Travis Stancil now under investigation by local law enforcement

Over-promise and under-deliver. That’s how a sponsor from last year’s Dancing with the Burke Stars sums up her experience with show producer Travis Stancil.

Stancil’s alleged questionable business practices aren’t going unnoticed by local law enforcement. Capt. Josiah Brown with Morganton Public Safety said the case is currently under investigation. No charges have been filed as of March 1. He declined to comment further.  

Efforts to reach Stancil for comment about the situation have been unsuccessful. 

Mindy Melott had bought Next Level Training in Valdese in October 2022, so when Stancil approached her about being a sponsor of Dancing with the Burke Stars, she listened.

The annual event was popular, and she thought it would be a good vehicle to get the word out about the health and fitness services she offers.

“He said he would create a commercial for my business that I could use on social media or TV. He said he would introduce me to everyone in the VIP section at the show. He said I’d have prime seats and be called onto the stage to be recognized at the end of the show,” Melott said. “None of that happened.”

Circumspect behavior from last year’s show surfaced after Dancing with the Burke Stars 2024 was abruptly canceled one week before the performance. The professional dancers who came to Morganton to work with the local participants voted unanimously on Feb. 1 to walk out, citing a toxic work environment created by Stancil. 

In retrospect, she suspects he kept adding so-called benefits to her sponsorship until she was willing to sign on the dotted line. Whether he intended to follow through is unknown, but a few things are certain. Melott never got her commercial. She wasn’t introduced to VIPs. She wasn’t invited onstage. 

“I got stuck up in the balcony,” she said. “The whole thing was a joke.”

After he cashed her check for $2,500, communication with Stancil became infrequent. When they did speak, he often had some excuse such as being out of town. He eventually gave her little notice when he showed up at her business with a videographer. The commercial was only partially shot. Stancil never returned to complete the video. 

“I happened to run into the videographer the other week, and he told me he was never paid for the work he did that day,” Melott said. 

If there is a silver lining, she said she has learned a valuable lesson.

“I definitely would never take someone’s word. I’d get a lot more in writing,” she said. “I’m sharing what happened to me because I want people to be aware so it doesn’t happen to them.”

Melott isn’t the only sponsor from last year’s event who questioned Stancil’s tactics.

A Burke County realtor, who asked not to be named, told how they received a phone call from Stancil the morning of the 2023 event. If they would cough up $500 more, they could speak to the audience. They declined. 

Heather Maggio, owner of The Pilates Barre in Morganton, bought a $250 ad to run in the program. Imagine her surprise when she didn’t get a program when she attended the show. She didn’t see anyone else with a program, either. When she sent an email asking about the missing program, she was told a limited number of programs were printed. She later received a stapled printout of the program folded into a greeting card.

“I expected a program to be in everyone’s hands who attended,” she said.

“Disorganized” and “unprofessional” were common descriptors used by many associated with the show. 

A local trained dancer who helped train the Burke stars in 2021, 2022, and 2023 said Stancil paid them $1,000 in 2021 and 2022 for working a couple of hours a couple of days per week. The arrangement changed in 2023. 

“In 2023, I got paid $800 for a 10-day job,” the dancer said. Stancil initially said the pay would be $1,400. 

“We practiced 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. with one lunch break. The lunch was leftover restaurant food that they were planning to throw out. Not to mention how badly we were treated. He would honestly treat us like animals. One of the professional dancers last year sliced her toe open pretty bad in practice and Travis told her to just suck it up and keep dancing.”

Many participants in the Burke County and Catawba Valley shows said they noticed the professional dancers were mostly fed junk food. To rectify the situation, the local “stars” brought the dancers home-cooked meals and protein shakes and bars. The pros would often cry in gratitude for their kindness.

Three weeks have passed since the Burke and Catawba shows were scheduled, and there are still more questions than answers. An outstanding question centers on money.

While a total accounting of how much money had been raised and given to Stancil and Stance Productions is not yet known, the Catawba stars sent a collective email asking for the reimbursement of $14,731 in sponsorships and advertising.

One local Burke participant – on their own – forked over more than $12,000 in advertising and sponsorships.

While dance show participants continue to reach out in vain to Stancil, he gives the appearance of living worry-free in Florida on his Instagram account. Recent posts have pictured him hanging out poolside and posing in upscale clubs, though it's uncertain when the photos were originally taken. He celebrated his birthday this past week. 

EDITOR'S NOTE: Counsel for Stancil and Stance Productions informed The Paper that Stancil and Stance Productions ‘vehemently disputed’ allegations that dancers were subject to a toxic work environment. Counsel for Stancil and Stance productions further informed The Paper that Stancil and Stance Productions would not make public comments with respect to The Paper’s publications.

Angela Kuper Copeland is managing editor of The Paper. She may be reached at 828-445-8595 or via email at angela@thepaper.media.