Mark Ballas

Mark Alexander Ballas Jr. (born May 24, 1986 in Houston, Texas) is an American actor, dancer and singer/songwriter/musician. He is best known for being a pro on Dancing with the Stars like his father Corcky.

Early Life
Ballas was born in Houston, Texas, the son of dancers Corky Ballas and Shirley Ballas (née Rich). His paternal grandparents were of Mexican, Spanish, and Greek background, and his mother is British. His paternal grandfather, George Ballas, was the inventor of the Weed Eater lawn-trimming device.

Ballas attended Rosemead Preparatory school in South London, and was in the same year as acclaimed British ballet dancer Max Westwell of the English National Ballet.

At the age of 11, he earned a full-time slot at the Academy, as well as earning a full scholarship to the college. In 2005, he was awarded "Performer of the Year". He then moved on to win championships at The British Open to the World, The US Open to the World, and The International Open to the World. With his former partner Julianne Hough, he won the Junior Latin American Dance Championship and the gold medal at the Junior Olympics.

As a youth, Ballas was a member of a pop singing trio called "2B1G"(2 Boys 1 Girl"), along with Julianne Hough and Derek Hough.

Ballas' mother, an award-winning Latin American dancer, was recently featured on Dancing with the Stars.

Dancing with the Stars
Mark joined Dancing with the Stars on its fifth season. His first partner is Cheetah Girl Sabrina Bryan; they were the sixth couple to be eliminated in a shocking elimination. Sabrina recently came back as a contestant in the current All-Star season but with a different pro partner (Louis Van Amstel). The next season to follow, Mark partnered with champion figure skater Kristi Yamaguchi and went on to win the season. Mark has/had many more celebrity partners as the seasons went on.

Acting
As an actor, Ballas played the lead role of Tony in the musical Copacabana and was the lead dancer in the UK national tour of the Spanish musical Maria de Buenos Aires. He was also the understudy for the role of Ritchie Valens in the UK national tour of Buddy, The Buddy Holly Story. Ballas played an extra in Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone as part of the Hufflepuff House. In October 2008, Ballas made a guest appearance on the season premiere of Samantha Who. In September 2010, Ballas had a guest appearance on his former Dancing with the Stars partner Melissa Joan Hart's new series, Melissa & Joey.

Music
He began playing the guitar at age of 4, and at 12 began to write and perform his own music, playing guitar, drums, and bass. The Hough siblings and Ballas formed a pop music trio called 2B1G (2 Boys 1 Girl). With his friend Derek Hough, he formed the band Almost Amy, the name of which was later changed to the Ballas Hough Band. The other members of the band are singer Emily Grace, who plays flute, saxophone, and piano; Sam Marder, who plays bass; and Harry Sullivan, who plays drums.

Links

 * His Official Site
 * His Twitter Page