Peta Jane Murgatroyd (born 14 July 1986) is an Australian and American professional Latin dancer. She performed in the international tour of the dance production Burn the Floor, including its Broadway run. She is best known for her appearances on the American edition of Dancing with the Stars, which she and her partners have won twice.
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Early life
Murgatroyd was born in Auckland, New Zealand, but moved to Australia when she was 18 months old; as a result, she considers herself more of an Australian. She was raised in Perth, Western Australia, and started studying classical ballet at age 4. She trained for 12 years under former principal dancer of the Kirov Ballet, Madame Lubov Nikonorenko. An ankle injury at the age of 16 forced her to give up ballet. Murgatroyd then took up Latin dancing.
Career
Within months of beginning ballroom training, Murgatroyd became the W.A. Amateur Latin State Champion in 2002 and won the title again in 2003. She placed second in the Great World City Championships. Success at other competitions followed quickly; she was a semi-finalist in the Lion City Championships in Singapore and was a finalist in the Australian Open Championships. She placed third in the world at the Blackpool Dance Festival Youth Under 21 Latin competitions in 2005.
In 2018, she starred alongside Robert Krantz in the heartwarming, faith-based movie Faith, Hope & Love. She played the owner of a dance studio who is paired with a widower of two girls, in an amateur dancing contest.
Business ventures
Peta is the founder of Peta Jane Beauty, a self-tanning brand launched in 2015.
Burn the Floor
Murgatroyd joined the cast of Burn the Floor in 2004, touring with them around the world for six years. When Burn the Floor landed on Broadway in August 2009, Murgatroyd was the lead female dancer.
Dancing with the Stars
Murgatroyd joined the cast of Dancing with the Stars in 2011 as a member of the dance troupe in season 12. She became a regular member of the professional cast as of season 13.
Dancing with the Stars (Season 13)
In season 13, Murgatroyd competed on the show as a professional with basketball player Metta World Peace. Not only were they the first couple eliminated off the show, but also it marked Peta’s earliest exit in the competition.
Dancing with the Stars (Season 14)
In 2012, Murgatroyd was again featured as a professional dancer competing on season 14 as the partner of football player Donald Driver. On 22 May, it was announced that the couple was the winner of the competition. She is the second professional to win after finishing last the prior season, after Kym Johnson.
Dancing with the Stars (Season 15)
For season 15, Murgatroyd was partnered with actor and season 8 runner up Gilles Marini. They ended up in sixth place.
Dancing with the Stars (Season 16)
In 2013, Murgatroyd was again featured as a professional dancer competing on season 16 as the partner of The Bachelor star Sean Lowe. They landed in sixth place.
Dancing with the Stars (Season 17)
For season 17, Murgatroyd was paired with Pretty Little Liars actor Brant Daugherty. They were the sixth couple eliminated on 4 November 2013.
Dancing with the Stars (Season 18)
In 2014, Murgatroyd was again featured as a professional dancer competing on season 18 partnered with Big Time Rush member James Maslow. They made it to the finale but came in fourth place.
Sway: A Dance Trilogy
In 2014, Murgatroyd started performing in Sway: A Dance Trilogy in Westbury, New York alongside Maksim Chmerkovskiy. Chmerkovskiy credits his father Sasha with the idea for Sway. Sway is a live ballroom dance show starring Maksim, his brother Valentin, and Tony Dovolani. The show also features Murgatroyd, other professional dancers from Dancing with the Stars and So You think You Can Dance, and dance instructors from Dance with Me studios.
Personal life
Murgatroyd dated Australian professional ballroom dancer and former DWTS cast member Damian Whitewood for five years before breaking up in early 2012.
She had been dating DWTS pro Maksim Chmerkovskiy off and on since 2012. In 2015, Chmerkovskiy confirmed he and Murgatroyd were dating again. Chmerkovskiy and Murgatroyd became engaged on 5 December 2015, when he proposed while onstage for a performance of Sway: A Dance Trilogy in Miami, Florida. Their son, Shai Aleksander, was born on 4 January 2017. The two were married on 8 July 2017 at Oheka Castle in Long Island, New York. In June 2022, Murgatroyd revealed that she suffered three miscarriages between 2020 and 2021 and that she was undergoing in vitro fertilization to try to have another child. In early 2023, it was revealed that she was pregnant with the couple's second child after experiencing a natural conception. On 18 June 2023, she gave birth to another boy, Rio John.
On 5 February 2024 she announced she was pregnant with her third child. Milan Maksim was born on July 12, 2024.
On 10 October 2019, she was sworn in as a US citizen.