What fun it is to shine a light on UCan2 teacher, Jonny Williams, humble, he didn't even mention being a TV Star when we "interviewed" him for this article! You'll find out more when you keep on reading ...
Jonny is a 10-dance and New Vogue teacher, specialising in New Vogue Modern Sequence dances as well as both Standard (aka Ballroom) and Latin American dances, representing New Zealand in countries like Japan, China, Australia and America. If that’s the kind of dance level you want to excel at, you can click here to book Jonny for your next private lesson!
Jonny Williams
Where were you born?
New Zealand.
When did dance come into your life?
I started dancing at Intermediate School, which was taught by our class teacher.
Who was the most influential person in your life?
My Mum, my number one fan!
What is one fun fact about you?
I like to play video games.
What was the happiest time of your life?
Now - spending time with my young family.
What is your favourite genre or style of dancing?
Ballroom, Latin then New Vogue.
If you had never learned to dance, what do you think you’d be doing now?
Working in I.T.
What is one style of dance you wish you learned / could do better?
Hip hop!
What was a time when you felt incredibly proud of your dancing career, as a dancer or as a teacher?
When I became a Professional Champion in all three styles.
Why do you teach dancing? What do you get out of it?
I love working towards goals with my students, like competition and medal tests.
What is your favourite thing about UCan2 Dance Studio?
I love the team work at Ucan2.
What is your passion, or a favourite hobby, outside of dancing?
Gaming and Mixed Martial Arts.
One piece of advice for aspiring/ beginner dancers?
Don’t be afraid to make mistakes, it’s part of the process.
What do you value most and why?
Family, it keeps me grounded.
What song are you most enjoying dancing to right now?
‘Tequila’ by The Champs. (You can listen to ‘Tequila’ on YouTube here!)
What’s the most misunderstood thing about being a dancer?
Our passion to get things right.
What’s your favourite quote about life (or dancing!)
To live a life in fear is a life half lived.
Anything else you’d like to share?
See you on the dance floor!
Did you know that Jonny was on Dancing with the Stars NZ?! From 2006- 2022 he was the Pro, partnering several celebrities who were the "stars" on the show!
Here’s a behind-the-scenes video of Jonny and Chrystal Chenery, a finalist on The Bachelor NZ in 2015.
Here’s one of their competition dances, a Jive Jonny choreographed to “Shake it Off”. The video comes from Chrystal Chenery’s personal YouTube channel and the caption reads:
“My first dance on ‘Dancing With The Stars NZ' Didn't fall over "so winning" My partner Jonny Williams created this Jive for us to Taylor Swift "Shake it off.””
Jonny’s most recent stint on Dancing with the Stars NZ was with Eli Matthewson, radio presenter of The Edge & comedian. This is a much-watch season as they presented as the New Zealand show's first-ever same-sex dance couple.
Here’s their first performance, an incredible Viennese Waltz, from Eli’s YouTube account. The caption reads:
“Eli and Jonny - Viennese Waltz, Ep One DWTS NZ 2022
Our first performance, this was such an incredible moment and such a privilege.”
You can also read this great message from Eli to Jonny detailing the impact of their time together on the show here. But for now, here are a couple of our favourite excerpts:
The teaching was good, but the friendship is so much more. The more we worked together the more you honed in on what sort of comedy I love to make, to the point where half the stuff we were putting online was your idea. You made me laugh every single day. I got to learn not just about the world of dance, but about UFC and Fortnite and which gaming laptops are the best. I got to see what a fantastic dad you are every time your kids came to visit. I got to see the incredible support you and your wife Kristie give each other through the extremely stressful process of competing against each other. I got to see the admiration that all of your students have for you every day when they came in for their lessons.
and another favourite;
We didn’t even talk about the word “ally” until we were making a bloody TikTok in the third week of training, but you had been showing allyship in ways I could not believe since day one. It was in the way you and Kristie made sure to talk about “leader” and “follower” steps in every group rehearsal, never once calling them “girl” or “boy’ steps and correcting other people when they did. It was in the way you never once made a joke about having to get changed in the same room as me, you never made anything awkward even as we learnt the most intimate moves. It was in the routines you choreographed, which always put the fact that we were two men at the forefront, and which never had one of us “being the boy” as so many people were obsessed with asking us about. It was in the way you said “I love you bro”, without any hint of hesitation, on live TV in the midst of all that happened on Monday. But most of all it was the way that all of this came naturally, that you never once were trying to put anything on or do the “right thing”.
I could tell it all came from a genuine place, and that you had no idea how generous you were being, by how surprised you were by the response we received. After our first performance my inbox filled up with messages from people thanking us for what we had done. Teenagers who were inspired to come out by what they saw, parents with kids as young as four describing the impact we had on their whānau, and queer people who have waited years to see this on our TV screens. I can’t thank you enough because, as important as it is to see queer people being their authentic selves and living their best lives on screen, I think it was seeing a straight man be so warm, open and kind to his gay mate that has struck a chord with so many.
... Jonny, we think you're awesome!
More recently, Jonny was part of the New Zealand Federal Association of Teachers of Dance Championships in 2023. You can find a video of his routine at the championships here.
To see more of Jonny’s work, and the behind-the-scenes of his incredible dedication, follow him on Instagram here, or follow his Facebook here.
Remember, you can click here to book a private lesson with Jonny through our studio. But as you’ve just seen, he’s a busy guy, so get onto that asap!
Read about the rest of our teachers here, or if you’re already caught up, stay tuned, we have one last teacher we're yet to shine the spotlight on!!!!