PureDWTS Season 23 Week 1 – Interviews After The Dances, Scores, Photos, Extras

What a night on Dancing With The Stars! Despite protesters trying to disrupt the show, I thought the dances were all so good. And the opening number…I was wowed! The Pros and couples should all be so proud.

So, to start us off for more media today, see ABC7 and the Daily Mail for some lovely photos. East News has photos from the outside area “behind the scenes”.

Let’s take a look at the Scores again:
Laurie Hernandez and Val Chmerkovskiy (Cha Cha) 8-8-7-8. TOTAL: 31
James Hinchcliffe and Sharna Burgess (Foxtrot) 8-8-7-8. TOTAL: 31
Marilu Henner and Derek Hough (Jive) 7-7-6-7. TOTAL: 27
Jana Kramer and Gleb Savchenko (Viennese Waltz) 7-6-6-8. TOTAL: 27
Kenny “Babyface” Edmonds and Allison Holker (Foxtrot) 7-6-6-7. TOTAL: 26
Calvin Johnson Jr. and Lindsay Arnold (Cha Cha) 7-6-6-7. TOTAL: 26
Vanilla Ice and Witney Carson (Cha Cha) 7-5-6-7. TOTAL: 25
Terra Jolé and Sasha Farber (Jive) 7-6-6-6. TOTAL: 25
Amber Rose & Maksim Chmerkovskiy (Foxtrot) 6-6-6-6. TOTAL: 24
Ryan Lochte and Cheryl Burke (Foxtrot) 6-6-6-6. TOTAL: 24
Maureen McCormick and Artem Chigvintsev (Viennese Waltz) 6-5-5-6. TOTAL: 22
Jake T. Austin and Jenna Johnson (Jive) 5-6-5-6. TOTAL: 22
Rick Perry and Emma Slater (Cha Cha) 5-5-5-5. TOTAL: 20

Below are some media reports and interviews. The cast weigh in on the Protesters and their dances…

E Online:

For more with Derek and Marilu, see Pure Derek Hough.

More with the rest of the cast…

Access Hollywood:

See People for their interviews. I’m betting they post more through out the day, so, keep watching the link.

ET (you might want to stop these from playing if they are annoying):

From Fox News

Derek Hough told Fox News that the incident marred the usual carefree atmosphere of the show and admitted he even got a little emotional.

“I dropped a couple of F bombs. ’DWTS’ is my home,” he said.

Hough added that Lochte and Burke left early, only doing a few TV interviews.

“They’re shaken.”

Longtime dancing professional Sharna Burgess wasn’t happy with the way things went down.

“There’s no place for this in the ballroom,” she said.

From Fox411:

On the other end, Hernandez turned in a sparkling cha cha with her pro and told FOX411 afterwards, “I feel amazing. This is something that I’ve always dreamed of doing. Tonight was an exciting night for me.”

Of her tie for first, she said, “I learned in gymnastics you don’t just get medals handed to you, so we worked hard while we were dancing and came out here and really enjoyed it.”

Indycar racer Hinchcliffe, with partner Sharna Burgess by his side, said of their foxtrot, “For whatever reason, it all just kind of clicked when it had to—it was lights, camera, action and we couldn’t be happier.”

As Fox411 previously reported, premiere night took a dark turn when two protestors against Ryan Lochte stormed the “DWTS” stage. They were later arrested.

The controversial swimmer and partner Cheryl Burke scored a 24 for their foxtrot but were so understandably rattled by the shocking incident that they did very little press after the show.

The other celebrities, who rallied around Lochte and Burke, had an easier time. Former football player Calvin Johnson, who grabbed 26 points for his cha cha with Lindsay Arnold, told FOX411, “It was fun. I felt this morning that we were going to do great…she got a smile out of me the whole time.”

Former Taxi star Marilu Henner, who performed with returning pro Derek Hough, was more than satisfied with her score of 27 for the jive, saying, “We had a blast. You get so much energy from the crowd. I don’t get nervous; I get excited.”

Terra Jole, the first little person to compete on “DWTS,” told FOX411 about her jive with Sasha Farber, “I felt like a whole ball of adrenalin was just rushing through my body.

“I really hope that I inspire people,” said the “Little Women LA” star, who scored 25 points. “I just know what I came to do for myself and I hope that I can reflect positivity for other people as well.”

For some things that came out late right before the show last night, see People as Jana wrote a really cute blog on her DWTS Goals and more. I love what she said on Gleb…

Making it easier is my partner, Gleb. He’s so patient with me and really understands that I have to practice a move about a million times before I feel comfort with it. We are quickly becoming friends, but I will admit that our accents make communication difficult sometimes.

Gleb is Russian and will say what sounds like “Food! Food!” and I automatically think, “Are you hungry? We just ate!” And then I realize he’s saying “Foot!” But aside from that, we are working so well together. He’s on the road with me while I’m touring and we’ve become really good friends who can laugh and have fun together while we work.

This opportunity came at a very busy time in my life. I’m balancing being on tour and being a single mom for the first time, but I knew I couldn’t say no. I knew what I was signing on for and I want to show moms out there that we can do it all.

Also, see James and Sharna on ET Canada in a rehearsal interview. I love when he says, “It looks like we’re dancing now.” So cute. Thanks to Abby for sending.

Here’s some pap coverage after the show…

Keep checking back. We may add more later. In the meantime, get your rankings ready as Court will be posting her Power Rankings post soon. ~Vogue xx

ETA: This is always fun. Storm Viking recorded DWT All Access…

ETA2: See Glamour when you can. The cast talks on the protest incident. They also talk on their new dances for next week. Watch out for more sexy from #TeamGlamer.

Pro Lindsay Arnold could not stop gushing about her football player partner, Calvin Johnson, after the show: “He’s the nicest guy. I’ve never seen him in a bad mood. He’s the best thing I could ever ask for in a partner. He wants to be here, and I love it.”

Jana Kramer admitted that she was terrified of performing, even though she sings in front of thousands all the time. “You just replay everything in your head, like, ‘My posture should have been better,’ or ‘I should have done this here.’ But at the same time, I did what I wanted to do and do the best that I could do and feel confident. I’m proud of myself for that.” The biggest complain from head judge Len Goodman was that her performance was too sexy. So how does partner Gleb Savchenko feel about that? “She can’t help it,” he laughed. And by the sound of it, next week is going to bring more of the same. “We’re doing the international tango next week! It’s going to look great,” Savchenko boasted. “She’s a hot, beautiful singer, and I’m bringing the international [flavor]!”

Jake T. Austin made headlines earlier this year when it was revealed he was dating a fan (and he still is!), but hearing that partner Jenna Johnson is a fan meant everything to him. “It made my life to hear that Jenna [was a fan of mine],” he said. “That’s life goals right here. Having a fan in Jenna…I would rather have her than anything.”