Seinfeld's Julia Louis-Dreyfus Has A Mirror And Her Mom To Thank For Elaine's Iconic Dance Moves
Julia Louis-Dreyfus may have been born to billionaire businessman Gérard C. Louis-Dreyfus, but she paid her dues as she ascended the Hollywood food chain before landing the role that made her famous on that little show about nothing, "Seinfeld." Louis-Dreyfus' big screen debut came with a very small role in Woody Allen's "Hannah and Her Sisters," but she really developed her acting chops and comedic timing during her time with The Second City company and her three years of work on "Saturday Night Live" (via The Second City).
Invariably, Louis-Dreyfus can be seen during the holidays as part of the cast of the iconic "National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation." She has also even dipped her toes in the Marvel Cinematic Universe with her appearances as Valentina Allegra de Fontaine in "Black Widow" and "The Falcon and the Winter Soldier" on Disney+. But "Seinfeld" is the series that made Louis-Dreyfus a household name for her portrayal of Elaine Benes.
Whether Elaine was calling Kramer (Michael Richards) a "stupid, hipster doofus" because of a rabies scare, tangling with Frank Costanza (Jerry Stiller) over George (Jason Alexander) getting arrested, or even threatening to ruin the Soup Nazi's (Larry Thomas) business, it was all unforgettable comedy gold. However, Elaine's most memorable moments arguably center around her unorthodox dance moves. What you might not know is that Louis-Dreyfus had some help getting Elaine's little kicks just right.
Louis-Dreyfus used a mirror and her mom's advice to nail Elaine's dance moves
Julia Louis-Dreyfus had just one night to come up with Elaine Benes' now iconic dance moves prior to the "Seinfeld" table-read for the Season 8 episode titled "The Little Kicks," and she put a mirror and her mother to work. "I just stood in front of the mirror and tried to do movements that looked incredibly bad," Louis-Dreyfus said during an interview with Vanity Fair.
Louis-Dreyfus felt confident she already had a few dance moves nailed down for the next day's read-through, and she recalled that her mother was staying with her at the time. "I came downstairs, and I sort of auditioned these different movements for my mom and my husband," Louis-Dreyfus continued. "And they all voted on the one that I did [on the show]."
Evidently, Louis-Dreyfus made the right decision when it came to choreographing Elaine's little kicks. The actress also told Vanity Fair that people approach her constantly on the streets, and they always mention how much they enjoy Elaine's wacky dance moves. However, don't expect Louis-Dreyfus to kick up her heels if you bump into her in public. "I say, 'Oh, thank you so much. No, I'm not going to do it,'" Louis-Dreyfus laughed in the same interview.