Harcourts Dancing with the Stars contestants revealed

Contestants in last year's Harcourts Dancing with the Stars. Photo/file

The contestants in this year's Harcourts Dancing with the Stars have been revealed - with organisers thrilled at the mix of people who have stepped up to take part in the charity fundraiser.

Among the stars to strut their stuff on stage are a police officer, a young television star, a doctor and a lawyer, as part of the 18 who have signed up for the event.

The show will be held at the Rotorua Energy Events Centre on August 5 raising money for Rotorua Community Hospice.

Hospice Trust funding manager Jan Morgan said they were sticking with the same "proven formula" from last year's event, which raised $110,000.

Ms Morgan said they had been blown away by the response from sponsors and those who had been shoulder tapped to dance.

"Nobody said no. The only no were people who weren't going to be in town."

Ms Morgan said it was incredibly humbling to see the response from the dancers who were willing to sacrifice so much and put in the long hours ahead of the performance.

She said she was happy with the mix which included a good range of people from different backgrounds and parts of the community.

"They are all stars for putting themselves out there."

Ms Morgan said auditions would get under way in early April with the dance couples matched in May.

While tickets weren't yet on sale, Ms Morgan said she expected them to be popular.

"People should mark the date. The sponsors that we have spoken to have put their names down for extra tables. I would hazard a guess that tickets will go pretty fast again."

Ms Morgan said it was always hard to put a figure on how much they'd like to raise, after last year's effort which she described as "incredibly amazing".

Ladies:
Jo Keefe: NZME Radio sales representative
Shauni James: Rotorua Weekender and Rotorua Daily Post reporter
Jo Windell: Co-owner of Ma Higgins Cafe
Kelly Albrecht: Organiser of the 'Body Proud Calendar' breast cancer fundraiser and IT specialist
Sandy McClay: Toi Ohomai hospitality lecturer
Te Rina West: The face of the 'Famously Rotorua' tourism TV commercials
Shelley Pewhairangi: Police officer
Gina Oudyn: Lawyer with Lance Lawson, specialising in family law
Kate Da Silva: Mixed Martial Arts fighter, number one women's fighter in New Zealand and Australia

Men:
Steve Holmes: Rotorua Youth Centre manager
Oscar Nathan: General manager Destination Rotorua Marketing
Danley Vince: Business partner manager for Q Card (Flexigroup)
Colin Watkins: Westbrook Primary School principal
Warren Rehu: General manager Mitre 10 Mega Rotorua
Nic Crook: Lakes District Health Board endocrinologist, is the leading diabetic specialist in New Zealand
Steve Pinder: Westpac area business manager
Tairoa Morrison: Carver at NZMACI and member of Wetini Mita's prizewinning kapa haka group
Daniel Michael: Western Heights High School student, 2016 Young Achiever for leadership and sport