Table of Contents
Benji Schwimmer honors late So You Think You Can Dance partner Donyelle Jones
So You Think You Can Dance winner Benji Schwimmer is mourning the loss of his late dance partner Donyelle Denise Wilson, who went by the stage name Donyelle Jones, after her passing on Tuesday, Dec. 2.
Schwimmer, 41, didn’t hold back on his tribute to her and shared a long video on Instagram combining moments from the show with a sincere message about their friendship.
It was earlier in the day when a post from Donyelle’s official Instagram account informed that she had “transitioned” at 8:34 a.m. She was 46 years old.
:max_bytes(150000):strip_icc():focal(999x0:1001x2)/Benji-Schwimmer-Donyelle-Jones-So-You-Think-You-Can-Dance-120225-3270dc85c6c84dd9849eff473a24b884.jpg)
Benji Schwimmer recalls Donyelle Jones, who passed away from metastatic breast cancer
Donyelle Jones died ten years after her diagnosis with breast cancer. In 2016 she was diagnosed with a stage 3C breast cancer, which later went up to stage 4 metastatic breast cancer. She was loved and remembered as “a wife. A daughter. A sister. A friend. And a warrior who kicked cancer’s ass every single day she was here.”
“Her spirit never faded. Her love was always there. And even in the tempest, she kept her smile,” the statement also read.
Benji Schwimmer, in his video about her death, wrote his first reaction: “This morning, I woke up from a dream with tears in my eyes. These were not tears of sorrow or pain, but tears of joy.”
Still crying, he told the dream he had: “I was performing on a stage, it was kind of dark and unreal, and there was a big misty spotlight… and at that moment, from the nowhere, my dance partner and friend, Donyelle walked out and she was so gorgeously dressed.”
Benji Schwimmer Remembers Last Visit and a Strong Dream of Dancing with Donyelle Jones
In his tribute, Benji Schwimmer mentioned that in his dream, Donyelle was “radiant,” “just glowing and illuminated in a way that only dreams can create,” and that the two of them danced and talked together.”
As he recounted the story, when he had visited her “in the real world” just a week before Thanksgiving, he was so moved that he couldn’t hold back his tears. “I was so happy to be with her,” he said. “And here we were dancing out of nowhere a week later, and I was crying tears of joy because she wasn’t in pain, and she was healthy, and she was moving and laughing with me.”
He explained further, “The dream ended just as I was having this moment with her and I was dancing with her.” “This morning at 8:40, I woke up only to find out that Donyelle had died at 8:34,” he added.
Benji Schwimmer commends Donyelle Jones’ character and her revolutionary influence on the dance community
The winner of So You Think You Can Dance season 2, Benji Schwimmer, talked about how luminous Donyelle was and recalled: ‘every memory that I have of her, she has that same ethereal glow’. He also said that he felt the need to share not only his thanks but also his sympathy with the family of the deceased.’
Benji only sent love to Donyelle’s husband, Tahir, and then to the arts and dance community.
“Dance, the arts in general, can be very competitive, a grind, and in that world of dance, which is very small, there could sometimes be negative emotions that might even make it harder for the pure joy dance brings to us all to be seen, I mean emotions of envy, jealousy, and so on,” he said. “However, Donyelle was never a victim of that.”
Benji Schwimmer recalls Donyelle Jones as the one who gave him self-assurance not only in the dance world but also in life
Benji Schwimmer declared that, apart from Donyelle Jones’ numerous professional achievements, the biggest impact she made to him was on the personal side. “Before all of that, she was really one of the main reasons for my personal successes,” he remembered. “She was the one who taught me to just accept my body the way it is, to laugh at those moments when costumes were wonky and weird, and to learn the value of grinding, working hard and training no matter what age if you want to be your best both on and off the dance floor.”
“It’s a pity that she was taken from us so early,” he added, indicating that they had plans to choreograph again for SYTYCD. “And the very smile that she had on the stage, she also had that smile in the dream and she also had that smile when I saw her last week for the last time.”
Benji Schwimmer remembers the fire of his collaboration with Donyelle Jones
Benji Schwimmer, thinking over the times they were dance partners, said, “It’s not a marriage, but sometimes it seems even more than that, because you are either at your most brilliant self all the time, or you are at your most modest self in sweatpants, just being nervous, and there is no intermediate, there is no rest, there is no being.”
Benji Schwimmer promises to keep Donyelle Jones’ memory alive.
Schwimmer expressed his thankfulness for the time he had with Donyelle Jones saying, “I am so thankful for the time I had with Donyelle Jones.” “Donyelle was a perfect example of how to be grateful for the people in your life. Be thankful for the teachers, the characters who might be considered the unsung heroes that have facilitated your success in whatever field you are in, an artist, dancer, just be grateful for that.”
By the time he was pointing towards the future, he was saying: “I actually feel that this is only the beginning of the legacy that is going to be left by her which will be even more amazing works in her name, her honor, and through her deeply moving story.” and I am looking forward to being part of that, and Benji Schwimmer promises to keep the memory of Donyelle alive, his friend, my dear friend, and my forever partner in dance. I love you, Donyelle.” Donyelle, I love you.”
