Katya Virshilas
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Katya Virshilas (born 10 September 1983) is a Lithuanian-
Canadian Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...
dancer and actress.


Early life

Virshilas was born in Lithuania, to a
Jewish Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...
family. She subsequently moved to
Israel Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...
at age 6, and to
Vancouver Vancouver ( ) is a major city in western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the ...
,
British Columbia British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that include rocky coastlines, sandy beaches, ...
, Canada, at thirteen. She began dancing at the age of 13.


Career

She was a Vancouver British Columbia Dancesport Champion four times, from 1998 to 2002.Shiamak is India's Michael Jackson!
''The Times of India'', 13 November 2007 In 2001, she and her partner won the Canadian Latin Dance Championship.
Free-Press-Release.com Virshilas has appeared in the Hollywood films '' Shall We Dance?'' (2004), ''
Take the Lead ''Take the Lead'' is a 2006 American drama dance film directed by Liz Friedlander and starring Antonio Banderas as dance instructor Pierre Dulaine, the founder of Dancing Classrooms. It also stars Alfre Woodard, John Ortiz, Rob Brown, Yaya DaC ...
'' and ''
John Tucker Must Die ''John Tucker Must Die'' is a 2006 teen comedy film directed by Betty Thomas. The film is about a trio of teenage girls who plot to break the heart of school basketball star John Tucker after they learn he has been secretly dating all three and p ...
'' (both 2006), and in the television shows '' Smallville'', '' Supernatural'', '' Psych'', and others. Based in the United Kingdom from the start of her appearances in the
BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...
...
's ''Strictly Come Dancing'' series, she has since 2009 been professionally partnered with
Danish Danish may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to the country of Denmark People * A national or citizen of Denmark, also called a "Dane," see Demographics of Denmark * Culture of Denmark * Danish people or Danes, people with a Danish a ...
dancer Klaus Kongsdal. Virshilas toured the UK with
Pasha Kovalev Pavel "Pasha" Kovalev (russian: Па́вел "Па́ша" Ковалёв) is a Russian professional Latin and ballroom dancer. Kovalev started dancing at the age of eight, and in 2001, moved to the United States with his professional dance par ...
from 26 March 2012 in their own show. She also starred in
John Tucker Must Die ''John Tucker Must Die'' is a 2006 teen comedy film directed by Betty Thomas. The film is about a trio of teenage girls who plot to break the heart of school basketball star John Tucker after they learn he has been secretly dating all three and p ...
in a minor role.


''Strictly Come Dancing''

She appeared as a professional dancer on series 7 (2009) of '' Strictly Come Dancing'' partnering
cricket Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of eleven players on a field at the centre of which is a pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two bails balanced on three stumps. The batting side scores runs by str ...
er
Phil Tufnell Philip Clive Roderick Tufnell (born 29 April 1966) is a former English international cricketer and current television and radio personality. A slow left-arm orthodox spin bowler, he played in 42 Test matches and 20 One Day Internationals for ...
. They were knocked out of the competition in week 9. On that week, they were in the bottom-two couples after a combination of the judges' points allocation and the audience's votes, alongside
Ricky Groves Richard Groves (born 23 April 1968) is an English actor best known for playing Garry Hobbs in ''EastEnders'' from 2000–09. Before his role in ''EastEnders'' he appeared in the series '' Burnside'', a spin-off from ''The Bill''. He trained a ...
and
Erin Boag Erin Boag (born 17 March 1975) is a professional ballroom dancer. She has danced from the age of three, originally starting ballet and later moving into ballroom, Latin and jazz. Born in Auckland, New Zealand, she moved to Australia as a teenag ...
but were not saved by the judges. Virshilas returned for the eighth series of the dancing show in autumn 2010 and was partnered with rugby player
Gavin Henson Gavin Lloyd Henson (born 1 February 1982) is a Welsh former professional rugby union player, who played as a fly-half, fullback and inside centre. Between 2000 and 2019 he played for Llanelli, Swansea RFC, the Ospreys, Saracens, Toulon, Ca ...
. In week 1 they scored 28 (their highest so far) and in week 4 they scored 23 for a tango to Britney Spears's "
Toxic Toxicity is the degree to which a chemical substance or a particular mixture of substances can damage an organism. Toxicity can refer to the effect on a whole organism, such as an animal, bacterium, or plant, as well as the effect on a subs ...
". However, were knocked out on the semi-final. In the ninth series, she was paired with
Dan Lobb Daniel Jonathon Lobb (born 7 January 1972) is a British retired tennis player and television presenter, best known for co-presenting the ITV Breakfast programme '' Daybreak'' from 2010 until 2012. Since 2015, he co-presents ''Cowboy Builders'' ...
who was at the time one of the presenters of '' Daybreak''. However, they were eliminated in week 3 of the competition. On 20 June 2012, it was announced that Virshilas would not appear in the tenth series. Highest and Lowest Scoring Per Dance


Series 7 - with celebrity partner

Phil Tufnell Philip Clive Roderick Tufnell (born 29 April 1966) is a former English international cricketer and current television and radio personality. A slow left-arm orthodox spin bowler, he played in 42 Test matches and 20 One Day Internationals for ...


Series 8 - with celebrity partner

Gavin Henson Gavin Lloyd Henson (born 1 February 1982) is a Welsh former professional rugby union player, who played as a fly-half, fullback and inside centre. Between 2000 and 2019 he played for Llanelli, Swansea RFC, the Ospreys, Saracens, Toulon, Ca ...


Series 9 - with celebrity partner

Dan Lobb Daniel Jonathon Lobb (born 7 January 1972) is a British retired tennis player and television presenter, best known for co-presenting the ITV Breakfast programme '' Daybreak'' from 2010 until 2012. Since 2015, he co-presents ''Cowboy Builders'' ...


''So You Think You Can Dance''

On the first series of the televised reality dancing competition ''
So You Think You Can Dance ''So You Think You Can Dance'' is a franchise of reality television shows in which contestants compete in dance. The first series of the franchise, created by '' Idols'' producers Simon Fuller and Nigel Lythgoe, premiered in July 2005 and ha ...
,'' Virshilas choreographed or semi-choreographed four routines for different couples: * Week 1 helped James Jordan with the choreography of Robbie White and Yanet Fuentes's American Smooth style foxtrot * Week 2 choreographed (alongside professional partner Klaus) Mark Calape and Lizzie Gough's
Viennese Waltz Viennese waltz (german: Wiener Walzer) is a genre of ballroom dance. At least four different meanings are recognized. In the historically first sense, the name may refer to several versions of the waltz, including the earliest waltzes done in b ...
, which was highly praised by the judges * Week 5 choreographed (alongside professional partner Klaus) Mandy Montanez and Alastair Postlethwaite's
Paso Doble Pasodoble ( Spanish: ''double step'') is a fast-paced Spanish military march used by infantry troops. Its speed allowed troops to give 120 steps per minute (double the average of a regular unit, hence its name). This military march gave rise ...
, which was criticized by the judges for the lack of passion, in particular,
Nigel Lythgoe Nigel Lythgoe OBE (; born 9 July 1949), also known as Nasty Nigel, is an English television and film director and producer, television dance competition judge, former dancer in the Young Generation and choreographer. He was the producer of the ...
, series creator and judge, said it was the worst performance the pair had given over the course of the whole series * Week 6 (final) choreographed (alongside professional partner Klaus) Lizzie Gough and Tommy Franzén's tango, much to the praise of the judges Virshilas reappeared on the second series to choreograph more routines: * Week 2 choreographed (alongside professional partner Klaus) Stephanie Powell and Gian Luca Loddo's cha-cha-cha, which was praised by the judges, despite Powell and Loddo being placed in the bottom two couples by public vote and consequently eliminated * Week 2 choreographed (alongside professional partner Klaus) Alice Woodhouse and Charlie Wheeller's
American Smooth This is a list of dance terms that are not names of dances or types of dances. See List of dances and List of dance style categories for those. This glossary lists terms used in various types of ballroom partner dances, leaving out terms of highly ...
style
waltz The waltz ( ), meaning "to roll or revolve") is a ballroom and folk dance, normally in triple ( time), performed primarily in closed position. History There are many references to a sliding or gliding dance that would evolve into the w ...
, praised highly by the judges * Week 7 choreographed (alongside professional partner Klaus) the boys' group
Paso Doble Pasodoble ( Spanish: ''double step'') is a fast-paced Spanish military march used by infantry troops. Its speed allowed troops to give 120 steps per minute (double the average of a regular unit, hence its name). This military march gave rise ...
performance (Lee Bridgman, Luke Jackson and Matt Flint) * Week 8 (final) choreographed (alongside professional partner Klaus) Matt Flint and Kirsty Swain's American Smooth style
waltz The waltz ( ), meaning "to roll or revolve") is a ballroom and folk dance, normally in triple ( time), performed primarily in closed position. History There are many references to a sliding or gliding dance that would evolve into the w ...
/ foxtrot


Personal life

Virshilas started dating Klaus Kongsdal in 2009 after the two met at the BBC bar. They announced their engagement in January 2011. The couple married on Saturday 7 July 2012 in a chateau in Loire Valley, France. The couple since then moved to Hong Kong and founded Ballroom Bees dance class for children below 6 years old, the dance courses are sold online and offline at YWCA.org an
Kuddo
After Virshilas initially suffering a miscarriage in 2014, the couple had their first child, a boy, in May 2016.


References


External links

*
Katya Virshilas in the dance drama "Take the Lead" with Antonio BanderasKatya Virshilas and Pasha Kovalev
{{DEFAULTSORT:Virshilas, Katya 1983 births 20th-century Canadian actresses 21st-century Canadian actresses Actresses from Vancouver Canadian choreographers Canadian expatriates in England Canadian people of Lithuanian-Jewish descent Canadian female dancers Lithuanian Jews Lithuanian expatriates in Canada Canadian film actresses Canadian television actresses Jewish Canadian actresses So You Think You Can Dance choreographers Lithuanian expatriates in England Living people Canadian women choreographers