Russia's ‘Dancing With the Stars’ creators express regret over Nazi Frank Sinatra dance routine

Creators for Russia's version of “Dancing With the Stars,” a TV show that pairs celebrities with professional ballroom dancers, have expressed regret over a dance routine featuring a fully uniformed Nazi soldier set to Frank Sinatra's “Fly Me to the Moon.”

Rossiya-1, the state-owned TV channel that broadcasts the show, has since apologized for the dance routine, which aired April 10.

The author of the routine, Alexander Petrov, wanted to tell the story of “a tragic, doomed love between a Russian woman and a German [during World War II], which causes him to drop his weapon and to die with her.”

In their apology, the creators assure the public that “the young artist's intentions were pure.”

Rossiya-1 says the show's creators, hosts and jury members are Russian patriots, and often use military themes in the show's dance routines to express this patriotism.