On Dancing With the Stars tonight, it’s Finale Week, and also it’s Freestyle Night! The celebrities and their pro dance partners will dance one individual dance, then they will also be required to dance a Freestyle dance. The original dance will be a do-over of the Switch-Up dance from earlier this season, but with each couples’ original partners.
Also, pro dancer Mark Ballas was injured on Sunday, so it’s unclear if he will be able to perform tonight. At the end of Dancing With the Stars, one couple will be eliminated — then, tomorrow evening, after the couples dance a 24-hour fusion challenge, America will learn which celebrity and pro dancer couple will be the season winners of Dancing With the Stars! There will be no guest judges tonight — the original three judges will determine the fate of the celebrity who gets sent home tonight.
The first couple of the evening to perform on Dancing With the Stars was James Maslow and Peta Murgatroyd. They performed a Tango to “Adore You” by Miley Cyrus. Originally, James Maslow performed this Switch-Up dance with Cheryl Burke.
Maslow and Murgatroyd did an AMAZING job, and the comments and scores of the judges reflected this. Carrie Ann told them that the dance was “sharp” and “intense,” and she added to Maslow that she liked “that your butt was under.” For some reason, she always likes to comment about mens’ butts — go figure.
Len said that their Tango was “Sharp as a razor, clean as a whistle.”
Bruno said that James “capped that Tango like a guided laser.”
The judges awarded them with one 9 and two 10s, for a total of 29/30 points.
The second couple to perform on Dancing With the Stars was Meryl Davis and Maks Chmerkovskiy. The original Switch-Up dance was one Meryl and Maks’ brother, Val, danced together, an Argentine Tango. Meryl and Maks performed the dance to “Montserrat” by Bajofondo. Which brother ended up with better scores performing the dance with Meryl?
Carrie Ann and the other judges seemed very impressed with how well the couple danced. Carrie Ann said that she couldn’t put into words the “added chemistry and incredible magic” of the performance. Sounds like words to me….
Len said that the time before, he called it “the dance of the night.”
Bruno said that their “dance seems to be developing into a dance version of a concept album.”
Meryl and Maks got scores of perfect 10s from the judges, and they are now in the lead with a total score of 30/30 points! Meryl and Val scored 39/40 points but there were four judges then. Will Meryl and Maks perhaps be declared the overall winners tomorrow night?
Then, the third couple up on the dance floor on Dancing With the Stars was Candace Cameron Bure and Mark Ballas. He was cleared to dance tonight, after all. Cameron’s original Switch-Up dance was with Tony Dovolani, and was the Quickstep. Tonight, she and Mark danced it to the song “Umbrella” by The Baseballs.
Carrie Ann told Candace that she “made it seem like it was a walk in the park.”
Len told them that the “did good” with the “toughest dance.”
Bruno said it was “much better than the last time you did the Quickstep.”
They were given straight 9s by the judges, for a total of 27/30 points.
The next couple to perform was Paralympic snowboarder Amy Purdy and her pro dance partner, Derek Hough. The Switch-Up dance Amy performed earlier this season on Dancing With the Stars was a Salsa with Mark Ballas. Amy and Derek danced a Salsa to “Ran Kan Kan” by Tito Puente. They were INCREDIBLE! That could very well have been the best dance of the evening so far, though there’s still plenty to come.
Carrie Ann told Amy and Derek that “It was ridiculous,” and that they’d “improved.”
Meanwhile, Len told them he really admired and loved their performance, and Bruno said “This girl is on fire.”
The judges really loved the performance, awarding the couple with scores of perfect 10s, for a total of 30/30 points.
Next on Dancing With the Stars, it was time for the second round, the Freestyle Round, to begin. James Maslow and Peta Murgatroyd were the first couple to dance. The song they danced to was “Original Don” by Major Lazer (featuring The Partysquad). It was a really cool dance, that seemed to combine martial arts into the performance, and hip hop.
Carrie Ann said that, to her, James was “a star.”
Len Goodman agreed, saying that he liked both “the concept” and “the attack.’
Bruno said “We have a new post-apocalyptic hero.”
The judges gave them very good scores — two 10s and one 9, for a total of 29/30 points.
The second couple to perform a Freestyle dance was Meryl Davis and Maks Chmerkovskiy. They danced it to “Latch” by Disclosure (featuring Sam Smith). This was yet another AMAZING performance! Meryl and Maks have a definite shot at being declared the winners tomorrow night.
Carrie Ann said that she thinks Meryl and Maks “should get married.” She added that the dance was “Divinity in motion.”
Len really enjoyed the performance, as well, saying “There’s good there’s great and there’s Meryl.”
Bruno echoed their praise, calling the performance a “Flawless work of art.”
For their extremely impressive performance on Dancing With the Stars, the judges gave them perfect 10s for a total of 30/30.
The next couple to dance a Freestyle dance on Dancing With the Stars was Candace Cameron Bure and Mark Ballas. They danced it to the song “Canned Heat” by Jamiroquai. This was the dance that Mark and Candace were practicing when he hurt his shoulder.
Carrie Ann was not very impressed with how they did. She said that, while Cameron “did not hold anything back,” she felt that Candace was not “connected to the music.”
Len said that he “admired your tenacity.” Whether that meant that he liked their actual dancing or not, who knows?
Bruno was perhaps the sole judge who siad he enjoyed the dance: “I love a disco diva and you went for it with gusto.”
They got the lowest scores of the evening on Dancing With the Stars from the judges, scores of straight 8s, for a total of 24/30 points.
The final couple to do a Freestyle dance on Dancing With the Stars was Amy Purdy and Derek Hough. They did a TERRIFIC job, also — what a great dance to close out the evening with!
Carrie Ann said at first, she wondered “Why so many lifts?” But, then, when “the chorus kicked in, you were dancing with your soul.”
Len said he loved the “emotion” and “the choreography.”
Bruno told Amy that she redefined “what is possible.”
The three judges gave the couple great scores, though not the perfect 10s they got the first round. They were awarded two 10s and one 9, for a total of 29/30 points.
Then, came the moment of truth, when America learned who was eliminated from Dancing With the Stars. The couple eliminated were James Maslow and Peta Murgatroyd!
Dancing With the Stars is drawing to the end of the season, and after tonight, the field has been narrowed down to just three couples. It was sad to see James Maslow and Peta Murgatroyd eliminated from the competition, but the remaining couples are all terrific. Tomorrow night will be one that fans of Dancing With the Stars will want to make Must Viewing! Who do you think will win, America? Please leave your comments below!
Written by: Douglas Cobb
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8 Responses
Agree, agree, agree CANDACE SHOULD BE GONE, she’s horrible. Why do they have judges if they depend on viewers votes? It should just be judges, 4 instead of 3.
No doubt that Meryl is the best star ever on the show, she she should definitely win. Understand completely that Amy is doing amazing and inspirational things and were she up against any other previous winners I would choose her. But against Meryl it’s no contest. And why is Candace still there, don’t people want to see the best dancers?
Meryl and Max should win, but Amy and Derek will probably win. I love Candace, but she should have been out long ago. As stated above, Danica and Charlie are both better dancers. However, this show has always been more about who is more popular than who is the best dancer. Sometimes the voters get it right and sometimes they don’t. If it was only judged by professional judges, the last 3 couples standing would be different and most likely the winner would be different.
Definitely Amy and Derek..she has given every viewer something to think about as a human being..can’t is not in her vocabulary. Derek is also loyal to her thru his choreography and honest admiration. Meryl is a good dancer but she should be due to her training from a young child til now. Much less of a learning curve than Amy……Good Luck Amy and Derek…By the way, old Len needs to go and be replaced with a more contemporary choreographer..like Kenny Ortega, the guest judge.
Amy and Derek are fantastic. She is so committed,, regardless. Meryl is very talented also, but she had dancing experience. Amy didn’t andi admire her diligence.
The wrong one got sent home. Meryl and Max should be the winner!!!!!
Candace in the finals!?? Are you KIDDING me? She is an awful dancer – I always thought one of the worst on the show. Tell me she is better than Danica and Charlie – what??? She should have been booted several weeks again. James was screwed by the judges royally as well.
Meryl and Max should win-it hands-down. I’ve been watching this show since it started and there has never been a couple who could hold a candle to the two of them.