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Kelly Monaco almost cha-chaed her way out of the ballroom.
The “General Hospital” star, 49, recalled being told that participating in Season 1 of “Dancing with the Stars” in 2005 would harm her career as an actress.
Monaco had joined the ABC soap opera two years prior in 2003, as Sam McCall, when she got the offer to join the competition series.
“I had a letter in my mailbox in my dressing room at ‘General Hospital,’” she recounted to Entertainment Weekly on Saturday. “We have these little mailboxes outside of our dressing rooms, and there was a letter in there, and it was a request to do ‘Dancing with the Stars.’”
“I remember bringing it home,” Monaco continued, “and getting feedback from family, friends, and so forth, and they were like, ‘You can’t do a reality show. Actors don’t do a reality show.’”
At the time, the “Welcome to Hollywood” alum wasn’t well-versed in the world of dance.
“I had never heard of ballroom dancing before,” Monaco confessed. “I had no idea what I was getting myself into. But I was just like, ‘F–k it. I’ll try anything once.’ That’s how I’ve always rolled in life. If an opportunity comes, I’ll try it.”
The soap opera star was partnered with pro dancer Alec Mazo and the pair competed against Trista Sutter and Louis van Amstel, John O’Hurley and Charlotte Jorgensen, Joey McIntyre and Ashly DelGrosso, Evander Holyfield and Edyta Śliwińska, and Rachel Hunter and Jonathan Roberts.
“The first season was only six episodes. It was a test run, and I was like, ‘I’m not going to tell anyone I’m doing it and hopefully I get voted off first and no one will ever see it,’” Monaco told the outlet.
“After the first episode, I was horrified by the comments from the judges, and I got the lowest score, I think, ever in the history of ‘Dancing With the Stars.’ So, I was like, ‘OK, it’s on. We’re going in and we’re doing this.’ Then I took it seriously, and I was all in at that point.”
As the weeks went by, the soap star was sure she would be eliminated from the series.
“I didn’t think I was a good dancer at all. I improved weekly,” Monaco reminisced.
“I was so proud every week that I made it a week further,” she recounted.
Monaco quickly became a fan favorite, but along with sharpening her dancing skills, there was one fashion mishap.
During Monaco and Mazo’s samba during week four, the actress’s dress broke.
“Alec was very strict, and he prepared me for every obstacle,” Monaco shared. “He would have whoever was around throw obstacles at us. So, he prepared me for that, but oh my God, it was so scary. I felt like someone had a laser beam from five miles away and shot my costume. It was a countdown to going live, ‘Five, four, three, pop!’ I was like, ‘What am I supposed to do?’”
The former ABC star did what she could in the moment.
“I know I get at least five counts of a walk over to Alec, walking toward him for our dance,” explained Monaco. “But I remember looking at the judges, looking at whoever like, ‘Is there a stop button? Okay, there’s nothing. I just have to go through it.’ So, I’m like, ‘OK, well, I’ll just hold my dress up while I dance.’”
She gushed, “Alec supported me every step of the way. I don’t think I felt more confident in any dance.”
However, Monaco’s wardrobe malfunction marked “the turnaround” of her “experience with dance and the show.”
“After that, the audience related to me because I was on soap operas for so long, I had only been known as this villain and was only called by my soap name in public,” she elaborated. “This gave the audience a chance to see the real me in a circumstance where you can either fall flat or rise above.”
Monaco’s hard work paid off, as she took home the Mirrorball Trophy that year.
“I was driven to win,” the “General Hospital” alum admitted to ESPN in 2011. “I didn’t realize how many hours I had put in because I had the end goal of capturing the title and I achieved that.”
Then, in 2012, Monaco went on to compete on “Dancing with the Stars: All-Stars.” She placed third with her partner Val Chermovskiy.
After both stints in the ballroom, the Hollywood vet continued playing Sam McCall on “General Hospital” until her 21-year run came to an end on November 1.
In September, Monaco addressed her exit in a since-deleted Instagram response.
She replied to a comment on Soap Hub’s Instagram post at the time, that read, “What do you got concrete in your head she wasn’t fired she didn’t take the pay cut so she had to leave.”
Monaco answered: “‘No primary role’.. do your homework. When Billy Miller was fired, Sam’s storyline stopped. Stripping Sam of every characteristic she had. Something I worked for decades to build… Slowly dismantling her, into a character that I did not recognize, let alone the audience. Call it what you will… retaliation at it [sic] finest. I will give a proper statement. The truth will set you free.”
Then, the reality star’s mom, Carmina, took to her own Instagram to share a lengthy message about her daughter being let go from the long-running series.
“I want to take this moment to reach out to Kelly’s incredible fans and express my deepest gratitude for the unwavering love, loyalty, and support you’ve shown her throughout her time on General Hospital,” she penned. “On this final day, just four days shy of the anniversary of her first episode on October 1, 2003, Kelly will close the door of her dressing room for the last time.”
Carmina noted that while it was a difficult transition for Monaco after two decades, the fan base helped make things a bit easier.
“This moment is a difficult one, but knowing that she has had such an incredible, devoted fan base has given her strength,” the former figure skater expressed. “You’ve stood by her through every twist and turn, celebrating her achievements and providing comfort in the hard times. Your love and dedication have meant more than words can express, not only to Kelly but to all of us who care so deeply for her.”
In October, Monaco posted a photo of herself with her co-stars Kate Mansi, Nancy Lee Grahn and Kristen Vaganos while on set.
“Last scene with the Davis girls. 😘🥲🙏🏻 still doesn’t make any sense to me,” the “DWTS” winner captioned the shot.
Monaco was reportedly “blindsided” by the network’s decision to kill off her character.
She first appeared in the fictional town of Port Charles in 2003 and starred in over 2,000 episodes of the show.
In 2006, Monaco earned a Daytime Emmy nomination for Best Supporting Actress. The former model also played Livvie Locke on the “GH” spinoff “Port Charles” from 2000 to 2003.