Rotorua Daily Post
  • Rotorua Daily Post home
  • Latest news
  • Business
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
  • Property
  • Sport
  • Video
  • Death notices
  • Classifieds

Subscriptions

  • Herald Premium
  • Viva Premium
  • The Listener
  • BusinessDesk

Sections

  • Latest news
  • On The Up
  • Business
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
    • All Lifestyle
    • Residential property listings
  • Property
    • All Property
    • Dairy farming
    • Sheep & beef farming
    • Horticulture
    • Animal health
    • Rural business
    • Rural life
    • Rural technology
  • Rural
  • Sport

Locations

  • Tauranga
  • Te Puke
  • Whakatāne
  • Rotorua
  • Tokoroa
  • Taupō & Tūrangi

Media

  • Video
  • Photo galleries
  • Today's Paper - E-Editions
  • Photo sales

Weather

  • Rotorua
  • Tauranga
  • Whakatāne
  • Tokoroa
  • Taupō

NZME Network

  • Advertise with NZME
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • BusinessDesk
  • Newstalk ZB
  • What the Actual
  • Sunlive
  • ZM
  • The Hits
  • Coast
  • Radio Hauraki
  • The Alternative Commentary Collective
  • Gold
  • Flava
  • iHeart Radio
  • Hokonui
  • Radio Wanaka
  • iHeartCountry New Zealand
  • Restaurant Hub
  • NZME Events

SubscribeSign In
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Home / Rotorua Daily Post

Dancing Diary: Another perspective from dance partner Natasha Whitewood

David Beck
By David Beck
Multimedia sports journalist·Rotorua Daily Post·
4 Jun, 2018 09:00 PM2 mins to read

Subscribe to listen

Access to Herald Premium articles require a Premium subscription. Subscribe now to listen.
Already a subscriber?  Sign in here

Listening to articles is free for open-access content—explore other articles or learn more about text-to-speech.
‌
Save

    Share this article

Natasha Whitewood and David Beck are aiming for an heroic performance at Harcourts Dancing with the Stars. Photo / Supplied

Natasha Whitewood and David Beck are aiming for an heroic performance at Harcourts Dancing with the Stars. Photo / Supplied

So far in my dancing diaries I have described my own thoughts and feelings about the whole experience, but this week I thought I would take a look at how my dance partner Natasha Whitewood is finding it.

Here is what she had to say:

"To be honest, outside of supporting an amazing kaupapa, I never really knew what to expect. Knowing you are going to be ballroom dancing in front of strangers isn't necessarily an opportunity you jump at daily.

"I remember our mentors Tania Tapsell and Paul Hickey [who were dancers in the event's first year] saying at our first meeting 'it seems awkward now with you not knowing each other but doing this you really do become family'.

"Well, we are now at the halfway point in our training and this is how my journey is going. I'm completely out of my comfort zone, having a blast and making time to show up to trainings along with everyone else.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

"I've been partnered with a person who balances me, ensures we are on track and who is not only a friend but whānau. We laugh when we get our steps right, but even more so when we don't and every week we get closer to our goal together.

"I see the sacrifice our instructors Troy, Shelley and Glen make when they work their butts off teaching us, as well as the families who willingly give their time when they bring their partners and kids to practices.

"Nicola, Paul and Tania turn up to trainings, as busy as they are, purely for support and I love that on top of our schedules we still manage to have team get-togethers.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

"We all have lives, we all get frustrated when we don't get our steps straight away, yet we all show up and support each other. I feel so incredibly blessed to be learning and growing alongside everybody else on this journey and proud to say that we really are whānau."

Discover more

Dancing Diary: No turning back now

22 Apr 10:00 PM

Dancing Diary: Take the lead

29 Apr 04:22 AM

Dancing Diary: Photoshoots and positivity

13 May 03:48 AM

Dancing Diary: Working things out

28 May 03:07 PM
Save

    Share this article

Latest from Rotorua Daily Post

Rotorua Daily Post

Eighteen Lotto players win over $19k each – where tickets were sold

11 May 04:29 AM
Rotorua Daily Post

'About time': Residents sick of 'boy racers' back Govt plan to toughen laws

11 May 04:25 AM
Rotorua Daily Post

Swift destruction of boy racer vehicles proposed, more powers for police

10 May 10:24 PM

One tiny baby’s fight to survive

sponsored
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Latest from Rotorua Daily Post

Eighteen Lotto players win over $19k each – where tickets were sold

Eighteen Lotto players win over $19k each – where tickets were sold

11 May 04:29 AM

Two players shared the First Division prize, snagging $500,000 each.

'About time': Residents sick of 'boy racers' back Govt plan to toughen laws

'About time': Residents sick of 'boy racers' back Govt plan to toughen laws

11 May 04:25 AM
Swift destruction of boy racer vehicles proposed, more powers for police

Swift destruction of boy racer vehicles proposed, more powers for police

10 May 10:24 PM
'Devastating to see': Family battles for toddler's movement progress

'Devastating to see': Family battles for toddler's movement progress

10 May 10:00 PM
Connected workers are safer workers 
sponsored

Connected workers are safer workers 

NZ Herald
  • About NZ Herald
  • Meet the journalists
  • Newsletters
  • Classifieds
  • Help & support
  • Contact us
  • House rules
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of use
  • Competition terms & conditions
  • Our use of AI
Subscriber Services
  • Rotorua Daily Post e-edition
  • Manage your print subscription
  • Manage your digital subscription
  • Subscribe to Herald Premium
  • Subscribe to the Rotorua Daily Post
  • Gift a subscription
  • Subscriber FAQs
  • Subscription terms & conditions
  • Promotions and subscriber benefits
NZME Network
  • Rotorua Daily Post
  • The New Zealand Herald
  • The Northland Age
  • The Northern Advocate
  • Waikato Herald
  • Bay of Plenty Times
  • Hawke's Bay Today
  • Whanganui Chronicle
  • Viva
  • NZ Listener
  • What the Actual
  • Newstalk ZB
  • BusinessDesk
  • OneRoof
  • Driven CarGuide
  • iHeart Radio
  • Restaurant Hub
NZME
  • About NZME
  • NZME careers
  • Advertise with NZME
  • Digital self-service advertising
  • Book your classified ad
  • Photo sales
  • NZME Events
  • © Copyright 2025 NZME Publishing Limited
TOP