Pauler Lam brings out big dance moves on ‘Ellen’

Ellen DeGeneres is known for many things. She’s a Presidential Medal of Freedom recipient, a global comedic icon, and of course, an avid dancer. Even those that do not religiously tune in know that the talk show host begins every show with a dance, and her good friend and DJ Twitch is a professional dancer. For many dancers, it is a dream to dance on the Emmy-award winning series, and for Australia’s Pauler Lam, it was a career highlight.

Lam, an industry-leading dancer, is known for his work dancing with celebrated artists like Ariana Grande, and Eric Nam. He is also no stranger to working on television, after starring in the reality series Steady Mobbin, but being on Ellen was an entirely new experience for the Aussie. 

“Ellen DeGeneres is such a huge name and everybody knows who she is. She is loved by everyone all over the world and has millions of viewers every day on her daily talk show. She is so entertaining and engaging as a host. It’s obvious why she is so loved around the world.

She is also such a caring celebrity who constantly gives back to the people and supports everything wholeheartedly. I always enjoy the guests that she brings on to her show and the games that she plays together with them, so being a part of that was truly amazing,” said Lam.

Being on the show was surreal for Lam, who has been a long time fan of Ellen. When he arrived at the Warner Bros. studio in Burbank the day of shooting for a rehearsal, Lam met DeGeneres and was provided some feedback to incorporate into his performance. For Lam, it was the penultimate moment for all his training, dance class, and experience, which all came out in his solo. He was full of adrenaline, and wanted to captivate the millions all over the world that tune into Ellen every day.

In his spot, DeGeneres “randomly” picked Lam from the audience to come on stage and perform a minute-long dance solo. Lam felt comfortable knowing his skills and experience were necessary to bust out some big impressive dynamic dance moves right away and wow the crowd within that time frame. His background in breakdance gave him many big tricks to perform.

“I was excited to be performing a dance SOLO of all things on national television. I would usually perform with a group and feed off each other’s energy. This time I only had myself to rely on. It was a great challenge and I know that all my experience got me through it well. I knew I would be performing in front of a live audience, in front of Ellen, and with millions of people at home watching. I thought I would be so nervous, but I wasn’t. Ellen told me herself that she was so amazed by my dancing which made me extremely proud and happy. She has done a lot to support the dance community and I am so grateful for the opportunity,” said Lam.

One of the best parts of his experience on Ellen for Lam was getting to share the clip with all his family and friends back home in Australia. It was validating for Lam, getting to show everyone on the other side of the world how far he has come as a dancer, and he is excited to keep showing them what he is capable of. 

His next project will with Movement Lifestyle, one of the most well-known dance studios in the Dance community, where he will be a principle dancer and assisting choreographers. This anticipated next step is just a small glimpse into Lam’s sensational year ahead.

For now, watch Lam’s performance on Ellen here.