Mark Alexander Ballas Jr. (born May 24, 1986) is an American dancer.

Ballas is a professional ballroom dancer on the ABC program Dancing with the Stars. He began competing on the show in the fall of 2007. He was nominated for an Emmy for Outstanding Choreography in 2011. He is also a singer/songwriter/musician and released his first solo CD HurtLoveBox in March 2011.

Ballas was born in Houston, Texas, the son of dancers Corky Ballas and Shirley Ballas (née Rich). His paternal grandparents were of Mexican, Spanish, and Greek background, and his mother is British.^{[citation needed]} His paternal grandfather, George Ballas, was the inventor of the Weed Eater lawn-trimming device.

Ballas attended Rosemead Preparatory school in South London, and was in the same year as acclaimed British ballet dancer Max Westwell of the English National Ballet.

At the age of 11, he earned a full time slot at the Academy, as well as earning a full scholarship to the college. In 2005, he was awarded "Performer of the Year". He then moved on to win championships at The British Open to the World, The US Open to the World and The International Open to the World. With his former partner Julianne Hough, he won the Junior Latin American Dance Championship and the gold medal at the Junior Olympics.^{[disambiguation needed ][citation needed]}

Ryan John Seacrest (born December 24, 1974) is an American radio personality, television host and producer. He is known internationally as host of the top-rated primetime talent showcase American Idol. He has been nominated for an Emmy award in the "Outstanding Host for a Reality or Reality-Competition Program" category for his work on American Idol. He won a Daytime Emmy Award for co-hosting the 2005 Walt Disney World Christmas Day Parade with Regis Philbin and Kelly Ripa. As a television producer, Seacrest has won an Emmy for the ABC show Jamie Oliver’s Food Revolution. On radio, Seacrest is host of On Air with Ryan Seacrest, his market-topping #1 nationally syndicated LA morning drive-time radio show for Clear Channel’s 102.7 KIIS-FM. , as well as a nationally-syndicated Top 40 radio show. Seacrest hosted the 59th Primetime Emmy Awards on September 16, 2007. Seacrest has extensive deals with brand heavyweights Proctor & Gamble, Coca-Cola and Microsoft, and has a strategic marketing and technology alliance with Eventful, Inc.

Derek Hough ( /ˈhʌf/; born May 17, 1985) is an American dancer, choreographer, musician and actor. A world champion in Latin American Dance, Hough has appeared since September 2007 (Seasons 5 - 11 and Season 13) on the hit U.S. television series Dancing with the Stars, where he is currently a three-time champion (with Brooke Burke, Nicole Scherzinger, and Jennifer Grey), one-time finalist (with Ricki Lake), three-time semi-finalist (with Jennie Garth, Joanna Krupa, and Maria Menounos), and a quarter-finalist (with Lil' Kim). Hough has earned three Creative Arts Primetime Emmy nominations for Outstanding Choreography (2009 and 2010 ) for his work on the show.

Prior to joining Dancing with the Stars, Hough starred as Ren in the 2006 original cast production of Footloose: The Musical at the Novelo Theatre in London's West End, as well as on the 2006 U.K. national tour. Hough's West End performance earned him a nomination as The Stuart Phillips London Newcomer of the Year in the Whatsonstage.com Theatregoers' Choice Awards. Hough made his Broadway debut on January 8, 2010, starring with Kym Johnson and Mary Murphy in Burn the Floor for the final four performances of the show's Broadway run. A founding member of the Ballas Hough Band (formerly Almost Amy), Hough shares lead vocals, plays guitar and has several songwriting credits on the band's self-titled debut CD, released by Hollywood Records in March 2009.

Shirley Ballas is a British ballroom dancer, teacher and adjudicator. She specialises in the International Latin division, where she won several championship titles earning her the nickname, "The Queen of Latin." Shirley was first married to, and competed with, fellow Briton Sammy Stopford. They came 2nd in the 1982, 1983 & 1985 Professional World Latin Dance Championships. The pair won the 1983 International Latin American Dance Championship, and were the 1984 UK Open Champions in Professional Latin.

Later, she married Corky Ballas. Together they won the International Latin American Dance Championship for 1995, at the Royal Albert Hall in London. They met at a Latin competition in Montreal, Quebec. The pair moved to Houston, Texas to compete in the USA. Their first and only child, Mark Ballas, of Dancing With the Stars fame, was born in 1986. Before his birth, his parents thought he would be a girl, and picked the name Amy for him. This would later lead to Mark naming his rock band Almost Amy.

Amber Patrice Riley (born February 15, 1986) is an American Actress best known for her role on the series Glee as Mercedes Jones.

Riley was born in Los Angeles, California, the daughter of Tiny (née Hightower) and Elwin Riley. Riley auditioned for American Idol when she was 17 years old, during the show's second season, but was turned down by the producers. Amber graduated from La Mirada High School in La Mirada, California in 2004. In 2006 Riley auditioned unsuccessfully for the part of Effie White in Dreamgirls. She appeared at the 2010 MTV VMAs on September 12, 2010.

Riley plays the role of Mercedes Jones on the hit musical comedy-drama Glee. A member of the main cast, she has appeared since the show's pilot, which debuted in May 2009. She has sung numerous solos, including "Respect", "Bust Your Windows", "Hate on Me", "And I Am Telling You I'm Not Going", "Beautiful", "Bridge over Troubled Water", "I Look to You", "Hell to the No", "Ain't No Way", "Try a Little Tenderness", "Spotlight", "All I Want for Christmas Is You" and, three days after Whitney Houston's death, a tribute version of "I Will Always Love You". Her character gets through her schooldays with her "diva-style", stylish clothes, and has a friendship with the only openly gay boy in school, Kurt Hummel (Chris Colfer). In 2011, Riley received an NAACP Image Award nomination for her portrayal of Mercedes; she has won a Screen Actors Guild Award for her acting on Glee, along with the show's ensemble, and has also been nominated for a Teen Choice Award for her acting on the show. Her mother was a member of the choir in the song "Like a Prayer"—Mercedes dances with her—during the first season episode "The Power of Madonna".