Jeanine Mason - Dancing Queen

Roswell, New Mexico star Jeanine Mason’s flair on the floor helps keep her in line with acting—and connected to family

- John Griffiths

If alien life-forms exist, do they have their own version of the rumba? The notion intrigues dance pro Jeanine Mason, if only because she’s also the star of The CW’s new drama series Roswell, New Mexico, a reboot of the early 2000s sci-fi-hit about strange occurrences in that famously

UFO-happy town. “I’m sure those ETs would have some moves,” says the good-natured Mason, 28. One would hope: Her Roswell character, Liz Ortecho, is a biomedical researcher who discovers her new love, police officer Max [Nathan Parsons], is out of this world. Literally.

Headlining a fantastical hour drama, for the first time no less, can be overwhelming. But Mason’s years of hoofing—she started taking ballet and flamenco classes as a child in hometown Miami—give her a leg up. “Directors keep telling me, ‘You’re so good at taking direction!’ That’s because I’ve been dancing since the age of 3, hearing in class, ‘Straighten this’ or ‘lift that.’ In the moment, you learn how to make adjustments.”