If she looks familiar, that’s because you saw her high kick across the screen several years ago and onto a coveted spot with the most elite cheerleading squad in the NFL. Olivia Sharber‘s solo on the CMT original series “Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders: Making the Team” helped win the judges over and showed this girl was going places. Sharber would go on to dance with the Radio City Rockettes.
Now the retired professional dancer has joined @properties Christie’s International Real Estate as their newest shining star. Daltxrealestate.com sat down with Sharber to discuss her path to @properties Christie’s.
CD: When did you begin selling real estate?
Olivia: I first got my real estate license in New York City in 2019 while I was still dancing professionally there. I was working and finding success in the market there until Covid-19 hit and the city simply shut down.
I had a really good thing going with real estate, but my husband and I were pregnant with our first baby and we were just stuck inside our tiny apartment. I remember thinking when things shut down, it would be a few days, then a few weeks, and that became many months. I mean, how long can you live like that?
So we decided to move for like six months to Dallas where I’m originally from. We rented a home in Preston Hollow, and then the Omicron variant happened. A few months turned into staying for good, so I got my real estate license here in Texas in 2021. I was fortunate and honored to be offered a spot on the Eklund Gomes team at Douglas Elliman when I moved back. From there, I ended up at @properties Christie’s.
CD: What was the market like then, and what were some of the early rumblings of the pandemic in New York?
OS: The market was moving well, as it is always busy in NYC. I was with Douglas Elliman at the time and we had three or more million-dollar listings in February 2020 when things started getting bad.
NYC is such a dense city, so lockdowns started with the office buildings. Then people were nervous about riding the subways and being on crowded streets. Then the Real Estate Board of New York stopped in-person showings and we weren’t sure how we’d sell these listings without showings. I started doing open houses on Facebook Live and showings via Facetime in full mask and gloves. Somehow we got it done.
CD: What did your “new normal” become in NYC?
OS: It drastically changed New York. Everything ceased. When Broadway shut down, that’s when it got serious in NYC. That’s never happened before.
It’s like it went from NYC to Dooms Day. There were no noises, no honking, like all the sounds of the city were just quiet. It was so odd. We were discouraged to ride the subways unless you had no other mode of transportation, so my husband would drive me to my doctor’s office when I was pregnant. Driving down 5th Ave and being the only car on the road was so weird.
CD: You spent four years with the Radio City Rockettes. Tell us about your days at Radio City Music Hall.
OS: They were some of the hardest and simultaneously rewarding days I’ve ever had. You’re rehearsing from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. until you get into tech rehearsal, and then you’re doing 12 hour days. You do 15 shows a week, with some days having four shows a day. With precision dancing, you toe the line, put your arch on the line… Everything’s very precise. Your body goes through a lot, but you’re going through all this with other dancers during the holidays… Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Year’s Eve. They become your family. And they still feel like family even though I am not in the show anymore.
And actually, it was somewhat chance that I booked the Christmas Spectacular. While I was cheering, I visited friends in the city who encouraged me to join them on the audition. I wanted to see how many cuts I could make, but I kept getting called back. I feel so genuinely lucky to do the show for as long as I did.
CD: Before joining the Rockettes in 2015, we saw you audition to become a Dallas Cowboys Cheerleader on CMT’s “Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders: Making the Team.” How was the audition process? As grueling as it looks on TV or worse?
OS: It’s a long process, especially as a rookie. The first round is improv dancing for 1.5 minutes, which means thinking literally and figuratively on your feet. The second round is learning the combinations and ending with a kickline, which shows the judges what kind of stamina you have. Then there’s the interview round, and finally at finals, the veterans show up, which can be intimidating.
It’s not an easy process. I was a little more seasoned because I’d danced professionally. As a professional dancer, you hear more “No’s” than “Yes’s” so you get toughened up to hearing those “No’s.” But it was still one of the hardest processes I’ve gone through.
CD: Best memory of dancing for the DCC?
OS: USO tours were very special. Only 12 of us got to go. So we were bringing a little piece of America to U.S. soldiers in Bahrain, Kuwait, and these places that not many civilians have a chance to travel to. That was really special for me.
Also, I think of the locker room shenanigans because you bond on a different kind of level. It’s like having a sleepover with all your 12-year-old best friends, but you get to have that feeling as an adult. I loved it.
CD: Do you have a mentor or someone in the real estate business that’s helped you, and what lessons have they taught you?
OS: I was fortunate enough to be mentored by someone who has been in the business for over 20 years in NYC. The main lessons I learned from her were that honesty and integrity are everything in this industry. When you are good to people, whether they be your clients, fellow agents, or customers on the other side of your deals, they will respect you and return the favor.
I also joined the Eklund Gomes team as part of their expansion into Texas when I first moved back. Frederick, John, and Julia are titans in the industry and I learned so much about not only being a good agent but being a good person from them. I have the utmost respect for them and feel so truly honored to have been able to learn from them.
CD: What part of town do you live in?
OS: Preston Hollow
CD: What’s the best part of living there, and is there a favorite gem that people overlook about your neighborhood?
OS: We love the accessibility to all our favorite restaurants; Ill Braco, Shin Sei, Carbonne, Jose, Eddie V’s, and Al Biernat’s. And also being near Thackery and Bluffview Park for the kids. And obviously Northpark!
CD: How or why did you decide on your brokerage?
OS: @properties Christie’s has technology and marketing capabilities that are top-notch. The degree of support they furnish for agents to further serve our clients is unmatched.
