Always looking to top itself, Dancing With the Stars traded the sequins (ehh, not quite) for tightropes and gravity-defying stunts during its first-ever Cirque de Soleil night. With her tumbling prowess, this seemed like Olympic gymnast Laurie Hernandez‘s night to really shine—and she did, but without a single flip or back tuck.
Hernandez earned the first perfect score of the season with a flawless Michael Jackson-themed jazz dance inspired by the Cirque show, One. And the performance left everyone in a state of shock. The usually verbose judges were rendered practically speechless by the performance.
Carrie Ann Inaba kicked off her critique by saying, “it’s really hard to emulate Michael Jackson and even come close, [but] you came out with incredible maturity … a star is born.” And Julianne Hough noted that she “literally” had nothing to say, before announcing Hernandez the “queen of the ballroom.” Bruno Tonioli called the performance a “Michael Jackson killer thriller” and added, “it was like watching Debbie Allen, Janet Jackson, Paula Abdul, all combined.”
Despite all the high-flying fun, during tomorrow night’s elimination two couples will be going home. After these performances, who do you think will have to say goodbye?
Calvin & Lindsay: 23
After busting out of his shell during last week’s face-off routine, the footballer had to learn a fast-paced Charleston number complete with ambitious lifts. Taking inspiration from Cirque show Curio, Johnson’s routine had a few minor hiccups, but by and large offered plenty of that je na sais quoi that makes the Cirque so iconic. Julianne Hough marveled at how light on his feet Johnson was, but would have liked to see more energy toward the end. Bruno Tonioli laughed at how he was “tossing Lindsay like a pancake” and noticed how much Johnson’s performance level has changed. Carrie Ann Inaba definitely noticed all of the lifts, but made everyone’s night when she said she wouldn’t deduct points because of the theme of the show. She also called the lifts “seamless.”
Maureen & Artem: 24
Rehearsals may have taken a bumpy turn this week, but that didn’t stop the Brady Bunch star from leaving it all on the dance floor during her Argentine tango. McCormick was a bit stiff at the offset, but seemed to loosen up a tad as the dance wore on. All in all, it didn’t live up to some of the sultry and staccato Argentine tangos the show has seen. The judges, on the other hand, loved it! Tonioli loved her “intent and purpose and focus” during the routine and commented on how good her lines were. Inaba raved about her posture and said, “everything about that was dreamy.” Hough agreed with her fellow judges and noted that Chigvintsev is turning McCormick into a great dancer.
Jana & Gleb: 23
This week the country star looked to The Beatles’ Cirque show Love for inspiration. The pair hit a bit of a wall during rehearsal, but you couldn’t tell during their psychedelic Foxtrot. Inaba gushed to Gleb about the choreography and loved that the singer has “this incredible ability to express yourself beautifully.” Hough wants to see Kramer “break out of the middle [of the pack]” and urged her to learn how to spot her turns. Tonioli commented on her movements: “you did some amazing fluid underarm passes straight into hold that were absolutely stunning.”
Marilu & Derek: 21
In prepping for this week’s Paso doble, Henner revealed that her Highly Superior Autobiographical memory was actually interfering with her ability to learn the dance. But that didn’t seem to be the case at all when time came to perform her routine embodying good versus bad. She presented fiery spectacle—literally—as she battled Hough in her routine. Julianne loved the creativity of the routine, but wants to see Henner get out of her head while dancing. Tonioli called it a difficult routine, while Inaba echoed Julianne’s feedback and wants to see the Taxi actress dance with Derek, rather than trying to force the dance.
Amber & Maks: 24
A misunderstanding about Hough’s comments during Roses’s sexy salsa last week—Hough called the performance “uncomfortable”—the model was looking to get back on track with a sultry burlesque-inspired Argentine tango. The routine managed to dance the fine line between sensual and intense without becoming vulgar. Hough loved every moment of it, calling it Rose’s “essence.” Tonioli followed suit and said, “I would have plenty more of that dish.” Inaba thought “it was such a pleasure to watch you, be you, do you and blow us away.”
Ryan & Cheryl: 22
What do you do with a fish out of water? Throw him back in! And that’s exactly what DWTS did this week for the Olympic swimmer. Lochte performed a Viennese waltz inspired by the water-themed Cirque show, O. The routine was very fluid and certainly an improvement for the floundering star who was almost eliminated last week. Inaba absolutely noticed Lochte’s improvement and said “this is the direction you want to keep going in.” Hough praised Burke for so perfectly integrating the Cirque de Soleil elements with the performance and called it “a great dance.” Tonioli called this the swimmer’s “best performance to date.”
Babyface & Alison: 18
The second Beatles-inspired dance of the night ambitiously incorporated lights in a way that could have showed off the dance’s flaws. But more than that, it added an element of drama to the pair’s Tango. Unfortunately, there were a number of mistakes throughout the performance that the judges just couldn’t overlook. Hough admitted it wasn’t the singer’s best dance, but wants to see him come back next week and prove to everyone why he belongs here. Tonioli simply said, “you’ll be better next week.” Inaba took an “it happens” review and advised that Edmonds show more strength in his movements and energy level to stick all of his movements.
Terra & Sasha: 25
In preparing for her O-themed Samba, Jole experienced some frustration at the difficulty of the routine. And the reality star really went all-out for her fiery and fast-paced dance. Tonioli loved it and marveled that she attempted some really difficult choreography, even though she missed a few of the promenade passes. Inaba declared that Jole is “in a league of your own” and said she “killed it” and danced “beyond your body.” Hough told Jole, “you make everybody feel free” when she is on the dance floor.
Laurie & Val: 30
Taking on the King of Pop is no small task! But if anyone is up to it, it’s Hernandez. “With Michael Jackson, there’s a very high expectation,” the gymnast said in her rehearsal package. And live up to those expectations, she did. She and Chmerkovskiy totally captured his personality and essence with her jazz routine—especially during her solo section. The judges had few words for the pint-sized star, but all of them were good. Inaba said, “it’s really hard to emulate Michael Jackson and even come close, [but] you came out with incredible maturity.” Hough was left almost speechless and deemed Hernandez, “queen of the ballroom.” Tonioli called it a “Michael Jackson killer thriller” and added that the gymnast “was like watching Debbie Allen, Janet Jackson, Paula Abdul all combined.”
Vanilla Ice & Witney: 23
Hernandez is a tough act to follow, but Vanilla Ice was game. This week, he took on a Viennese waltz inspired by La Nouba, the “urban circus,” according to Carson. With a jam-packed schedule, Ice has a number of hurdles to just learn his routine, much less perfect it in time for the live shows. Hough said that in a more traditional Viennese waltz, the singer may have floundered, but “in this case … it totally worked because of the theme and character.” Tonioli pointed out that his spinning and hand placement could be better. Inaba saw “a new sort of elegance” in Vanilla Ice during this performance.
James & Sharna: 28
In her best Jessica Rabbit getup, Burgess guided the Indycar driver to a high energy Quickstep inspired by the first Cirque show on Broadway, Paramour. Hinchcliffe showed off some fast footwork and managed to keep up with the Cirque performers like a pro. But both Inaba and Hough spotted a “teeny tiny” mistake and had to deduct points because of it. Tonioli likened Hinchcliffe’s performance to Oscar winning film The Artist and compared his dancing in hold to that of Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers.
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