Ballroom!: Obsession and Passion Inside the World of Competitive Dance

Dreams are made and broken every year in the dazzling Empress Ballroom at the Winter Gardens in Blackpool, England. Fierce competition, brutal politics, and stunning artistry are all on the programme at the world’s most prestigious competition, known to ballroom dance enthusiasts simply as
Blackpool.

Sharon Savoy’s lifelong love affair with dance manifested itself early on. At the tender age of 16 she left home to train under George Balanchine at the School of American Ballet in New York. An accomplished ballerina, her desire to dance more expressively and with a partner led her on the path that culminated on the competition ballroom circuit. There, her passion and artistry led her to become a four-time champion in exhibition style. But, as with all obsessions, her success came with a cost.

In this spellbinding book, Savoy offers a backstage pass to a world where rhinestones and high heels accompany explosive athleticism and staggering talent. With emotionally absorbing and energy-packed prose, she provides an insider’s close-up view of all the players who compose this glamorous world that is part dance, part sport, and part art.