DWTS Derek/Julianne Hough TOUR (PICS ADDED 7/5)!!!!

This is a write up I did for the PureDerekHough.com website I follow. The woman who runs it does a great job and since summer is usually slow regarding news with Derek, this tour provided an awesome opportunity for those of us fans who were going to the show to blog about our experience. FYI--it's LONG!

I knew that as soon as this tour was announced, I was going to do my best to get a ticket and hopefully a chance to meet Derek. I’ve been a huge fan since Season 11 when he paired with Jennifer Grey. So, when the tour stops were announced, I saw there was one in Greensburg, PA which is approximately 3 hours from where I live. A lot closer than the next stop which would’ve been Cincinnati, Ohio. I knew I would need to get a ticket the DAY they went on sale because I had a feeling that this tour would sell out. My mother was nice enough to gift me with the Ultimate VIP experience.--the ticket was $400

I’ve been so excited for this show, especially after seeing everyone else’s pictures and reading their experiences here. I just have to say though that seeing them in person is completely different. It’s AMAZING! The Palace Theater in Greensburg PA where I saw the show is very small. Probably one of the smallest venues they’ve performed, per Ann, who is the VIP Tour guide. So small, that they could only put up two of the four large screens.

So, I left my house yesterday four hours before I needed to be at the Theater to pick up my VIP package. I always like to leave early to allow time for pit stops, unforeseen issues like traffic. I arrived in Greensburg right around 4pm. While driving in front of the theater, I saw the tour buses. Per the map on the theater website, there was supposed to be a parking lot up that road but I didn’t find it. Instead, I saw Julianne’s assistant walking Lexi and Harley. After I parked my car, I had an hour to kill. There’s a bar right across the street from the theater. Before I went in, I saw Armen and some of the other dancers. I called out to him and said hi. Walked over to them and shook his hand. Said I looked forward to seeing the show tonight and wished them well. Then, before I went back across the street to the bar, I saw Derek coming down the sidewalk. I called his name, waved and said hi to him. Wow! NOW it was real and now it was time for a drink because my nerves were setting in. See, I’ve never met a celebrity before and to be in the same town as Derek and Julianne? It was surreal!!

As I was in the bar, I met some other Move Live fans. Rachel and Felicia who, like me, were from Ohio. I told them all about PDH and how Heidi and Vogue have all the latest and greatest info about Derek and that’s how I knew about this tour, when tickets were on sale and everything else. I told anyone I could about PDH. Some people were amazed by how much I knew about Derek but more on that in a bit.

Check in time was 5, so at 5, my new friends and I walked over. They had VIP tickets. Based on what I already knew, I told them what they’d get. So, I got checked in. Got a wristband for the backstage tour. was handed my autographed program, which, by the way is gorgeous, and an envelope with my VIP laminate, my ticket and the slip of paper for where to see the pictures from the Photo Op. I was disappointed that my seat was not front row, but I DID have an aisle seat, which was awesome. The backstage tour was pretty short because as I said, this theater is small compared to some of the other venues. There isn’t even really a backstage. VERY small areas for the dancers and Derek and Julianne to change during the show. All in all, I’d say that tour took 10 minutes, if that. Then Ann had us wait in the back and brought in the rest of the VIPs. We waited as Ann explained how the pictures would go. I opted for a selfie. I told others that Derek takes AMAZING selfies.

Finally, I got to meet Derek and Julianne. I came up to Julianne first…took her hand and gave her a hug, then went to Derek and did the same…OMG! He smells SO GOOD!! Told him thank you for your gift of dance and creativity…he said awe thanks. Told them they were the first celebs I’d ever met..Juliannne said, well I hope we were worth it. I said…Oh definitely. The picture was so fast. Derek took two pics with my phone and I thought they turned out pretty good. I showed people in my line my pic and they agreed that Derek DOES take good selifes!! LOL

After the pictures, we went back into the theater to the front where we waited for Derek and Julianne for the Q&A session. They came to the front and sat on the stage. As I saw Derek, I began to clap!! They sat down and said thank you all for coming. Ann again emphasized that no pictures were to be taken during this Q&A session, although I see someone didn’t listen because they posted a pic of Derek and Julianne on the stage on Instagram last night :{

So, deciding not to be shy, I raised my hand first and Derek chose me to ask the first question. Ann handed me a microphone but my voice is pretty loud so I said Hi, I’m Kelly, been such a huge fan for years and this question is one that both of you can answer since you were both on Dancing with the Stars. I asked them what was their favorite song that they choreographed a routine for their partner? Derek had to think for a minute and said..gosh there’s so many of them and a lot of good songs but finally said “Beneath Your Beautiful” by Labrinth that he used for Kellie Pickler’s Freestyle as it hadn’t yet been released in the US. Julianne said hers was “Hey Pachuco” that she choreographed a quickstep with Helio Castroneves and I quipped yes & Derek recreated it with Shawn and it won him an Emmy!

Another person asked them if they did another All Star season, which one of their former partners would they pick? Derek chuckled and said, that’s a very clever way of asking us who our favorite partner was. Again, he mentioned Kellie Pickler because he says she had a way of pulling him out of a bad mood with her sweet silliness. Julianne said Apolo because she was her first partner on the show when she was 18 and now that she’s almost 26, it would be different, better but different.

Another person asked Derek about his movie. He said, yeah it sold 10 tickets and laughed. Then said, no it only showed in select theaters. I piped in and said it comes out on DVD in 21 days and Derek heard me (like I said, I have a loud voice) and he goes BOOM, there ya go! Julianne was asked if she was going to do another movie and she said she has one coming out in August. I think someone asked them both about any upcoming projects together and they said they had something in the works regarding the inside world of ballroom dancing…again (me and my big mouth) I said, Blackpool..Julianne heard me this time and says, yes, Blackpool. The girl from Buffalo sitting next to me was like, how do you know all this? So, I told her all about PDH. A few people even wrote it down

Of course someone asked if they were going to return to DWTS. Julianne said she wasn’t sure. Derek chimed in, yes, she’s going to be the statue! A man complimented Derek for the Defying Gravity routine and asked if the producers had any input into it. He explained that he had wanted to do a routine backwards once and they told him no no no and he’d suggested recreating the Fred Astaire idea several years ago. So when he mentioned the backwards choreography to the Producers, they were like, how about the dancing on the ceiling thing? He was like, I suggested this to you several years ago! Lol!! So, basically he said, since the week that performance aired, he had two routines with Kellie Pickler, he only had a few hours to rehearse it. And He also had to train the guy who operated the rotating box. So as he’s dancing he had to tell the guy ok now…and also which way to rotate the box. He said there were a few injuries while rehearsing that routine.

One person, who come to find out is Steph, the teacher with whom Derek corresponded during last season with Amy Purdy, asked him about his teaching methods. He says he didn’t start out as a teacher. He ‘faked it till he made it”. But he explained that people respond better to kindness and not ‘yelling’ He didn’t say exactly that but he said, I know you’ve seen other Pros on the show get really angry at their pro when the pro messes up and then the pro gets really nervous. He also mentions Corky and Shirley Ballas and how they’d get frustrated with him because he’d question things…like, how about we do this instead of that. So that would frustrate them and they’d send him out of the room…lol. He also mentioned Emotional Flooding….brought up Amy Purdy. And how they’d talk about all the things they were thankful for…in Amy’s case, I’m thankful for my father giving me life twice, I’m thankful for my dog, I’m thankful for..etc. He said by the time they did all that the nerves were gone.

They were also asked who their role models were. Julianne piped up and said Karina Smirnoff. Derek cracked a joke about Karina’s plastic surgeries…and was like every season I come back and am like, what did you have done now girl? This was here and now its there, as he’s pointing to Julianne’s ear. He says he wouldn’t joke about it but Karina is open about her plastic surgery so that’s why he said what he did. Derek said his dance role models were people like Michael Jackson. They were asked how they stay so humble. They both said their parents, especially their dad is really good about keeping them humble. So sweet they are. Julianne said that she’s so thankful for the opportunities that they’ve had. And someone asked what they’d do if they didn’t do what they’re doing. Julianne said she’d do some kind of service. Mentioned her work with the Kind campaign. Not sure what Derek said but I don’t think he answered the question to be honest. And I think that was it for the questions. I remembered more than I thought I would. I spent most of my time staring at the fine specimen of man that is Derek Bruce Hough. Thinking, I am 10 feet away from him. Before they left, they asked us VIPs to cheer loudly when they said are you ready to MOVE!!! We practiced it before they left the stage

That took us to about 6:45 pm so we had a few minutes for crowd free shopping before the doors were opened to the general public. I bought one of the black teeshirts, with Derek on the piano bench. I got that one because I wanted to see Derek’s full face. Luckily, the venue had a bar, so I had a glass of wine. I figured I’d be MOVINing during the show. I met back up with my friends from Ohio and I showed them the program. Showed them my selfie with Derek and Julianne. They opted for the professional photo as they figured like me, they’d wait outside after the show to get their selfies.

Now, on to the show!! They opened up with a snappy number. The focus of the show is primarily on Derek and Julianne but they have 10 FABULOUS backup dancers who are wonderful in their own right. Some of them were on So You Think You can Dance. I don't follow that show so I'm not familiar with them but boy are they fab. From reading others' blogs, I knew Armen and Nika, who is the Dance Captain of these 10 people--5 ladies and 5 men.

Derek and Julianne reprised their Great Balls of Fire dance, sans piano because the stage in the Palace theater was too small to accommodate it. They also danced to Hey Pachuco which Julianne originally danced with Helio Castroneves and Derek reprised with Shawn Johnson during All Stars season 15 and was one of the dances for which he won an Emmy last year for Outstanding Choreography. They also danced a phenomenal Paso Doble and Derek pulled off Juliannes skirt and whipped it around him, again, amazing!! During the 2nd half of the show, Julianne and Derek sang Say Something and then at the end of that routine, Derek and Brittany danced his and Kellie's Freestyle including the mast move where Kellie leaned all the way forward.
They did a number, Anything You can do, I can do better, which was cute. Julianne started off with her two Mirrorballs..and then Derek countered with his 5 (the most of ANY professional dancer in the shows history and there's DWTS on other continents besides the US--Australia, India, to name a few) She mentioned her movies and he said I just won an Emmy..She said I can do splits he said I can too she goes, like this? BOOM down into a full split...He is like, um noo, I don't know why they call it Ballroom because these pants are tight!!! lol. Then they go back up the stairs and continue the banter and Julianne puts her hands over Derek's mouth so she'd 'win' the sing-off at the end of the routine.

They ended the show with the Song "Dare You". That was the song that Derek did his Freestyle with Amy Purdy this past season. They encouraged all of us to get out there and move, our bodies are made to move. Seize the moment, if there's something you've always wanted to do, get out there and do it. Don't wait...don't put it off because the road to "I'll do it tomorrow leads to nowhere".


 I will say the energy of the crowd in Greensburg was low. I saw a LOT of older people in their 50’s and 60’s and I guess they preferred to stay in their seats. When Derek and Julianne first came out, I started hooting and hollering and the lady in front of me asked me to be quiet! REALLY??? This is a rock concert for dance, not the ballet lady!!! When they danced to Happy, I got up to dance too and then another person asked me if I could sit down because they couldn’t see…..well then stand UP!!! They want you to move! I ignored her too! I mean really, I paid $400 for my ticket. If you want to see better, next time, YOU shell out the money for a closer seat!! So that kinda made me mad!! But I didn’t care.

During the show, when Derek came out for his Mustang Sally routine, I grabbed his hand and kissed his cheek. He then danced with a 10 yr old girl and brought a woman up on stage where he jumped over her. I also got the opportunity to kiss Jules on the cheek too! Not once but twice!! An older man in the row in front of me, said..hey!! You already did that! I said, well that’s the luxury of having an aisle seat. Just wish I had someone who could've taken pics of me kissing Derek and Julianne

When it was Julianne’s turn, there was a married couple in my row and she volunteered her hubby Bob. Since Nika was coming up my row I called out for her and pointed to Bob and she brought him up on stage! He didn’t win the dance off, a younger guy named Niko did. Still cute! My knowing the names of the troupe dancers helped get Bob up on stage, I’d say

All in all a great show! I just wish the energy in the crowd would’ve been better so to me, that was a bit disappointing. This was a dance concert, not the ballet or the opera, so people weren’t going to be quiet and I don’t know what the lady in front of me expected. She muttered a half-apology after intermission and I just looked at her and said. I don’t know if you saw Derek and Julianne on Ellen after the tour was announced but they WANT people to get up, dance and have a good time!

After the show, I went outside and waited for Derek and Julianne to come out. I brought my copy of People magazine for them to sign. There were only about maybe 100 people there. I’d say we waited less than 30 minutes. Julianne actually came out first. She is so pretty up close. Then Derek….everyone hooted and hollered when he came out. Wearing a white teeshirt and smelling oh so yummy. I was standing on the sidewalk across from where their bus was parked. My Ohio friends got a pic of them both kissing Derek on the cheek and the one girl got Derek to dip her. Another woman did a little tap dance with Derek and he thought that was cool! I think someone retweeted it When it was my turn, I got my magazine signed and then gave Derek a big hug and got my money shot, a selfie and it turned out PERFECT!!!! I will be blowing it up to at least a 5x7 and framing it! His scent is amazing! He smells so yummy! I could smell him on me 4 hours after I got my selfie! I can still vaguely smell him 10 hours later. The cologned is familiar to me…I’ve smelled it before. Now just to pinpoint which one it is.

All I know is that I’m NEVER washing that shirt again!! I folded it up and put it in a ziploc baggie