Artist Sandra Lyng experienced a severe migraine attack that temporarily robbed her of her speech, vision, and balance just hours before her live premiere on “Skal vi danse,” forcing her to miss the general rehearsal entirely, Se og Hør reported.
The Bottom Line
The Incident: Sandra Lyng suffered a severe migraine attack ahead of her debut on the dance floor, missing the general rehearsal and spending hours in a dark room.
The Return: Lyng arrived at Gateway Studios on Fornebu just 30 minutes before live broadcasting began to perform alongside partner Santino Mirenna.
The Competition: Despite the medical scare and a score of 17 points that placed them in the bottom three, the duo is pressing forward to tackle a fast-paced jive.
A Rehearsal Conducted in Solitude
The 39-year-old artist made her debut on the “Skal vi danse” parquet on a Saturday, but the hours leading up to the broadcast were marked by intense uncertainty, according to Se og Hør. Lyng suffered a debilitating migraine that struck without warning. The physiological impact was severe enough to temporarily impair basic motor and sensory functions. “I couldn’t walk or see,” Lyng explained to Se og Hør, describing an episode that required her to retreat home to a dark room while production staff and her partner navigated the broadcast schedule.
Mirenna was forced to execute the general rehearsal entirely by himself. “It was new, I’ve never done it before. It wasn’t that fun,” Mirenna admitted to Se og Hør. Uncertainty hung over Gateway Studios on Fornebu until Lyng walked through the doors a mere half-hour before the live cameras rolled.
Managing Chronic Illness Under Studio Lights
Open dialogue with the television production team preceded the decision to participate in the competitive reality format. Lyng, who manages chronic migraines, discussed her medical history with show executives prior to signing on. Recognizing that unpredictable neurological flare-ups remain a reality of her daily life, she chose not to withdraw from the cast. “It’s a bit strange. It’s an invisible illness, which is difficult for people who don’t have it to understand,” Lyng told Se og Hør, noting that she refuses to let the condition dictate her boundaries.
Reflecting on the premiere during a Wednesday follow-up interview at the dance center, Lyng expressed profound relief that the performance successfully materialized despite the morning’s crisis. “I’m just glad it worked—because it didn’t work at the general rehearsal,” she stated. Medical concerns aside, the pair faced immediate pressure on the leaderboard after performing a slowfox to Tobias Sten’s “Hånd i hånd,” which earned 17 points from the judging panel and landed them in the bottom three alongside competitors Kim Wigaard and Aleksander Bonsaksen.
| Contestant Duo | Dance Style | Score | Initial Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sandra Lyng & Santino Mirenna | Slowfox | 17 | Bottom Three / Migraine Incident |
| Kim Wigaard & Aleksander Bonsaksen | Various | – | Bottom Three |
Anticipating the Jive and Partner Dynamics
Before the competition’s launch, Lyng shared initial apprehensions regarding the pairing process, admitting she worried she and Mirenna would lack chemistry. “I’ve been dreading meeting my dance partner, because I was so scared that it wouldn’t be a match,” Lyng said. Any anxiety dissipated instantly upon meeting the professional dancer, an encounter she celebrated enthusiastically.
Attention now turns to the upcoming broadcast, where the couple must master a jive. When questioned about the grueling training schedule for the fast-paced style, both partners acknowledged the steep technical climb ahead. “I’m looking forward to it, but it’s a completely new dance style. It goes much faster and there are more challenges,” Mirenna told Se og Hør, as the pair prepares to face the scrutiny of the judges once again on Saturday.
