<\/p>\n
The upcoming season of \u201cDancing With the Stars\u201d has added more Utahns to its already Utah-heavy cast.<\/p>\n
On Wednesday, the dance competition reality series announced Hailey Bills, Onye Stevenson, Carter Williams and Jaxon Willard as the Season 34 troupe \u2014 a group of professional dancers who perform on the show, but do not get coupled up with celebrity partners.<\/p>\n
Three of the four troupe members have Utah connections.<\/p>\n
Bills is a student at Brigham Young University and performed as a Cougarette<\/a> during the 2024-2025 season. Williams is a Utahn and close friend of current \u201cDancing With the Stars\u201d pro Rylee Arnold. And Willard grew up in American Fork, Utah.<\/p>\n Bills, Williams and Willard all trained at Center Stage Performing Arts in Orem, per Parade<\/a>. Several current and former \u201cDancing With the Stars\u201d pros, including Rylee Arnold, Lindsay Arnold, Whitney Carson, Ezra Sosa and Brandon Armstrong, also trained at the Utah studio.<\/p>\n \u201cFOREVER pinching myself\u2026 stepping onto the @dancingwiththestars stage as part of the Season 34 Troupe!!!!!” Williams wrote in an Instagram post<\/a> announcing he had been cast on the reality show.<\/p>\n He continued, \u201cA dream turned reality & I couldn\u2019t be more grateful for every step that led me here.\u201d<\/p>\n The upcoming season of \u201cDancing With the Stars\u201d already has several Utah connections. Five of the 12 professional dancers are Utahns \u2014 Witney Carson, Ezra Sosa, Jenna Johnson, Brandon Armstrong and Rylee Arnold.<\/p>\n A handful of Utah celebrities were also cast as guest dancers on the reality show. Reality stars and influencers known for the Utah-based series \u201cThe Secret Live of Mormon Wives,\u201d Whitney Leavitt and Jen Affleck, will both compete on the series.<\/p>\n The reality series has always had Utah connections. Siblings Julianne Hough, a longtime co-host on the series, and Derek Hough, a judge who has been involved with the series for roughly two decades, were both born and raised in Orem.<\/p>\n Utah\u2019s strong dance culture has paved the way for several Utahns to dance professionally on \u201cDancing With the Stars\u201d every season.<\/p>\n Rylee Arnold, a current \u201cDancing With the Stars\u201d pro raised in Provo, credits the Beehive State\u2019s unique dance training style with turning out so many pro dancers.<\/p>\n \u201cI just feel like there\u2019s really good training in Utah. We were blessed with some really good teachers, and it\u2019s cross-training \u2014 so there\u2019s really good training for all sorts of styles outside of ballroom. And then plus really good teachers that teach us that Latin ballroom style,” Arnold said in an interview with Us Weekly<\/a>.<\/p>\n She continued, \u201cSo the dancers that come from Utah, we\u2019re just well-versed and well-rounded, and we know all the styles and that just kind of sets you apart from other people as well. So I just think its a really good place to grow up in and to learn how to dance.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cDancing With the Stars\u201d Season 34 premieres on ABC on Tuesday, Sept. 16, at 7 p.m. MDT. Follow-up episodes will air weekly on Tuesdays at 7 p.m. MDT.<\/p>\n<\/div>\nWhen does \u2018Dancing With the Stars\u2019 Season 34 come out?<\/h3>\n