Jenna Johnson Admits She Felt “Pressure” Choreographing for “DWTS.”

• Jenna Johnson Chmerkovskiy made a comeback to Dancing with the Stars to create the premiere dance for Michael Bublé night.
• You can count on hearing at least five to seven Michael Bublé songs if you attend a ballroom competition.
• So today’s article was intended to return to the fundamentals and demonstrate why the Dancing with the Stars contestants are the greatest.

On Monday night, Jenna Johnson Chmerkovskiy made a comeback to Dancing with the Stars to create the premiere dance for Michael Bublé night. With Olympic figure skater Adam Rippon, Johnson won the DWTS mirrorball trophy in 2018. She also advanced to the finals with her partners Nev Shulman and JoJo Siwa in the previous two seasons.

She isn’t participating in this season of Dancing with the Stars, but she just presided over the panel at the D23 event in Anaheim, California. The professional dancer, 28, spoke candidly with PEOPLE ahead of Monday night’s performance about her decision to walk away from the series after sharing her pregnancy news with fellow pro dancer husband Val Chmerkovskiy and how she felt “pressure” upon returning to the ballroom.

To be completely honest, choreographing the opening number was a blast. Even though I’m not watching the show this season, I still feel such love and excitement for it.

Since it was evident that I would like to return to the stage and the surroundings, I answered “yes” right away. There isn’t another sensation like it.

I was even more thrilled to learn that all of the girls will be featured in the opening number because I hold each and every one of them in such high regard. Michael [Bublé] will then perform it live after that!

It simply had so many fascinating elements that the entire process was so enjoyable and [a] dream come true. Absolutely, I get to choreograph for the show and be pregnant at the same time.

Because of everything that has happened this season, I feel like I have truly been a part of it. Naturally, through Val and Gabby [Windey], but even just entering the room again, having to put my choreographic hat back on, and having a deadline to meet made me feel the strain once more. But there is a lot of strain. It’s incredibly inspiring.

Being surrounded by so much brilliance is extremely inspiring, but I had to be like, “Okay, well, let’s go back to this. Let’s go, 5, 6, 7, and 8.”

You can count on hearing at least five to seven Michael Bublé songs if you attend a ballroom competition. I’ve always been so familiar with his music, and it has always complemented ballroom dancing so well. I’m really looking forward to our number because I don’t think we’ve had the opportunity to see all of our girls truly demonstrate their ballroom technique and prove why they are the best in the business.

So today’s article was intended to return to the fundamentals and demonstrate why the Dancing with the Stars contestants are the greatest. They are truly teaching you the whole cha-cha. They appear amazing.

They seem to enjoy it since it allows them to be true in their element. I’m therefore quite thrilled.

The last three seasons I’ve had have been extremely amazing, and they’ve consumed a lot of my energy and focus. For the past two seasons, I was able to reach both finals, and it’s incredibly draining on your mental, emotional, and physical [health]. In addition, I’ve constantly performed, I believe, 13 seasons in a row. So I thought that it would be a good moment for me to step aside.

And I believe that for any artist or performer, taking a break from what you love can only re-inspire you and remind you of why you do it and why you love to put yourself through this process.

I was like when I watched the program, “I miss dancing so much. I miss my buddies and this experience.” But I’m really looking forward to supporting this season and I enjoy seeing my hubby. Because I get to see him succeed, I feel like he and Gabby are just having such an amazing season that it has made me wait out so worth it. So I’ll be the wife who is pregnant and will joyfully provide support.

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