Ezra Sosa was born to be in the spotlight. The dancer and choreographer has become a fan favorite on Dancing with the Stars, where he made history on season 33 as the show’s first Latino professional dancer in more than a decade. He returned for season 34, charming and cha-cha-ing his way to third place.
Sosa says finding his place as a queer performer on a show broadcast into homes across Middle America meant navigating “how much of myself I could show and whether people would accept me.” “I overcame that by choosing to be honest about who I am and refusing to make myself smaller,” he shares.
On tour, Sosa hears from closeted kids about what seeing someone like themselves onstage means to them. “It makes me two parts proud and one part sad,” he says. “I am proud to know that I can be the person helping them get through it, but it also breaks my heart knowing there are still kids who are suffering or feel like they have to hide who they are.”
Sosa returned to the ballroom for season 35 and partnered with millennial icon Julia Stiles — giving a generation raised on Save the Last Dance one more reason to root for him. @ezra.sosa
