loved the show.

And now when I go out, having done season thirty four, the amount of anywhere from six to twelve year olds that come up and say, are you on Dancing with the Stars?

Wow, the young kids.

So kids that aren't even on TikTok.

But it's amazing to me how many young kids love it and people can sit with.

Their families and watch it and have a great time.

I think it's just I like the evolution of the show.

I think there's been some mistakes in the past, Like I forget season maybe thirty third he won the late eight, twenty eight, twenty nine, like that was kind of our dipping a point where it was like, oh, are we going to go off the air, Like we don't know, and then it just rose again, and you know, with Conrad Green Dina behind it obviously for so many years, Conrad really brought it back to what it was and just on another level.

Yeah, exactly, Puppernochnoch, I have a very loaded question for you.

Okay, did they get the winner right this season, I believe that I knew he was going to win.

Yeah, from the very beginning, I felt like, yeah, I feel like he was the whole round package that people love and adore, that Australian accent, that he's so kind and lovable.

Yes, and he nailed his dancers.

I mean, you rarely get given that gift of a partner, you know, and when you get it, you know you got it right.

You know, you have.

A big job, that's and big shoes to feel you have to complete incredible dances every single week.

In saying that, Alex and Val surprised me so much.

In the beginning, I was like, she's good.

Uh huh.

As it went on, I'm like, wow, Okay, she is coming out of her shell.

She is a beautiful, stunning human to look at it.

And then on top of that, she was acting.

She was giving it more and I mean her freestyle was my favorite.

Of the night.

I mean, she it could have been either one because they both have a lot of fans too, and that's at one stage, I was honestly thinking, oh, Alex can take this well.

So it was it was kind of like one of these ones.

But Robert I think from the beginning, the guy, Yeah, it was his to lose.

I think that's the way.

Yeah, I thought of it from that first week when they came out of the gate with just such a big performance.

It was like, Okay, he's obviously very beloved and for good reason.

Yes, and he's talented and he's got the showmanship.

Yeah, this is his to lose.

Something would have really needed to go horribly wrong in the season for him to lose it, or something incredibly shocking, but you're right that.

Then toward the end, I was surprised that.

I was like, oh, wow, people creeping up behind humh alex exactly.

Dylan was great.

Wait did he get third?

Dylan was fourth, Jordan was third, and Elane was.

I mean, yeah, they're all and you were too.

Well, thank you.

I appreciate it.

I thank you.

I appreciate that.

What were your thoughts on the judging this season?

A lot of viewers seemed to be extra confused by the guidelines and the consistency, but that also happens every year, it does.

Yeah, did it seem like it was more confusing this year for at least the audience?

For me?

No, Okay, I didn't feel like it was like, oh my gosh, what's happening to the judging.

But because I've kind of felt that for a while, as in, like you need to start lower, That's not my only thing, I know.

You know, if you see somebody really cannot dance, they're giving it, they're all and they're great, but they're dancing is really terrible.

You're going to give them a really low score to begin with so they can go somewhere.

Give them a two so they can get to a.

Five by week five or something like that.

You know, Yeah, but giving somebody a seven when it's clearly a three is just an interesting judging math.

And really, for me, because I completely agree with you, the hardest part for me is not about the seven that we just gave them.

It's that then the other people who are getting eights.

Yeah, but they're not only one point apart.

It would have to be on a scale of maybe to twenty, where then I'm comfortable with the seven.

And then that could be in eighteen.

But like, so that's really where that's why those lower numbers exist to show the difference.

I completely agree, And you know, it is up to people's artistic expression and.

What they love.

You know, Carrie, I might have loved that dance, but she's still going to knock you for taking your foot off the floor, do you know what I mean?

Which I'm cool with.

If you took your foot off the floor, you're not allowed to do a lift in that dance.

You should be docked for that, you know what I mean.

I don't have a problem with that.

But I think people don't understand that everyone's got their idea of what they love in a dance and what they don't.

Some people might want more technicalities.

Other people might just want them to see showmanship.

I just want to see you giving it your all and like that rob at spirit, like he never let up every single time, you know.

So I don't know.

I'm on the fence.

I don't care as long as I think it should be consistent, like you can't say then if they did do a lift when they're not meant to keep them at the high school, then do you know what I mean?

Like, just just be consistent and then we're all good.

Yeah, yeah, I know.

There was one week I think for Robert where there was something that happened and Carrie Anne said, you know, I saw I saw your foot left off the floor.

But who cares?

Yeah, there was that finale week or was that before finale?

No, it was before finale.

It may have been week eight or week nine, and it.

Was like, but who cares?

Because sometimes you just throw that out the window for the way something makes you feel.

And I and it is.

I do understand that she is more.

Of the person who wants to be moved emotionally by a dance.

But then when every other week, or say the week before, you did dock somebody specifically because they took a foot off the floor, it's just yeah, I mean, it is subjective.

Dancy is key.

Yeah, it's funny though in finale.

You know, Robert did make big mistake in the finale, and I believe that that was because everyone's overworked doing that that dance.

I forget what it's called now, that instant dance or whatever.

Yeah, I mean that's the only time I have I think I've seen him make a really big mistake like that.

And I was and it was in the instant Dance with the cha.

Yeah, he he went when he wasn't meant to go in a New Yorker section And you know what I think, I said it on my podcast.

I was like, I don't want to see somebody like Robert make those mistakes in a finale.

That's only because he's tired, or he didn't think right then that in that split second, whatever, I don't want to see that.

I think they were it was too much.

But other people loved it.

Yeah, but it was definitely a lot, and I know everybody was very stressed about it.

I was in the conversation because I was still on the show at the time that they were talking to.

Us about it.

Yeah, and so I just remember being like, wait, I'm sorry, what and it it felt crazy.

And then I obviously did not have to I was not in the finale, but seeing my friends and hearing them talk about it.

And Robert, he had said all season long how much he didn't like the cha chaw.

It was his number one Achilles heel.

When he pulled that, I could not believe it.

I mean, he did an amazing job anyway, it did just like, yes, come on, yeah, but you're right.

It's tough to watch somebody who has excelled all season long and is rightfully in the finale and then to see them make an error that you know, they're like embarrassed by that.

He would never have normally made had he not just been exhausted right well as a penthouse with Peter Listener.

I think I know the answer here.

But is Dancing with the Star's end goal to find the best celebrity dancer or the most entertaining celebrity dancer.

I think they try to find the best dancer, but I do believe it comes down to the most entertaining person.

I won with two non dancers, so you.

Know, people vote for who they love and like.

At the end of the day.

Did Donald Drivers I don't know, New Yorkers.

Were they better than the woman that got second with Mark Ballas?

Probably not, But he won because of himself and his personality and the guts and the giving that he gave for the whole entire season.

And I mean he was amazing, but you know, like he wasn't the most technically sound dancer on the dance floor.

We've always we've always had trained dancers come in either one or two a season, so I do believe that it's the most entertaining.

Yeah, I agree with you.

I'll tell you what.

Obviously, Andy Richter was such a big story this season and you were paired with Tommy Chong who and Barry Williams who came in seventh.

I wanted to get your take on Andy's success and also ask you why you think Emma was able to be so successful with him.

I think it all starts.

In the beginning and what type of friendship and bond that you can create in that first week.

I feel like I know that the person within that week, as in, if we're gonna really get along, if it's going to be, you know, an up and down sort of struggle.

Not that I've had any body that we've been fighting the whole season.

Never, I've always had decent partners.

But she was able to bring out the joy and the best in Andy that everybody wants to see because nobody wants to see Andy struggle and try to do a perfect New Yorker yes or Chutch our luck whatever.

Nobody wants to see that.

We know he can't do it.

And I'm being really honest right now, Yeah, he can't do it.

So what are you going to do?

You have it, You've been given this amazing, beautiful guy to dance with.

You have to make him be lovable.

You have to make him smile the entire time, and we have to love watching him out there dance with you.

Yeah, so you have to throw away the dance steps, so to speak, right, you know, you put together what you can and you do what you can and find out his limits and you know what he can't do, what he can do, and what he does best.

Do a lot of that, lean into his strengths, lean into.

The strengths, and then just run with that.

I mean, they had a beautiful partnership.

I looked forward to watching him every week because I don't necessarily want to see a perfect dance every time.

And we had a lot of your dancing this season, which was amazing yep.

But then when it came to and.

I was like, oh, okay, we have somebody who's just in it for the fun.

And just like he knows too that he is not competing at that level.

He's in his own race, yep, which is cool.

Exactly he's competing against himself.

I really saw them also when they would get the early on, they had more actual critique than I feel like eventually they realized, well, he's so beloved, let's just keep talking about Wow, it's so joyful.

And then they stopped really critiquing, like you said, probably because what else is there to say, where we probably reached the limit of what we're going to be able to see dance wise.

But early on I did appreciate when one of them, I believe it was Carrie Anne, said we are gonna need to see some more steps, like we're gonna have to have you.

And then the next week he's fairly good.

There were more steps they did.

She really did say like, we're going to give them what they asked for, and you saw him pushing himself and really trying.

My favorite dance of his was I literally cried.

But when he reached up and grabbed the camera, I know, I was like, oh my gosh, I mean, his little beautiful face and touching that camera.

It was, it was.

It was pretty great.

It was nice to have somebody like that this season and amongst all the good dances.

Very yes, exactly.

Yeah.

Now, let's say you are hired as the new showrunner of Dancing with the Stars next season.

Okay, what are the first three things you might change or adjust.

Or add?

You know what?

I that instant dance, yeah, okay, the top of my head.

Right now, as we just spoke about it.

I would change that to the twenty four hour dance.

Oh, but that means that we would have to have a show day.

I would bring back the Tuesday shows.

Great, okay, so get rid of instant dance, you'd bring back.

I'd bring back the second show day.

Okay, the results show, the results show, right, Yeah, because that was that was a good time.

Yeah, you could be there, although you didn't get that time to train, so that took away a day of training.

But I loved the fact that everyone had fun.

Yeah, and it was a it was a sell a great celebratory day.

We had, you know, singers come in, artists come in, and we would dance for them and it would just be a really fun day.

Yes, it ended with an elimination, but that twenty four So that twenty four hour dance.

So the first day of finale, like the Monday night, you would you would do your dance and the freestyle, and then you would go straight to the studio.

You would have three.

Hours, however long it took you to put a dance together with your celebrity end at like one two am, and then you'd come back the next day and perform that as they finish the final dance.

Usually people all.

Got tense for that because it was just you know, why would you give somebody an eight on their last last dance?

Yeah, but yeah, I think I would bring that back because it was a really Although we hated it in the at the time, in the moment, we're just like, come on, like, this is so hard, But in hindsight, when I look back at those hard times, it was some of the best times.

Yeah.

It's much like parenting.

Yes, every time I've ever taken a trip with my children, I have thought it, well, at least one point, never again.

And then you come home and you look at all the photos and you start reminiscing about the tantrum on the carousel and the thing, and you're like, in the moment, I said never again, But now, yep, I just want to do that again.

I agree with that.

Another big story of this season ended up being Whitney's elimination.

Did you see that coming or did you think she would for sure be in the finals?

I thought she would be in the finals.

Yeah, yeah, I think that's because I wasn't so aware.

I could see people saying, oh, she's getting a lot of hate she's getting a lot of hate, but I wasn't aware of it because I'm not on TikTok every day scrolling.

Yeah, I don't do that to myself.

I can't get into it like that.

It's something that I've never kind of grabbed hold of and gravitated to.

I love Instagram.

I'm old I have the same with you.

Yeah, yeah, TikTok, I love, But there was sorry to to sidetrack.

There was one time where I posted a video of my son and I could see all these comments.

I just remember that taking me back and I'm like, I'm not going to come on here much anymore.

There was one yeah, So for me, I didn't see what people were talking about and saying.

So if I maybe had seen that all of what she was getting at that time, maybe I could have put two and two together and said, oh, yeah, they're going to be eliminated soon.

But no, yeah, I didn't see it, so I thought she was going to be in the finale.

I also didn't see it, and I think, I really it's made me realize how much like the algorithm really very quickly will jump on whatever you have spent any sort of time on.

Because I was getting only Dancing with the Stars content.

Yeah, but I wasn't seeing a lot of hateful stuff.

But I think there have been times that eat both on Instagram and on TikTok, where my husband and I will be looking at the same video and the top comments are different on both of our On our feeds where I'm or I'll see a post, I'll screencap the comments and send it to a friend and they open it up and go, those aren't those aren't the comments I'm seeing?

How does that work?

I am not sure, but I do think that if you see a post and then click on it to see more, even like to hate watch something or to just out of curiosity, it thinks they stick around when I show them this type of stuff.

So I didn't see a lot of it, but I knew from Whitney because Whitney and I had talked about it a lot.

She was telling me that it's incessant, vile, yes, And so I was still shocked.

I thought, there's no way, though, that the majority the voting public, the majority of the voting public are TikTok haters.

Like, what are the odds, you know, Like she has to be getting so many other votes That's what I was to counteract, right whatever.

They were not voting for her, they were voting for everybody but her, and I didn't see.

I didn't know that.

I didn't know that concept.

So I think that was a new concept this season.

I'm pretty sure that was something people very early on put together, like, hey, let's band together and vote for everyone.

It's terrible.

It's so crazy, it's cruel.

I mean, I I don't know as of you know, watcher of TV shows and stuff like that and other reality shows.

I can't imagine being on a group.

Text saying vote for everyone.

What this person?

I mean, who does that?

I don't know?

But I say the same thing about people who ever leave negative comments.

I have never found myself on a video of something and have thought something negative and thought I should write I should write this.

If I think something negative, it's.

Not for me.

Move along.

Yeah, I just need to write it down.

When someone tells me they're great brownie recipe, I don't need to say I don't like brownies.

Okay, go find a cookie recipe, then, lady, like, why just I so?

I you know, I I don't quite get people like to share.

They do?

They do?

They like their opinions to be known.

Now, you are a former Blackpool participant.

You are a two time amateur Latin State champion, a premier finalist in ballroom competitions around the world.

Your education is absolutely perfect for the show.

But as we mentioned, it's newfound attention on TikTok, obviously producers are turning to some less traditional spaces to find pros.

Do you think that without a true background in ballroom you could win Dancing with the Stars?

Sure, Okay, it's.

Got to do with who.

You partnered with number one.

Okay, So I feel like that is a huge plus.

If somebody with not so much borm training has a clear winner from day one, Yeah, if they can get outside help to choreograph and do the right thing and can teach somewhat something, then I think, yeah, you can win.

I think though the job is a very difficult job that people do not understand.

Nope, not one bit.

I was like floored learning.

I mean, you always know like, oh, yeah, the pros are putting all of this together, but then being on the inside of it and seeing how much you are all tasked with.

Yeah, while you're still doing that week, prepping the next week, song choices, involvement in wardrobe, production meetings, the knowing when the instant dances are coming in, the like.

Yeah, you have to be like three four weeks ahead of yourself every single time.

So like it's not just.

Oh, let's go into the studio and create, you know, it's not like that.

We are literally like four weeks ahead of you.

And we're not just a dance teacher.

We are in on, as you said, everything the wardrobe, the song choice, the lighting, I mean creating, not the entire set.

But you know, we know what we need for you as for you as a dancer, Like what do you need yep?

What will look?

Will make what?

What will make Danielle look the best that she can possibly look?

So and the late nights choreographing for the next three weeks.

I mean it's you know, sometimes I would come home when I was single, I would come home.

At two am from a dance studio.

It was it was crazy.

I can't do that now because of kids.

But like it's a lot that people do not understand.

And celebrities also sign up for the show not knowing how much work completely do.

All the years they had asked me and I and it just had never worked out.

I was always told.

Don't worry, because I would be like, well, I'm working or I'm doing this, and they don't worry.

We can work around your work schedule.

Well you can.

You can rehearse wherever you are if you're gonna and thinking like, all right, so then it can't be that big of a commitment.

If they're willing to, like work around my work schedule.

Yeah, I mean sure you can.

If you can, you can have a full time job and do dancing with the stars if you're comfortable tough, just working literally twenty four hours a day and or not truly caring what kind of what you're putting on, what you're putting out there.

True, were you working at all?

No?

I gave everything up.

I said, this has to be my entire life.

But I still had two children and a household to run, and I was doing podcasts.

When I say no, I wasn't working.

I was doing it, yeah, multiple parts, But.

You weren't on set.

I was not directing.

Noah, how could I have been directing?

Like in my mind, I thought, thank god, I didn't say, well, there's one week I'll be directing a TV show and we'll just have to make it work that way.

Good luck.

I haven't had a lot of partners with that.

I had you Marini.

Okay, he had to.

Do some things on set.

I forget the show that he was filming at the time, but we would rehearse on set.

He was also really naturally talented, so I mean he had also gotten second with Cheryl.

I got him on an All Star, so he was he was already sort of prepped and knew what the thing was.

But you know, Max, my husband, he had Meryl Davis, who he ended up winning with.

She was on tour and ice skating tour.

They weren't even in La.

They came back to LA for the show and then flew straight back out so she could go touring.

It was nuts, yeah, and so.

Was Max on tour with her on tour yeah.

And same with Shana because she was dancing with Meryll's partner.

But so they were like a foursome going around America together, driving cars to the next city and stuff like that.

It was crazy.

So you don't know who you're going to get with, like what, but you kind of hope that you haven't got somebody with a travel schedule.

Really do because it's really hard.

Yeah, it just and we're all getting sick anyway all the time.

But now you add travel and like dout cities and planes to the mix.

Yep, Oh my goodness.

If a family excluded, if you were a celebrity on the show, who do you hope you'd be paired with?

Family excluded?

Family excluded?

Mm?

With the people right now?

Yeah, with the pros on there right now, let's or you know what, let's open it up.

Any of the any of.

The pros who've been on Family excluded, any of the pros who've ever been on the show.

Who would be your number one choice if you were a celebrity.

It's really hot, that's really hot.

I'm going through like this one.

That what there's so many factors too, because like there are because I'm if you're talking about me, I'm told you're tall, so I need Max is the tolest, so I can't have him, So I'm gonna have to go with a glib or an Autumn.

Right, Okay, because they're the next.

They're the next kind of tallest guys.

Yeah, a glib or an Autumn.

I would have to say, Okay, that's good.

How tall is Artem probably five eleven, yeah or something.

Yeah.

I don't think he's quite six feet okay, but yeah, all right, yeah, I think those two.

And for me, I like a tough teacher because I grew up with Russian ballet masters, so yeah, I like to be pushed, and I think that they would be kind of tough on me.

You think Gleb would be tough, don't I kept trying to figure out what kind of teacher Gleb was.

He's tough?

Is he tough?

He's fun and tough at the same time.

Yeah, because he speaks so softly.

He hasn't got that thing about him, but he is tough technically.

Yeah, okay.

Yeah.

During my research I did some math and I realized that you were on Broadway as a lead dancer at like eighteen years old.

Yeah, which is quite an achievement.

Were you ever nervous or intimidated?

Yeah?

Yeah, oh my god, Yeah, that brings me back very much.

So we were in Perth training that's my hometown, with the show burned the floor at the time, getting it ready for Broadway.

So all the Broadway producers came to Perth to like dissect the show and like take out this number, put this number there, switch people around like where they will be standing, and it was a big like ruffle of feathers because we want to get it to Broadway.

But like people were losing parts and people were getting changed around and stuff.

So it was it was.

A really chaotic time in my life actually when I look back, because yeah, I did have a lot of the lead stuff in there.

And I remember getting pulled into the office and the producers, the Broadway producers sat me down and said, look, you know the show rides on you, so strap up type of thing.

Girly.

You know, we're going to Broadway and you can't have a down day.

You cannot have a down day.

Okay.

I was like, oh, I did not know what to say.

I was like, yes, sir, like right, I am your girl, Like I will get.

It done of thing.

Yeah it was.

Yeah, it was a moment in my life where I'm like, look back, I'm like, they probably shouldn't have said that to me, but yeah, it was.

It was an incredible experience, Like I wish I could go back and relive those six days that we worked our asses off.

Yeah, and then had the one day off, you know, just to recover and lie in bed all day.

But yeah, it was.

It was amazing.

Isn' nick just so kind of fun and interesting the way life works that like you're able to look back on it and you go, wow, one of the most chaotic and stressful times of your life.

And yet at the time you probably felt very much like I've got this.

Even though you were nervous and intimidated, you were like, I can do it, like you said, you were like, yes, sir, and then in your mind You're just like, I have to do it, and I'm gonna work my off six days a week and then I'm gonna lay in bed to recover that one day.

And now here we are, we have kids.

It's like you say, you know, I used to come home at two o'clock in the morning from a dance studio.

I can't do that anymore because because no matter what, the alarm's going off at five thirty.

Totally.

Yeah, there is no such thing as just lying in bed all day anymore.

Yep.

Wow, you have just you have had quite a career.

How did you then find yourself on Dancing with the Stars after being on Broadway?

So again, when we were in Perth, getting the show ready for Broadway.

I was actually given a contract with my then boyfriend for Dancing with Stars.

They reached out to me and they were like, hey, come do the show.

I obviously our people have burned the floor, were like, well, you can't do it.

You got to choose which one you want to do, And I chose Broadway ultimately because I'm like, I might never get the chance to go back and I've worked for six years on this touring dance show, like I.

Have to do Broadway.

So and also I was I didn't know if I wanted to do Dancing with the Stars.

Yes, it was a TV opportunity, but I've never been on TV.

At that stage, I was still very young, and I was very nervous to take that opportunity.

But I eventually ended up taking it.

When I got to LA and Broadway was over and done with, and I came to Broadway with my then boyfriend and I wanted to act, I was just like, I'm done with dance.

I've hit Broadway, you know.

I loved it, Like there's no other Broadway connections for me to kind of go into, so why don't I just try acting?

Anyway, it was really hard Yeah, I.

Didn't have much money, and I'm like, I kin't of need a job, Like this is really hard.

Everybody.

I would walk into a room like a cattle call.

Everyone looked like me, blonde, green eyes, and I'm like, holy, how am I going to get this job?

I got really close to like.

Three or four, and then I just get pipped at the post every time, and.

Then I run out of money.

Yeah, and I need an income.

Yeah, I don't have rich parents.

So I'm like, I gotta go and take the job now.

So yeah, I took the job and never looked back fifteen years later or whatever.

Yeah, it was really cool.

Your first mirror ball coming in just your second season.

Yes, what made Die old Driver such an incredible partner?

It was our friendship.

We had the best time together.

He gave me everything.

I mean he you know, the family moved out here.

He had three kids at the time, three very young kids.

He would get there early, he would leave later than me.

He would be there stretching before me.

He never gave me any attitude, you know, like some of the guys can be like, you know, I don't want to do that, or you know, they would give you something along the way he never did.

He just every performance he did, he threw himself into every character.

I didn't have to like tell him, well, you know, I had to describe the dance and everything and say, you got to get close to me here.

We got to be angry and like a little bit of like tension.

He would do everything.

And I didn't know that we were going to win.

I was my second season.

I had no idea, but I knew I had somebody that people loved, you know.

He he was you know the word beloved, beloved.

And yeah it goes both ways.

Yeah, yeah, well that's he is, by the way, the nicest guy.

I got to meet him at the twentieth anniversary, which was really special that again that I got to be a part of season thirty four, which was the twentieth anniversary, and they got to bring everybody back, and so I got to meet so many people that I have loved and admired over the many seasons of the show, and he was one of them who came up, introduced himself.

Was just the kindest Wow, was sitting like two rows in front of me.

I was like, man, he's incredible.

Like I said, I tuned in every week of your podcast to find out what you and Max thought about my scores.

Yes, you are an incredible host.

Did you expect when you started the show?

Did you expect Max to grab so many headlines with his opinions?

I love his honesty, I truly, and I told him when he was here.

I have always loved his honesty and the way he just is like, listen, I'm I I cannot tell you something other than my truth.

I just can't.

Yeah, and that's what I respect about him.

Yeah, you know, I love that about him.

I knew that I wanted somebody in my life that was strong and passionate, and whatever he says, it really does come down to the passion behind it.

Yeah.

Yes, he may say things in the wrong tone, they may come out the wrong way.

That's his heritage, that's his culture, that's his low voice when he speaks.

He speaks like this because he's passionate.

You know, it doesn't come from an angry, bitter place at all.

But wait, what was the question?

Did you expect him to grab so many headlines?

No?

No, I did not.

No, that was a lot.

Yeah, that was a lot.

As someone who also has been in my personal life, especially tone monitored.

Yes, I also have a tone and have been told by many people that my tone is scary or or that I'm yelling when I'm like, but I'm not yelling.

But there's a tone that I that I take on sometimes that is offensive to people.

So I totally understand that you have a full understanding that sometimes.

And for him, I'm sure he's also been told at his entire life that he's like, man, I just really when I'm talking about something, I just love what I'm talking about.

And that passion, whether like is also when I get very excited about something I love.

I have that, you know.

So it's like it's almost feels impossible to then expect someone when they are saying something that might be taken negatively, to have to do it in a totally different.

Voice than you.

And I don't want to, like Microman push him down.

What am I doing?

He is who he is.

I married him because of that, So it's like, why am I gonna say, baby, don't you got to say it like this?

You know, I'm gonna give him free rein and then if we need to chop stuff out, we're gonna chop stuff out.

It is what it is.

But I think what it comes down to also is like people are so afraid right now to speak, uh huh, so afraid and it's debilitating when you can't have an opinion or say what you really feel.

Yes, we don't want to hurt anybody's feelings at all.

No, that was the one thing that I'm like, oh my god, you know, absolutely not like I don't stand for I got kids, you know what I mean, Like this is not cool, but everybody should be allowed to have an opinion and not be taken down for it.

Exactly.

I don't know, that's what I I just think everyone's so vanilla right now.

Nobody wants to like, oh my god, I said a little bit too much, Like everyone is playing it so so I'm not just talking in what we do, but like the world in general, you know, you're going to be canceled if you say this.

You're going to be canceled if you go to like it's just hot, yeah, you know.

Yeah, And everyone does have their own opinion, and we don't have to agree with someone's opinion.

There were many times Max.

Has said something or that you said something and I thought, well I don't agree with that doesn't make me hate you doesn't make me dislike you, doesn't make me think I have to take you down.

We just we disagree.

We see something a different way, and that that is okay.

But if we stop ever showing that we have differences of opinion, they're not going to stop the differences of opinion from being there.

They're just going to stop us from showing others how you have productive conflict.

I one agree with you.

Yeah, so I very.

Much appreciate the honest approach that you two took, and, like you said, when you did feel like, oh, something we said may have hurt someone's feelings.

Absolutely, then made a comment about that.

That's when you.

Own up to it, put your big girl panties on, and you go, I am so sorry.

This is not how that was meant to go.

I know, absolutely you got to take accountability if you really if somebody's feeling that way, you have to do something about it.

I even said the same thing about carry Anne in the season when Carrie on at the very end apologized to me about something that had not hurt my feelings.

What was that again.

She had said when she said, you're a tiny little woman.

I want to I want to see but when you let out this, I want to see you.

I want to see that more bigger.

And it did not hurt me.

I am, I'm you know, five to one like I'm.

It did not offend me.

It's just to me, it's just a fact.

But some people online felt very much like, so, I guess dance like you're taller, because I could see how that it could be taken that way, like.

And she's coming, she's commenting on.

Me physically, and so people were a little but it did not offend me.

But then I did mention it in my package where I said, you know, Carrie and said I was a tiny loan but I'm big on the inside.

And she then apologized and I and then people were talking about the apology and I said, I will take somebody getting up on national television, even though I did not tell her it offended me in any way.

Anyone who's willing to say in a public forum, I may have done something that hurt you and I'm sorry.

We need more of that.

So there is I mean, just what a what an incredible thing to be able to do, to say one what's on your mind openly and with that takes courage and then to recognize ooh, saying that may have hurt you and that was never my intention.

I'm sorry.

We need more of both of those things.

I one thousand agree.

So I very much appreciate your your approach.

Who is your dream podcast guest?

Honestly?

But right now we're just kind of throwing stuff at the wall and so seeing what sticks.

It's so new.

I'm you know where, We've got a lot of feelers out to different people to come in, and I'm going to be starting something with Shana soon too.

So I don't know if I have a dream person right now.

Okay, We're waiting on a lot of cool people to come in and give me dates.

And some of that I want you to come on to.

We have been trying to work it out.

I would need love love to okay.

But yeah, maybe not a I haven't just got a dream person.

Okay.

I love that because it's still new.

This is how shows become incredible, is that you have to figure out what really like.

I don't know what do you want to hear about?

You know?

So we're just kind of still in that stage right now.

Yeah.

With Mark Ballas returning this past season, do you ever get the itch yourself.

Yeah, I do you, Yeah, I do all that.

I mean, it's been really nice to sit out for a few I will say that it's been lovely just sitting at home on the couch, putting the TV on, and I'm like.

Yeah, that's cool.

You know that show looks amazing.

You know, it's been really nice to not to be able to cheer from the sidelines and just to not have maybe all that stress, because you know, it is very stressful.

It's a big job.

But yeah, I do now when I feel like I've you know, I've got my body back, and I'm like, you know, fit again.

I'm not pregnant, I'm not postpartum.

I'm feeling pretty good.

Like I would love to get it one more stab.

Yeah, yeah, oh I love to hear that.

They probably wouldn't take me, but I would love to have one more go.

Okay.

I love hearing that.

Okay, I hope they hear that because that would make me so happy.

So thank you so much for being with us.

I want to ask you before you go, you're Peter Jane beauty your self Tanner.

Yes, I want you.

You gave me a beautiful bedazzled box and it's sitting gorgeously on my bathroom counter.

I am not I've never done a good self tan.

Okay, I know your products are gonna be the ones that are gonna allow me to give myself a good self hand.

What are my what are your like top tips?

What are things I must do in order to with your products give myself the perfect self tan?

Okay?

So number one, you just need clean skin, get out of the shower.

Okay, that's when you're gonna put your tan on.

Or you can do it right before bed and you can sleep in it.

Really yeah, it won't stain my bed sheets.

Put dark clothing okay.

Dark Pagai always say that Doc pajamas, long sleeve, long legs.

I would say its folio eight.

Okay, the day before, the day before, not right before, not right before, because for me, anyway, that will irritate my skin.

I don't know, you od yeah, yeah, yeah, So do it the day before and then consistently moisturize afterwards.

Use one of our tan extenders to keep extending the life of the tan and the color and the vibrance of it for the rest of the week.

Okay.

So yeah, those are my top tips.

I mean it dry.

It's my baby.

I've been working on this since twenty fifteen, so you know it's it's now my full time job.

Yeah.

Well, I'm about to go on tour and I'm not going to be able to get spray tan.

But you going on the tour and I'm going on tour.

Yeah, I'm opening the tour.

I'm going to be doing the first three the first three weeks.

I'm gone like them the eighteenth to the fifteenth or something so cool.

So I'm gonna I'm like, I take them with You'm going to take them with me because I'm gonna need my little You're gonna.

Stan on the go.

You're gonna need to look hot in your dresses, and you're gonna need brown skin and glowing.

Skin, brown glowing skin.

I love it so.

Penthouse with Peta is available wherever you get your podcasts.

Peter Jane her Self tanning product is available at Peter Janebeauty dot com, and you can follow Peta and her absolutely adorable family, who makes the cutest social media videos.

Thank you and Max together are just just too freaking cute.

Her handle is at Peta Murgatroyd.

Do we think your kids are going to be dancers.

I don't think so.

No, I don't think so.

I mean, I don't know about the youngest two and one, but my eight year old right now is in dancing.

He has a little partner.

Oh my gosh, he loves it.

When he's there, it's a fight to get him in the car.

Okay, it's I don't know.

He's really good at tennis though.

Really good.

Yeah, so I'm trying to like push that more.

I love tennis for kids, yeah, I really do.

I mean, I love tennis for adults.

I love tennis.

But but look looking at what different sports there are.

Because we have we have a very we're an athletic family, and so my youngest son loves imaginative play.

But every time we put him in something, he does it.

For a little while, we had him in karate, he got his first belt change and then he was like, I did it.

I'm done, no more, I don't want to do this anymore.

And then we put him in baseball for a season.

He was like, great, I know how to do that.

Now, don't want to do that anymore.

I love him.

Listen, We're gonna have.

To keep doing something because we need to keep our bodies active and so old to see he's only four.

Oh okay, he's only four.

Yea fine, But I like football, like is off the table for me.

Not you know, soccer, but like NFL style football is just a no go.

And so then I started thinking, like tennis, golf, Tennis is great.

Okay, you like tennis.

I love it.

I literally got shy into it because we were living in Meliby at the time and we were in an apartment and I was like, he just keeps throwing.

It, just keeps.

Throwing and hitting stuff.

And I'm like, I'm going to call a tennis coach.

And I'm like, I called this tennis coach.

And we had courts across the road like a part of the complex that we were in, and we have never looked back.

He is training with like a top coach in Beverly Hills right now and he's killing it.

Like so, I don't know, try it, Okay, try it.

He gets it, gets the the the boy stuff out, you know, he gets to whack that bull and he gets it all at in that hour and I love it.

Yeah, that's that's good.

Okay, good to know.

Thank you so much for being here.

With me.

You are just wonderful and I cannot wait to do your podcast.

Kay okay, I love that all right, Thank you.

Danielle with the Stars Produced and hosted by Danielle Fischel.

Executive producers Jensen Carp and Amy Sugarman, Executive in charge of production Danielle Romo, producer, editor and engineer Tara Sudbosch.

Theme song by Justin Siegel.

Follow us on Instagram at Danielle with Stars and vote for me