Who is Mary Murphy? So You Think You Can Dance
A Professional Ballroom Dancer Turned Animated, Insightful Judge
Jun 1, 2009
Mary Murphy is known for her distinctive laugh and for yelling with joy when she is impressed with a dancer's performance. Unlike American Idol's Paula Abdul, when the theatrics turn off, there is substance behind her critiques.
Her knowledge comes from a professional dance career that has taken her all over the globe and seen her launch her own dance studio.
Becoming a Ballroom Dancer
Murphy graduated from Ohio University with a degree in physical education and a minor in modern dance. She moved to Washington, D.C., where she answered a newspaper ad seeking dancers interested in becoming teachers at a local dance studio.
While she was training for the job, she attended the United States Ballroom Championships in New York City. When she returned, she left modern dance altogether and began training in competitive ballroom dancing. She never missed dancing without a partner.
Competitive Dancer and Choreographer
Once Murphy decided ballroom dancing was her calling, her next task was to find a partner. Her search led her to Southern California and Manfred Stiglitz, a dancer born in Vienna, Austria. The professional pair reached the finals in the 10-Dance World and European Championships.
Stiglitz wanted Mary to move to England, but Murphy didn't want to leave the studio, Champion Ballroom Academy, that she'd opened in 1990 in San Diego, California. The distance was made even more difficult because the two defended Stiglitz's Austrian titles. Eventually, they disbanded while placing top six in the world.
During the next five years, Murphy teamed up with several new partners and gained more titles. In 1996, Murphy and her partner, Jim Desmond, competed in the final of the U.S. Open American Smooth and won the Nine Dance.
Murphy then retired from professional ballroom dancing and focused on running her academy and working as a teacher and judge. She judges many dance competitions and organizes her own, which takes place in Las Vegas, Nevada. She also volunteers by teaching disadvantaged youth how to dance with the nonprofit program Chance to Dance, which she founded with a San Diego school district.
So You Think You Can Dance Judge and Movie Roles
In 2006, Murphy was being screen tested to be a judge on Fox's other dancing competition, Dancing with the Stars. While at her audition, she was asked to try out for So You Think You Can Dance. In the show's first season, she was offered a position as a recurring judge and choreographer. She spent more airtime judging contestants as the seasons progressed and became a permanent, regular judge for the third season.
Movies have also provided Murphy a platform for her dance knowledge. She appeared in Something to Talk About as star Julia Roberts' dancing double, and as a dancer in 1998's Dance with Me.
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