DWTS Season 21, Week 9 – Who’s Dancing What…and When?
Here’s what we know so far for Dancing With The Stars Week 9. Next week the couples have an individual dance as always. They also have a “Duet” dance with another couple. When talking on the Duet Dance, Sharna mentions in a new E Online interview (new interviews here) that they are travelling to Las Vegas (not sure if she means all the couples or not?). She and Nick are paired with Val and Tamar for their Duet Dance.
ETA: Vogue here again. Mark and Alexa have a Contemporary dance and a Charleston next week. Not sure which is used for their individual or their Duet Dance? They are also bringing in Travis Garland to sing a beautiful song. Alexa hints that it might be a little “damp” next week.
ETA2: According to Glamour, Nick, Sharna, Val, and Tamar are going to Vegas to get inspired for their Duet dance. Also, Mark & Alexa and Bindi & Derek are Duet Partners. They are headed to New York City to get inspired for their dance. More details at Glamour.
ETA3: According to our intel, one of the Duets is going on a Cruise Ship. Glamour revealed this news as well.
ETA4: So, Derek and Mark have been switched from NYC to the Cruise. Alek and Carlos are in NYC. That leaves Tamar and Nick in Vegas. The clusterf*ck continues, as last we heard, Derek and Mark were to do a Charleston inspired by an NYC show. No idea if the dance style changed with the locale. ~Heidi
ETA5: Per Carlos’ Instagram, he, Alek, Witney, and Lindsay are on a cruise, which left from NYC. Seems like there was NOT a switch, after all. -Court-
ETA6: Vogue here posting for Courtney since she’s stuck in traffic (be safe, Court.xx). Courtney did some digging and found the Cruise ship that Lindsay, Alek, Carlos, and Witney are on. You can see it at USA Today in all of it’s glory as it arrived to New York City today. Interesting too is that the show on the boat is called “We Will Rock You“. You can read the song list at this link for what they might have. Cool, huh? GOOD JOB, Court!
ETA7: Vogue again. Being Sharna, Nick, Val, and Tamar went to Las Vegas to see Cirque Du Solei Beatles “Love”(see Glamour link in ETA2 above), they most likely have a Beatles song. Here is a list of the soundtrack.
ETA8: Give it up to Courtney. She nailed it last night. Carlos confimed at his instagram that they are dancing to a song from “We Will Rock You”. Also, Mark and Alexa are on their way to meet Derek and Bindi in New York. More here.
ETA8: Per a stuffed mouse on Instagram, one of Carlos & Witney’s dances is the Argentine tango. NOW BEFORE EVERYONE RUNS OFF MAKING ASSUMPTIONS – we have no way of telling if this is their individual dance or duet dance. So let’s try to avoid stating that as fact… -Court-
ETA9: Check out this tweet at Pure Derek Hough! I think it’s safe to say Derek, Bindi, Alexa, and Mark are dancing something to “Chicago”. Heidi was the first to guess this on Tuesday. Well done, Miss Heidi!~ Vogue
ETA10: Julia in comments mentioned how Derek, Bindi, Alexa, and Mark could be doing a Charlestion to “Hot Honey Rag” from the show “Chicago” since it fits a Charleston. To confuse things further, we got an “All That Jazz” teaser today from the DancingABC instagram. Well, check out this “Chicago” performance. It starts out with “All That Jazz” and then goes into “Hot Honey Rag”. Hmmmm. So, could this be the song(s) they are dancing to? ~ Vogue
ETA11: Alek and Lindsay have an Argentine Tango and their Duet team has a Paso Doble to “We Will Rock You”. Correction: Shorty The Mouse says they have a Salsa for their individual dance.
ETA12: Just Jared Jr. has just released the songs for Dancing With The Stars Week 9. You can read on them all below. ~ Vogue
ETA13: According to Derek’s blog, they are now dancing Jazz for their duet. Still an unlearned style, but fewer rules than Charleston. And since they are using the “All That Jazz/Hot Honey Rag” combo, it makes a hell of a lot more sense. Gee wiz, are we edging toward a tiny bit of fairness in this thing?? You all should read Derek’s blog – he tells it like it is, including very gently calling out his sister and the other judges. 🙂
Duets:
Sharna & Nick are paired with Val & Tamar – Dancing a Rumba inspired from Cirque Du Solei Beatles “Love” (song: “Hey Jude”)
Mark & Alexa and Bindi & Derek – Dancing a JAZZ inspired from “Chicago” (Song Mix: “All That Jazz/Hot Honey Rag”)
Alek & Lindsay and Carlos & Witney – Dancing a Paso Doble inspired from “We Will Rock You” (Song: “We Will Rock You”)
Individual Dances:
Nick and Sharna – ?? (‘A Cool Cat In Town’ by Tape Five)
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Alexa and Mark – Contemporary (per Mark Interview) (‘Make it Rain’ by Ed Sheeran)
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Bindi and Derek – V. Waltz (Guess from periscope) (‘Roses and Violets’ by Alexander Jean)
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Alek and Lindsay – Salsa (‘Back It Up’ by Prince Royce f. Jennifer Lopez + Pitbull)
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Tamar and Val – ?? (‘Wicked Game’ by James Vincent McMorrow)
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Carlos and Witney – Argentine Tango (‘What Do You Mean’ by Justin Bieber)
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Not surprised at all that Nick and Tamar are paired together for the duets. I already predict that they will win over the other pairings, no matter how the others do. Do you think TPTB will be able to resist having the marrieds in a pair together? Then that means Bindi will be with Alek, who I like, but is the weakest dancer left. Hope they get good music and a good style.
Just a bit cynical after the dance-off last night, so much obviously predetermined before the actual show. There is no reason why Bindi & Derek shouldn’t have won theirs or at least gotten ONE vote from a judge….but they knew Bindi would win the public vote and would have won the dance-off if she got one judge’s vote. And they were the ones that started dancing right away, not Carlos & Witney Carrie-Ann. Nick being the immune one was predetermined, as evident by the scoring and comments for both Nick and Bindi and also the result of the dance-off, as the judges comments that in no way matched the Bindi/Carlos dance off.
Yeah I feel bad for whoever is paired with Alek – unless it’s individual couple scores but they just have to dance together? I’m assuming Bindi will be paired with him though so that Alexa and Carlos can dance together. Or otherwise it’ll be the best friends together i.e. Derek Mark/Wit Lindsay
Nah I think Mark & Alexa will dance with Bindi & Derek.
Possible Tina. I still think TPTB will want the marrieds together finally. It didn’t happen in the dance-off because it wasn’t completely controlled by them.
@EP Yeah that’s true. I’m not sure how it works or don’t remember how it works, but do they score them individually or together?
@Tina, when they did duets in season 18, if I remember correctly, they scored the dance as a whole so both pairings got the same score.
I also think that TPTB won’t be able to resist having the married couple together but let wait and see.
I actually would like to see Bindi and Alexa and Carlos and Alek – Meryl DID dance with Danica on Season 18, so.. But anyways I don’t see that happening as we have an even number or celebrity girls and guys 😛
If TPTB end up putting Carlos and Alexa then.. UGHHHHH. As if they couldn’t push the whole married thing even more. Really hoping that isn’t the case.
The only up side to Bindi possibly being with Alek is that Derek would be there the whole time making sure Alek looks great and I think it would do our resident hero well to work with Derek (more so than Artem). If they do a duet to a dance they have aldeady done, like on Season 18, then I hope they do a Jive or Contemporary.
The pairing of Tamar and Nick gives me some weird vibes.. Tamar’s gonna dance with Nick at some point and if she’s still struggling to connect with Val while they dance, how is she gonna do with Nick? I don’t know.. I’m not confident these two have it in the bag already. It seems to me also that this duet is gonna have a whole lot of egos flying about (from everyone except Sharna probably).
I was just gonna write a follow up comment on how I hoped Tamar and Val wouldn’t be the only ones getting a Charleston this season and that I’d love to see Bindi & Derek do one as well… and then Alexa & Mark’s Afterbuzz interview mentions they have a Contemporary and a Charleston which sounds like it’s gonna be for their duet. So I guess the duets are new dances.. Putting a whole lot of pressure on these celebs lol
It seems to me that TPTB start throwing in all these “special” dances when they feel the need for more manipulation. Anxious to see how this plays out but my first guess was that there was choosing involved and that Bindi would pick Mark b/c Derek would ask her to do that.
OMG I really hope Bindi is dancing with Alexa cause a Charleston with Derek & Mark would be AMAZING
I do like the idea more of a man and woman celeb per team. It’ll make the solo parts with just the celebs more interesting and I also think it’s useful to have a same-sex pro in the room to learn from.
I’m excited to see the duet dances! That could be a different twist this season. But does that mean they won’t have trip dances?
Trio- not trip dances. Sorry about that!
I like Alek but He is not the strongest dancer left and I really feel like we will see a Derek&Bindi/Lindsay&Alek team. I think Bindi will learn alot from lLindsay & Alek will learn alot from Derek but I wouldn’t be surprise if TPTB do this to throw bindi & Derek off. Just how things happened with the dance off was suspicious enough. Am I reading to much into this????? I dont know but I could see them trying to push a duet dance with the penavegas & one of the duet dances is already known it just seems like this is what we can expect from here on out & I’m sorry Nick but I was not buying anything you were selling last night.
They could still have trios in Week 10 if they wanted to but somehow I don’t think so. I think this is in place of them this season as a way to take advantage of the fact that everyone left is really good.
I’m hoping it’s a Charleston for Bindi and Alexa since I’ve been hoping Bindi would get a Charleston at some point. I can’t wait to see what Derek and Mark come up with! I hope Derek is feeling better since he has to travel this week!
I really like the trio dances but like Julia said, it’s rare to have a final six this strong so they can take advantage of that.
I’m fine with this replacing trio round if they still do switch up week re-do’s in the finale.
Bindi and Derek danced contemporary at week 4, so it is likely that for the duet with Mark and Alexa dance charleston. I love Derek’s charleston.
Height wise, it makes sense that Nick and Tamar are partnered. I’m a bit surprised though that they went for same gender pairings for the others. It’ll be interesting to see though! Looks like the BFFs are together. Derek & Mark, Lindsay & Witney.
Oh good, thanks for the update mods, glad to be proven wrong!
Hmm. I wonder if the duet dances are inspired by particular cities. Why else would they fly them to different cities for “inspirations”?
It’ll be interesting to see if Alek and Carlos go somewhere for inspiration.
Yeah I’m guessing the duet of Alexa and Bindi will be Charleston.. and boy am I excited for that!
Mark + Derek + Charleston = AWESOMENESS. Add Bindi’s cuteness and this just makes for a perfect Charleston.
I wonder what dance they would give Alek & Carlos to dance with.. I’m guessing Charleston as well? No clue.
Did the pros perhaps pick these pairings? Coz the two sets of best friends are together and Sharna & Val are also really good friends
A week with Derek and Bindi will work WONDERS for Alexa. She’s really growing on me and I hope she outlasts Carlos AND Tamar.
Well, count me very very very very grateful for Bindi and Alexa being paired. And even though Derek might be feeling under the weather, he loves the vibe of NYC — certainly he and Mark together will make it great fun. Right now a big thank you to TPTB.
I agree Heidi! Would love to see her in the finals with Bindi.
So Derek is really sick and they are flying to NYC for “Inspiration”??? What the HELL?? Not about the sick part, but why do they need to go somewhere and put more stupid assed gimmicks into this show? This show is just getting utterly ridiculous.
That said…I wonder if Derek will call in the Rockettes.
Amen PH. I think it would be good for Alexa to outlast her husband; give her a boost of confidence and he could use a little humbling. I have enjoyed Carlos’s dancing but not him so much. And I really liked Witney’s choreo last night and wish it was executed a little better.
Though she’s not bad or anything, really don’t care for Tamar’s dancing, never have this season, think she is overrated as a dancer. You need to be able to dance with a partner better than she to win this competition to me. I liked her attitude at the beginning of the season but I do not anymore as it is becoming more sour than amusing.
These pairings should be interesting, I actually liked the duets in S18, hopefully it will be lots of fun.
I agree I think Alexa will benefit a lot from being with Bindi and Derek for a week. I am just really really excited about Derek and Mark choreographing a dance together especially if it is a Charleston! This really does have the potential to be one of the best numbers all season!
I was hoping for Alexa & Bindi duet! Soooo happy 🙂 And with Mark and Derek great ideas…we’re in for a treat 🙂
Are they all having to see a particular show, and base their dances off of the show they see?
Because, apparently Nick/Sharna/Tamar/Val are going to Vegas for the Beatles Cirque show.
A cruise ship!!! Lord have mercy.
Now, how much of this traveling will take away from potential rehearsal time? All in service to a gimmick.
@CM, yes. Based on Mark’s statement on Glamour.com, they are all being sent to a show and they will take inspiration from it.
But I am SO happy that Bindi, Alexa, Derek and Mark are all dancing a Charleston together. That’s bound to be an amazing dance.
Fantastic! I was hoping they would put Alexa and Mark and Bindi and Derek together. Both pros are the best choreographers on this show, and I can’t wait to see what they will come up with for this duet dance. Can’t be any better than to go to NYC for inspiration.
Hmmmm…which DISNEY show will Derek and Mark be saddled with?? Because, you know that’s the whole point of this little exercise, right?? Disney (aka ABC) on broadway, a cruise ship which will likely pay for the advertising…as will the Beatles Cirque show.
Ridiculous.
On the another hand… It takes around 6 hours on a plane to get to NYC from LA. Why lose so much time to see one show?! It’s basically 12 hours of flying just to see a show and lose an important day or two of rehearsals… Ridiculous.
I’m with Mark. Bindi/Derek & Alexa/Mark are the Dream Team. But I wonder how these teams and the locals were chosen. Or will the producers just own up to having done this their way?
It will be very interesting to see Tamar interact with Nick and Sharna. I finally saw some connection with Val last night. Probably stemming from their shared fury over Halloween week. But she didn’t connect with Louis or the troupe in their foxtrot. I think this can go either way. Tamar, used to performing with women, might be okay with Sharna. Plus they worked together on Team Nightmare. I’m interested to whether she can connect with Nick though if they dance.
I’m getting the feeling that TPTB envision a 4 person finale. Nick, Bindi and the PenaVegas. Anyone else thinking that? In a way, I hope so because Alexa is still afraid of outlasting her husband. Poor Mark.
I wonder if they are going to New York becuase it’s A Chicago song. Isn’t rumor still in the show?
I think Nick or Tamar could’ve benefited from being paired with Bind but I really like these pairings. I’m happy that Mark and Derek are together and the Carlos and Alexa are split up.
Oh lovely – another opportunity to prop Carlos up at someone else’s expense.
I wonder if they will send them on a Disney cruise. We went on one and some of the stage shows were actually okay, a couple were not our cup of tea though. It just seems like unnecessary travel to waste time.
@Tamara I’m thinking they aren’t going to NY till near the end of the week. After they see the show they might rehearse in a studio there? Don’t know, but that’s the most logical thing I can think of.
I have never been so glad to be wrong. Very excited that Bindi & Derek & Alexa & Mark are doing the duet dances together
Oh man I can already see carlos and alek duet being quite a mess depending on the dance style they get.
Why would the TPTB put them together?
@Pere – To make Carlos look better and Alek look worse.
Going at the end of the week isn’t logical at all. They’re supposed to get inspiration from the show they’re going to see – there’s no way that Derek and Mark will wait until the end of the week to choreograph a dance.
But wouldn’t it be funny if that backfired. Alek will make Carlos look like a wimp. Also Alek is truly a nice guy – you can see if Carlos is for real or not pretty easily when next to him. Voting will go to Alek. Carlos will go home. Just my opinion
@Lea – You could be right – I don’t think Carlos’ appearance in jeopardy last night was a mere coincidence. He’s been there twice before this season, if memory serves.
As expected Mark and Derek would be paired together. Typical. Guess Julianne has her ’10’ paddle all shined and ready to go too. All grew up together dancing together. Fair for everybody, right? Tired of DWTS and the ‘married couple’. I think having a married couple against each other was one of the worst ideas yet and that’s saying alot for what TPTB have thought up over the years. They will probably end up in the top 4 with Nick and Bindi final two and of course Bindi winning. I’ve said before and will say again I think the biggest part of Nick being 2nd overall is the fact he’s a Backstreet Boy. IMO he’s not good enough to be that high but competition this year is worse than previous years.
Really, jleam, do you even watch the show? Julianne shining her 10 paddle for her brother and former dance partner? Not likely. When she was a guest judge a couple seasons ago, she called Mark out for his tendency to overdance his partners. Last night, she nit-picked Bindi’s shoulder position of all things so that she didn’t have to give her a 10 for what was an amazingly good Foxtrot. She goes out of her way to be harder on Derek and Mark because she’s scared to death of being accused of favoritism.
jleam, you clearly missed last night’s show. Go watch it and get back to us. :::rolls eyes:::
Every pro on this show has known each other and danced against each other since they were children.
As for Bindi and Nick as the final two – well, they are the best two dancers, so I’m not sure what the problem is there. Carlos and Alexa with them? Also don’t see the problem as they are every bit as good as Tamar, if not better since they are connecting with their pros. Seems like you’re complaining just to complain.
Cidra, she only nit picked bindi cause she saw all the hate on sm for her favouritism .
While I’m happy for Alexa that she and Mark will be “duet-ing” with Bindi and Derek, I would have liked to see Alek and Lindsay paired with Bindi and Derek.
Lindsay was doing good work with Alek until the judges’ negativity started eating up his confidence and enthusiasm. He was motivated and learning so a week working with Derek as a male dance model would have been great for Alek. I think we’d have seen noticeable improvement (huh, maybe that’s why TPTB didn’t match them up). I also think Alek and Bindi would have worked well together. They have similar body types, and Alek’s so strong he could toss her around very easily.
Well let’s just say that Bindi/Derek/Alexa/Mark danciung together is the best thing I have heard in the last 24 hours. If I could, I would totally wipe my memory clean of last night’s episode. It was disappointing and disgusting in equal proportions. I just had to sleep over it, to even come back to commenting about any of this.
@PH, you were right and how! Don’t know how your prediction was that accurate given the murky waters we’re treading with this show right now – way to go girl!
@Courtney, thanks for thew detailed power rankings again. I agree with you on everything barring Alexa and Mark, who I’d place ahead of Val and Tamar. I just don’t feel them. In any case more on that on your rankings post, after I am done re-watching all the dances!
This duet business smells fishy to me from the word go – Tamar and Nick – I mean seriously! In any case, I am so glad that Bindi and Alexa will dance together. Think being away from Carlos, and spending time with two amazingly positive people will do Alexa and even Mark to some extent a world of good. Heck, we can all do with a little more sunshine in our lives and Bindi brings that in abundance, so I really really hope it rubs off on their dance. And dancing a charleston and a contemporary sounds like a really good combination for Alexa and Mark – distinct dance forms and both allowing mark to experiment with his creative concepts that I almost always love! I know charleston seems to be the more obvious choice for the duet,but I am really intrigued with the possibility of a contemporary duet. I dont remember seeing that on the show ever and its such a challenging dance form as a couple, doing that as a duet would feel like a challenge for pros as accomplished as Derek and Mark too. In any case, I am happy as long as they are working together.
I am sorta divided on the Alek and Carlos pairing – at one level I agree that it feels like an attempt to show how much worse Alek is to Carlos as a dancer, but I also think that it may completely back fire with Alek is showing how genuine he is to Carlos and that could put Carlos in a fix. Maybe a fix bigger than TPTB can ‘fix’.
Hopefully Alex gets the boot! However, I can see a surprise elimination happening.
I kinda wanted Nick and Sharna to be paired with Alexa or Bindi (just because I really like Mark and Derek and their choreography). But Sharna and Val seem close – and Tamar was the first person Nick chose for the group dance – so I’m not really surprised.
So, I guess from the above that Alek and Carlos get the cruise ship theme and that they have the samba since Carlos already has done the cha cha and the salsa. I don’t quite see how this pairing will help TPTB get rid of Alek and keep Carlos if they both get the same score as partners. I doubt that very many people are voting for Alek because he is the best dancer so his being shown up by Carlos on a latin dance which everyone would expect Carlos to do well with because of his background is not going to cause them to stop voting for Alek. Moreover, as much as I don’t care for Carlos, his self interest will probably motivate him to try to get Alek to loosen up during the dance. The biggest disadvantage to this pairing is Whitney and her disinterest this season. Maybe that will change being paired with her best bud.
😀 I would die a happy lady if the duet that Derek and Bindi are doing with Mark and Alexa is a contemporary piece, how GORGEOUS would it be to see Mark and Derek dance contemporary together?! :D.
I can’t help but feel Nick’s dance felt hokey and fake, not to say it’s not wonderful there having a baby but the TIMING of it is really suspicious and doesn’t feel genuine, also it was very lift heavy to make up for a lack of technique. I feel bad saying it cause I’ve wanted to see more emotion from Nick but when we got it, it felt like a baaaad acting job.
It depends on how the pairings were determined, Iris. If high cumulative score got to pick, Bindi clearly would have picked Alexa. Then Nick would pick Tamar (he’s done it before!) and that left Carlos with Alek. It doesn’t benefit Carlos at all to be with Alek if both pairs get the same score, because it’s likely to pull Alek up. Who it really hurts is yet to be determined, but I think we will get an even better view of how determined the judges are to keep Carlos and hose Bindi. They seem to want to get rid of Alek and Alexa, but both are dancing with either someone they want to keep (Carlos) or a fan favorite (Bindi). It makes me think that the producers actually didn’t pick the pairs.
So I did go back and checked – there has been a contemporary duet in Season 18 with Candace, Mark, Charlie and Sharna and it was spectacular. Great concept and execution. So that could be a possibility. Then I also searched on YouTube for Charlestons performed on the show and guess what all top results are from Derek and Mark! So either way, it sounds like a win win to me 🙂 I am getting excited about this!
A Derek, Sharna and Mark finale would literally be a dream – that would be all my favorite pros in one show minus anyone who causes me stress 😉
Bindi has already done contemporary so the duet will likely be Charleston.
So I am guessing Nick and Tamar have salsa since it’s the one dance both of them haven’t done yet?
I can’t wait to see Derek and Mark’s Charleston. My fave to this date has been Derek and Amber’s and Derek and Sadie’s. Mark and Melissa’s was also pretty good. Overall, I think this could be a real winner.
My initial thought for the NYC show was Chicago so they could have Rumer Willis give that group advice but she just finished her run so I don’t think that’ll be it. I don’t know what it could be tbh.
P.H. is thinking maybe Disney (parent company) but at the moment that’s The Lion King or Aladdin. Would they be mean enough to require a Charleston inspired by one of those? Or, are they after Derek’s connections with the Rockettes?
Current Broadway musicals hmmmmmnnnnnnn There are classics – An American in Paris, Dames At Sea, Chicago, Kinky Boots, Wicked, Phantom, Les Mis, Fiddler on the Roof, The King and I
And there are two new shows that I think are maybe possibilities except Charleston?!! Beautiful, based around the music written by Carole King or On Your Feet, the story of Gloria and Emilio Estefan. Maybe Stomp? Again, not Charleston -like though.
I think Derek and crew are going on the cruise ship. I just saw an IG photo of Carlos and Witney saying they were in NY. Makes sense with Alexa’s damp comment.
The new element of this Duo Dance actually seems to be that they are doing a dance style they haven’t done before, because in season 18 they did a style both couples had already done before: Amy & James Jive, Candace and Charlie Contemporary, Meryl & Danica Samba – those are all dance styles they had danced before individually. But having to learn a new dance style and learn it with another novice who learns differently puts a whole new level of pressure on the couples. But I think a Duo with two females could work really well with a Charleston.
I was just realized that in Season 18 Derek and Amy did Jive in week 6 and then again week 8 for the duets, so there’s is a possibility that Derek/Bindi and Mark/Alexa get contemporary for duets but I hope it’s Charleston cause Derek choreographs the best Charlestons ever!
So Bindi and Alexa might be going on the cruise instead of NYC? Don’t know how they’re going to get inspiration for a Charleston on a cruise ship lol. This is all so random and pointless. Just takes away from rehearsal time for the couples. Hopefully Derek isn’t too sick that it will affect anything. He was pictured rehearsing with Bindi in the DWTS studios yesterday so he’ll probably be okay.
@fictiongirl
But Alexa hasn’t done the Contemporary yet, and Amy’s duet partner James had done the Jive as well.
Maybe they switched them because in Alexa’s E! interview Bindi pops in and they say they are going to NYC together.
It could also be that the cruise’s port is in NYC so the cruise group would be there for a bit as well. But even if the locations did change I really hope the Bindi/Derek/Alexa/Mark group still has the Charleston.
I hope Derek & Mark are still paired together
I don’t know why they wouldn’t do Chicago just because Rumer is no longer involved. She’s not the center of the universe after all. I posited over on PureDerekHough that it was either a Disney musical or Chicago. Looking at the shows running right now, nothing else really makes sense.
It would be ridiculous to base a Charleston on a cruise ship. Which means they will probably do it.
Maybe they will make a cruise a luxury liner from the 1920’s and the Charleston is a Broadway performance on this luxury liner 😉 One heck of a crazy way of getting to New York, you see!
This is somewhat off point, but do they ever assign the Charleston to a male celeb? The only celebs that I can remember doing the Charleston are Melissa Joan Hart, Amber Riley, Sadie Robertson, and Tamar this year.
@IrisandLillies I only remember Bill Engvall and Emma doing the Charleston in Season 17, I think. That’s a good observation – don’t think many male celebs get to do the Charleston. Interesting – but not sure why it is that way. Assuming female pros would be able to put together any dances that the male pros can do. Perhaps it’s harder for male celebs to pick it up? But if one could, they could have totally given it to Alfonso. Interesting!
@IrisandLilies and @Aditi I don’t think its that hard for them to pick up surely? Carlos had a little bit of it in his quickstep this season. I actually think it’s a dance which would highlight good elements of a male dancer as he’s not just providing a frame but actually does a lot of dancing
@Sara, you make a good point about dancing v/s providing the frame, specially in ballroom dances. I’d love to see some of the male celebs do it. Its a dance so full of dancing and is not very heavily dependent on playing characters – should be an all out fun thing. I can watch the Amber and Sadie Charlestons, even Nastia’s, any number of times without getting bored and there is stuff to do in equal proportions for both men and women. I’d sure love to see more of it 🙂
I really hope they didn’t switch the cpuples to put Carlos and Alexa together. I’d much rather see a stupid concept (charleston/cruise ship) than the married couple dancing together.
Did I miss something? Did somebody say the groups got switched?
@IrisandLillies @Aditi
I think Bill is really the only male celeb to ever do the Charleston, but then again the Charleston has mostly been assigned to Derek (Amber, Sadie, Nastia) and Mark (Melissa, Christina Milian) with the one-time exceptions of Maks and Kirstie Alley and Val and Tamar.
@Courtney : On Carlos IG he said he was in NY so i don’t know if they change the pairs or the cruise thing is in NY
@IrisandLillies Donny Osmond and Kym and also Ingo Radamacher(spelling?) and Kym did the charleston. Them and Bill are the only male celebs I can recall doing it.
Bindi&Derek & Mark&Alexa could be dancing a Charleston to Anything Goes~ If so, that could be amazing 🙂
Nicole & Derek danced a Quickstep to it S10(Interesting enough, their package was on a Cruise Ship.,Ummm
All I’ve heard, via instagram and DWTSGossip, is that the locations have changed. Witney and Carlos are in NYC, and Derek/Mark were switched to the cruise.
It would be kinda silly to go all the way to NYC for a cruise…
Derek already got an Emmy nomination for a quickstep to Anything Goes with Nicole. I would rather he not be asked to repeat work AGAIN this season.
Why on earth do you force TWO emmy nominated choreographers into stupid themes with often stupid music? Why?
A little off topic- and I apologize if this has already been explained… But with six couples remaining, won’t a double elimination be necessary soon? I’m basing this off of last season’s 10 week schedule in which week 9 was the semi-final. If I’m way off, let me know. Just trying to figure out how this is going to go. And when the big cuts are going to be made. I’m more concerned about who goes to the finals than who actually wins the MBT, for whatever reason.
I’m getting sick of Rob Wade. He needs to go ASAP !
And what are the chances that they’d send both PenaVegas packing in a double elimination???
@Whitney I think this is how it will go: next monday will be a normal week, following monday semi final and then the 23rd the finale with 4 couples most likely but then one of them will probably get eliminated the night of the finale so that there are 3 couples going into the finale results show
Why on earth do you force TWO emmy nominated choreographers into stupid themes with often stupid music?
Because, everybody else will have a mental breakdown over stupid songs and themes or ask to change.
I´m really unhappy about them changing Derek and Mark from NYC to a cruise ship, and if the reason behind is it to mess with Mark and Derek and give them the most dificult task then I´ll be even more pissed. I guess Rob is just afraid of what´s going to happen when the performance and choreography level all of a sudden go down after Mark and Derek leaves the show.
I really hope that even if it´s a hard row to hoe that they freaking kill it on Monday.
@Sara Thanks!!! I totally forgot about the results show…
Really, the only excuse I can think of for the change is if Derek can’t fly because he’s sick. That’s it. Anything else is sheer clusterfuckery.
@PH #90 – What was the other time that Derek had to repeat work this season? I agree that he shouldn’t have to choreograph to that song again.
@NA #95 – “Because, everybody else will have a mental breakdown over stupid songs and themes or ask to change.” I think you hit the nail on the head with that one. My only comfort is in the knowledge of how many times the producers have tried to mess with Derek by giving him a difficult/borderline impossible task and he’s produced something so brilliant that it completely backfires on the producers (50s Paso, etc.). 😛
I am not excited about Anything goes 🙁 I really really don’t think it’s a fun song to do the Charleston too and Derek has normally got real fun songs to choreograph the Charleston to. The music we have seen can be such a bummer and as the show reaches the final few epiosdes the attempt should be to get the best possible music across the board. I mean how hard is it to find 9 good songs! Please let it be fun. Its in the interest of DWTS to have a fab show and I don’t get why they would stand in the path of what could be an absolutely phenomenal routine. Ughhhhhh! So annoying!
Once again, I’m lost: where has it been confirmed that Derek got “Anything Goes”? Is it just someone guessing and it’s getting telephoned down the line until it becomes fact? Having trouble keeping up here, forgive me…
Alek off to New York.? Darn it. I was hoping for a week devoid of travelling and emotional drama so that he could have a lot of time to practice and focus on his dancing.
Re my comment about the charleston. I can’t believe I forgot about Nastia because that was a great dance. I think my recollection of those who danced it may have been based more on the outfits than the actual dance. I do love the flapper dress as a style.
@Courtney, you’re right it hasn’t been confirmed that they have got Anything Goes. I am going to wait for you folks to confirm the music as and when you find out 🙂 That was just my reaction to the idea that it could be Anything Goes, which PH mentioned had already been done earlier on the show with Nicole. I am just hoping this is not it!
Derek and Mark is at NYC and Carlos and the rest on a cruise !
MP, where are you seeing this? Source, people 🙁
Carlos posted a photo on IG of Witney, Alek, Lindsay, and himself about to go on a cruise.
Carlos instagram
Ok, from now on, if you see something we haven’t posted yet – AT LEAST TELL ME WHERE YOU FOUND IT. I can’t tell you how frustrating it is to have someone come whipping into the comments section, make a statement like MP’s that has the potential to whip everyone into a frenzy, and leaves us scrambling to corroborate or refute its authenticity. JUST TELL US WHERE YOU FOUND IT.
I’m trying to understand how sending people on a cruise is at all conducive to learning a dance… Aren’t there going to be thousands of other people on board that will want to pose for pictures, etc? This sounds like a set up for them to flop. The other couples will be watching a show (one of which is a short flight from LA, the other not so much). But a cruise? I get the ABC must has some financial gain in pushing the Anthem of the Seas’s launch from NYC, but something stinks, yet again!
Keep in mind, both of the cruise couples also have to find time for their individual dances. If anyone has ever boarded a cruise, you can relate to all the waiting around that’s involved. The Vegas couples are definitely getting the leg up in the rehearsal time.
MP, CARLOS and the gang are going on a cruise. I have seen nothing to indicate that Derek and Mark are in NYC. LINK.
Good lord, people, READ all the comments carefully. NO ONE said that Derek had “Anything Goes”. Dee suggested that would be a good song for a Charleston, I protested that he had already done it. That’s it.
*breathes a sigh of relief*
Any idea of how long they are going to be on this cruise? Is it just for a night or two or will it be like four nights? I sure hope they have time and space to rehearse.
I still think the Derek/Mark team might be doing Chicago. I really can’t see it being any of the current Disney musicals on Broadway. And the finale number of that show would be perfect for their dance. 🙂
I’m so sorry. I saw where Carlos posted on IG about being in NY and thought that meant they were going there instead. It is strange that they went on a cruise out of NYC.
I’ve been waiting for TPTB to think of ways to drop Derek/Bindi down in the competition and now I see it coming They either don’t want it to look like a slam dunk or they need Nick/Sharna to win because she will be on the tour and usually the champ is always on the tour I would really love for Bindi and Derek to win but I can’t see it happening for so many reasons and it is not fair to Bindi If they are not going to let Derek win anymore then he needs to move on to better things I know he loves the show and enjoys working wth his partners and he is so entertaining to watch Does anyone feel this way or am I just making myself worry for no reason I really don’t understand a lot of what is going on this season That dance off what was that? It looked like it was all decided before it happened I bet next week couple dances will be the same Maybe I’m all wrong but I am very confused I am getting old! sorry for the rant
LOL! Ok, I hope I’m getting this right:
1. Glamour via Mark was the one who said Bindi, Derek, Mark, and Alexa were heading to NYC to see a show:
“But Mark Ballas did admit that he and Alexa, as well as Bindi and Derek, are the couples traveling to New York. “They are sending us to a show, and we have to take inspiration from a show,” explained Mark. “[The fact that] we’re going with Bindi and Derek is kind of like the dream team!”
2. And then there is Carlos’ team who went on a cruise out of NYC via their instagrams.
Post Interviews. sharna & val going to vegas, lin and whit on cruise ( carlos ig confirmed )… then its safe to say Derek and Mark NYC ( especially when couple of interviews mark and alexa talked about going).
#Shannon, i feel the same way. Bindi is the best dancer and i feel she has the votes from US and Aus. I LOVE Sharna and ALWAYS wanted her to win, but this season is different for me. If she wins, i done with DWTS until they get rid of this A___le Rob Wade and/or make changes to the show. Correct me if wrong, but ever since Rob took over, the pro champ is always on tour. And now all of sudden Sharna is going on tour. Then you have Allison ( and i like her) state on GMA that she hopes Sharna wins because she hasn’t yet. I want the best dancing couple to win. I dont want the couple to win because the pro hasnt yet.
This really stinks. Not only does Alek have to waste at least 12 hours or more traveling back and forth across country plus whatever time is wasted boarding and taking the cruise, which I would bet is more time than it takes to attend a show, but he’s saddled with the sh***y cruise theme and what is almost certain to be a samba duo. TPTB have outdone themselves. If he should somehow make Iit past this week and next week despite the machinations of TPTB, I would expect that they will pull the same maneuver that they pulled with Ralph Macchio at the end.
The producers are such slaves to ABC, though, that I would be surprised if they actually get to do Chicago and aren’t saddled with one of the two Disney musicals currently running.
Yes, Vogue – and Carlos posting this morning that they were on their way to NYC (in addition to some other info) led us to believe that the cruise got switched to Mark and Derek – because really, who would fly all the way to NYC to be on a cruise when there is a perfectly good harbor just a short drive south from LA??
Craven producers who are likely getting a boatload (ha) of money in ad dollars for being on a PARTICULAR cruise, that’s who.
I wonder if the pros are coached to say that line about “I want ___ to win because he/she hasn’t yet” or if they’re all just fucking stupid?
So true. They are wanting or getting paid to promote these particular shows and cruise. I don’t know but, I wish they’d be honest because saying that the dancers need to be inspired by going on a cruise or seeing a show somewhere seems kind of lame. I understand they are trying to think of new things for the show, keep things mixed up, and keep everyone talking, but, geez, in the end, all we want is really really great dancing, great choreo, great productions…..and great PRO NUMBERS too (which I bet they will have no time for this week) for why we all fell in love with the show in the first place.
This is a total guess based on DWTS snapchat, but Nick and Sharna kind of look like they might have Lindy Hop.
I’m not even going to venture a guess as to what dance they have, because in the last 5 minutes alone, I’ve had 3 different people tell me 3 different things: Lindy hop, Charleston, and quickstep. Sounds pretty open to interpretation…
When are these poor celebs supposed to ACTUALLY learn the dance?, (I thought that was the whole point of the show) Vegas isn’t far, but NYC, and a cruise on top of that? I’m sure the pros are competent enough to find inspiration witout a cross country trip. This just pisses me off. And then the judges will say to those 4 couples, well it’s week 9, and we expect a certain standard. Well then give them time to actually rehearse the dance!!!!
Very true, Courtney. Quickstep was my other guess. Hard to be definite with a 6 second snap of Nick doing one little series of steps by himself.
Yeah I’m not dance expert but what Nick is doing on that very short Snapchat video looks very much like a Quickstep, so I would personally go with that as my guess.
Bindi and the Viennese Waltz might be a beautiful combination.. Derek’s past two V. Waltzes with Nastia and Bethany have been gorgeous so I have high hopes 🙂
It looks like quickstep footwork to me that he is practicing out of hold for now.. especially since Nick is counting “quick quick step”
Well reading all those comments together was pretty funny. I love you Courtney…lol. I was feeling just like you and then Julia when you asked how long the cruise was….all I could think of was “a two hour cruise”. You know like from Gilligan’s island. Maybe they will get lost on a desert island and it will be an automatic double elimination. I’m sorry. It is all so bizarre what TPTB are doing that all I can do at this point is shake my head and laugh. Oh well.
I tell you, TPTB have really messed up this season. Let’s stick the dancers on planes for 2 days and take away from rehearsal time so we can have another mess like the side by side dancing we had the other night. Poor Alek, he has been on planes for 2 solid months. I don’t think that these 4 partners are going to dance the whole dance together. Remember a couple seasons ago Max & Meryl were coupled with Val & Danica. They danced with their own partners, switched partners then switched back etc. Isn’t that what they are doing? Depending on the dance I think Alek could look better than Carlos. Carlos’s non latin dances weren’t that impressive. For Alex and Lindsay, I would love for them to get a bold dance. I really want to know what Alek and Lindsay’s single dance is. Anybody heard yet. (When are they going to have time to practice that?)
Also, aren’t the dances meant to be inspired by the shows they watch? Because as of right now Sharna and Nick are still in the DWTS rehearsal studios per snapchat. So are they creating the routine sans inspiration and going later in the week to Vegas?
The duet dances are inspired by the shows. The individual dances are just…whatever they are.
This whole idea is beyond ridiculous. Why waste time traveling to all of these places when you’re sitting in the entertainment capital of the world? No shows in LA to inspire anyone? Broadway has great shows and Vegas eclectic ones but I’m pretty sure Hollywood can muster up some talent if they care to look. Disappointed that Allison has bought into the everybody gets a turn brigade. Again, notice how it’s always about the Pros win and the celebrities are never mentioned.
Carlos and Alek are on the Anthem of The Seas…So is Karina according to her Insta. Why would Karina be on it too? Genuine question.
I’m so disappointed Allison would say that too. Geez, if they want this to be a “real” competition, then they need to let it play out as such. It’s like any other sport, etc, “the best” should win, NOT WHO HASN’T WON YET.
All season, we’ve seen the other pros or troupe dancing in some of the individual dances. Maybe Karina has been called in to dance with them?
Heidi, i will definitely say coached AND fucking stupid
Karina may just be on the boat just to be on the boat – it’s the maiden voyage from the Port of NJ. Seems like kind of a big deal – she may just be there for star power.
Does anyone have like a list of Snapchat names? The only one I have is the main DancingABC’s
“We Will Rock You” is a futuristic musical set to Queen songs…this makes me think Carlos and Alek are going to be doing the Argentine Tango as the only other dance they both have left to possibly do is Samba and I can’t see how that would work with this theme.
I just love all the Les Mis music. I am sure it won’t happen but a contemporary dance to some of that music could be really beautiful.
Too bad the cruise is clear across the country….they are so relaxing, you just doing nothing. It’s great – walk and around the deck, eat, sleep, eat then gamble, eat…..plus there are plenty of places to dance and everything open 24/7. Could be a nice way to destress for these guys.
Trying to have a glass-half-full perspective.
I think DWTS is doing previews of each couple’s dance. Now there is a sneak peek of Alexa and Mark doing a lift on Snapchat.
The Beatles and queen!! This should be good. Just hope it’s a really good song choice for each of them…especially team Queen
@Rachel there’s a person called storm viking or something viking on Tumblr that had a list. I ran across it yesterday looking for someone who had the dwts account snaps uploaded. I have an android and snapchat will not play videos for me. It’s very frustrating.
Thanks Mandi! I found it!
Since I’ve seen a lot of debating about Charleston on DWTS the last week or so, just thought I’d share this video a friend posted on Facebook – these are professional Charleston dancers from France doing solos at a swing festival a few weeks back. Just kinda goes to show that the DWTS pros have just been grazing the tip of the iceberg in terms of potential Charleston choreography:
OMG Court. I love them!!
Love the Charlston video link. I don’t think the first woman’s legs are attached to her body! Haha.
Sidenote: in watching the video playback this morning of Justin Timberlake on the CMAs last night, the first thing that popped in to my head is that Justin is to the music world as Derek is to the dance world. (In my opinion). Both are fab at their art, adapt to “outside of the box” ideas in their art AND branch out and succeed in everything else they attempt, like acting.
Thanks Courtney these professionals are fabulous. The Charleston is one of my favorite dances to watch cause it amazes me how they can make their feet and legs move so smoothly. Season 5 DWTS pro opening number had the most Charleston content in it. I was so impressed with the two new male pros dancing towards the front of the group and how their leg action was so much sharper than the others. Those pros would be Derek and Mark. If they do in fact have Charleston this week I would love to see some similar moves in their routine. Love all of the knowledge and attention to detail you mods bring to this site, thanks again.
I love both The Beatles and Queen, so I’m a happy girl.
My song hopes are Come Together or Revolution for The Beatles dance and I Want To Break Free or Killer Queen for the Queen song.
I always though Killer Queen or Revolution would make a cool foxtrot.
We were in Vegas a couple of months ago and wanted to see Love until we saw the ticket price. Nope!
In dancingabc instragram it seems like Alexa and Bindi have Jazz.
@Veronica Alexa and Mark said they have Contemporary and Charleston this week. Out of those two Charleston is the only one Bindi also has yet to do so I’m pretty sure that’s what their style as a group is going to be.
Heh…watch the opening number from last week, ette. Derek starkly stands about around the other men, as does Mark. When doing that style of dancing, the pros who have less cross training also have less “style” and are less loose and into the music.
Well, if this is Alek’s last week, I hope he does get to do an Argentine tango. My preference would be for it to be his dance with Lindsay and not the duo. The camera work has been horrible this season and I wouldn’t put it past TPTB to focus primarily on Carlos during the dance.
No it doesn’t, Veronica, it makes it seem like Mark and Alexa have Jazz. They hashtag Team Baega.
If Alexa got changed to Jazz and has Charleston….that’s a pretty good get for her, if she survives this elimination.
Ok, calling a bit of a time-out on some of the speculation, because I feel like some of you may be running with assumptions that haven’t been proven. Vogue & Heidi may have to help me clarify, as they are typically better at watching all the media than I am, but this is what I think we do know:
*I can’t recall it being stated anywhere that the duet dances are dances that both celebs have NOT done – please correct me if I’m wrong (and provide a source), but I don’t recall this being stated with certainty that the duet would be a “new dance” for both of the celebs doing it. We don’t really have a precedent that proves it, either. The last time they did something similar was in season 18, and they called it a “duel”, and it was a dance that both celebrities HAD already done.
*As far as I recall, Mark & Alexa seemed rather unclear on their dances, and may have said “contemporary OR Charleston”, not “contemporary AND Charleston”. Vogue, please feel free to correct me, as you would know better.
*I don’t think we can safely assume from DancingABC’s instagram that Alexa & Bindi have jazz – especially since the most popular theory seems to be that they’re doing a song from Chicago, whose soundtrack includes a song called “All That Jazz”.
*Since I had 3 different people tweet me within 5 minutes of Nick’s Snapchat package getting posted and all three of them said he had a different dance, I’m not sure we can rely try to guesstimate from still photos and short little snippet videos what dances everyone has with any degree of certainty.
Mark said in the After Buzz interview on Monday night when JC asked him what they are dancing next week he says Contemporary and Charleston. I just listened to it.
Yeah, I think the only thing we have is that Mark and Alexa are doing contemporary and Charleston. The tweet Veronica referenced is pretty clearly about Mark and Alexa – Bindi is not mentioned or referenced or in the photo at all. It does say “ALL that Jazz” and talks about Jazz hands. BUT, it is pure speculation that that is about their duet. It’s not known.
That said….I have a hard time believing they would do a Charleston to “All that Jazz”. Perhaps *Jazz* to “All that Jazz”. But again, that is speculation…not fact.
Funny how at least two out of three of the duet dances will be inspired by shows about (or inspired by) famous music groups.
Makes me wonder if the New York team will have something similar.
Current “jukebox musicals” on Broadway include: Jersey Boys, Beautiful: The Carol King Musical and On Your Feet! (about Emilio and Gloria Estefan). Of those three I’d say Jersey Boys is the best guess.
Another (easy) option for ABC would be to pick one of the Disney shows: Aladdin or The Lion King.
Since they’re doing Charleston the obvious choice would be Chicago – but then again – that’s been done a few times on the show already.
My personal favourites on Broadway at the moment are Hamilton, Fun Home, A Gentleman’s Guide to Love and Murder and Something Rotten – but I sadly doubt they’ll use any of those.
Can’t wait for Derek’s blog. We will have more clarification then. Or I think the press release comes out today too.
Ok, here ya go, Court. At the 3:09 mark in the interview below, Mark says he and Alexa have a Contemporary “and” a Charleston. This is the only interview where they mention the dances for Monday that I know of. I hope this helps. Also, no where have I seen where they have said that the duet dances are dances that both celebs have NOT done:
I would absolutely LOVE if they did Hamilton but that’d be Hip-Hop not Charleston. Plus that show might be too controversial for DWTS. I guess something like Something Rotten could work and that would be amazing as well (it’d suit those two pros specifically amazingly) but my #1 guess is still Chicago. If it’s a jukebox musical it could be On Your feet since it just opened and being featured on DWTS could be great publicity for it but Jersey Boys might make more sense for this.
And in regards to style there’s no way it’d be Jazz or Contemporary because both of those have already been done by one of the teams. A recent picture from Alexa on instagram has all but convinced me it’s Charleston, given what they said in the interview.
Is it possible that both Carlos and Alek could have the AT as individual dances and then have something else as their duet???
@Whitney – It’s possible, but where have we seen any evidence that Alek has it as his individual dance, too?
@Courtney, I haven’t seen anything to suggest what dances Alek and Lindsay may have. I was just wondering if anyone thought it’d be possible that the duet pair could potentially have the same individual dance.
Per Alexa’s instagram- they’ll be dancing ALL THAT JAZZ- Chicago. guessing they went to see the show in NY.
REALLY want alek to have an argentine tango! Would not be that excited about it as a duet dance.
Um, I just checked Alexa’s official instagram and I see nothing that confirms “All that Jazz”. I need more, Kayla.
Per a picture from a fan on twitter ,they going to see Chicago
THAT I saw, Anne – but that’s not confirmation of “All that Jazz”.
I think “Hot Honey Rag” would probably be the best song from that show for a Charleston, but there are a few others that could work as well. However, I don’t think “All That Jazz” is one of them. We’ll see what happens.
Julia, I think you are onto something. Check out this Chicago “All That Jazz/Hot Honey Rag” performance. It starts off with “All That Jazz” and then goes into a Charleston to “Hot Honey Rag”:
I forgot who made it but there is this really cool mashup of hot honey rag and all that jazz. I heard it at a Barnes and nobles (no joke) but if it’s not that I’m hoping it’s just all that jazz becuase that song is just addicting.
Never mind just looked it up: it was on glee and the first song wasn’t all the Jazz. Highly reccomend it though anyways lol.
Love that number, Vogue! Thanks for posting! I’m getting so excited for Monday now! I’ve been trying not to get my hopes up this week but a Charleston to HHR has been one of my dream DWTS numbers for awhile now and if this really is it it will be done by two if my all-time favorite pros (and the two teams I have been rooting for the most this season)!
Ok huge kudos to all of you for this wealth of information!! It is so appreciated as is how hard you all work. Thank you so much. You are my go to place throughout the day for updates. Now my daughter is coming to the site for updates. Plus she loves PureDerekHough site too. Last week she gave me some Derek and Bindi info and I said how do you know? She said I’m on PureDerekHough! So extra kudos to Princess Heidi, you have a new fan even if she’s 12.
Didn’t see your comments til after my other post, Vin, but I adore that Glee number as well! It brings back so many memories from high school. I don’t think I’ve watched it in a few years but I’m going to now, so thanks!
Aw, that’s nice, Liz. Me and Vogue appreciate it. 🙂
Wow! So much info and updates. You truly do amazing work. Big thanks, mods!
Courtney and Mz V, thank you so much for the videos. Loved them!
LOL I just can’t with that stuffed mouse instagram! It’s gotta be the cutest and creepiest thing I’ve ever seen.
I don’t know if someone has said it but the mouse instagram says that Carlos and Witney are dancing an Argentine Tango as their individual dance, and as a group dance they are dancing a Paso Doble. But then I thought that the duet would be dances that they had never danced before, so I don’t know what to think.
I’m sure it is Hot Honey Rag that Alexa and Bindi have, and that’s good, love Chicago and the song will be well-suited but can’t help wishing they’d got I Can’t Do It Alone, also from Chicago. It may be a Velma solo in the show, but I think it would make a great duo dance
Hmm. So didn’t Carlos do a paso already? Don’t remember if Alek did or not but it’s interesting.
Alek did a Paso for Most Memorable year so they’ve both done it previously.
Also, I saw Rumer Willis pictured with the NYC group so I guess she might be helping them after all.
Wouldn’t it be kind of unfair if Carlos and Alek’s team has a dance style that they’ve both done previously but Bindi and Alexa’s team has a dance style that’s new to them? (in season 18 the duo teams all had dance styles they had done previously)
Vogue, thanks for posting that clip! Bebe Neuwirth and Ann Reinking were sublime in those roles. Reinking in particular was a longtime muse of Fosse.
I have to say I’m a bit…….oh I don’t know, let down by them choosing We Will Rock as the Queen duet song. Not that I don’t like that song, because I do. If it comes on the radio, I bang my head to it, but with all the Queen songs out there, they go with the “of course”, most unimaginative pick.
So Carlos and Alek get to do a dance they have already done while Bindi and Alexa have to learn a new one? Umm.. I don’t see that as fair. Is this another way of propping up Carlos or what? If Nick and Tamar end up having a dance they both have already done I’m gonna be quite upset.
Of course it’s unfair, Geri. This shouldn’t surprise you about this show at this point. 🙂
Julia mentioned that the NYC group was pictured with Rumer. I had a feeling she’d be brought into this silly stunt. But wouldn’t you think she’d be with Val’s group instead?
I’m more interested in the fact that they actually gave Alek two dances he has a pretty good shot of doing well with – Argentine tango, which suits his skill set well, and paso doble, where he has a chance at redemption. But I’m wondering if the fact that Carlos got the same two dances is just a chance for the judges to favorably judge Carlos while negatively comparing Alek to him. Could be killing two birds with one stone: make Carlos look better, and make Alek look worse; but it could also backfire – especially if Alek does well and isn’t significantly worse than Carlos to the point where a huge difference in points between them would make it glaringly obvious that the judges have an agenda. Will be very interested to see how this one pans out.
Maria, that makes sense about Rumer, at least the kind of (non)sense this show specializes in. Rumer made her debut in the Broadway Chicago in September.
Of course the Broadway show is Chicago and of course Rumer will be in the package. I’m of coursing myself to death here.
I’d like to see Derek do a little (amazing) dance with Rumer just to see all the exploding heads. 😀 Pretty sure she wouldn’t have been so one-note with Derek.
Where is the photo of NYC group with Rumer? Haven’t seen it.
@Courtney I was wondering the same thing! At first glance, it appeared that tptb were finally throwing Alek a bone with the dances. But it could also be that they want him to exit on a positive note, having gotten decent scores. Or maybe they want him to get through to the next week and the know this is his only chance.
When you add that he and Carlos have the exact same dances this week, it’s hard to tell. This could go so many ways…
@PH I’m absolutely over the Chmerkovskiy vs. Hough/sometimes Ballas feud but I would enjoy seeing that just out of pure curiosity as to how they’d fare together. I think it could be really great!
As for Alek and Carlos having the same two dances, I hope if this is TPTB wanting to show everyone how much better Carlos is than Alek I hope it fails spectacularly. I think Alek will do quite well with both of those dances and Carlos will probably kill the Paso but not so sure about his AT.
If they really and truly wanted to screw Alek, they could have given him cha-cha, samba, or salsa as his individual dance – but they didn’t. Even if cha-cha, samba, or salsa would have been his duet dance with Carlos, it probably would have screwed Alek as well. So the fact that they didn’t go for the ultimate screwage that they could is curious to me. Makes me wonder if a) they know Alek can’t make up the margin of votes this week and is headed home anyway, or b) he’s slaying in the votes and they’re trying a different strategy to try and get him out: lull his fans into complacence because he actually gets fair scores this time.
Hmm, if I were given the choice of being able to dance a style I’ve done before or have Derek Freakin Hough as a pro on my duet team, I wouldn’t even hesitate, give me the pro who can be guaranteed to create a magical routine that makes me look good, and especially if the bonus pro is Mark.
@Courtney So I’m guessing you don’t see any chance that tptb have warmed to Alek and actually want to see him stay another week…
Isn’t it also curious though that Lindsay had “We will rock you” as her Paso Doble song with Victor? (Mark and Bristol had “Cell block Tango” from Chicago as their freestyle)
Do we know yet how the duet pairs were chosen?
I don’t think TPTB “dislike” Alek to the point they need to “warm” to him. That makes it sound personal and I doubt very much it’s anything more than wanting good dancers or ABC Family in the finale.
I actually think that they have given Alek those dances because he is heading home
@PH That’s probably true. As a viewer, sometimes the lengths they go to in order to sway opinion do, in fact, feel personal. Do you think the agenda of the producers varies from week to week, or do you think they have one set from week 1?
I think they have non-specific, competing agendas and they don’t really get defined until they see how everyone does, and who’s getting the votes.
Well, at least if Alek goes home this week, my two wishes for this season will have come true. – he does the Argentine tango with Lindsay and he gets to redo his paso doble when he’s in a better frame of mind. I’ve rewatched his paso doble and compared it to the ones done by Andy, Carlos, and Nick, all of whom scored better than he, and I have to say his movements were the most powerful. Moreover, I think the Avicii song also had a lot to do with the impact of the dance. It was too upbeat.
But I still won’t forgive TPTB for the way they treated Alek this season and will stop watching when he’s eliminated and probably won’t watch in future seaxons.
It’s hard for me to write this but i agreed with pedro. If alek votes are high, cha cha or samba will be given to down a peg or two his votes. The fact he was given AT and paso showed the producers not worried about scores or votes anymore. But i REALLY hope it’s not the case!
Looking ahead: I hope we get a Judges Dance next week (where they do the choreo and dance too) like they did last season. I loved that.
I don’t know if anyone is aware of this but according to the mouse Instagram Alek and Lindsay have salsa for their individual dance.
I can’t stop laughing at a Rumba duet to Hey Jude.
Only on DWTS.
Wow and people were hating earlier on the possibility that the duet dance of Alexa and Bindi will be contemporary since Bindi already did it smh. Now look at Tamer getting Rumba again and Carlos with a Paso, two dances they already did very well on. Interesting that Bindi and Alexa are doing a dance neither of them have done. So excited for that Charleston though!
LOL right, CM! I am curious to see them do Rumba in a duet, especially Tamar dancing a Rumba with Nick. *grabs popcorn*
Yes anon, i just checked in the mouse ig comment. 1st alek dance a salsa. There is hope. Now i’m thinking tamar a goner!
I think Team Baekey will be awesome. The other two could easily be train wrecks. *pass the popcorn please*
oh my god , Tamar and Val are doing the same song that Travis wall and amy did a contemporary to a few seasond ago , it’s an exquisite emmy nominated number , good luck for them filling them shoes .
Nick’s song sound like a quick step or a Charleston ???? maybe.
Bindi’s song is amazing and so it’s Alexia’s , not sure about Alek’s and carlos’s.
any way I’m sooooo excited to next monday , wohooooo.
Also Roses and Violets is my most played song on iTunes so I am really really excited about Bindi and Derek’s dance!
I can’t even see a Rumba to “Hey Jude” either (I have never liked that song anyway)…or an A Tango to “What Do You Mean”?
So three of the couples are repeating dance styles for the duet, and three are doing brand new styles. How is that fair?
It’s really sweet that Crikey is dancing to Mark and BC’s song.
I’m already laughing at the thought of Nick and Tamar doing a Rumba together.
I’m really excited for both of Bindi’s dances on Monday. A Viennese Waltz to that song will be so pretty, and I can’t wait to see what Derek and Mark come up with for the Charleston. I’ll be slightly disappointed though if the Charleston package doesn’t have any footage of some bickering between the “brothers” and/or Bindi/Alexa being confused by Derek and Mark’s creative process. 😛
As others have said, *pass the popcorn* for that “Hey Jude” rumba (everything about it).
And Alek has been screwed with a Salsa. Sigh… Guy can’t catch a break. I bet if he’s safe on Monday night they’ll give him the ChaCha and Samba on Week 10 because why not. (insert annoyed face here). I hope it ends up being at least a bit *good*.
I can’t see any other dance fitting Tamar’s song other than Contemporary so I’m guessing that’s what they have. A Rumba would fit but since she already did that, Contemporary makes sense. I don’t know how she would do with that.. could either be really good or just lame and boring. I have a feeling Alexa’s is gonna be a lot better.
An Argentine Tango to that Bieber song? I don’t know why I found that hilarious 😛
Very excited about Bindi’s song for the Viennese Waltz. Sounds beautiful.
And Nick & Tamar get a dance that Tamar has done, Alek & Lindsay get a dance they both have done and Bindi & Alexa both have a dance neither have done.. and a pretty tough dance at that. Do people still say they always “favor” Derek?! -_-
I’m with the posters who are questioning why some members of two teams have already danced the style they are assigned to in their “pairs” dance and one team neither celeb has danced this style.
What is wrong with this damn show, it drives me crazy. So now are they trying to bring down Alexa and Bindi because they are the only “team” with a brand new dance and it’s not any easy dance to learn.
Again there seems to be some propping going on – I’m looking at Carlos and Tamar.
I am excited too, especially since Derek and Mark worked with the choreographer of Chicago. This is gonna be great.
I don’t quite understand why Carlos got that song for that particular dance but I’m sure witney will make it work considering I had the same issue with some of the songs that chris got and she made it work. I love the song Alexa and mark have though.
Hit submit too quickly lol. Out of all the Beatles catalouge they went with the best one there and I love that. That song is kinda perfect in every way in my opinion. Saying that, does anyone know if it’s going to be remixed like crazy like the Viva Elvis show did to the songs?
I think Tamar and Val have contemporary this week. The song reminds me of a contemporary piece from sytycd season 10 choreographed by Travis Wall. I would really take a close look at Val’s choreography whether it will resemble Travis’.
Tina Where did you find out they worked with Chicago choreographer?
Never mind — saw it. So totally cool!!!!!!!
Here’s a post Miss Heidi posted about it: http://www.purederekhough.com/2015/11/06/a-bit-more-info-on-derek-hough-and-mark-ballas-duet-from-chicago/
:::rolls eyes::: “People were hating”??? Which people are these? No one here.
Of course the two people they have some sort of weird vested interest in are doing a dance they’ve done before. But let’s be honest – if each pair in the duet is scored the same, them Carlos isn’t that much better off and Tamar is doing a rumba duet to “Hey Jude”. Good lord.
NO!!!! I was so excited for aleks AT ? and they’re dancing it to another stupid non salsa song
Eww at Nick and Tamar rumba-Ing together but also hilarious ? whoever picks the songs should be fired lol. I dislike almost all of the contemporary dance on SYTYCD, but I LOVE that number Travis did with Amy, it is one of my favorite dances of all time from any show
Not choreographer – dance supervisor. Bob Fosse was the original choreographer and I think Anne Reinking did the revival. My boo boo – I was in a rush. 😉
Yall should not be complaining Alexa and Bindi got the best combo of dance and the best choreographers of Charleston so they’re definitely not at a disadvantage. I bet it’s going to be amazing!
I’m soooo insanely excited for this Monday !!!
Also, Does anyone know how one can get tickets to DWTS Finale !
Based on Snapchat, it looks like Sharna and Nick and have Quickstep…and that song pretty much gives it away.
I really wanted to see What Do You Mean danced to a Cha Cha, not Argentine Tango. What’s up with all of these weird, I’ll-fitting songs they’ve been using for AT’s this season?
MP, see this link and good luck. Keep us posted if you go: http://on-camera-audiences.com/shows/Dancing_with_the_Stars
# Voguerista Thanks !!
Er, people who have done the dance style before definitely have an advantage. It’s quite silly to try to claim otherwise.
@Ani I do agree with you, and Heidi as well. I think while the others do have an advantage, I mean how cringeworthy is it going to be to see Tamar Rumba with Nick? And the Paso between Alek and Carlos, could be really good or disastrous. And then you have Derek and Mark creating an amazing Charleston that will be the biggest crowd pleaser. So yes, while the others do have the advantage, I think Team Baekey will have the best and most exciting dance.
I wouldn’t sell Sharna short on that rumba.
PH I’m confused, was your tweet about bob fosse directed to me or someone else? Sorry for my ditziness
Alek & Lindsay aren’t doing the AT?? Alek is not built for a salsa. Any other dance would be better. He would have killed a AT. They probably want him to do bad so they can justify sending him home. I hope I am so wrong and he surprises the heck out of them. Salsa is a tough dance to learn in just a couple days. Monday will be interesting!
Thank you PH #236 that’s what I was trying to say in my awkwardly worded sentence that anyone who has previously danced the dance has an advantage. I just didn’t think it fair that this is occurring. Ah but then I remember TPTB don’t care.
But I fully agree that Derek & Mark, with their celebs, will give us an awesome Charleston.
I think they get songs and then pick dance styles out of a hat every week. “Hey jude” rumba – are they going to be doing Victor Espinoza’s hip movements on the nah nah na na part? And I never imagined “what do you mean” being anything else than Hip Hop let alone AT – unless they do a different version live.
Don’t think it matters about the people who have done the dance styles already because Charleston in itself is a crowd pleaser way more than a rumba or paso so they have the advantage there as well as it being a good group dance whereas the other styles not so much.
@ Sara
Paso is actually also really good as a group dance – there have been loads of great pro group paso performances and team pasos on DWTS. I think Carlos and Alek have definitely the biggest advantage.
I think the person with more disadvantage this week is Nick. Apparently with a quickstep and a Rumba with Tamar! That’s going to be interesting to see.
It seems everyone has taken their turns being “disadvantaged” this season. Usually it’s just one couple. Not this time. I just hope the Judges keep it real and score them all right in these last weeks.
Tweet about Bob Fosse? I didn’t tweet about him. I posted a comment HERE about him, but it was a general correction to what I previously said.
Well, several other couples have already done Salsa this season, so it must be Alek’s turn. :::shrug::: It’s not like they’re whipping out a dance no one else has had to do and latin styles ARE a part of this show. It’s one of his remaining styles.
People could just as easily complain that Bindi has had Waltz and is now doing V. Waltz – when was the last time a contestant got BOTH of those in one season? We’ve had conversations about this. Just because she’s likely to do well at it doesn’t make it right – those dances often aren’t as “exciting” as a Paso, or an AT…or even a Salsa – all of which she’s dancing against Monday night. Not to mention that unlike the other two duets, Bindi and Alexa are actually doing two *Unlearned* styles. And yet, we don’t hear anything about Bindi doing Waltz and V. Waltz in a season because she’s a good dancer.
All I’m saying is that Alek is being treated no more unfairly than a few other couples this season – they’re just better dancers and are more likely to handle it. But that doesn’t make it less fair for him and okey dokey for Bindi and Alexa. Nope. Fair is fair – and this show has never been fair. I see lots of whining about Alek getting Salsa, and some of those same people going “Oh well, Derek and Mark will create an amazing Charleston.” Hello? Alek getting Salsa is not wrong…Carlos and Tamar getting styles they’ve danced before for the duet? Now THAT is wrong. And unfair to Bindi and Alexa, NO MATTER how it turns out.
Nope, Sara, doesn’t happen that way. They would never leave that much up to chance.
@ Princess Heidi
Heyes had both Waltz (with Emma) and Viennese Waltz (with Allison) and Rumer had both two.
Then they were exceptions, Geri – it’s quite unusual. Interesting though, that both Hayes and Rumer or Rob Wade contestants. He’s doing a lot of stupid stuff.
My point remains – lots of people have reason to complain, not just Alek. Nick and Alek did contemporary during an immunity week and everyone else had ballroom. Fair?? Not even a little.
@PH #247, I know this is going way back (and there could well be more recent examples, possibly including some from the Conrad Green years) but I know Jennifer Grey had both waltzes. She did VW in Week 1 and “regular” Waltz in Week 9.
Please tell me you’re not going to go back and try to determine the accuracy of ONE throwaway comment in a much longer post with an actual point to it? And then continue to miss that point? Jaysus. People really do my head in sometimes.
Sorry PH! I had just been re-watching those dances so I knew it had happened. I agree with your point about this show never being fair and that if people are going to talk about it being unfair that Alek has to Salsa this week, they can’t ignore the unfairness of the duet styles for Bindi/Alexa/Nick (all of whom are learning new styles in both dances) and that Bindi is being given both versions of a less-than-exciting style when people rarely get both.
FWIW, I was curious about just how unusual it is that someone is assigned both types of waltz in the same season, so I looked back a few seasons on wikipedia. Dating back to All-Stars (when non-ballroom dances started to become more prevalent), only Corbin and those mentioned by Geri were made to do both.
I’m not trying to poke holes in what you said Heidi (this time, and I’m sorry again for earlier), I was just genuinely curious and I figured I’d share in case others were too. I really appreciate all that you and the other mods do in running this site.
The V. waltz is Bindi’s last Ballroom dance. I hope she does it so well that judges find nothing to critique. The way Bruno keeps saying “We told you about the shoulders” got on my nerves so much last week. I noticed problems with her shoulder in her Tango, Waltz, Quickstep, and Cha Cha, but I’m sorry her frame was amazing in that Foxtrot. It still bugs me that the Foxtrot didn’t get a perfect 30.
Yeah, I failed to see a problem with her shoulders as well, Ananya…but they will “see” whatever they need to see to give the score that fits their agenda. IF the Derek/Bindi fans killed it in voting, you might see a 10…but much like the Foxtrot, I wouldn’t hold my breath if I were you.
PH If I may ask, what is your best guess about whether Bindi will be allowed to win?
I go back and forth. If they continue to nitpick her to death, it could be that they’re trying to turn the sheeple off. I’m just not sure it will work. And I guess it depends on how many more baby showers, marriage proposals, etc pop up on the rest of the season.
Hmmmm well BC Jean is going to be a guest performer on Monday. Maybe the “announcement of the week” will be Mark proposing on air. XD
In all seriousness I honestly can’t see what the producers could do to prevent a Bindi win at this point if she continues to do well and the fans want it to happen. I don’t think she’s said anything on camera they could use for a bad package and even if they keep underscoring her that’ll just make her fans vote even more. But maybe I’m wrong and they’ll try something else. I just realllllllly hope not.
Does anyone know whether it was the celebs or TPTB who chose the duet pairings?
I believe Bindi has the whole package to win. She has the personality, fans love her, and she can Dance ! Almost everyone one is drawn to her and they talk about her the most than Nick. Im more than sure the producers did not expect this at all and expected Nick will be an easy win. To me she has to win and if she doesn’t and Nick wins, Im done with this show until there are major changes!!!!
I hope Bindi will win but there are too many variables for me to be confident about it. Even people who don’t watch DWTS have become aware of Bindi. Trouble is, do they just talk around the water cooler or will they actually vote. Her media blitz gives me hope. Another thing to consider is the “Derek has won enough ” Pros. Most of them will ask their fans to throw their votes to someone else. Only Mark consistently supports Derek with his fans. People also complain that certain voting lines aren’t available at crucial voting times. All of this makes me break into hives. I hope the people in the final will get an honest shot and the results will play out truthfully.
Think positive Kim and keep voting for Bindi! That’s all you can do. Ignore the haters. There are haters every season. Don’t let them get you off course.
Derek kept it real in his blog today. He is fully aware of the games and agenda of the judges & TPTB. He pretty much called then all out -respectfully but honestly. Mentioning knitpicking Bindi & Julianne’s comments. I think this may definitely be his last season because he’s saying it like he means it. If I could HiFive him now, I would. 🙂 Looking forward to their performances next week. Hope the judges are fair or we may see another side of Derek!! I couldn’t help but laugh at him mentioning Jules comments about the scores she gives Bindi-I didn’t appreciate that comment from her at all.
Bravo Derek!!! 🙂
Thanks, Tina. Bindi is my only vote despite any roadblocks thrown up by Producers. Derek’s blog was great. Only he could pull back the curtain on TPTB and not seem whiny or petty. Worried about Bindi’s blindfold. It’s bad enough the judges are wearing one. Don’t know how he would keep her from feeling disoriented with that much movement. Plus, Bindi’s sweetness shines from her face. Hate to see one of her assets dimmed. Although Derek always manages to pull off something great.
Didn’t Eric do a blindfolded dance with Maks ?
Erin….I meant Erin
I had the same thought that Mark may propose. I thought it was strange that he isn’t using it for a dance for himself and Alexa. I’m excited for Bindi’s dance bc it sounds very cool! I was also annoyed with Bruno’s comment to her about her shoulders, I did not like his tone.
I have never forgotten Kelly Pickler saying “I ain’t even bringing my shoulders next week!” Hahha!
@ Mandi…
LOL! I remember Kellie Pickler saying that and a lot of other cute remarks. She and Derek had a great partnership like Bindi and Derek does and I so enjoy a really good, happy, funny, great dancing couple. Kellie Pickler has a new show on the CMT country TV channel on Thursday nights I think it’s Thurs. It’s called “I Love Kellie Pickler.”
Wow! If Derek is blind folding Bindi, om my gosh, he knows how really talented she is and wants the world to know it. I can’t wait to see her costume. I know she’ll be beautiful as always. Her inner beauty comes through and shines on the outside. She will light up the dance floor.
I’m hoping that Julianne’s one ill-advised nod toward one group of complainers won’t happen again, now that she’s heard from the other group of complainers booing in the ballroom. I thought it was quite amusing that Bindi turned the whole episode into another opportunity to express her gratitude for being there and her promise to be better next week! Seems like Ms. Bindi is a lemonade-making natural.
Kudos to Derek for softly speaking the truth. I think it’s the first time I’ve ever heard him express an interest in his partner winning. I so hope it happens for them.
Even when Derek “calls them out” he’s about a thousand times nicer than I would be. Having just rewatched the dance off I’m pissed off all over again. The judges got EVERY dance wrong. All three of them. Their agendas were soooo transparent. Carlos was doing the worm as well for a good bit, and Bindi doesn’t get ONE vote from them? And CAI says they didn’t start until halfway through? #bitchoncrack
It’s a V. Waltz, Kim. I worry too, but he should have his hands on her 95% of the time.
Every time I read one of Derek’s blogs I keep thinking to myself “I freaking love Derek” the whole time I’m reading it. I love how he’s able to see through the machinations of the show and call the judges/TPTB out on their crap while still coming across professional and respectful.
Side-note/question: As far as anyone can remember, is this the first time a song by a current or former pro has been used as a competition dance? I know there have been performances/pro dances using the music of one or more pros, but I can’t think of any that were danced by a celebrity.
I can’t wait to hear all the Maks fans screaming how Derek is copying Maks and yadda yadda yadda…
If anyone can make a blindfolded dance work, it’s Derek. Part of me worries a bit but the other part of me can’t wait to see this. Fingers crossed Bindi does it flawlessly! 🙂
So very excited for their Jazz routine too.
Alexa will have the highest score of the night!
If I were in my 20’s, I would dance with Derek blindfolded and would love his hands on me. Whoops …did I say that????
Er…the odds of that aren’t good, C, based on past history.
Oh no, a blindfolded dance? Was that Derek’s idea or TPTB’s? I have a feeling Bindi will do well but I am kind of nervous about it.
“Roses and Violets” is under the Alexander Jean name but it’s pretty much a BC song, isn’t it? Does Mark play the guitar for it or something? I was totally kidding about him proposing but now I’m worried it’s actually going happen. I’m all for them getting engaged and married but I’m sick of the big life announcements on air, especially this season. And to do it during what is supposed to be another team’s screentime would be a new low. I don’t see Bindi or Derek minding at all but it would be really unfair to them in my eyes. To me Mark doesn’t seem like the type to do that, especially during when the spotlight should be on one of his best friends and his dance partner, but if he does I’m not going to send Team Baega any more votes even though I’ve given them at least some every week this season.
Er, let’s not get all upset about something that hasn’t even happened yet, ‘k?
@Julia, there’s a video of Mark and BC performing the song on KTLA ~6 weeks ago and BC is doing the main singing with Mark playing guitar and coming in with backup vocals near the end.
@Julia – Alexander Jean is the name of BC and Mark’s duo. (Mark’s middle name being Alexander and BC “Jean”). It took me a while to figure it out. Lol
I could see Alexa getting a perfect score in her Contemporary IF she doesn’t mess up. Her Argentine Tango could also have been a perfect score without any mishaps.
I know Alexander Jean is both of them but that particular song seemed more BC-heavy to me. It’s a great one either way! 🙂
And I can see Alexa doing well with the Contemporary because I’ve noticed her biggest mishaps seem to happen in hold. So I think this could be a really great performance from her.
I doubt Bruno and CAI remember the Erin and Maks blindfolded Waltz but I wouldn’t be surprised if Erin mentions it since I’m sure she remembers that.
I thought Erin and Maks’ blindfolded Waltz had completely underwhelming coreography and Maks used the blindfold as an attention grabber to make it seem more interesting, which is definitely not needed with Derek’s coreography so I’m really curious why he chose to go there. I’m guessing he thinks it fits the song in some way…
@Geri I am sure he came up with an awesome story to it. Derek always makes his partners shine so him wanting to blind fold one of his partners for the first time shows how talented Bindi really is. I can’t wait to see it cause I think if anyone can pull it off it’s them.
From what I have heard Mark and BC are celebrating an important date, 3 years I believe, but I don’t think Mark is cliche enough to be like everyone else and propose or announce big news on the show. He out of all people should know how much that will be a distraction from Bindi and Derek. I do hope they get engaged though but maybe a better time.
Thanks for the link to Derek’s blog.
I’m incredibly excited to see the blindfolded Viennese Waltz. I really like how, even while acknowledging that Bindi is exhausted, he’s still challenging her. That’s how a dancer grows and improves. He respects her enough to want her to be better, not just coast.
I remember Maks and Erin’s blindfolded waltz which I actually liked, however I remember how long it took Maks to tie the blindfold on Erin during the dance. Long enough I could have walked around the block, came back and still not have missed any actual dancing.?
@kreativekat, I’m 21 and would love for your idea to happen to me with Derek ?
The blind Blindfolded idea has been done before in and outside DWTS , so to see derek go there is really interesting , I would love to see his take on it , the song has some hints to the absence of sight so maybe that’s where is he coming from .
Blindfold is Derek copying Maks?? As if. FWIW, if anyone was copying, then Maks was, since Julianne did it MUCH better with Apolo during their freestyle.
it’s not copying PH, for me it’s more like using a prop , like hat or a stick , every one has his own interpretation , and that’s why I’m interested to see Derek’s take on it .
Apollos and Erins blindfolded dance you can tell they can still see at the bottom corner of the blindfold. I’m sure it’s still hard to dance like this. But in Dereks blog he said Bindi’s not going to see at all with the blindfold. Not a peak ! So this is going to be more challenging, but I know Bindi can do it. And I can’t wait for it
A Jazz and a Paso Doble against a Rumba?
Yer preaching to the choir, Kirami. 🙂
Gee, Veronica, NOW you’re complaining?? And not when it was an unlearned dance (the Charleston) against two couples where one of them had done the dance? Did you complain when Bindi had to do a foxtrot against Nick’s contemporary? At least immunity isn’t involved this time.
Paso and Jazz are entertaining dances against a Rumba which isn’t so much at least to the mayority. And now just Bindi and Nick are dancing to dnaces they haven’t done before and I just saw people complaining for her. And no I didn’t complaint when Binfi got a foxtrot because she already did a Contemporary to her late father. And usually a foxtrot is a show stopper they did a great job so I don’t get the whining about them getting it, they did great.
Yadda yadda yadda…Nick still had a dance with no rules against Bindi’s foxtrot for which she got called out for her shoulders. So Nick had *immunity* – that’s far more significant that poor Nick dancing a rumba against a paso and a Jazz. IMMUNITY, dear. Hence the “whining” which you really shouldn’t point out right now as it makes you a hypocrite. In their individual dances, Bindi is dancing a V. Waltz against a Salsa, an AT and a contemporary, that we know of. And Nick could have a quickstep. So, suck it up.
And yes she already did a Wlatz which it was a good one even with the lift that was pointed out by Carrie Ann so I think she’s got a golden ticket this week.
Of course you do, Veronica – whatever works for you. Nick had the golden ticket last week. Thanks though, for completely missing the point of the conversation all while PROVING my point. That’s some talent you got right there.
@ Veronica you should be happy Nick had a slow dance , He had the Paso and the A.tango and they were among his weakest dances he does better with the slow dances ( V.waltz, foxtrot , contemporary ).
My mom is a fan of the show and when I told her the couples she told me her theory of why she thought by they were put that way. They put the voting order, so they made de first go with the fourth, the second go with the fifth and the third go with the sixth.So:
1. Bindi with 4. Alexa
2. Nick with 5.Tamar
3. Carlos with 6. Alek.
It could be, it sounds extremly random I know, but I thought the position kind of made sense.
sorry I ment why not by (in the: she thought by they were put)
Derek just posted a stunning picture of he and Bindi in a dance posture on twitter. It’s a dark silhouette with incredible impact. Loved it!!
Derek could be using a different blind fold like the kind that people wear at night to keep out the light while they sleep. I think whatever he uses to blind fold Bindi, it will be slick & quick on and off. One thing about Derek is that he doesn’t usually try anything unless he can bring his celeb partner through it perfectly. And, I’m sure he has been working on Bindi’s shoulder position, and eliminate that nit-picking opportunity for the judges. Oh, but if she masters that, they’ll have to find something else Monday night in her V. Waltz; because, after all they can’t give her 10’s all the time! LOL!!!
#287 Jodie
LOL!
Hmmm…interesting Pedro. Could be, but I think it’s just as likely that Bindi got first pick and went with Alexa (cuz Mark), Nick got second pick and went with Tamar (his first pick in team dances) and that left Carlos with Alek.
I saw that Kim – gorgeous photo!
KKat, if they are determined to nit pick Bindi and judge her harder, they will find something – unless of course the backlash from last week was too much for them. Julianne, in particular, is still hypersensitive to criticism, whether she realizes it or not. What she said about not giving 10’s was a big red flag about the overall judging by these people.
I just saw the new promo on the official DWTS twitter account, in which they replay Tamar’s comment about being the best dancer in the competition, and I had a crazy theory. What if TPTB are trying to get Tamar out so there isn’t an opportunity for Derek to school Val (again) in Freestyle choreography? They might not want viewers to see that their reigning champ still isn’t all that when it in the choreography department when he’s directly compared to the master.
Feel free to tell me I’m full of crap with this theory, but I’m kinda grasping at straws to try to understand the behaviour of TPTB and this theory seemed somewhat plausible to me.
There’s gotta be a “bad guy” every season, sonic, is what I’m thinking. Tamar has no shot of winning, so they need to keep things exciting by portraying her in a negative way. That’s my theory. I don’t think that it has anything to do with Derek – I think everyone is aware by now that Derek is in a league of his own when it comes to choreo.
I’m also starting to buy into the theory that they want both Carlos and Alexa in the finale with Nick and Bindi – for more drama between the married couple. They were pimping that early on and when ppl didn’t care, they backed off. Now, Alexa seems to be finding her stride and suddenly there’s a chance for that again.
BTW, I posted the commercial we’re talking about if you want to discuss it in that post.
Thanks PH! Your theory makes more sense. 🙂
I agree, PHeidi
Along with the remark about giving 10’s, Julianne also said one last word… that Bindi is in a league of her own; which leaves me sorta flabber-gasted. 🙂
I think that Bindi and Alexa’s jazz wi be heavily scrutinized by the judges bc it’s such an iconic musical. I could be wrong and I don’t recall the other Chicago dances from past seasons (or how they were scored). I certainly don’t think they got a free pass this week bc they got jazz.
@Mandi, definitely not a free pass but I can see it for sure being in a league of its own compared to the other two. I think Team Alek’s Paso will be good, but I’m sure the jazz will be a crowd pleaser for sure. ESpecially since Mark mentioned Fosse in his instagram post, I can see Bruno loving that.
Well, Tina, that falls under the category of “tough shit you’re not as good a choreographer as Derek and Mark are.” Sharna could be – and that set up is the sort of thing that Derek would have (and has) thrived in. Has Sharna got it? We’ll find out. Has she got a 50’s Paso type dance, or a Rumba like Derek and Maria’s in her?
Sharna is an amazing l choreographer, but it seems shes getting more help from Paul like Nicks last dance.
I’m hoping that upon reflection (or watching it on video) Julianne will realize the folly of her ways and give Bindi the scores that she (and, yes, Derek also) the scores she deserves. In the meantime, it provides an instructive comparison to Maks’s “Because I Can” theory of judging. To be filed away for the next time a discussion breaks out about Hough vs. Chmerkovskiy judging impartiality.
You are right, PH, I think Sharna is a great choreographer, but the question is how good is she? Soon to find out, I guess. Speaking of such, Nick definitely has Quickstep tomorrow based on DWTS Snapchat at camera blocking.
A few seasons ago they said Meryl was in a league of her own. And she was. But how does that make the other dancers feel. Difficult to get enthusiastic to dance when the favorite and winner has been picked. Judges should watch what they say.
TPTB have pitted the 2 older, male, much more experienced choreographers against the younger, less experienced, female choreographers. The ladies dance beautifully and their choreography is great, but Derek is in a league of his own and should be in theater and Mark is so experienced and creative. He and Derek have over 10 years experience on the ladies. It will be an interesting nite.
Oh, shart, you don’t really know what you’re talking about. You don’t *know* how the couples were paired, for one thing. The “older, more experienced pros”?? How do you explain Tony then, eh? He can’t touch Derek. Next you’ll be saying Derek should be handicapped because he’s talented. No, the others should up their game — they’re in the big leagues now. Learn to deal.
As for Bindi being in a “league of her own” that was also said about Nick. They’ve told Tamar, alternately, that she is the best female dancer and the best natural mover. Your explanation for that? Were they picking the winner?
There is NO REASON for them to “pick” Bindi as the winner – no upside. But perhaps she IS getting the lion’s share of the votes, along with Nick, and IS the best dancer.
Here’s what picking the winner looks like: “This is your season, Val.” Doesn’t get much plainer than that.
PHeidi….
I have a question. I have always thought the way the judges score is with each celeb’s dancing progress and how much better they are from week to week, including if they do one dance a little better in one week than another. But, sometimes it feels like they judge or compare all the celebs as to who’s dance stands out the most. And, I notice many viewers also do it.
My question is: What do you feel about how the judges are basing their scores/judging; and how do you think they really should be judging each celeb?
I just read Derek’s blog – thanks for sharing it here, PH! Been out for a few days, so just catching up now. I felt he was so candid and open about last week’s episode in the blog. Almost unusually so 🙂 I really liked how he called out the judging and didn’t mince words in saying that they were nitpicking. But he did it with class 🙂 And he showed he had a bucket load of class and grace when he took the blame for their fall in the dance-offs, even when anyone could have seen what was happening. But keeping this attitude is so so important to not get caught up in the politics of it all. He didn’t spare the producers either in his blog! Just saying that they would like all the drama when the pros actually discuss who wants to dance what before hand – that’s hilarious! All in all a great read and I am so excited for tonight! Both the jazz and the V.Waltz!
Just read Derek’s blog. It’s a pleasure to see him calling out the judges and TPTB for their love of faux drama, storyboarding and the unnecessary hoops and stress they put the couples through (but doing it with class).
Poor Bindi. I’m sure she is exhausted (all the celebs are at this point). However, since Derek is a master of the show, I’m confident he’ll find a way to help her get her second wind so that she makes a strong push to the finish line!
He’s certainly not letting up on Bindi choreographically–having her dance the VWaltz truly blindfolded–Yikes!!!! If they pull it off, it should be amazing.
Derek’s always been protective of his partners, and has cared for all of them. Still, I feel he has a special brotherly affection for Bindi because she is such a strong but joyful spirit. I really hope Derek dumps this sorry excuse of a show after this season and that Bindi is Derek’s last DWTS partner.
Just saw Bindi and Derek on snapchat. They look exquisite.