R. Kelly's ex-wife Andrea Kelly teaches dance in Atlanta this weekend

Returning to her first love, dance, Andrea plans to open her second dance theater here

By Ronda Racha Penrice Friday October 8, 2010 07:45 PM EDT

Even after she broke her silence in a major 2007 interview with Essence interview, it still surprises many people to learn that R. Kelly ever had a wife for 11 years. But Andrea Kelly — his ex-wife and mother of their two girls and one boy, ages 12, 10 and 8, respectively — remains unfazed. A trained dancer, Andrea was a key ingredient behind her ex-husband’s many performances. Returning to her very first love, dance, Kelly is determined to spread that joy to others through the Andrea Kelly Dance Theater, now located in Chicago.
With plans to open another location in Atlanta, the Chicago native, who travels to Atlanta frequently, is giving Atlantans a taste of what they can expect by teaching master dance classes that are both sensual and fitness-oriented. Known officially as “Le Pink Kitty Cabaret,” Kelly is holding classes for $40 at Devyne Stephens’ Complex Artist Development Center, located at 1021 Northside Drive, from October 8 to 10.

Before classes start, however, Kelly was kind enough to check in with Creative Loafing from Chicago to discuss her background and provide a little insight into her life then and now.

How old were you when you started dancing?
Well the story in my family is I danced before I walked. My dad said that he just remembers that I was still in diapers and "Soul Train" was on TV and he said, "You crawled over to the TV and you pulled yourself up." He was figuring I was gonna walk, and he’s like, "Girl you started dancing and the funny thing was you did not dance like the regular kid, kind of off-beat. You were on beat and everything. It went to commercial and you held your hands up like Poltergeist and was like 'Ma, Ma' and we knew from that point on that you would be dancing."

What kind of dance did you like?
I was a theater kid. Loved modern, ballet, jazz but my specialty was more the Fosse-based jazz. I love Broadway. I just love Chicago and All That Jazz and A Chorus Line. That is actually my favorite type of dance to do.

How old were you when you first started dancing professionally?
17

How did you become a dancer for R. Kelly?