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Wicked plus-size dancer hopes to inspire others

Tegan Browne-Winter A headshot of Tegan Browne-Winter. She is wearing black, she is staring down the camera and she is wearing rings on her right hand which is resting on her left shoulder.Tegan Browne-Winter
Tegan Browne-Winter said she was discouraged from a career in dance for not looking "a certain way"

A plus-size dancer in the new Wicked film hopes she can inspire others to follow their ambitions.

Raised in Watford, Hertfordshire, Tegan Browne-Winter said she was discouraged from pursuing a career in the arts and was told not to continue dance school because of the way she looked.

She recalled: "People would tell me I was a good dancer but the recurring message was I needed to lose weight, was too big or did not look the way the industry wanted.

"I hope me and other plus-size dancers can be the beacon of light for young people to not listen to the hate around them and actually know they're good enough."

Youtube/Universal Pictures A still from the film shows Grande dancing, dressed in pink, with other students dressed in blue. All of them are holding school books. On the far right of the image is Tegan Browne-Winter.Youtube/Universal Pictures
Tegan Browne-Winter (far right) started working on Wicked in 2022 but had to keep it a secret for some time

In 2022 the 23-year-old attended dance workshops, where she was spotted by a choreographer working on Wicked and was offered a part in the film.

A clip of Ms Browne-Winter dancing alongside star Ariana Grande during What Is This Feeling? has gone viral on social media, with fans recreating the dance themselves and sharing it online.

She said: "Some people from my dance company went to watch it yesterday and, when they came in, they were like, 'Can you teach me that dance?'.

"All I know is, I had to hold a book and make sure everything was clean and technical... Obviously we're not able to see what it looks like when it's being filmed, to see the vision come to life is unbelievable."

Tegan Browne-Winter Tegan Browne-Winter is smiling in a mirror selfie she has taken in a lift. She is wearing her Wicked costume which is a bright blue school uniform blazer with a blue shirt underneath. The emblem of Shiz University, a gold S, is on the blazer.Tegan Browne-Winter
She decided to keep dancing in the hope she could provide the representation she never saw growing up

Ms Browne-Winter can also be spotted in other scenes such as when Jonathan Bailey performs Dancing Through Life and in parts set in the Ozdust Ballroom.

She said: "I'm looking at my face and thinking, Tegan you could've done so much better there. I'm so critical of myself in this film."

The dancer praised her co-stars, especially Grande, who she shared scenes with.

She recalled: "She was really involved in our rehearsals and nice and friendly, and spoke to everyone, I was so surprised.

"Every morning she would be the first person to go around and say hi to people. I had to not freak out every time she walked into the room."

Getty Images A photo taken at the premiere of Wicked with Cynthia Erivo in a velvet black dress with a flowing skirt and Ariana Grande in a bright yellow dressGetty Images
Ms Browne-Winter praised Wicked leads Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande

Ms Browne-Winter said her scenes were filmed at Elstree Studios, Hertfordshire and Ivinghoe in Buckinghamshire.

She said: "It honestly felt like we were in a different world. You couldn't see over any of the sets or anything, so you're in this vacuum space of Oz."

The dancer praised the film for including performers from a diverse background and admitted she was "beaming" when she realised there were other plus-size dancers in the production.

She said: "There's always a certain look when it comes to female dancers, to see another plus-size dancer in the room, I was so excited.

"There was a time I nearly quit dancing because I was so downhearted and didn't believe in myself anymore. It had nothing to do with my talent."

Ultimately she kept dancing in the hope she could provide the representation she never saw.

"I want to be somebody young people can look at.

"If they've got the talent, the drive and work hard, they can make it in whatever they do."

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