Whitney Leavitt Calls End of DWTS a Breakup She’s ‘Still Healing from’ (Exclusive)

Whitney Leavitt is looking back on her Dancing with the Stars days.

The influencer and star of The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives, 32, spent the fall competing on the 34th season of the hit reality dance competition show alongside pro partner Mark Ballas.

However, just one episode before the finale, fans were shocked when Leavitt, who had consistently scored at the top of the leaderboard throughout the competition, was eliminated during the semi-finals.

“This show has absolutely meant the world to me. It’s changed my life,” Leavitt said immediately following her elimination on the show. “I’ll forever be so grateful for the friendships I’ve made, to have this experience, thank you so, so much.”

Chatting with PEOPLE at the L’Oreal Paris Women of Worth 2025 event on Dec. 2 in Los Angeles, the MomToker reminisced on her time on the show.

“I miss it a lot. I miss seeing everyone in the studio,” she tells PEOPLE. “I miss dancing every day — like you are thrown into it and it is every single day, hours every single day, and then it just ends, it just stops.

Going on, she likened her departure from the show to a “breakup,” saying that she felt as though she was “still healing from” it.

“I just feel like something was ignited in me being a part of that experience, being a part of that show,” she continues. “I was surrounded by so many people who just pushed me, believed in me, and I’ll forever be so grateful for it.”

Leavitt was eliminated just one week short of the finale, receiving a 29/30 after performing a cha cha to “1999” and another 29/30 after dancing a Viennese waltz to “Slow Love” during Prince Night.

While she may miss her time on the show, the reality TV star and mom of three’s dancing days are far from over, as it was recently announced that Leavitt would be playing Roxie Hart in the musical Chicago on Broadway.

Her run begins on Feb. 2, 2026, at the Ambassador Theatre in New York City for a six-week limited engagement through March 15, 2026.

This will be Leavitt’s first professional theater role; however, her background in dance and performance is extensive, having majored in fine arts with an emphasis in dance at Brigham Young University in Utah.

The Utah-based social media personality —who gained a devoted fanbase online with her mix of dance videos, family comedy and lifestyle content — built some history with Chicago during her run on the show. 

She and Ballas performed an Argentine Tango to “Cell Block Tango,” one of the show’s most iconic numbers, earning a perfect score of 40/40 for their attempt.