Mya steps ahead in ‘Dancing With The Stars’

By Melissa Arseniuk

Thursday, Oct. 8, 2009 | noon

Mya might make dancing look easy on “Dancing with the Stars” but the singer says it’s hard work.

After two weeks of putting the “work” in fancy footwork, the 29-year-old singer came to Las Vegas last weekend for brief-but-much-needed vacation.

“I deserve a break,” she said as she made her way into Jet nightclub at the Mirage on Saturday night.

Still, it’s not all work and no play on the DWTS set.

“I love it,” Mya gushed. “There’s so many different kinds of dances, in Latin and ballroom realms. … It’s a pleasure, all across the board.”

“My coach is very cute,” she said, breaking into a mid-sentence giggle. “And talented.”

She and partner Dmitri Chaplin scored the season’s first perfect 10 on this week’s installment of DWTS.

Judges Carrie Ann Inaba and Bruno Tonioli gave the pair full marks on Monday, while fellow judge Len Goodman complained that there was too much going on in their act, and awarded them seven points out of the possible 10.

Mya enjoyed the especially sensual aspects of this week’s dances.

“The Rumba is really sexy,” she said. “Really sexy and slow.”

Already a capable dancer, she has enjoyed expanding her skills with the show.

“The cha cha is really playful and sassy,” she said. “It also has cool rhythms and a Latin vibe. … The other two dances that I’ve learned so far were the jive and the waltz; those are a little harder on the body.”

Mya has been dancing for nearly all her life.

“I started ballet when I was two but I quit when I was four,” she said. “Then I got into majorettes at four – it’s not really dance, but it was, like, marching, in parades – and I got into tap when I was four as well, but I quit when I was 10.”

Her dabbling in, and dropping out of, dance classes stopped after she found inspiration in Hollywood.

“When I saw Savion Glover in the movie ‘Tap,’ I said, ‘That’s the kind of tap I wanted to do’,” she said, “So when I was 12, I started back again.”

Now 29-years-old, she still doesn’t want to stop .

“I don’t think I’m going to quit this,” she said. “The dancers’ bodies on that show are amazing: Regardless of their age, they are in shape.”

“I want to look like that for the rest of my life!” she proclaimed. “I’m probably going to keep this up after the show. “

After two weeks of dancing with Chaplin amidst the stars, Mya said everything is “going great.”

“I’m learning a lot,” she smiled.

Mya has a lot to smile about these days.

In addition to Monday night’s first place showing, her music career is going strong, too.

“I just released a mix tape, it’s called ‘Beauty and the Streets’ … and then my album comes in February,” she said.

Before that, however, she has yet another reason to celebrate.

“October is my birthday month,” she said, explaining she will turn 30 this coming Saturday, on Oct. 10.

Since DWTS will keep the birthday girl busy this weekend, Mya and three girlfriends flew to Las Vegas last weekend to party in advance of her big day.

“We’re just going to celebrate a little early because I’m going to be working this year,” she said.

She intends to more than make up for lost time. “I’m going to party all month,” she said.

Melissa Arseniuk writes about Las Vegas entertainment and celebrity events. She can be reached at 702-948-7823 or by e-mail at [email protected].