Twitter pics :)

I forgot to post one of Mark's Twitter pics from earlier in the week. Since he just posted another...I'll do them together. :)

Haircut!

photo copyright Mark Ballas, 2010

Mark and Chelsie looking simply adorable together (also the first tweet from his new iPhone 4):

photo copyright Mark Ballas, 2010

Mark Ballas at the Viper Room, Aug 19, 2010

:) Poster for Mark's show at the Viper Room:

Photoshoot with Dimitry Loiseau

Mark had a photoshoot for his upcoming album last night. The photographer was Dimitry Loiseau the Chief Editor of RegardMag.com and a Celebrity Fashion Photographer. You might remember I retweeted Dimitry talking about how he had spoken with Mark about an upcoming project. :) 

Dimitry posted a behind-the-scenes photo of Mark getting his warpaint retouched:

photo copyright Dimitry Loiseau, 2010

And Mark posted a little teaser of the photoshoot:

photo copyright Dimitry Loiseau, 2010

Looks like this album is gonna be deep and intense! :)

Rockin' Roller Coaster swag :D

Mark got a new toy :) (A RocknRoller Cart)

Handyman:

photo copyright Mark Ballas, 2010

Snazzy!

photo copyright Mark Ballas, 2010

"Leavin' on a jet plane...don't know when I'll be back again...." (Update: Mark didn't go on a trip..this was all for a photoshoot for the new album)

photo copyright Mark Ballas, 2010

Also, a couple more fan made banners Mark has posted:

another by @babettessugar

and one made by me! :)

New studio photos from Mark

A couple new photos from Mark...

Loren commenting that his piano playing is 'damn good'. LOL (and happily endorsing Starbucks, hehe)

photo copyright Mark Ballas, 2010

A great shot of Mark and his guitar...working on "The Love" and "Burn Me Alive" (that reminds me...Mark has decided to rename his song "Let Love In" to "The Love"...I'll update the tags accordingly.)

photo copyright Mark Ballas, 2010 (tho I'm not sure who took the photo...unless Marky has telekinetic skillz)

Oh and I can't embed it, but Mark posted a video of a little sample of the unmixed guitars for "The Love" (formerly known as "Let Love In"): http://yfrog.com/5e9q6z

@officialmballas Twitter Trending Campaign - Aug 7th

Ok guys! I didn't get a huge response to this, but I think we will go ahead and give it a go.

So, on Saturday, August 7, 2010 from 1pm ET - 3pm ET we will try to trend Marky!

(that's 10am PT, 11am MT, and Noon CT in the United States and 6pm in London (GMT). Hopefully, if you are in another area you can figure out what time is your time! :D This might help: http://www.worldtimezone.com/)

The reason we choose a certain day and time frame is so the tweets will be focused and hopefully there will be enough tweets to get on the trending list for Twitter. :)

The hashtag we will use is #markballas. Be sure to include it on all your tweets! and tweet about Marky often during that time period! We want to see him on the Trending Topics & we want people to know who he is and why he's trending! ;) Tweet facts about him, links to his webpages and videos, pictures, fanart, anything! Be creative! :)

**As an incentive, I'll be having lots of trivia games and polls during that time to give you a reason to tweet. Just make sure your answers include the hashtag!!

We've got a little over a week before this event will happen, so tell your friends! Let's see if we can get a good turnout. :D

REMEMBER: Include the hashtag (#markballas) ONLY ONCE on every tweet you tweet that day during the time period. If you include a hashtag more than once in a tweet, Twitter treats the tweet as 'spam' and ignores it. It will not count toward our campaign...and could possibly hurt our campaign.

Any questions? Just ask me on twitter: @bewitchballas!

Mark Ballas official Facebook pages

Have you checked out Mark's new official Facebook pages? There are two!

Just for his music: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Mark-Ballas-Music/141953109157081

FB page for his official website MarkBallas.com: http://www.facebook.com/pages/MarkBallascom/140595332631444

Be sure to show your support by becoming a fan of the pages and telling your friends! Thanks!!

Check out @officialmballas' new video Light On! :)

Keep watching the Light On video! And tell your friends! :D Let's get those views up to 10,000...and beyond! :)



*sigh* I love this song so much. :)

Ballas Family mention on Gilmore Girls

It isn't great quality, but here is the clip of Gilmore Girls that mentions Corky and Shirley Ballas (and Corky, Jr., which would be Mark in Gilmore-Girls-Land)

The "biography" that Emily mentions isn't real (UPDATE: I've been informed that this bio is something Corky was working on, it just didn't go forward), but it would be super cool if they did do a bio of Corky and Shirley and Mark played his father. :)



Thanks to fuegohielo22 for uploading. :)

Mark & Chelsie

Mark and Chelsie took a Hip Hop class together yesterday...here is the pic that Mark posted:

photo copyright Mark Ballas, 2010

Lookin' so gangsta. hehehe :)

Mark Ballas on Samantha Who? in 2008

Getting excited about Mark's appearance on Melissa & Joey? Well, to whet your appetite some more...here is Mark's appearance on Samantha Who?, back in October of 2008.  It's the only video I could find and I can't embed it, so go over to YouTube to check it out: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U0k_7-_Ay0c. Sorry about the subtitles. :) Mark's appearance begins at about 1:35 :) "Mateo Romero"...what a name :D

image copyright ABC, 2008; screencapped by Bewitching Ballas

Mark & Kristi Mambo at BWAT in Hershey, PA

Big thanks to LIVELOVE8691 for this great video from the BWAT performance in Hershey, PA! Mark sure knows how to get the crowd going!

Firefox Personas for Mark Ballas

Ok, this was the first one I made...and I promise the future ones will be better. It takes a few days to get them approved too.  But...I made a few Personas for Mark! The first one has been approved and should be ready for use by everyone: https://www.getpersonas.com/en-US/persona/263124

This first one is Mark's guitars. :) I'm gonna have a lot more, so look out for them.  This one works best if you have lots of toolbars...I just made it according to the specifications they gave and it turns out if you use minimal toolbars, you can't really see the image. I'll remember that for the rest. :)

If you don't know what a Firefox Persona is, it's a fun little way to change up how your Firefox browser looks.  It doesn't change any buttons or anything, it just puts a picture behind your address bar and toolbars :)

I hope you like it! I've got lots of fun things planned for the future...this is just the beginning! :)

Update: Persona #2: http://www.getpersonas.com/en-US/persona/263329

Twitter Trending Campaign for @officialmballas

Ok guys, we need to band together and get Marky on the trending topics! If you've never done a trending campaign before, this is how it works:

1. We pick a day and a time period (it only works if there is a large amount of tweets at the same time)
2. We use only one specified hashtag to try and trend. For instance, we could use #markballas or #markballasmusic
3. You include that hashtag ONLY ONCE on every tweet you tweet that day during the time period. If you include a hashtag more than once in a tweet, Twitter treats the tweet as 'spam' and ignores it. It will not count toward our campaign...and could possibly hurt our campaign.
4. While you can include the hashtag on all your tweets...even tweets not about Mark, try to tweet about Mark often! The idea is that when we get Mark trending, people will click on that trending hashtag and see what all the fuss is about...and learn more about Marky. :) So, link to his videos, his website, my website, his twitter, whatever! Just promote Mark!
5. Retweet each other! seriously, it's an easy way to get a tweet out there. Just make sure you are RTing the tweets with the hashtag. :)

So what do you guys think? We could pick a day and time when people are more active and able to tweet. If you can tweet from your mobile..do it! :D

So, give me some feedback about this. What days and times do you guys tweet most often? Would you be willing to do this and spread the word? Got questions? Let me know!

This is a big task, and it takes a lot of tweets to trend...but we can do it! (Just warn your followers that you might be a little overwhelming that day with Mark tweets. LOL)

Fanvid: United States of Pop: Mark Ballas Style

Fun fanvid that will get you up and dancing...by swaywithme1

Pretties... :)

Mark posted this photo of himself yesterday, while on downtime on the "Melissa & Joey" set. He said he was writing a new song. :)

photo copyright Mark Ballas, 2010

And this banner for the Light On video was made by @RiskyBusinessAZ :)

image copyright Ryan Goble, Jose Gonzalez, Mark Ballas, 2010; Manipulation by RiskyBusinessAZ, 2010

Another Light On banner made by @babettessugar

image copyright Ryan Goble, Jose Gonzalez, Mark Ballas, 2010; Manipulation by babettessugar, 2010

Light On music video by Mark Ballas (@officialmballas)

The Light On video is finally here! :) It's beautiful. :) Enjoy!

Mark Ballas' hair through the years :)

Since everyone is all a BUZZ about Mark's summer haircut (I know, I know, that was baaaaaaddddd lol), I thought I'd share a few of his more interesting hairstyles from earlier days. :) I'm rather fond of his longer hair, actually. Ok, who am I kidding...he sort of looks good in any hairstyle. How is that possible? o.O

We'll start with the buzz cut for the summer:

Now, we know what his current style is...it varies a little from week to week...thicker, thinner, blown, gelled...but here are a few of the more interesting styles I've come across:

The hairstyle all curly haired kids get:

The Vanilla Ice look:

Marky was introduced to the hairdryer:

A little longer:

Longer and with a straightening perm:

Gave up on the straightening:

The Vincent Vega look:

The ponytail:

And finally...the Afro:

I love every single one of them :D I'm really fond of the pony tail and the buzz cut. hehehe :) Which is your favorite?

Mark Ballas at 2Some Dance in Toronto, Feb 2011

Great promotional video for 2some Dance at the Old Mill Inn Toronto on February 19 & 20, 2011. Mark, Dmitry, Edyta, Alec, and Chelsie are set to perform . :) Thanks to @Jordan_Greys for sending the link!

Mark Ballas at BWAT in Hershey, PA :)

Two pics of Mark from the BWAT show in Hershey, courtesy of  @livelove4evr! Thanks!


Mark has fans of all ages! :D (oh, and Kristi snuck in there too.) The last pic is Mark and the other gentleman is David Hernandez (he did some music in the show). :)

 photos copyright livelove4evr, 2010

Mark & Melissa on the "Melissa & Joey" set

Mark and Melissa on set in full costume! :) Yay! Melissa looks all kinds of adorable in that peacock dress and Mark looks dashing in his tux...of course. :)

From the set of Melissa & Joey (ABC Family):

photo copyright Mark Ballas, 2010

Mark on the "Melissa & Joey" set

Mark is on the set of Melissa Joan Hart's new series "Melissa & Joey" this week.  They are rehearsing a dance, so I'm not sure if Mark is choreographing behind the scenes, or if he'll actually appear in the episode. Let's hope he appears in front of the camera. :)

"Melissa & Joey" will air on the ABC Family network. It premieres on  Tuesday, August 17, 2010 and will air at 8/7c on Tuesdays. Official website: http://abcfamily.go.com/shows/melissa-joey

From the official website:

Hart portray[s] Mel, the grown-up former wild child of a political family who is now a local politician herself.

When her sister ends up in prison and her brother-in-law flees after a scandal hits, Mel must take responsibility for her teenaged niece, Lennox, and pre-adolescent nephew, Ryder. With Mel spread too thin to manage by herself, help comes in the unlikely form of Joe (Lawrence) who, desperate for a job, moves in and becomes the family’s “manny.”

Here is a pic Mark posted from the set:

photo copyright Mark Ballas, 2010

Fanvid: Mark Ballas & Kristi Yamaguchi

From 2008...but I can't help myself. It's so cute! A little tribute video for Mark and Kristi, set to the song "Popular" from the musical "Wicked": (by lunaleecreations)

Mark Ballas Retro Videos: 2008 DWTS Tour

Here are a few videos from the 2008 DWTS tour from RockOnDance (Corky):

Mark Ballas as Nerd Man...hehehe love this! :D


Mark and Derek:


Mark and Derek again...same dance, different performance:

Genesis of the Bewitching Ballas Blog: My Story

I've been thinking that I'd share why I started this blog - my personal story...but I wasn't sure if I should. Or if I really wanted too. It's personal and kind of painful for me. And who would really care? I mean, you're all visiting to hear about Mark, not the faceless girl behind the computer screen. But, I don't know...maybe it will be cathartic for me. I mean, we all have a story.  We all have pain in our lives.  I truly believe God gave us compassion and emotion so that we could share it with each other and lean on one another.

So, I'll write it.  You can read it if you want to.  But perhaps this is one post you'll skip.  :)  I promise this blog will never become a personal blog. I have a personal twitter and blog for my own stuff.  I want to stay focused on Mark here. :)  But, since this story is the genesis of this blog, I'll go ahead and share it.  I'm a librarian and I believe that everyone should have access to all information and have the freedom to make their own conclusions and find their own path. Never just do what you're told....investigate and KNOW it is the right path.  People can be wrong. Never forget that. :)  So, I'll share this information.  *nervous*

Mark and Darvina

This haircut is Bewitching Ballas Approved! :D hehehe

Mark and his friend Darvina:

photo copyright Mark Ballas, 2010

Who is returning for DWTS Season 11?

I noticed people are already starting to ask about DWTS and if dancers are coming back.  (I wonder how annoying it gets for the dancers to have to answer that question over and over?)  ;)

Here's the deal - the dancers do not find out if they are returning until just before the season starts. Usually about 4 weeks before. Since the season doesn't start until September 20, 2010, I wouldn't expect any of the dancers to know if they are returning until the middle or end of August. Last summer (for season 9), it was mid-august before the dancers knew.  For season 10, they found out even later...only 3 weeks before the season started.

It all depends on the casting. The casting department has the difficult job of choosing a cast of celebrities each season that will:

• be interesting to watch
• reach out to as many viewer groups as possible
• will pair well with a pro dancer from the pool of pros at DWTS
• will work well as a whole cast

They go about doing this in a number of ways. There are many celebrities that request to be on the show - either they are big fans and want to give it a go, or it is a career move (get their face in the media again). Either way, these celebrities are considered for each season.  The casting department also reaches out to celebrities that they think would work well on the show and would enjoy doing the show.  And, finally, it's becoming more common for ABC to pimp their other shows by putting personalities on DWTS (i.e.: the Bachelor, Jake Pavelka).  I'm not fond of this last practice, but whatevs. Not much we can do about it.

There is a lot involved in getting an entire cast together each season and it can take a long time to nail it down. Sometimes contracts don't get signed until the very last minute.  This is why we don't know the celebrity list until the last minute. And this is also why the dancers don't know if they will be returning until the last minute. It's not really about ABC trying to be all sneaky - yeah they want to keep the locked down celebrities a secret so the big reveal of the whole cast is interesting - but the honest truth is that they just don't know what the final cast list is until just before it's announced.

In the first few seasons of DWTS, the producers did not tell the pro dancers who they were paired with before they met - it was a complete surprise to both the celebrity and the pro.  But, as I understand it, there were a few embarrassing moments when the pro didn't know who the celebrity was and had to ask "uhm, who are you?" Whoops. ;) So, they started telling the pros who they are paired with the day before they meet, so the pro will absolutely know who their celebrity is. :)

So, be patient. :) The dancers WANT to come back, but they honestly won't know if they get chosen as a pro for any given season until right before the season starts. Give it another month and we'll know. :) And, even if they don't get selected as a pro coach, they will probably still show up in the pro dance numbers on Tuesdays. :)

And that reminds me of another topic of confusion for some: It's not just about how popular the pro is, it also has to do with what celebrities sign on for the season.  Mark Ballas is 5'8", which means he can't dance with a gal who is taller than 5'6"-ish. And that might be pushing it. He looks better dancing with shorter gals. :) Also, he's a young gun, so they are gonna try to pair him with someone who is in their 30's or younger. Not only does it look a bit odd for a 24 year old guy to be dancing with a 50 year old...it's also entirely possible that Mark's peer group (fans near his age) wouldn't even know who the woman is....that's not good for voting. ;)  They also need to think about personalities.  The celebrity and the pro will be spending HUGE amounts of time together.  They need to get along.  It's not an exact science, but I think the casting department does a good job of pairing up personalities on the show.  Celebrities can request a certain pro as their partner, but it isn't a given that they will get that pro....the casting peeps know what will work and what won't.

{deleted the descriptions of his partners (body type, personality, age) and discussion of Sabrina b/c it was misunderstood and upsetting to some folks. I never wanted to hurt anyone. So, I'll just remove it. Sorry guys. love you all!}

Mark is a very sweet guy - he's passionate and very driven, but he's very dorky and enjoys being silly. The casting department tends to pair him with sweet ladies who have a silly personality as well or who are shy and need the type of guy who is encouraging and warm.

Two months from today! Wish it were tomorrow! ;) But, DWTS Season 11 will be here soon enough...I'll just have to be patient. :) 

ABC's Dancing with the Stars homepage: http://abc.go.com/shows/dancing-with-the-stars 

Mark Ballas at the 2010 National DanceSport Championships, April 9-11, 2010

Back in April (9-11, 2010), the 2010 National DanceSport Championships took place at the JW Marriott in Los Angeles, California. Mark and other DWTS & SYTYCD dancers were present for some of the competition.

I found two photos at the Town Dancer blog that show Mark in the audience. Click on the photos to see a larger version. :)

photos copyright Calvin Ota, 2010

Here is an article that briefly mentioned the competition and Mark: http://www.tonic.com/article/top-dancers-compete-la/

Mark Ballas at the House of Blues, July 18, 2010

Mark played the House of Blues (at the Foundation Room) on Sunday, July 18, 2010. He played with full band. :)

Anna posted this pic of Mark performing Hotwire:

photo copyright Anna Trebunskaya, 2010

mkasadate posted this video of Mark singing Sexual Healing/Waiting on the World to Change:
A little audience participation. :)

Mark Ballas at the Viper Room, Aug 19, 2010 (@officialmballas)

Mark will be performing at the Viper Room in West Hollywood, CA on Thursday, August 19, 2010. Also performing: Blue Meridian & Jason Adamo. Mark goes on stage at 10pm. (Jason Adamo at 8pm, Blue Meridian at 9pm)

This show is 21+ and the tickets are $10.00. The Viper Room is located at 8852 Sunset Boulevard in West Hollywood, CA 90069.


Check out TicketWeb to buy tickets in advance (they will also be available at the door) and you can also check out the Viper Room's website.

This show has been added to the calendar.

Mark Ballas at Ballroom with a Twist, 7/17/10

In Hershey, PA at the Hershey Theatre on July 17, 2010 at 8:00 PM.  No filming was allowed, so no videos. :(

More bus troubles...the bus driver apparently got lost driving from NY to Hershey, PA and they were late getting to Hershey. :(

Jonathan Roberts posted a pic of the venue...really beautiful theater:

photo copyright Jonathan Roberts, 2010

Sabrina posted a pic of Mark and Kristi Yamaguchi practicing the Mambo:

photo copyright Sabrina Byan, 2010

Video of some rehearsal from @trenyce: http://yfrog.com/jqmxfz I can't embed :(
(note: DO NOT get all in a tizzy about Mark getting frustrated at the end. He's an artist, Sabrina is an artist. They work hard at what they do. When you are rehearsing, especially a dress rehearsal, you WILL get frustrated when you mess up and have to start over. It's called passion. It's called nerves. It's called "Dang-it-I-have-done-this-right-a-billion-times-so-why-not-right-now?!"  Mark was not disrespecting or hurting Sabrina.)


Anna posted a pic of Sabrina and Kristi during rehearsals...get down, ladies! hehehe:

photo copyright Anna Trebunskaya, 2010

Anna posted this pic of Mark & Kristi performing the Jive:

photo copyright Anna Trebunskaya, 2010

And finally, Anna also posted this pic of Sabrina and Mark performing the Cha Cha:

photo copyright Anna Trebunskaya, 2010

After the show (really? that late?) they went to the Hershey factory (is there a restaurant there? Maybe that's where they had supper...it would explain the late hour).  Mark shared this photo:

photo copyright Mark Ballas, 2010

Well, at least we know that aliens won't be able to read Marky's mind! ;) hehehe

And finally, Mark, Jonathan, and Anna flew back to LA...just in time for Marky to get a tiny amount of sleep (hopefully) before his show at House of Blues! :)

Mark Ballas at Ballroom with a Twist, 7/16/10

BWAT at Chautauqua, New York. :) Friday, July 16, 2010 at Chautauqua Institution.

Here is a write-up about the show from GoErie.com: "Ballroom With a Twist twists and shouts into Chautauqua"

Mark & Kristi Mambo (uploaded by gymfan66)


Mark & Kristi Jive (uploaded by gymfan66)


Sabrina, Jonathan, and Kristi are teasing Mark. (uploaded by gymfan66)
according to gymfan66 - "right before I started recording Johnathan asked Sabrina to demonstrate how Mark acted during reahersal when he gets frustarated haha"


Mark and Sabrina Cha Cha (uploaded by gymfan66)


Mark flew to NY state on Thursday afternoon (and didn't sleep well that night. Poor guy.) Rehearsals on Friday and the show Friday night. :) Apparently, on the way to the NY show (the 2nd stop on the tour), the tour bus broke down (that was carrying the company dancers). Then, after Friday's show, the 2nd tour bus didn't show up, so the entire cast (25 dancers) had to fit on one bus to drive to PA. Jonathan posted this pic of the crowded bus:

photo copyright Jonathan Roberts, 2010

Poor Mark looks so tired! Curled up with his luggage, dozing while sitting up on a loud, crowded bus. ick. :(

One of the company dancers, italoelgueta, tweeted that he was moving from the "party bus" to the "sleeping bus" at about 3am-ish local time (eastern). Well, at least the 2nd bus finally showed up.  o.O

After the show, Anna posted a bunch of pics from the show and backstage. Three of the pics included Marky:

Kristi and Mark dancing the Jive:

photo copyright Anna Trebunskaya, 2010

Sabrina, Mark, Jonathan, and Kristi talking to the crowd:

photo copyright Anna Trebunskaya, 2010

Mark and Jonathan hamming it up backstage:

photo copyright Anna Trebunskaya, 2010

Mark Ballas at the City of Hope benefit concert, 2008

Back on September 14, 2008, Almost Amy acted as hosts for Disney's "Concert for Hope" at the Gibson Amphitheatre in Universal City, CA, that benefited City of Hope Cancer Center.  Miley Cyrus, Demi Lovato, and The Jonas Brothers were the main acts.  I found a few photos from the event of Mark, Derek, and Almost Amy. Enjoy! :)

First, here is a write-up about the show, which includes a photo, "Miley Cyrus, Jonas Brothers, Demi Lovato perform to sell-out crowd at City of Hope benefit" by Roya Alt

photo copyright Lester Cohen, 2008

Mark on the red carpet:

photo copyright Chris Hatcher/PR Photos, 2008

Lots more photos after the cut: