‘So You Think You Can Dance’ Star Serge Onik Dies at 33
Serge Onik, a professional dancer and choreographer
who competed on So You Think You Can Dance Season 11 and died at the age of 33, has passed away. The cause of death has yet to be determined.
In a statement to Entertainment Weekly on Tuesday, Onik’s agent, Jim Keith, president of The Movement Talent Agency, confirmed his death.
Keith described him as an “amazing dancer with a big heart who impacted the lives of everyone who met him.”
“His loss will be felt deeply.
This is a sad day for the agency and the dancing community in general.”
Onik, who was born in Kharkiv, Ukraine, and his family immigrated to the United States when he was three years old.
He began dancing at the age of nine and progressed through the levels of competitive ballroom dance.
He participated in Season 11 of SYTYCD in 2014, finishing in the Top 10.
Following his debut on SYTYCD, Onik went on to work as a choreographer on numerous stage
performances and television programs, including Dancing With The Stars, where he collaborated with Meryl Davis and Maks Chmerkovskiy.
In addition, he danced with several of the pro dancers from the popular ABC competition series Sway: A Dance Trilogy.
His most recent performance was this summer in Lin-Manuel Miranda’s In the Heights.
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In June, he said on Instagram
“I mean it’s for literally 2 seconds, but I’ve never been more proud to be a part of a project, for a few reasons.”
“It’s such an honor to be a part of a film that reflects the cultures, peoples, and dance genre that essentially reared me and to which I owe my whole life.”
Following the news of Onik’s death, condolences from his friends and peers flooded in.
Elena Grinenko, a pro dancer on Dancing With The Stars, posted an old picture of Onik on Instagram with the caption,
“RIP @sergeonik.” We’ll miss you terribly.
I’m heartbroken that the world has lost such a wonderful person as you.”
