In addition to Maks and Peta's love story, the show will also have nods to Val Chmerkovskiy's girlfriend, Jenna Johnson, whom he calls his 'muse.'
It’s a family affair for the Chmerkovskiys!
Brothers Maksim, 38, and Val, 31, are hitting the road yet again with another showstopping dance tour, and this time, they’ve invited a few familiar faces along for the ride. Namely, Maks’ wife and fellow Dancing With the Stars pro, Peta Murgatroyd, 31, and So You Think You Can Dance finalists, Kiki Nyemchek and Koko Iwasaki.
ET was exclusively invited inside the Maks, Val and Peta: Confidential Tour rehearsals in Hollywood last week, where Val dished, “It’s ‘My Big Fat Greek Wedding,’ meets The Rat Pack, meets hints of Magic Mike.”
The lead trio assured ET the tour will be very, very personal, drawing on real life experiences. For Maks and Peta, that includes sharing the highs and lows of their relationship through choreography.
“We’re dropping major truth!” Peta said, emphatically. “I don't think I've fully gone back to what has happened yet, I haven't let myself go there yet,” referring to the couple’s brief split in 2013. She continued, “We broke up for a year, so I haven't really gone there yet, but it’s going to be a process of crazy emotion. I’m sure when I go there, it’s going to be very intense to relive.”
Maks was equally candid, explaining, “The reality is that the end result is beautiful, but not necessarily everything leading up to it was beautiful… We sat down and said, 'Listen, people are going to know. Are you ready?' and she said, 'Yes.' We involved some of the best in the industry to help us retell that.”
So, just how did Maks win the Australian beauty back? Peta said it was all “timing.”
“I don’t think it's just one thing that he did… It was a point where he realized that he’s being a little silly and that he needs to realize that he did love me all along,” Peta recalled. “It was an awesome moment, so we’re gonna relive that.”
The couple reconnected in 2015, and went on to marry in 2017 in a dreamy, 3-day wedding extravaganza. To help recreate their nuptials on stage, Maks and Peta called on famed, Emmy-award winning choreographer Mandy Moore.
“Somebody like Mandy, she knows us through and through. She was at the wedding, so we didn’t have to sit down and talk to her about it,” Maks dished. “The end result is just so heartfelt. It’s like I’m not being choreographed, ‘Here are the steps, do this,’ it’s like, ‘This is the story,’ and it’s just brilliant storytelling.”
Peta calls their wedding number “really emotional” and “bringing back all the feels.”
“It's a contemporary way of describing us walking down [the aisle], and having that first dance together, it’s magical,” the blonde beauty marveled.
Frankly, according to Val, “You’re going to want to have a baby after this show!”
The love story doesn’t end with Maks and Peta; Val says the show will also showcase his relationship with fellow DWTS pro, Jenna Johnson.
“Yeah, Val love story is in the show,” he said, smiling. “[Jenna has] been my muse, for a lack of a better word. She's been my partner in crime. Everything that I've created on Dancing With the Stars I’d say on the last four years on the show, she's played a huge part of… She's been there for me for a long time.”
Fans of the Chmerkovskiy crew will be pleased to know they’re “absolutely” continuing the tradition of interacting with the audience during the show. Similar to their previous tour, they teased, you may even wind up on stage!
Val coyly explained, “You'll feel the camaraderie and love on stage, and then, by the end of the show, you’ll feel like you’re part of our family.”
If that’s not your idea of facetime, the dancing pros are also offering the opportunity to purchase a VIP meet and greet package, which includes hanging out with the cast (and baby Shai!) in their dressing room before the show.
While Peta calls it “a nice way of bonding” with fans, Maks and Val seem up for almost anything…!
“I’ve signed a boob,” Maks recalled of his craziest fan experience (adding that it was before Peta entered his life). “Some time later, I think I saw the same person with the tatted over signature… You can get [Val] to sign the other one if you want, and Peta will sign something in the back!” Maks joked.
Maks, Val & Peta: Confidential kicks off March 19.
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