About Us

You may know us as Pros on Dancing With The Stars competing for the Mirrorball Trophy alongside your favorite celebrity contestants, but before we ever stepped foot on the legendary show, we were teaching wedding couples, like you, in a studio in NYC while pursuing our dream of being world-champion dancers…living out of a suitcase, traveling the world, and competing for the most prestigious titles in countless competitions, all while holding on to an idea we knew would change the way couples learned their First Dance forever. But before the glitz & the glam, the first time we ever stepped on the dance floor as kids, we knew we were meant to be dancers. And from that very first moment to now, we’ve lived an epic life full of chasing dreams, adventure, and love, and want to share every milestone we’ve experienced along the way with you. We value your endless support & inspiring stories within the WDS Community, and want nothing more than to share the love and tell you our story! Let’s begin!

Lots of love, Pasha & Daniella

PERSONAL LIFE

14 years together, 10 years competing, 9 years married, 5 years in Hollywood, 3 years of WDS, 2 months of baby life, and a lifetime of happiness. We met in 2009 as dance partners, fell madly in love, and became life partners that have now spent every single second together since we first found each other on the dance floor 14 years ago

Since that first moment, we spent the next 10 years together, 24/7, based in New York – but living out of a suitcase – traveling the world and representing the USA in world-class dance competitions. Within all these years of experiencing the most magical, life-changing achievements though, the most special day of our lives was on our 4-year anniversary in 2013 when Pasha decided to recreate the first moment when he first said “I love you”. He started by saying the exact words he said when he first told me he loved me: “I think I’m falling in love with you,” but added, “…all over again”. Then he got down on his knee and proposed…by far the best moment of our lives. Then on July 18th, 2014 in the gorgeous state of New Jersey, we had the most beautiful ceremony we ever could’ve imagined. We said yes to each other in front of all our dearest friends and family, and sealed the promise of forever with the sweetest kiss. Now, 9 years later, along with getting the call that changed the course of our careers in 2018, giving us the opportunity to join the cast of Dancing With The Stars and moving to my dream city of LA, plus launching our lifelong idea for The Wedding Dance School in 2020, we added the newest & cutest member of the Pashkovs to our family with baby girl Nikita, born in May of 2023. Filling our lives with pure joy. We met on the dance floor as two people needing dance partners but were given the gift of a lifelong, eternal partnership, on and off the dance floor, and beyond.

Pro Career

For years we lived out of a suitcase competing for the most prestigious dance competition titles in the world – think Wimbledon, but sexier! And at the same time, in between traveling, we were at home in New York training for competitions & teaching wedding couples their First Dance…

Pasha and I started dance classes when we were kids (think 3 & 10 years old – Pasha started a little late hehe), so to have a career where we can do the thing that brings us the most joy & fulfillment together for the most respected judges and audiences around the world was a true blessing and some of the most exciting years of our lives. Our most cherished title has to be Blackpool Champions – the oldest & most prestigious dance competition in the world. With that, we’ve had the incredible opportunity to be the first couple to represent the USA in the same year in 3 world championships in 3 different dance styles. A serious wow moment for us! We spent months away from home competing in the USA and across Europe & Asia in China, Japan, Korea, Singapore, Germany, and England, winning 10 world championships and 10 national titles. All of this beautiful experience & knowledge we’ve gained we now use to inspire the choreography, movement, and experience for our First Dances in The Wedding Dance School…which was an idea Pasha actually had years before we officially launched in 2020.

LIFE IN SHOWBIZ

We retired from dancing around the world for World of Dance … because when JLO calls (or her producer), you answer! We completed our adventure of competing around the world and felt called to do more, something where we could express ourselves more creatively & comfortably … like jeans and a t-shirt comfortable.

We started our new life by choreographing & publishing dance videos to popular songs, like Ed Sheeran’s “Shape of You” to express ourselves in a new way. Shortly after it went VIRAL, World of Dance invited us to join the show and from that point on the dance dominos kept tumbling, all the way to Dancing With The Stars. Before officially joining the cast, Daniella was first invited to partner with Derek Hough for his music video and then asked to be his partner on his live tour across the nation. While Daniella was touring, we were asked to audition for DWTS. I flew in, Daniella submitted a self-tape, and then we heard nothing for months…and then 3 days before the cast announcement on Good Morning America we got the call that we were cast & to get ready for the show! Our actual lifelong dream was coming true. So we packed our bags for LA ASAP (Daniella’s dream city) and started our next chapter as pros on DWTS. After season 1 wrapped, the 70-city tour began & we started traveling the country by bus for the next 3 months before Covid canceled the tour. We decided to hide out in New York with family while looking for leases in LA. During this pause, we finally had the time to bring our online First Dance school to life, and so we did! After months of recording and uploading our First Dances, we finally launched in November 2020. But soon after, it was time to officially move to LA & begin the next season of DWTS. And then, after only 2 seasons of competing as pros, Daniella won her first Mirrorball Trophy alongside her partner Iman Shumpert on Season 30 AND was Emmy Nominated for two routines she choreographed! Joining Dancing With The Stars was a dream we’ve had since we began our dance careers, but everything else that’s happened since joining has been a true fairytale come to life.

Launch of WDS

From an NYC studio to 10,000 couples from 30+ countries worldwide. The idea of an online First Dance course where any couple in the world could learn their First Dance through simple-to-follow, step-by-step lessons from the comfort of their home with zero dance experience was thought of amidst teaching wedding couples their First Dance in crowded studios in New York City.

We were teaching 6-8 couples per day in person and couples across the nation & around the world online via Zoom, all while competing on the weekends. Our time to teach was limited, the demand for lessons was growing, and we knew we had to figure out a way to teach these couples their beautiful First Dance without physically being there, and so they could learn their lessons on their own time, schedule, and convenience. This is why we created WDS in the first place: so that every couple can experience the joy of learning their First Dance through simple instruction, guided choreography, and have access to the steps, course, and instructors with a click of a button – all without leaving their home! We carried this idea with us for YEARS before we had the chance to put it all together. So when Covid hit, the world shut down and we had a career pause for the first time ever. We finally had the time to create a platform, choreograph, record & upload our courses, and officially launched in November 2020. If Covid showed us anything, it was that anything taught in person can be taught online, if not better, easier, and with less stress. And since then, thousands of couples have used our courses to learn their First Dance for their wedding day. To this day, the feedback from our couples has been the most special reward of it all. Our couples consistently tell us that learning their First Dance was filled with the best bonding they’ve ever experienced together as a couple – learning something new together, encouraging each other, and having a dedicated amount of time for just them was the highlight of it all. Our initial goal with The Wedding Dance School was to create an online course where every couple, no matter their dance experience, could learn a beautifully choreographed First Dance through step-by-step, beginner-focused choreography without the stress & expense, but it’s become so much more than just that. It’s become one of the most cherished experiences couples have on the road to their wedding day. And that is priceless.

the quiz

If we weren’t dancers, who would we be?

Daniella – Fashion, jewelry or interior designer!

Pasha – Soccer player or a detective!

Childhood favorite Disney movie?

Pasha – Aladdin & Mulan

Daniella – Beauty and The Beast

Go-to cheat meal?

Daniella – Extra Cheese Pepperoni Pizza and Glazed Donuts

Pasha – Sea Salt Caramel Ice Cream

Desert Island book?

Pasha – The Alchemist

Daniella – Harry Potter

Feel-good favorite TV show?

Daniella – Friends & Rules of Engagement

Pasha – The Office & Big Bang Theory

A moment we would love to relive?

Our wedding day and the birth of our daughter, Nikita!