Dancing with the Stars Season 24, Week FIVE – Who’s Dancing What…and When?
Disney week again – will be interesting to see if there’s any repeats from previous seasons, since is the 4th time they’ve done Disney. I also anticipate some dance styles not really matching up with the songs they’re assigned to…guess we can look forward to a certain former pro throwing more shade at the current pros on Twitter *eye roll*…
ETA: According to a new Rehearsal Interview, Val and Normani have a Paso Doble for their Disney dance. More hints HERE. ~Vogue
ETA: Via ABC and Broadway World, the dances and songs are all listed below. Note that Donny Osmond, ZZ Ward, and Auli‘i Cravalho are performing LIVE. Also, Witney Carson teams with Donald Duck for a special dance. ~Vogue
ETA3: Dance order per George P. – Nick gets hosed yet again. Either he’s not getting the votes or they don’t want him to get the votes. Hard to say which at this point. Erika is in an even worse spot. Good on Rashad and Simone opening and closing the show. We’ll see if Rashad gets the most airtime. 😉
Rashad and Emma – Foxtrot – “Evermore” by Josh Groban from Walt Disney Pictures’ “Beauty and the Beast”
Dancing 1st
Phone 1-800-868-3411
Nick and Peta – Jazz – “I’ve Got No Strings” as sung by Dickie Jones from “Pinocchio”
Dancing 2nd
Phone 1-800-868-3409
Erika and Gleb – Viennese Waltz – “Unforgettable” by Sia from “Finding Dory”
Dancing 3rd
Phone 1-800-868-3405
Heather and Alan (Maks) – Jazz – “For the First Time in Forever” by Idina Menzel and Kristen Bell, music & lyrics by Kristen Anderson-Lopez and Robert Lopez, from “Frozen”
Dancing 4th
Phone 1-800-868-3406
Bonner and Sharna – Tango – “When Can I See You Again?” by Owl City from “Wreck-It Ralph”
Dancing 5th
Phone 1-800-868-3401
Normani and Val – Paso Doblé – “I’ll Make a Man Out of You” by Donny Osmond from “Mulan” – Live Performance by Donny Osmond
Dancing 6th
Phone 1-800-868-3410
David and Lindsay – Jive to “Ride” by ZZ Ward from “Cars 3” – Live Performance by ZZ Ward
Dancing 7th
Phone 1-800-868-3404
Nancy and Artem – Jazz – “That’s How You Know” by Amy Adams from “Enchanted”
Dancing 8th
Phone 1-800-868-3408
Simone and Sasha – Contemporary – “How Far I’ll Go” performed by Auli‘i Cravalho, music & lyrics by Lin-Manuel Miranda, from “Moana” – Live Performance by Auli‘i Cravalho
Dancing Last
Phone 1-800-868-3412
I’m confused. Could you clarify what you meant by the statement about a former pro?
@Trent – Go read through Louis Van Amstel’s Twitter timeline from yesterday.
I can’t send you guys a link to it since it’s not on a website, but Extra’s Snapchat yesterday featured Nick Viall, and he said he and Peta are doing something from Pinocchio.
@Courtney thanks. Keep up the good work!
Rashad gets Beauty and the Beast. That’s the golden get considering the beauty and the beast film is still out and in the public eye.
I’m going to guess it’s “I’ve got no strings on me” from Pinocchio. That’s the only song I can think of from the movie that fits jazz style. As for normani and Val that for some reason screams paso to me.
I agree with @Vin I was thinking the same thing
@M8 – Normally I’d agree, but judging from Rashad’s instagram story yesterday, Emma was struggling (REALLY struggling) to count out an identifiable rhythm to the song – this may be one of those “make the dance fit the song”-type assignments, and will probably get her shaded by bitter ol’ Louis on Twitter next Tuesday.
Im guessing I’ll Make A Man Out of You- Mulani is a Paso Doble.
Hope Normani has Paso Doble! And Rashad and Emma could have a waltz since contemporary was last week! Erika could have “Kiss The Girl” or “Can You Feel The Love Tonight” and the only song I can think of for Jazz that Nick and Peta should have is “When Can I See You Again” by Owl City. Really hoping Nancy and Artem have “One Last Hope” from Hercules, since I heard At rem say they were going for comedy. Super excited tho!!!!
And on extra TV sharna said jazz as there dance style hopefully thats the last Jazz I like the ballroom meets Disney numbers better
Sharna said in FB live last week that they had a really ‘left field’ option, unexpected for Disney week and it’d be a Jazz, but nothing official yet.
Is it weird that they’d have 3 couples doing a Jazz number?
What right does Louis- who has only been to the finals once in ten seasons (and blew it when he had contenders- examples of this include Kendra, Monique, Tamar during switch up). All reasonable dancers who flopped thanks to him pushing them to the point of anxiety.
PH, have you got my messages about the guest blog. Sorry to nag but the email I have listed on this website I don’t use anymore. Could you contact me on @jambeans13@gmail.com if you want me to modify it or not send it. If you don’t want to do that, could you specify on this thread. I don’t mean to nag so don’t delete me. I just wanted to share a relevant experience I had ☺
Simone just said on her Instagram Live that she and Sasha are doing a contemporary routine to How Far I’ll Go from Moana. I’m so excited! I love that song!
Simone just said they have contemporary – Moana! ?
Melissa – need a link or something. Where did she say this?
Wishful thinking on my part but I’m hoping that Simone and Sasha get a samba to “I just can’t wait to Be king” or contemporary to “let it go”
Courtney – Instagram live.
Sorry for all the posts I’m a Disney fan lol. just hit me that when you wish upon a star has A super upbeat version that could be a jazz.
@Courtney It’s in her Instagram Live that’s going on right now, so it’s not possible to provide a link at this time.
Ugh, these damn live things that you can’t rewind…
@Courtney – Oh no! I hope Rashad and Emma don’t have another week like they did with their Samba. Now I’m worried.
Sending good vibes Emma’s way. You can do it!
Crap! Been dying to see a couple do the Mulan song for Disney week (it’s my fav!!!!!) and it friggin goes to Normani and Val? UGH ?????
Only consolation I have is that, assuming it’s a paso, I am a fan of Val’s paso dobles-I happen to think it’s one of the few dances he excels in re. choreography so he better step it up with her Monday night….
I’m excited to see Rashad do Beauty and the Beast. He’s certainly got the elegance for it. And I have faith in Emma’s choreo (regardless if bitter irrelevants are going to question her integrity later *eyeroll*).
Assuming Simone *is* doing Moana, I’m excited for that one as well!
And I know I’ve said it already, but I’m both looking forward to and apprehensive about Bonner and Sharna doing Wreck It Ralph. Love the unexpected choice of Disney movie, but if he’s going to be “smashing things”, moving as gingerly as he has been might make it a tough sell.
Rumba is always touted as the “steamiest” dance, so I’m expecting Erika to stay pretty one note. Being sexy is great, but I wish she’d flavor it with some vulnerability or softness too. Buuuut we all know Gleb favors the flash and trash so my expectations are very low there.
So speculation is that we may have a Bachelor contestant dancing to ‘no strings attached’ song from a story about a young, male taleteller with an ever increasing wooden appendage?! If tis so, no one can say this show doesn’t have a twisted sense of humor!
@Trent Louis is being disrespectful to current pros like Lindsay ?
Does anyone know where I can find Lindsay’s blog from this week?
Louis been on ten seasons, has only been in the finals once and has received ONE perfect score. Lindsay has been a Pro for 4 seasons (currently on her 5th) and has made it to the finals twice and has received 7 perfect scores.
I really hope Lindsay doesn’t pay attention to Louis comments, she has been doing an OUTSTANDING job these past few seasons, and is a better teacher/choreographer than he is (IMO)
Also, I like that they are changing what movies/songs are being performed. We haven’t had anyone perform Mulan, Moana, Wreck It Ralph, etc…
I have a feeling that they may give Heather something big/well-known, they may give her the final slot so that she can do something that looks really good to wrap up the show. I’m hoping I See the Light from Tangled.
@Michael – I was very proud of how Lindsay handled herself – she said “I will always appreciate and listen to respectful criticism, as I know I am not perfect, but please do not question my integrity.” Louis, of course, fed off that attention, and continued to be a condescending, mansplaining, self-important asshat, and generally made a fool of himself in a sad effort to remain relevant. He acts as if he’s still a pro, which is hilarious.
I thought that normani should’ve done dig a Little Dipper from princess and the frog
The thing that annoyed me most about the the tweets from Louis is that many people told him that they didn’t object to him pointing out the 6/8 issue, they only objected to him questioning Lindsay’s integrity (which is extremely rude and an affront to someone’s character), but he refused to acknowledge that he took that criticism too far. I agree with Courtney about this being a sad effort to remain relevant. He had his time as a pro and has since been passed over in favor of better pros like Sasha, and now he’s on social media hurling insults to try to get noticed by his 50,000 Twitter followers (or whatever the number is that he’s bragging about). If we’re going to be bragging about numbers of Twitter followers, perhaps Louis should ask Derek, Mark, or Maks how many they have 😛
@Michael I totally agree that it’s nice to see some different movies be featured in Disney week this season! As far as Moana not being used before, though, Moana came out in November 2016 and the last time DWTS did Disney night was April 2016, so this is the first time that Moana was an option.
@Michael can u explain to me what Louis was trying to change says it saw him being disrespectful to Lindsay but didn’t understand what he was trying to say
Sharna and Bonner have a tango to When Can I See You Again
Source: Facebook Live on Sharna’s page
I could see maybe a rumba to Evermore, or a waltz? Or a slow foxtrot? That last one’s pushing it though. It’s too slow for much of anything else. Yeah, I can see how Emma could be struggling with this song; I love it, but it’s not a very easy song to dance to.
I would say that a Jazz routine for Pinocchio would be “I’ve Got No Strings,” though “Give a Little Whistle” is possible, given that it’s also uptempo. I’d go with the former if I had to guess, though.
I think Simone and Sasha could get a pretty good contemporary out of “How Far I’ll Go”
Ugh I have a mighty need to know at least what movie Nancy and Artem’s song is from.
Normani and Val could MAYBE do a paso? Or a jazz, maybe, since Jazz is pretty open on this show. Again, not a very versatile song.
I think the persistent drum beat in “When Can I See You Again?” could make it doable for a tango.
I’m not sure rumba’s gonna do Erika any favors, but at this point I’m not sure anything would.
And David could do okay with a jive. And it’ll likely give him a chance to entertain, which will help him.
I really, really hope David’s Jive is to Something That I Want from Tangled. This has been one of my #1 dream Disney Night dances for the longest time. I think Lindsay would make such an adorable Rapunzel.
DWTS Snapchat says Erika is doing VWaltz even though she said she was doing Rumba
I don’t have twitter – what were the tweets from a certain pro about?
I want a lady and the tramp jive from David&Lindsay so bad!!!
I think Erika and Gleb are doing a V Waltz to Finding Dory!
@wynn: that comment made my day. 🙂
I like that for Disney Night they mix up the old stories with what’s popular today.
My wish before this series ends is for a Disney Night to feature Oliver and Company. A jazzy troupe number to “Why Should I Worry?” would slay, as the kids on the street are sayin’ these days.
I wish Donny Osmond would come sing I’ll make a man out of you live! That would be amazing,though unlikely.
@Rosa I agree that would be epic!
Saw heather on dwts Instagram and it looks like a salsa for them
DancingABC’s Snapchat said that Erika & Gleb are doing a V. Waltz to Finding Dory (not sure what song).
@Alex probs Sia’s version of Unforgettable?
@Tony I’m assuming so.
I’m with everybody on this. Pretty sure “I’ll make a man” screams Paso Robles to me, and I’m sure Nick is doing “I’ve got no strings” for his song. Also I am SOOOOOOOOOOOOO beyond excited Rashad is doing “Evermore” my new fave! <3
I’m so excited for Simone & Sasha’s dance! “How Far I’ll Go” is probably my favorite song from Moana
I don’t know how I feel about How None of the boys have gotten a Paso Doble or Quickstep yet and Normani keeps getting super hard dances!
#51 Jojo – David had Quickstep his first week…
Heather has grown on me. She’s a pro dancer, but not in ballroom similar to Nicole, Zendaya, Corbin, Riker, and Paige. All to different degrees. They hid it to an extent with Corbin and completely hid it about Paige until it was mentioned her mom taight dance during the finals. Paige was a pro dancer.
This show has been filled with many different real ringers. The hate Heather gets everywhere makes me like her more. At least her and the show are owning up to it.
I’m 99 percent sure Heather and Maks will not win and I even doubt they’ll be in the finals, but overall I’d prefer a season of all Heathers than I would all Mr T’s.
I like this season a lot because there is a lot of great dancers making it great competition. In an average season Heather, Normani, Simone, Rashad and even Nancy would be a show in.
My team is GoldenGiggles all the way.
What is the “6/8 issue” that Louis referred to about Lindsay? I don’t know what that means. Thanks!
@Bia I read on a USA Today article about David that the jive this week is from an upcoming Disney movie so I don’t think it’s Tangled.
MyGosh, I know you think you’re making this really strong, intelligent argument for why Heather isn’t all that ringery, but we’ve heard it all, and you’re conveniently leaving out key pieces of information that do not support your argument. And no, “her and the show” are not “owning up to it” – they continue to tout the ridiculous excuse that Heather’s extensive dance background doesn’t give her any sort of advantage – which is bunk.
The hate Heather gets makes you like her more? Idolforums, thanks for the hits 😛 P.S. You have a traitor in your midst.
Jojo/Jessica O – pick one name or I’ll pick one for you.
And Normani “keeps getting super hard dances”? Riiiiiiight.
Sharna just posted a video from rehearsal. I know. I know. It’s just rehearsal but dang if I’m not a little impressed.
I think Heather and Maks have a Foxtrot or Waltz to a song from Frozen
@Jojo
I’d say the hardest dance is the samba, and Normani hasn’t had it yet. One of the men has (Rashad).
@Jojo umm… Normani has had only two of what would be called hard dances which is Quickstep and Rumba. David had Quickstep week one just like she did, Nick had Rumba this past week just like she did, and Rashad and Nancy have danced what is considered by some as the hardest dance the Samba and Normani hasn’t. She’s had it pretty easy honestly and the judges even all but admitted that they had been scoring her not as harsh since she’s been traveling and it’s for not super hard dances. So I would say in the coming weeks she’s going to have way harder dance styles.
Emma and Rashad are dancing a Waltz!!
Geez, I must be getting old. I’m not familiar with hardly any of these songs. But I am excited to see what they are wearing. The wardrobe department always does a fantastic job.
Tommy, two things: 1, I need a link; 2, you’re spamming. We do not need a new comment from you every 5 minutes.
On the DancingABC snapchat it says that Erika and Gleb have a Viannese Waltz. Heather and Alan and Maks also hinted that “Brrr, we’re a little cold today”… could be Frozen?
Guys, I realize that everyone is just really excited about Disney week, but for the sake of my sanity, can you please TELL ME WHERE YOU’RE FINDING THIS INFORMATION??? Don’t just post “Rashad & Emma have waltz!” and run away – I need to know where they apparently said this.
And sorry, but hints aren’t enough to update the post. Unless Heather/Maks/Alan says “We’re dancing to Frozen“, I don’t really care.
Seriously, I love Disney week so much that I really don’t care what the songs are because I love all of them! But I’m excited to hear the songs from Moana, Pinocchio and Beauty and the Beast!
But my favorite Disney performance so far, was Charlie and Sharna’s Mary Poppins with the dancing penguins and all. The costumes, choreo, animation and dancing were all top notch and so much fun!
@Courtney when Lindsay’s week 4 blog is out can u post the link!
Yes, Cailey, Vogue will probably post it later – PATIENCE.
Cailey, if her blog was out (which it isn’t), we’d post it. Geez maleze!
I’m so disappointed that we’ve yet to see a dance from the Princess and the Frog. If a quickstep can be pulled off with a song as slow as “Go Cubs Go,” someone could pull off a quickstep to “Almost There.” (And i was really hoping Simone or Normani would get to be Tiana, but alas. I guess I’ll wait another year.)
“When Were Human” from princess and the frig would be an awesome Charleston!
Thanks Courtney!
i want to know what does shirley ballas tweet mean? does she agree with louis explanation about the VW integrity thing but supporting Lindsay or agree with Lindsay’s tweet only and supporting her ? she said correct Lindsay (correct to which part exactly? lol ) i got confused because she quoted Louis’s tweet not Lindsay’s
and sorry if it’s stupid question ??
She’s agreeing with Lindsay, Miro. She probably just quoted Louis by accident, Twitter isn’t super user-friendly when you’re trying to follow a conversation.
Honestly, all of Normani’s dances so far have blended together. I don’t even remember which ones she has done. We’ll see if they step it up this week now that they have all day to practice.
I’m not a fan of Disney Week, but someone mentioned Mary Poppins and I really liked that one. Would be fun to see another song from that musical. I look forward to seeing what Emma and Rashad do after the stellar week they had last week. I hope they can keep the momentum going. I also like Simone and Sasha, but have to agree with some who say Sasha needs to find a way to stand out more. I still think she’s getting the votes though. Also hope Nancy and Artem keep climbing. Would love to see those three in the finals.
Jumping in with my first post of the season and first post in quite awhile. Let me preface this by saying that I’ve only managed to see several dances online thus far. I’ve been caring for my ill, elderly parents for a number of months; and, in fact, my father passed away in late February. I’ve been keeping track of the show mostly through Pure. Thanks to the Mods here for always being on top of the show.
I realize this is off-topic; but, MyGosh, what makes you think that Paige is a pro dancer? She took ballet, jazz and hip-hop dance lessons through middle school. In my neck of the woods, middle school is 7th and 8th grade. High School starts at age 13-14 and Paige turned 22 at the start of Season 22. So she was out of dance training for 8-9 years before her season on the show. Also, Paige never hid her prior dance experience. She talked about it in interviews prior to and during her time on the show, and it was in her bio on the show’s website. It was the showrunners who chose to highlight her prior dance experience during the semi-finals, for their own reasons. Interestingly, Paige was never afforded disclaimers by the show’s media outlets or through a judge’s comments that her early ballet, jazz and hip-hop training was nothing like ballroom dancing.
My apologies to the Mods. Perhaps this conversation should be taken elsewhere, so as not to derail the comments section of this post.
Ok,Voguerista,Sorry.
It’s ok. Thanks for understanding. I’m wondering if she’s skipping it this week(since she usually posts it on Tue. or Wed.) which could be the case if they are extra busy trying to put everything together, etc.
I’m glad they’re doing a paso to I’ll Make a Man Out of You! Been waiting for that one and they are doing a live-action disney film of it. I’m wondering if they changed Erika’s dance so she isn’t doing just sexy dances. Hopefully Gleb can soften her with the V. Waltz. I’m curious how Nancy will do with Jazz as I really enjoy her latin and ballroom dances a lot. Not sure how Artem is with Jazz but it’s a great partnership so I’m sure he’ll do her justice.
The whole Louis thing is stupid. I understand his point of a waltz being 6/8 instead of 4/4 and all, but to call out Lindsay’s integrity is just petty. I’m sure she was given that song and told to do a waltz to it, she doesn’t really have a choice. I remember Mark had a similar situation where he had to somehow create a rumba for Candace but the song they were given had the timing of waltz, but he still made it the best he could with the crap song he was given. Heck, Allison’s paso with Ryker was to music that was 6/8 instead of 4/4 and she made it work as well. I think Lindsay did a great job with what she was given and she’s been doing great all these seasons and I would almost rank her above Sharna for choreography.
And don’t forget how Derek was told to create a rumba with a Madonna song and he had to actually re-arrange the song to get it to work.
Sorry for your loss Christine.
You are correct. Paige was not a pro dancer. Not even close. Ringer, yes. Pro, no.
I’m so sorry Christine and I’m glad you posted! xxxx
Update! Donny Osmond WILL BE performing I’ll make a man out of you live!!! I can’t believe it,how exciting! Don’t know how to post a link but it’s on the official website.
@Christine – Very sorry for your loss, but happy to have you back 🙂
I’ll just repost the link to the “Why Heather is a Big Ringer” post here, since some people have decided to rehash the argument yet again (not you, just marveling at how some folks just can’t seem to move on, even though we’re halfway through the season): https://www.puredwts.com/2017/03/10/puredwts-season-24-debate-battle-of-the-ringers-what-makes-heather-morris-so-ringer-y/
Main difference between Heather and other lower-level ringers: Heather made a living by dancing, period. All these other ringers people throw out as red herrings usually danced as a supplemental skill to whatever their main bread-and-butter was – i.e. Paige was never getting paid to dance, she was getting paid to fight. And when you do something as an amateur vs. a professional, there is a HUGE difference in skill level, whether people like to admit it or not.
PH #82 There was also the time Derek and Amber danced to the Bruno Mars song, “Locked out of Heaven” and were supposed to dance to the original and then a cover of it. Only problem, the legal department didn’t get clearance for a cover. So Derek had to create his own with the band. On a side note, Derek promised to upload him singing his version AND WE ARE STILL WAITING DEREK!!!!
Cars 3….ok then that’s an interesting choice since it’s not out for awhile. Love that Donny is there to sing it live same for moana herself 🙂 . She needs to be in more movies she has the perfect voice for Disney movies. I always fall asleep or just get distracted during wreck it Ralph so I’m not sure what animation they could use in there. I’m definately curious.
Love love love the love action version of beauty and the beast but that song doesn’t do much for me. “How do you make a moment last forever” on the their hand is amazing and the other one (“days in the sun”) is good too. Saying that groban sings perfectly on “evermore” so I’m all for it.
The irony…Erika is the MOST forgettable for me. The fact that she is following TPTB storyline and the judges comment on seeing something else that isn’t sexy…I think it’ll be her last week. She’ll show a more graceful side and then get a higher score and be eliminated. No shocker there.
Also, don’t know much about the ice skating world, but do they have an obsession with keeping their skaters young little girls their whole life? I have seen the same thing from Nancy and don’t want another lovey dovey, fairytopia dance with rainbows, teardrops, or butterflies. I want to see something else, a new side to her. It’s getting boring, IMO.
Thank you, Princess Heidi and Vogue, for your kindness.
I’ve been wondering if there’s a mathematical way of determining how many hypocrites, who refused to vote for Paige, citing her past dance experience as the reason, are now voting for the female ringers on this season, particularly those paired with the Brothers C. ?
Some very interesting choices- I’m glad to see new music being used. I’ve wanted that Mulan song since the first Disney night and I love Enchanted. It will be interesting to see the scoring, with half the couples doing dances with “rules” and half doing basically a freestyle.
Question: Has Maks ever choreographed a Jazz routine on the show? I’m thinking back, and I don’t remember it happening.
@Linz – What I’d pay to see is the routine Mark choreographed for he & Paige to “Opposites Attract” – it was supposedly completely choreographed and Paige had already memorized the steps when Paula stepped in and said “no”. All these things that could have been…
Hit send too soon
I’m actually curious about what’s going on in the Heather/Maks practices this week. Heather has more experience dancing jazz than Maks does, so how exactly does that work? Is the show going to pretend she’s actually learning anything this week?
Thank you, Courtney. And I’m with you. I would pay to see Paige and Mark’s “Opposites Attract” number.
@EmnEm – I find that society in general seems to have a real problem with insisting their Olympic athletes remain these wholesome, innocent children, despite their actual age – and it tends to be harder on female athletes than male ones. Hell, look at every female gymnast they’ve had on the show – they hone in on the fact that every single one is “so young” and “it will be hard for them to be sexy, they’re so inexperienced!” Silly, outdated ideals of female purity – god forbid these women feel comfortable and confident in their bodies, we’d rather have shy, blushing schoolgirls that are afraid to shake their hips! I think Nancy has gotten it to a lesser degree, because she was actually a bit older when she was at the height of her career, plus she’s been through some really tough times in her life – but I also look at all the people giving Erika a hard time for “being raunchy” at age 45, while Nancy is two years older…it’s as if we say “Women should only be sexy between the ages of 21 and 39 – anything beyond that is either perverted or gross.” I think we may be seeing some of that with Nancy, too – just society generally being awful and pressuring older women to cover up.
LOL Chayse. The vision of Heather giving Jazz pointers to Maks more than vice versa is cracking me up!
I love love LOOOOOOOOOVE Enchanted! So excited to see one of my fave couples doing a routine to it, although EmnEm makes a great point about pigeon-holing Nancy/female Olympic competitors into cutesy, flowery molds.
Also excited to see Auhli’i perform. Donny Osmond not so much. I know it’s his song, but I’ve never been a fan of him. 😛
Heather will make a pretty Elsa, but I shudder to think of the lengths the package will go to pretend Heather doesn’t know how to do jazz.
Glad to see Erika not doing a rumba after all. Fingers crossed we’ll get another dimension to add to her sensuality.
@Christi, I saw the preview video of Bonner/Sharna too! Pleasantly surprised thus far. Fingers crossed the whole thing comes together well on Monday!
@Courtney, I had no clue Paige and Mark were gonna dance to Opposites Attract. That would’ve been amazing. Curious as to why Paula said no. Thought she was really buddy-buddy with the show what with being a guest judge/performer before.
@Evangelina – We had heard it from our source. Apparently Mark had been wanting to do a routine to the song for years, and they got it cleared for him that season for iconic dances week. He had the whole thing choreographed and Paige had picked up the choreography quickly, so they were just putting the finishing touches on everything – when Paula pulled the plug. Paula apparently didn’t have an issue with them using the song, but she objected to the use of the theme – in this case, MC Skat Cat and Paula dancing side-by-side in an alley. And the whole routine was based on that theme – so rather than try to come up with something different (which would kinda defeat the purpose of iconic dances week, anyway), Mark scrapped it and they started over with Austin Powers, which I still really liked. My guess is that Paula is probably like a lot of choreographers that are protective of their choreography (another example being Jerome Robbins, which is why Val had to re-tool he & Janel’s West Side Story jazz in season 19) – she didn’t want anyone riffing off of it. And given that she’s always been buddy-buddy with the show, like you mention, they probably opted to appease Paula and keep their relationship intact.
Voguerista Yea she probably is going to miss the week since it hasn’t come out yet. They are pretty busy this week and missed a day of rehearsal I think because Lindsay and Sam when to The cubs game with David and the Ring ceremony with him.So she probably just hasn’t had time this week.
I love I’ll make a man out of you and I’m so excited for Donny
I’ve also seen the new beauty and the beast movie twice so I’m curious for that dance
I’m assuming Heather is choreographing this Jazz routine? Because you know she’s more trained in the style than her pro. LOL this show is jokes!
@Courtney, ahhhhh. That makes sense. Still makes me sad for adding to the “what could have been” pile (up there with Derek and Bindi’s scrapped Jetson-themed dance).
Does anyone feel like this is the most versatile Disney week the show has ever had? I mean that in a good way.
Last week we had Fifth Harmony performing for Normani and Val this week it’s possibly the biggest fanbase ringer in the entertainment business singing for them.
Who will Normani and Val have singing for them next week?
Meanwhile Rashad and Emma apparently have a song that doesn’t match the dance (or something like that). I’m hoping that they can pull it off this week without too much damage in the score department.
Just shoot me now. Heather will choreograph her own Jazz routine, Simone, David and Normani get marquee songs for the night and Rashad gets a song from the latest hit that is still in movies.
So Nancy is clearly one of the also rans, dancing a jazz routine that won’t be near as good as pro choreographer Heather. The judges will push Nancy down again, and she’ll get close to the same scores as Nick and Bonner, again. This is a great big ol boot set up and I see the showrunners. I have no respect left for them.
@Sandy, I totally agree, I’m getting annoyed at the blatant favoritism here. And Normani is not the only star to have had to travel during their time on the show. The one that sticks in my mind is Andy Grammar. He certainly didn’t get cut any slack for having to travel. And he shouldn’t have, and neither should Normani. She knew when she agreed to do DWTS that she’d be on tour during some part of this season. I do wonder if that favoritism is gonna come back to bite her, votes-wise.
And at least it’ll be cool to see Donny Osmond perform the song.
I’m happy they are all new songs! The Enchanted song could have been someones Samba and “I’ve Got No Strings” could have been made into a entertaining Charleston. But love there is old, current, and new movies being featured. Hoping for a perfect score this time hence there hasnt been one ever even tho. Rumer’s, Paige’s, Riker’s, & Charlie’s should have all been 40s!
Oh good god, if it’s one person I can’t stand it’s Donald Trump it’s that cheeseball Donald Osmond. Both bloated narcissists. I’ll skip the show and watch Nancy on Youtube.
Next week a returned from the dead Elvis and Frank Sinatra will duet on Normani and Val’ song.
@Casonova – Yeah and the pimpage will probably be off the charts. With their performance being late in the show just to make sure everyone remembers them. And combine both Donny and his swelled oversized ego along with Val and his swelled oversized ego and the show just might unbearable to watch.
So happy to see Donny Osmond back again. He is a class act. No has mentioned that David has been traveling every week. Guess it doesn’t fit the storyline.
@Sandy, oh yes classless Osmond, dissing anyone who wasn’t his horrible freak show of a sister in Season 5. And I used to like Val, now he can hardly get his head through the door.
@Courtney, outdated ideology indeed. I never really realized that they try to impose this image and persona.
I would love to see Artem bring out a more sultry side to her while still keeping it classy and not cheap/raunchy. doesn’t have to be a sexy samba or rumba… A dangerous argentine tango or a dark paso. I like her, but I need to see different dimensions.
@Casanova I disagree about David having gotten a “marquee” song. Cars 3 isn’t out yet, so nobody will know the music yet. Additionally, the Cars franchise has done fine for Disney, but it hasn’t been one of their big box office blowouts like Beauty and the Beast, Finding Dory, or Frozen. When I looked at the list, I actually thought he got one of the not as good songs because nobody will be familiar with it.
I completely agree about Nancy, though. They seem to be trying to screw her over in every way possible. She gets crappy spots in the running order every week, and this week she gets one of the lesser known songs and the same dance style as the professional dancer who is doing one of the styles she does professionally. I hope Nancy’s getting lots of votes to pull her through this ridiculousness.
I don’t believe this has been brought up here yet (I looked so apologies if it has) but the opening number is going to feature an original song sung by Alfonso. Would that make him the first person to compete, judge, host, and guest perform on DWTS?
@m, I understand what you’re saying about David’s song, but the show’s PR release is promoting certain Disney features, while Nancy and Artem’s song is just on the list nothing special ok 10 year old films getting a dust off for this show.
I was dreading to see how Gleb could make Disney raunchy with a sexy V Waltz like he did with Jana last season… but in his IG story, it looks like Erika has gotten pretty emotional during their rehearsals and it might finally show some softness and vulnerability.
I hope Artem and Nancy can pull off their jazz comedy. His jazz with Lea was not well received and it was called dated – it doesn’t bode well with Heather getting jazz as well… but who knows, Nancy will be happy, her kids will be there, she’ll still be having a ball and it might show a different side of Artem. I watched the song on youtube and it’s cute. Even if they get screwed in scores, I hope it’s enough for people to keep supporting her.
I’m thinking Normani will excel this week.
@Susan2 – Don’t give TPTB any ideas! If there is a way they just might try it.
It’s a shame that Val can’t deliver memorable performances without season after season of constant TPTB pimpage. One would think TPTB would soon realize that maybe they need to be on the hunt for a replacement pro that has the talent to deliver all on his own.
If Val had been handed some less talented partners it could have made him a more seasoned pro that actually had to struggle and learn in order to succeed. Unfortunately that didn’t happen.
i don’t get you all saying val and normani are being pimped when they have had to gone twice just in the past 4 weeks when your favs like rashad and emma get to go closer to the end but you have the nerve to say normani and val are being pimped. If rashad and Emma were going first those many times already and normani and val were last, the uproar would be huge.
I mean rashad and emma got the first 10s of the season but you still complaining about val and normani being pimped. Normani is talented enough that she doesnt need to be pimped, so I seriously doubt they are pimping her out. If you wins it will be by her own talent not because she was pimped.
Valerie, I won’t presume to speak for others, but I don’t hate the C bros; frankly that would require too much energy! They aren’t worth it! I’m just over them, particularly Val being gifted with ringer after ringer and then in my opinion, under-serving them with sub-par choreography. I’m not sure that I’d agree that “all” the pros are cocky at some point statement, I think some aren’t at all! But again, imo, Val and Maks give new meaning to that phrase! And Val spends way too much talking over his partners; I feel like I know virtually the same about Normani as week one!
Derek and Mark Ballas have both been given ringers galore so what is the whole point with maks and val. In the beginning Val didnt get the best dancers and I wouldnt call all his partners to be ringer status. All the pros are talented.
As for about Normani. What more do you want to know about her. She is not going to touch on her being cyber bullied or hurricane katrina becuase she is a positive person and doesnt like to dwell on that stuff. Im not hardcore harminozer fan but I do like normani and 5th harmony and Normani has never been the one to talk negativity, its just not her.
Oh Valerie, you poor, poor thing. That (lack of) logic doesn’t work around here, sweet cheeks. EVERY partner Val has had except maybe ONE has been a ringer of some kind. The same is NOT true of Derek, Mark – or even Maks. That is a fallacy (look it up, honey) that Val/Maks fans (and Val and Maks themselves) like to spread to try to deflect criticism off their boys. Give it up. Not going to work here and it’s been done to death. You keep trolling and I’ll just block you. After I get done having a good laugh at your expense. 😀
Valerie, how old are you? Clearly not old enough to know that ones opinion of Val/Normani isn’t tied to their opinions of Rashad/Emma or what pimping really is or that getting 10s after a fantastic dance (and I mean objectively fantastic, not “fangirl” fantastic) is not pimping. Pimping is when you get good scores for dances that others get criticized for – something that routinely happens with Val. Cuz he pampered.
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=uvzCARts4tc
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=9hLtLFSNLyw
Example of Val getting pimped. Both of these dances had elements of afro jazz- one incorporated Samba, the other one did not incorporate salsa. Which one was given the higher mark from Len, despite lower quality of choreography and less content executed in an inferior way to Shawn? JANEL
Val is pimped, as far as I stand
Valerie, I’m not going to get into a debate on who has had more ringers; that horse was beaten to death years ago; and my guess is that no amount of stats would change your mind. You asked a question and I mistakenly assumed you were truly wanted an answer, so I was polite and replied. I should have known better and I certainly won’t make that mistake again.
I am excited for Nancy and Artem getting Jazz to “That’s How You Know” from ENCHANTED. If they piece part of the cartoon from when Giselle falls into the well, and then continue to The song, that would be amazing! I looked on You Tube and found Kristin Chenoweth, who sang the song, and did a productuon number at The 80th Annual Academy Awards. It had several of the dancing numbers from the movie. It could be a big winner! I can’t wait to see their dance…
Amy, I agree I was hoping we would either simone or normani would do princess tiana. She is the only princess that they havent done, I believe. What a missed opportunity there.
Valerie, you may not be a child, but you are certainly of questionable intelligence. NO ONE said that Derek has been shortchanged. Only YOU. That is a very different thing than saying that he’s not had ringers every single time. Derek can actually WIN with someone who had no dance experience – and has done it several times. These little distinctions matter, dear. Val HAS had people with dance experience every single time – the only debatable one is his very first partner – but then I heard later that she did have some experience. I question your intelligence because you don’t seem to understand that someone who turns out to be a great dancer is not the same thing as being a RINGER. Brooke, Kellie, Bindi – not ringers, just very good dancers who won. This is not a hard thing to realize if you just engage your brain.
Fair?? You don’t know the meaning of the word, sweetie. In order to be “fair” you have to live in some sort of objective reality at least once in a while. Since you seem keen on trolling – stirring the pot over things that have been hashed out eons ago and whining about poor Val – I’m just going to put you on moderation to save the rest of our readers their sanity.
Sophie – I let the links go this time, since you were making a point, but don’t make a habit of it. 🙂
@valerie – TPTB can pimp Emma as many times as they want this season. She’s earned it!! This is the first season that she was ever been partnered with a real contender. And her choreography has been amazing. This is her time to shine. Don’t mess with Queen Emma.
Oh, and Normani may have went first last week to accommodate the schedule of Fifth Harmony. It’s funny you didn’t know that.
Actually going first isn’t a bad thing.
Look, I just hate the bias on this site. Im the one that happen to love all the pros but I have found fault with all of them. I happen to like Derek alot, my favorite season of his was with Nicole S. and Amber Riley because those girls brought out a different side of Derek that was fun to watch.
I have been trying to find a site to talk about dwts but I hate that this site is so bias.
Just a few random observations:
*Why do Harmonizers even still care what we think about Normani? Why do Heather fans care what we think of her? The fact that they feel the need to waltz in and start making a scene smacks of insecurity.
*From what I understand, basically the entire running order on Monday night had to work around Fifth Harmony’s schedule – so Normani going first? Yeah, it was to accommodate her bandmates. And as we’ve said before: going first is actually a decent running order position. It’s going 2nd you’ve gotta worry about. But please, do continue to whine about Rashad & Emma being pimped, Valerie… *eye roll*
*Also, learn the distinction between being pimped and ACTUALLY HAVING TALENT. Just because someone is doing well, does not mean they’re being given an unfair advantage.
*Normani’s not gonna talk about Hurricane Katrina & cyberbullying because she’s “all about positivity”? Wow, that’s two Harmonizers that post here that seem to have a close, personal relationship with Normani 😛 Also, if that’s her philosophy, maybe she should talk to Erika about being one-dimensional and avoiding vulnerability…
*Before anyone casts any aspersions whatsoever against Emma, they need to go watch season 17, season 18, season 19, season 21, and season 23 – don’t worry, most of them won’t take long, because Emma was usually out before the halfway point of the competition. Then take a video of yourself with a straight face saying “Courtney, Emma’s been pimped and it’s not fair!” and I’ll even give you my cell # so you can text it to me.
Oh Valerie, honey – bias is like an asshole: everybody’s got one. Admit yours.
And it’s “this site is so biasED”, not “bias”.
Valerie,
First you saying that Derek’s partners could all dance their asses off is unfair. Several of his partners came in with NO experience at all.
From what I could get from DWTS site about previous seasons:
Maks and Derek have both had 3 partners over 40.
Maks has had 6 actresses and Derek 8
Maks has had 4 athletes (2 fresh off the Olympics and American favorites of the day), Derek has had 3 (1 fresh off of the PARA Olympics).
They are actually pretty neck in neck for what kind of celebrities they have had regardless of how much Maks whines about it. And Maks is the ONLY one who has been paired with a (self professed even) professional dancer.
You might want to lay off the Chmerkovskiy koolaid. It’s making you salty.
@Molly
I think the interesting thing here is that although Derek has had a handful of partners with dance experience, Maks is the one who has had two partners with “dancer” as a profession (ice dancer and back-up dancer)!
I consider myself to be neutral in this whole Chmercrosby vs Houghs. I will take a quick analysis and look at their partners specifically. I’ve been a loyal watcher since season 5. I do not think Maks has been as blessed as Derek and Val in the ringer department. He usually gets the huge personalities so people either hate them or love them so that is why he hasn’t been as successful as the ladder.I will only compare Derek and Val because they have received the best of the bunch in most seasons. I used to really enjoy Val’s choreo when he started in season 13 I think it is when he started with that model Elizabeth I think. I love his intensity, he oozed sexual appeal and passion. One of my favorite pairings have been Zendaya and Val, he had the best choreography in that season. The jive contemporary Argentine tango my favorite routines. That was until season 19, I actively rooted against her annoying partner Jamie i think that was her name. That season was when I started seeing a pimpage towards Val’s partner. I don’t even know how he even got to the finals when there were many other couples better than him. S19 I think was when Rob Wade took over and my theory is that show was trying to find a new face for the show because Derek had become too successful and polarizing many times more famous than his celebrities and by the time he had already won 5 mirrorballs. So Val was the obvious choice now that Maks had left he was handsome and the woman could lust over him. This is when really gave up the choreo and he had very dull cliche routines as compared to his previous partners like Danica Elizabeth they were shocking elimination. The producers probably told him they were gonna help him out and become the brand of DWTs. Obviously there was no way he could win against Alfonso so at least they got him to the finale with an okay partner that had no business being there. Next season they went full force with the pimpage towards Rumer and were successful. Nastia was also a major ringer but they were trying to heighten Val and lower Derek so the viewers would think Val as the face and chosen one. Ever since s19 Val always makes it to the finals except for Tamar but I’m sure she would’ve made it if she hadn’t quit. Derek won once again with Bindi. And Val’s pimpage reached new heights with Ginger and with Day 1 winner Laurie. It’s not a coincidence he gets the best able partners. I do think Derek has been pimped many of seasons but I feel it is warranted because he comes up with great and memorable routines but Val just seems like the producers boy he literally throws in any choreo and they get him to the finals. Sorry for the long post lol. If Val came up with amazing dances every week I wouldn’t mind it but his last memorable routine for me is Rumers Samba that is about it. I’m done .
@Molly
Sorry, I actually missed the last part of your comment!
But yes, to add to your comment, I’d say Maks has now had TWO professional dancers.
Maybe if you didn’t complain constantly about the site, Valerie, and resurrect tired, old DISPROVED BS someone would want to actually talk to you. BTW, talking about the site on the site is frowned upon and is in very poor taste.
Oh to Valerie, please …feel free to leave then. You know where the door is. Ha! 🙂
Maks is not the problem – don’t get distracted by that. VAL is who is at issue here. I don’t think anyone can argue that Maks hasn’t had a variety of partners, unlike Baby Bro. Only time he could win was with a near professional.
Maks’ only problem is massive hypocrisy and the whining about Derek’s partners…until he gets the two biggest ringers in the history of the show, then the whining quit and he started making excuses for their dance experience. And after all that shade he threw Derek’s way too…
It’s not really pimping, Golden, if one earns it for being fantastic. I mean, come on – Derek doesn’t need pimping these days. They know it and they do the reverse – bring him down any way they can. It’s called having your cake and eating it too – or having Derek to get his fans, but doing whatever you have to to make sure he doesn’t win.
None of which, BTW, can be applied to Val.
I think it’s great that the role of Mulan is going to Normani! One of the best things about Disney night is when the Stars get to play something they are not, and we see different sides of them.
I’d really hate for ladies like Simone and Normani to be boxed into playing a certain character, especially if the decision was based solely on skin color, and I’m glad the show didn’t make them do that.
I watched the video on YouTube for the song from enchanted and I am already picturing (what I hope is going to be a lot of fun) set.
Have to believe Heather’s not racking up enough votes for big brother C if they gave her a dance she is specifically trained in. Will be interesting to see how she performs as a teacher this week, and I’m gonna laugh if her pro looks like the celebrity dancer. If I were him I’d ask Alan to fill in for one more week.
Vin, I guess you have a point. I guess I was just looking forward to someone doing Princess Tiana because she hasnt been done yet on the show and I just thought simone or normani would be perfect. I guess I never thought that maybe it would be cliche for them to do that.
And before Derek/Mark came on the show, it was Maks who was getting all the talented females as his partners, and even then, he still couldn’t seal the deal. Granted, during 3, which was the first season I watched, while his partner was the best female dancer, TPTB made sure Louis was the last male pro standing by giving him Monique, who had more name recognition than Willa Ford. And speaking of ringers, I’m actually wondering if Karina had any ins with production on that season, because refresh my memory here, but I think she’s the only pro to get the ringer on her debut DWTS appearance.
I looked back on Corbin’s package for Jazz and cringed at the sight of him giving Karina pointers. I just find that so embarrassing to have to school a pro, because you’re so experienced.
I do wonder if they’ll downplay Heather’s knowledge in her package.
@Nina, I agree, it’s a big reason why any ringer who gives the pro pointers loses. Corbin was just so much better than Karina and Witney that it was obvious they needed to be in black while he was in white doing that Jazz.
And wow, it was kind of painful to watch Karina struggle in rehearsal. People are protective of the pro’s integrity, Karina is the best in the business in Ballroom and Latin, so it’s a mixed bag bringing in other styles.
Way back in season 5 when Sabrina wanted to incorporate hip hop into a Cha Cha, and then said something like “I’m teaching the teacher” on camera the road wasn’t going to go well for her. It will be interesting to see what the show choses to show about Heather. Up until now it’s been fairly smooth since she’s hasn’t been shown “collaborating” in rehearsal.There are reports that she’s taught Maks some moves, but it’s the on camera teaching that makes the most impact. There’s a big difference in offering a wave of the skirt compared to telling a pro to speed up or your foot placement is incorrect.
Tom alluded to the idea that Maks is making adjustments to present his ringer in a positive light. For this jazz especially, we have to suspend belief that she’s not “offering pointers” .
Regarding the differences between the Chmerkovskiys and Derek… Well for me at least in the past Maks tried to mold his celebrity to a standard, while Derek tried to show his celebrity in the best light. Both are not wrong.
While Maks pushed the virtues of learning technique, Derek found ways to work around it if the celebrity struggles because technique is difficult and students will always look labored trying to learn it. It makes for a less entertaining presentation. There just isn’t the time necessary to perfect technique and do something that will appeal to the audience. So, Derek would watch for the celebrities moves, and if something looked right, in it would go and he would mould the choreography around their strengths.
Derek and Nicole were amazing together, using her theatrical training to highlight dances like Foxtrot and Tango into entertaining stories. Nicole didn’t always have the best technique, her Samba and Rumba had rough patches, but they always entertained.
Derek then used the nostalgia of Jen Grey and dirty dancing to full advantage on the Viennese Waltz and Freestyle. Jennifer had the most beautiful feet and foot placement I think of any contestant ever on the show. Her movement awareness was flawless, and for me that’s why her dances for the most part are some of my all time favorites. I think I love her Argentine Tango the most, not only because of the brilliant stage craft, but because of her feet! Joanna Krupa was the sexy bombshell but it wasn’t really working, so with the Futurist Paso he had her shed the sex with an emotionless style on the dance floor and he took full advantage of making it work. That is simply a brilliant choreographer.
So, while Maks worked within the box, Derek went outside the box. Maks’ style was doing choreography together and then give his celebrity solos. Sometimes it worked great, with Leila Ali and Mel B, and certainly Meryl and sometimes it fell flat. It all depended on the confidence of his celebrity. When Maks incorporated Argentine style into a ballroom Tango way back in season 2 it was amazing because Argentine is so much more sensual than Ballroom tango and Maks really made that routine sizzle with movements like flicking an imaginary cigarette in the midst of a dip. Brilliant. Tia Carrere was just in True Lies with Arnold and had a dance scene to Por Una Cabeza and Maks took it to the next level.
The Rumba and freestyles of Meryl were much in keeping with this strategy. And Maks is responsible for inspiring some iconic style. When Mel B did that dominatrix Paso in season 5, for a number of seasons afterwards the Paso outfit on the pros was the boy shorts with the long coat. Great costume. Meryl and Maks’ Tango became the strobe light standard that is now being over used. But it’s always the first that will continue to be the best.
I actually thought Val in the first two seasons was doing both, great technique and great visual appeal, and for me some of the most entertaining C Bro choreography was when Val successfully told a story, like Zendaya’s Argentine Tango, that was brilliant and very much in the Hough mold. I always go back and watch it, because Val had a tight rope that season, Zendaya was very young with a lot of eyes on her being “appropriate” So it was great to see a Tango as a murder mystery, jewel heist, not a sexual encounter. But I think Val has gone for all flash now, shedding technique completely for impact, and that saddens me because he was brilliant at drilling technique with those who could manage it.
So in all I think the show was well served by the brilliance of Derek Hough’s choreography, but I do appreciate it more when technique is also well served. If the technique is strong that will for me, always win out over the presentation.
@Casanova
I’d agree with you there. While I do appreciate a technically solid routine – it’s the ones that push the boundaries and capitalize on the strengths of a celeb that stick in my mind.
I have to say though, I thought both of Nicole’s rumbas were pretty good from a technical standpoint (particularly the first, despite the judges insisting how terrified she was). I genuinely thought her samba was horrendous though, and actually agreed with Len for once when he said it was a hodgepodge of sexy moves and gyrations, lol.
@Nina,
Fair enough. I wasn’t in love with Nicole’s rumbas, I thought her Rumba walks were timid and she did do something weird with her arms. But the fact that we’re talking about her is that her time on the show was absolutely memorable. I was actually a fan of Evan, until the Pretty Woman Tango the following week. That was a brilliant combination of technique and entertainment. I felt she and Derek found their groove and never looked back.
I am so freaking happy with the song choices! Finally, something from Enchanted, and I was actually thinking When Will I See You Again? would make a great Tango song.
@courtney I always thought evermore would make a better Waltz. Already done a Viennese waltz, but why couldn’t you do a smooth one?
Sadly, Casanova – for you AND the Chmerkovskiys – this is not really a ballroom dance show, and to win or even keep your celeb on the show for as long as possible (sans manipulation and producer help that Val always gets), you are much better off with a Hough than you are a Chmerkovskiy. Let’s not lose track of the actual point.
So far this season, I’ve enjoyed the ladies choreo than the mens…save for Artem with Nancy. Artem is doing a very good job with the routines this season thus far.
If Val and Maks can give their very capable partners some excellent choreo, then I’d be impressed with them. Sadly, that’s not been the case. I was highly disappointed in that lackluster freestyle he came up with for Laurie last season. Didn’t utilize her gymnastics background at all, unlike what Derek came up with for Shawn in All-Star season. Val and Maks don’t seem to want to LEARN other styles beyond ballroom. Derek has taken classes in tap and also in flamenco, IIRC.
Like Casanova, I too was rooting for Evan and Anna in S10, and when Nicole slipped as she was coming off Derek’s shoulder, during her Freestyle, I was cheering! YESS! She screwed up! lol I kinda blame Anna for that loss though. Oh well.
I’ll watch the dances of the couples I want to see on YouTube when I get home from work Tuesday morning. I fully expect Ms ProDancer to get a perfect 40. As well as Normani most likely.
I don’t expect Derek to ever dance as a Pro on DWTS ever again. I’m pretty sure S23 left a BAD taste in his mouth. Funny, still people whine about the “Golden Boy” and he’s not even competing this season. I guess when you’re a gifted teacher of dance and make your celeb look like they’ve been dancing for years, it’s easy to think that Pro got a ringer. Nope. Just because someone’s an excellent dancer, doesn’t mean they’re a good choreographer or a good teacher. 😉 Derek and Mark are all 3 and their presence is sorely missed.
So grateful for this site! So many good insights/comments.
About Val, I agree with Cassanova that the quality of his teaching and standard of technique has gone downhill since Zendaya. I don’t believe his heart is in it anymore. Dance is not what he wants to do for a living. He’s lost the passion/drive.
What I’m seeing is someone that wants to be paid just for showing up and sharing his life with us. Like a true reality star a la Kim K or Amber Rose. That would explain the amount of time he spent with Amber after last season. Was he learning “How can I get the checks sent in just because I’m me?” And all the air time he’s hogging for himself, at the expense of his star. While I admit the C Bros do have a loyal following, is it a big enough base to support him in years to come?
A few people have done well with relaunching careers from DWTS. Mario Lopez, Alphonso and Cameron come to mind easily. I don’t see Val as a good fit for that type of work, though. You have to focus on making someone else look good, not just yourself. There’s an art to that I don’t believe Val has.
Any thoughts?
I’m too excited for Nancy’s Jazz to That’s How you’ll Know. Enchanted is one of my top Disney Movies. It’s overlooked as a Disney great even though it did so well. I can’t wait for Monday night!
Kelly, I could see Derek coming back if the situation was right.
Derek loves the show & the journey he goes on with the stars. It’s just the “other stuff” that is upsetting. Maybe if TPTB want him back badly enough, they could cut a deal. Or bring him back AS a producer. That would be a nice change!
@Kelly
I remember reading a comment from an Argentine Tango dancer on a Strictly Come Dancing forum saying she’d watched DWTS and Derek was the only pro she’d seen to do a truly legit AT.
Major props to him for his research.
Yes Derek loves the show but there are other ways for him to contribute besides being a competing pro. I’d love to see them resurrect Macy’s Stars of Dance again. Those last 3 performances Derek produced were EPIC! AND earned him an Emmy nod 😉 I think he’d be a far better choreographer than Mandy Moore in coming up with opening numbers and Pro numbers. Derek has so many irons in the fire though right now as it is. WoD, the Tour, SITR (still happening AFAIK, just a matter of when). Look at the magic he created in directing Michael Ruble’s latest video I Believe in You?
Derek didn’t even know how to do an AT. I remember him saying he had to go to YouTube to learn how. Same with LindyHop or maybe it was Jitterbug. My opinion is if you’re not continually learning, you’re not growing as a person. And that’s for everything in life, not just a reality dance show competition.
@ Carol
Re:
# Carol commented on April 16, 2017:
“I don’t believe his heart is in it anymore. Dance is not what he wants to do for a living. He’s lost the passion/drive.”
Laurie Hernandez won with a similiar direction of freestyle, to what Val tried to present with Zendaya, but obviously Val had a lot of help in terms of presentation and how Laurie’s edited freestyle with appropriate dynamics made the statement that the Zendaya freestyle could not. That is the difference between amateur and professional choreography. One throws in the kitchen sink, the other is a painter and builds like an architect to get a cohesive vision.
It’s obvious he is getting a lot of choreo help on presentation, and he acknowledges that, but now he’s let what he does best- technique slide away. Normani could win regardless of lack of technique due to the show’s direction and obvious manipulation. I am saddened that at least attempting technique is no longer necessary to win this show. I think there may be a lack of enthusiasm from Val because the thing he trained is not valued. He can slap up anything, like a hot mess that looks sexy and call it a Rumba. The show wants choreographers, and he struggles to be one. Tristan left the show because he is a ballroom teacher, not a cross trained choreographer. Tristan recognized his limitations, I do not think it is so easy for Val.
Val does seem to have lost his passion but he isn’t stupid. Dance is the only thing he can make money at right now.
We saw from Fuller House that he can’t act.
He’s not Joshua Bell so making money as a violinist is out.
If you’ve ever heard him sing, you’d know that won’t get him to easy street.
He realizes that once this show is over there aren’t that many places to go to make money dancing. Maks may have enough connections to get him a job at the Wynn in Vegas or they might tour for two or three years but then once the popularity dies down, he’s done.
He’s part owner in the DWM studios but how long will those last once they are both off of DWTS?
He’ll be like a football player without a team. He doesn’t have the personality to be a commentator so he’ll end up selling air conditioning or cars.
Val has no choice but to stay on the show happy or not. He has nothing else he can do.
To me, there’s a big difference between a great dancer and a great choreographer. A great dancer can create a partner dance with as much content with as much technical difficulty as he/she wants. A great choreographer creates routines that their partner can handle while also masking whatever flaws they might have.
Best example of that is from SYTYCD and the iconic park bench routine. Travis Wall is an amazing contemporary dancer, but his partner Heidi was pretty limited as far as what she could do as a Latin ballroom dancer. Mia Michaels choreography had Heidi doing moves that she could pull of well, but that routine was largely carried by Travis who could do pretty much anything.
I think Val’s a fantastic dancer, but the problem is that in some of his routines, he choreographs too little content if a celeb is struggling, or he choreographs too much and outdances his partner to compensate for their struggles, rather than trying to find that balance.
Even Mark had a hard time getting the balance right, and he tended to outdance his partner at times if his partner struggled with the concept. It wasn’t until, I think, Sadie when he started to strike the right balance.
What Derek does that put him above many pros on this show is that he constantly surrounds himself with dancers of many different genres. He’s not isolated in his “fam” – he’s always working with all different kinds of choreographers on outside projects. That is a learning experience and it informs his own choreography. It’s personal growth. Hayley may not be a stellar ballroom dancer, but she’s very good in her genre AND she is always taking classes. I’ve seen Jenna taking classes. I suspect that several of the women do. This will move these women ahead of the men in the choreo department – the willingness to continually be taught, to learn new things. I was never a Jenna fan, but when I saw she was taking classes, that earned her a measure of respect from me.
Maybe Jenna needed the wake-up call of not being asked to be a pro this season in order to grow as a dancer. Lindsay’s even said that it was hard when she didn’t get the call after her season with Victor, but it allowed her to grow a bit more as a dancer.
Plus, Jenna, Hayley, and Brittany all were on the same season of DWTS, but Brittany and Hayley have done a lot of things outside of DWTS in the offseason, not just classes but other projects outside of DWTS. That could have influenced her, especially since Brittany has a VMA for Thinking Out Loud.
Molly, Thanks. I appreciate your response.
Not many of us are born naturally gifted. We need to learn from others & practice/perfect our skills. I just don’t see much of that from Val. Possibly b/c I’m not on social media so I’m not plugged into what the C Bros are doing with their time. But I just don’t feel it in the work they do on DWTS.
You can become a better actor/singer/musician but you need to devote some unpaid time/effort into improving yourself. I believe Val is a lovely dancer, just not happy with the lack of development his stars get. IMHO that equates to not being shown to us as real people b/c they were never really seen by Val.
And maybe I am asking too much of him. In the early days, just doing the steps somewhat in time to the music was enough. Some stars “walked through” the routines that were too hard for them. But they had content. Now we are all about some flashy production numbers, and who cares if it has content or the star learned something. Are we going backwards?
Emma’s excited and can’t wait to put on her costume. Yay! Is it Monday yet?
I don’t think you actually get a VMA for being a dancer in the video, Justin. But the recognition is nice, for sure.
Cassanova, Thanks for your insight. It helped. I did go back to view Laurie’s Freestyle and can see your point more clearly today. (as it aired I was still hoping for James & Sharna) Yes, I can see the work in that piece and understand a bit more why they may have taken the win.
Is there any way we can help shift the show”s values back to content? The judges’ used to help the voters by calling out creative content and lack there of. Now even Len has gone soft.
@Carol, Please don’t misunderstand, I really really REALLY wanted a win for James. I was frustrated about having to VPN voting because I knew that his appearance on the show just wasn’t that well promoted in Canada due to the change in network presentation, finally we Canadians had a true contender for the mirrorball and sadly we couldn’t vote. James is such a gem and such an amazing natural, it is very rare that we get males on the show with his lack of training just picking up ballroom so seemlessly. His Suicide Squad Viennese Waltz is now the standard that I judge Viennese Waltz on this show. He was completely immersed in character (and make-up, heh) entertaining as all get, and his dancing was beautiful. All with while creating such chemistry with a new partner, deep in the competition when changing partners is a risk for his momentum and his ability to dance with someone other than the teacher he relied on for 7 weeks of the show.
I thought his finale choreography was gorgeous and well done, but a big part of me wished that contemporary was presented earlier- actually I thought it would have been brilliant for his “memorable year” to re-inforce and then let the car crash go, I think it would have resonated better as a piece when the crash was initially discussed, instead of returning to it. It felt too much like leaning on misfortune to see how far he’s come, instead of celebrating the amazing dancer he is now.
OTOH, while I was not in love with Laurie, her choreography hit home the fact that she is a very young girl with a whole life ahead. There was no deep message in the presentation, it was airy and childlike. During the show there was a struggle of presenting her as this grown woman, and yet she was just a giggling girl. The lightness of the movement suggests her innocence is where she is now, instead of any dark place she might have been, in remembering her Grandma or in her struggle to get her Olympic gold. That choreography left the struggle behind.
I am going to be pissed if Normani gets the pimp again, especially since this past week Rashad and Emma allegedly had to give it up to accommodate Normani.
Here is the lineup per George P’s., twitter.
Rashad, Nick, Erika, Heather, Bonner, Normani, David, Nancy, Simone.
Thoughts anyone?
My thoughts Sandy are that someone in production does not like Nick. I’m convinced he’s getting a stack full of votes and they are trying to keep him in check, but I could be wrong. Nice to see Nancy finally getting a good spot. Not surprised Simone has the pimp slot, Moana is one of the more exciting themes and she looked good in rehearsals. I can see her getting the first perfect score of the season, or at the very least some tens.
M8 is Normani in a good running order spot or is it bad? Idk if it’s in the first or second half.
Rashad may be going first tonight but after that the lineup is weak until the latter part of the show.
Apparently Rashad was to have the pimp spot last week, however things were moved around due to the schedule of 5H. I can’t remember, is this Simone’s 2nd time having the pimp spot? Yet Rashad has yet to have his first.
Simone’s second time, Rashad yet to have one but this is the first time he’s been in the first half of the show. Interesting that David once again is in the second half of the show. DWTS definitely trying to keep Cubs fans watching the show for as long as possible. They have a game tonight at Wrigley as well.
It’s probably better that Rashad and Emma have the 1st spot this week, especially after coming off of their spectacular contemporary routine last week. I’m not worried about them this week.
The only thing I’m excited about is Donny Osmond the song from beauty and the beast since I’ve seen the film three times
I see Nick Erika or Heather being the next ones to go although Erika might likely go first
@Jazz Normani is sixth and there are 9 couples, so she is in the second half. Spots in the second half are the more desirable spots, and first is also good. The bad spots would be the first half spots that aren’t the actual first spot.
So that’s the FIFTH good spot for Normani out of five. And still people dare to suggest that it isn’t rigged for the C-Bros.
@SteveJ – And the second solo performance in a row by a fanbase ringer. With solo performances that are catering to varied ages of the viewers. The TPTB are so trying to make Normani happen.
I’m not excited to see Donny Osmond in the least. Especially not with Val. So I guess I’ll be letting the dogs out for their potty break during their performance.
Interesting that Heather doesn’t have a good running order slot. Guess the uber-ringer’s not working out as well as TPTB had hoped. She may be going home earlier than expected. Bonner may or may not have a good running order position, depending on how fast the show runs; he’s smack dab in the middle (4 before him, 4 after). Nick and Erika are screwed. I’d be shocked if neither of them went home.
I do wonder if Heather going before Nancy will cause people to compare the two, but Nancy’s definitely got the better running order position. Ultimately, I think she’ll be fine until the running order is moot, and I’m looking forward to seeing what they can do with the song they’ve got this week.
@Sandy Yes, Normani is obviously getting zero public support from anyone other than those screaming little brats that like to spam on Twitter.
If Bonner lands at the top of the second hour, that’s one of the better spots to have.
Am I shocked with this running order for tonight…no unfortunately. kinda was hoping show would have nancy and artem at the end dance.
Heather is a strange one. She’s always in a middle. I tend to think maybe that’s because they don’t want loads of negative headlines about her being a professional dancer. Imagine the jazz dancer dancing Jazz in the pimp slot. It would get crucified. Bonner is defiantly at the top of the second hour being the fifth out of nine couples. Good for him.
M8, it kinda depends on how long the opening number is…but if not at the top of the hour, then in the second hour which is good regardless.