Celebrity Judges
What makes a good competition great? The judges! The success of Dancing with the Stars television show is due in large part to the celebrity judges. Their striking personalities, witty remarks, and on-point fashion give an element of entertainment and excitement to the weekly event that keeps America tuning in season after season. Knowing this, Dancing Stars of Greenwich has once again assembled an incredible panel of star-studded celebrity judges to delight our attendees and dancers alike.
For the past four events, our celebrity judges line-up have included Academy Award winning actor Brendan Fraser, International Fitness guru and Broadway actor Billy Blanks Jr., Sports-Illustrated swimsuit model and former Cover Girl Paulina Porizkova, co-anchor for Good Morning America, Lara Spencer, actress and producer Ali Wentworth, and Tony Dovolani, Fred Astaire's national co-dance director, who has also captured the hearts of millions as a professional dancer performing on the ABC's Dancing with the Stars show. The Dancing Stars of Greenwich judges and Fred Astaire professional dancers are not only celebrities and media personalities, but they are also visionaries who are invested in the cause and committed to building the next generation of dancers. Our goal is to make every competition a unique experience and one you will always remember and most of all, enjoy! This year certainly carries on that tradition with another gathering of our most ardent supporters and celebrity judges.
Brendan Fraser
8-time award-winning actor Brendan Fraser joins Dancing Stars of Greenwich judging panel for his fifth year. Fraser is a Canadian American actor. He is known for playing Rick O'Connell in The Mummy movie trilogy, as well as for leading roles in comedy and fantasy films including Encino Man, George of the Jungle, Bedazzled, Looney Tunes: Back in Action, and Journey to the Center of the Earth. Fraser branched into dramatic cinema with roles in Gods and Monsters, The Quiet American, and Crash.
During a hiatus from film acting, Fraser found a new audience in television, with supporting roles in the History miniseries Texas Rising, the Showtime drama series, and the FX anthology series Trust.
Of course, one cannot overstate his most recent career accomplishment in winning the Best Actor Oscar (among other awards) for his magnificent performance in The Whale, directed by Darren Aronofsky. We are grateful for his continued support of Abilis and certainly appreciate his understated sense of humor and jovial, supportive nature as a returning judge.
Ali Wentworth - Emcee
Ali Wentworth, actress, comedian, producer, host of her podcast Go Ask Ali and New York Times bestselling author, returns as our emcee (or "Mistress of Ceremonies" if you prefer) for the evening. Having been an on-air correspondent on The Oprah Winfrey Show, she can command a room. Wentworth was the host of 2003's Living it Up! with Ali & Jack. Ali also made a name for herself as a regular on two seasons of In Living Color where her dead-on impersonations of Cher, Cindy Crawford, and Sharon Stone quickly became trademarks of the show. She followed up her time on In Living Color with a starring role in the Fox series, Hardball, and appeared as guest host for two episodes of Later.
In an unprecedented move to develop a recurring role around a performer, The Tonight Show with Jay Leno featured Ali on a road trip across the country in a $7 car in the program's sweeps comedy piece.
Her TV credits also include the memorable role as Jerry Seinfeld's girlfriend, Schmoopie, in the series classic "Soup Nazi" episode. Ali appeared in It's Complicated, directed by Nancy Meyers and starring Meryl Streep and Alec Baldwin. She has also appeared in movies such as Twentieth Century Fox feature Office Space, and The Wonderful World of Disney's remake of the classic film, The Love Bug.
Ali will certainly bring the funny with her unique blend of irreverent wit and charm adding a dimension of entertainment to the evening's festivities.
Meg Tolin Piper
Meg returns this year as a seasoned Broadway actress and dancer. Meg has performed on Broadway as Maria in THE SOUND OF MUSIC with Richard Chamberlain. Her first Broadway show was GRAND HOTEL where she appeared as the understudy to the role of Flaemmchen with Cyd Charisse.
She made her Canadian debut in SHOW BOAT in the role of Kim, opposite none other than the iconic Cloris Leachman. She also reprised the role on Broadway in a later production.
Meg's eye for technical work as well as her understanding of the inspiration behind the dance, gives her distinctive insight as not only an observer, but also a judge for the evening's performances.
Eric "Champagne" Shoji
Eric "Champagne" Shoji has been a DJ and song producer for over 10 years. He has traveled the world performing as an international DJ/Emcee, including the most iconic venue in the world, Madison Square Garden. Champagne is a business partner with Abilis' beloved Billy Blanks Jr. and currently runs and operates their two dance studios on the West and East coast, Blanks Studios
Together they own the dance fitness program Dance It Out, their production company Jumpcast Productions, and their MoveTube channel on YouTube, which has over 175K subscribers around the world. Champagne Shoji has also worked with Paula Abdul, Jordan Sparks, Natasha Bedingfield, and more. You can Stream all of Champagne's mixes on his YouTube Channel today or find him on the Lifetime TV network, where he appears on the Dance it Out Television show.