The family that dances together stays together. Alan Bersten and his sister-in-law and brother, Elena and Gene Bersten, share a quiet moment during downtime at Snow Ball, their annual international ballroom dancing competition in Minneapolis. Photo: Chris Emeott
The Bersten family has roots in Edina and on TV.
We have stars in our midst. They’re tucked away inside the lower level of Southdale Center behind an unassuming studio marquee that reads, Dance With Us America. This is where Gene and Elena Bersten train everyone from first-time dancers to elite competitors—some of whom travel across the country just for a lesson. And Gene’s little brother is Alan Bersten, a professional dancer on Dancing With the Stars, who guest teaches when he visits town. “Once you’re in this world, you’ll know us. You’ll go out of your way to find us,” Gene says. “We have students who fly in. People drive three hours, fly from other states. They want the best training.”
But Alan isn’t the only Bersten who has graced the big screen. Gene and Elena found each other on the international ballroom dancing show Burn The Floor. “I was there with my American partner, my old partner. [Elena] was there for Russia with her partner,” Gene says. Sparks flew, and the two ended up dating and getting married. After taking a break from dancing to raise their three children, they returned to competition five years ago and are national and international finalists and champions. Their children are all national finalists.
In addition to running Dance With Us America, Gene and Elena Bersten compete around the world. Photos: Dance With Us America
Long before TV fame, the Bersten family was building a dancing community here at home.
Gene, Alan and their sister, Melani, had a childhood defined by dance. “I grew up dancing my whole life, so literally, my memories all have to do with dance,” Alan says.
Their parents immigrated to the United States from Belarus. “My parents loved dancing,” Gene says. “They wanted to get their kids interested in it.” Gene and Alan grew up in Minnetonka and went to Hopkins High School. Like many young dancers, Gene struggled with confidence. “People who know me now will never believe it,” he says. “I was very shy. I had low self-esteem. Dancing changed everything. It made me more confident. More positive.”
Alan started dancing at age 7. By 13, he was traveling monthly for competitions and already imagining dance as his future. “From the very beginning, it’s just something that I loved and thought, ‘Oh, this is going to be my life,’” he says.
Their parents, neither of whom were dancers themselves, quickly realized their children’s passion required more than casual lessons. They brought elite instructors to Minnesota and helped build a competitive ballroom community from the ground up. “I think they realized that we loved it so much,” Alan says. “What’s interesting is I think they probably thought, ‘Oh, this is a great little hobby for them.’ And then it quickly turned into us loving it. And so then they’re like, ‘OK, now we have to support them,’ you know, as opposed to just doing it for fun, it became like a sport—traveling monthly, getting trainers. It was a big financial commitment, and I think they didn’t care. It was more about just making us happy, which was really sweet,” he says.
Elena’s path began differently. Her mother, a dancer, first introduced her to ballroom dancing when she was 8. She didn’t like it at the time, but when her mother started teaching dance for free at her school when Elena was 13, something clicked. She liked how ballroom is intensely physical, requiring control over every muscle in the body. “You use everything,” Elena says. “Your fingers, stomach, legs, thighs, calves, feet. You stretch and move constantly, everything. You need to control every part of your body every second.”
Elena says the popularity of Dancing With the Stars has helped bring ballroom dancing into the mainstream, shifting perceptions of a new generation of dancers. “When I came 15 years ago to the United States, we had some kids … say, ‘Please don’t post because my friends can see me.’ They’d hide it,” Elena says. “Now it’s the opposite.” Alan says, “Now it’s cool. Now Dancing With the Stars is like the biggest show, and it’s amazing for me to be part of something like that, to see that and hopefully inspire other kids to dance and follow their dreams.”
To get people on the path to achieving those dreams, Gene and Elena opened Dance With Us America in 2011. The studio offers group classes, private lessons and professional-amateur partnerships.
The Berstens say at its core, ballroom dancing teaches essential life skills. “It teaches you how to talk to other people, how to behave with people, because with this dance style, you dance as a team,” Gene says. “I learned how to talk to girls because my partner was a beautiful girl. When you go dancing, you try and dress as nice as you can. It’s all about image at first. You have to dress the part.”
Gene says the studio has a strict dress code for kids when they start. “For the boys, they have to wear dress pants, a nice shirt. Part of that is etiquette. It’s very old fashioned in the sense you want to be very classy. Very respectful to your partner. This style of dancing teaches all these things,” he says. Elena agrees. “They learn how to communicate with each other, how to solve problems together,” she says.
Photo: Dance With Us America
Dance With Us America trains dancers of all ages. “The movements in ballroom are more natural to our body. It’s easy for anybody to pick up at any age,” Gene says. “It’s a lifelong skill. You go to a wedding, you’re not going to do a ballet routine. You’re going to do ballroom dances.”
That accessibility draws a wide range of students. Some want to prepare for a wedding. Others want to compete nationally. Many arrive with no experience at all. “We start with the basics,” Gene says. “One step at a time. When you put it together, you’re dancing.”
Snow Ball is a three-day competition for professionals, amateurs, PRO/AM teams (where a professional dances with an amateur), junior, preteen and youth categories. The Berstens own and host it every winter. Next year’s Snow Ball will be January 28–31, 2027. For more information, go to thesnowballcomp.com. Photos: Chris Emeott
The Berstens co-own Snow Ball, an annual ballroom dancing competition that draws contestants from around the world. This year, it was at the Intercontinental Hotel. Besides hosting a competition, the Berstens’ careers have taken them around the world. Gene and Elena compete and travel every week. For Alan, he’s toured with productions like Burn the Floor, been on So You Think You Can Dance? and appeared on Dancing With the Stars, where he choreographs, performs and tours nationally each year. After each TV season, the cast embarks on a 97-city tour. “I don’t like to take a lot of time off … when you love what you do, you don’t burn out … it’s the biggest blessing,” Alan says.
It’s a demanding life, but one rooted in joy. “For me, performing fills my cup. Being active and dancing and moving, that’s what really makes me happy … Being able to do something that I love and that brings people joy, there’s nothing better,” Alan says.
That philosophy defines Dance With Us America. It’s not just about trophies or TV fame. It’s about creating opportunities, building confidence and helping people discover something new about themselves.
“I just hope it inspires kids to not just dance, but if dancing is their passion, follow your passion,” Alan says. Gene adds, “The majority of people coming in for lessons have never danced before. So it’s not that everyone’s coming in like a dance superstar. Our studio goal is we try to make everybody the best dancer they can be. A lot of people come here because they want to be really good. If you saw it on Dancing With the Stars, we can do it here.”
Dance With Us America
Instagram: @dancewithusamerica_mn
