As if it were possible for Dancing with the Stars to get any more dramatic than it already is, week 6 brings us Broadway Week! Instead of random pop hits, the DWTS celebrities will need to tap their feet to a collection of show-tunes and Broadway classics.
Honestly, this could be brilliant.
Although last week’s eliminations have been deprived of the potential for some incredible overacting by Carson Kressley (Can he just come back? Please?), there are sure to be plenty of dramatic moments this week. The remaining dancers not only have to perform their own choreographed dance, but they also will be presenting a group dance during the show.
Of course, it’s not just dancing and competition in this two-hour Broadway extravaganza. Kristin Chenoweth will be on hand tonight to sing a Broadway medley, and the cast of Broadway’s Sister Act is expected as well.
The whole thing should be very entertaining.
As for the DWTS celebrities themselves, where do the remaining 7 pairs stand when stacked up against each other?
1. J.R. Martinez and Karina Smirnoff: 124 points so far
2. Ricki Lake and Derek Hough: 123
3. Hope Solo and Maksim Chmerkovskiy: 112
4. Rob Kardashian and Cheryl Burke: 110
5. David Arquette and Kym Johnson: 108
6. Nancy Grace and Tristan MacManus: 101
7. Chaz Bono and Lacey Schwimmer: 94
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Time for the show to begin! And it begins with a performance from the cast of Sister Act, which is apparently a Tony-nominated show that has already run for a couple hundred nights. I was honestly only vaguely aware of the play’s existence.
There are many women dancing in shiny nun’s habits. Also, there is suddenly a stained-glass window above the DWTS stairs. Where did that come from?
Also, to file under the category of things I never knew I needed to see: nuns in a can-can line. Thank you Dancing with the Stars! Thank you! Or something…
Hey! There’s Kristin Chenoweth, being all cute as usual!
Rob Kardashian and Cheryl Burke
Dancing the cha cha
My Comments: We get to consider “Walk Like a Man” to be a Broadway song now? You put a song in one Broadway musical and 40+ years of pop-music presence means nothing? Sigh… Whatever, it’s an awesome song. I don’t know that I would identify this as a cha cha without the cue from the show. It’s fun and quick, but it doesn’t look particularly Latin. Also, Rob’s hands sometimes a wee bit odd. I’m not sure what’s up with that, but it just seems off. Otherwise, however, that was a particularly good dance from Rob. He has very definitely gotten better since the first week.
Judges’ Comments
Len: “It was clean, it was precise, it had good timing… The cha cha cha has got to show rhythm and there was no rhythm.” “It wasn’t oily!”
Bruno: “You’ve got to be there! There! There! There!” “It was adequate…” “Listen to Mama!”
Carrie Ann: “You’re like a late college bloomer… You’re a college graduate, but you haven’t gone on to your masters’ yet.”
Scores: 8+7+7 = 22
Nancy Grace and Tristan MacManus
Dancing the foxtrot
My Comments: Spam-a-Lot? I definitely didn’t see that one coming. Ha! Tristan has coconuts! I need to get my complaint in now: I will have “Always Look on the Bright Side of Life” stuck in my head for the rest of the night. And they’re dancing with coconuts. Once you get past the silly costumes, it’s a pretty calm and conservative dance. Nancy seems to be doing fine with her steps (especially those high kicks), but it’s not as exciting as the song would make me expect. Also, kind of sucks that they edited out (of course) the “Life’s a piece of sh*t, when you look at it” line. I love that line…
Judges’ Comments
Len: “It was much more personality came out… A certain amount of it has to be in hold, and that part of it wasn’t there.”
Bruno: “Is Nancy Dance-a-Lot! With Lancelot!” “I’ve seen the musical, and you’ve captured the feel of it.”
Carrie Ann: “You upped the ante on your content, and you nailed it.”
Scores: 9+7+8 = 24
Hey! Carson Kressley is back! Even Dancing with the Stars couldn’t stand itself without him! And he’s the “creative director” for the group dance? Yay! Yayyyyyyyyy!!!
David Arquette and Kym Johnson
Dancing the quickstep
My Comments: Good song. They should have skipped that hand-jive opening. If you just watch David’s lower half, he looks very good. Unfortunately, it doesn’t seem to totally match the top part in attitude. For a guy who was all excited to let it all out for Broadway Week, this is the most restrained dance of the night. It might be a good quickstep, but it isn’t hugely exciting.
Judges’ Comments
Len: “It was what it was.” “It was high-energy, it was full of enthusiasm.”
Bruno: “You are so charged up you are like a live wire.”
Carrie Ann: “As far as performance goes, I thought you completely lived up to any expectation we had.” “You were a little out-of-sync.”
Scores: 8+7+8 = 23
Ricki Lake and Derek Hough
Dancing the quickstep
My Comments: Guys and Dolls! Yay! That’s Broadway! Way to buck the trend, Ricki. From the starting moment, this dance certainly wins the prize for the fastest dance so far this week. Ricki’s long dress makes it kind of tough to see if she’s being perfect with the feet, so I’ve got no clue there. It looks good. The performance — although fairly basic in showmanship — is done well, so that it doesn’t seem boring. An easy choice for the best dance of the night (so far, anyway).
Judges’ Comments
Len: “You don’t need luck if you’ve got talent, and in this number, you proved you’ve got talent.” “It was really motoring.” “I loved it. I thought it was fantastic.”
Bruno: “Impeccable style. Outstanding choreography. Dazzling showmanship.” “Your interpretation of the music was just beyond belief.”
Carrie Ann: “It’s beautiful to see such poetry in motion, done so well.” “Can anyone say Tony award?”
Scores: 10+9+10 = 29
Of course Len couldn’t manage a 10…
Chaz Bono and Lacey Schwimmer
Dancing the tango
My Comments: Lacey is sure setting Chaz up for failure in the rehearsals, isn’t she? Giggles for the Phantom mask. Nice candle decorations too. Chaz seems a little stiff, but he’s getting through the dance. Unfortunately, I can’t see much of it too well, thanks to the dark lighting. The mask, in retrospect, was probably a bad idea. People are mostly connecting to who Chaz is — not who he’s playing — so covering that up probably isn’t going to help. The dance was OK, but none of what (admittedly little) I saw made me excited.
Judges’ Comments
Len: “I know that you’re trying your hardest, and you can see that.” “The holds should be tighter…”
Bruno: “It was like watching a cute, little penguin trying to be a dangerous bird of prey.” “To me, this character didn’t fit you.”
Carrie Ann: “This was the most aggressive I’ve seen you.” “At week 6, I want to see a little more content.”
Scores: 7+6+6 = 19
Hope Solo and Maksim Chmerkovskiy
Dancing the rumba
My Comments: Hope’s sweater-thing looks very ready to fall off. It does fit with the Rent theme though. The dance seems a little bit weird when the dancers are separated, but it gets a lot better when they’re together. The footwork is especially looking good. There may also be a little too much of Maks’ patented “let’s be dramatic and not dance for extended periods.”
Ah, it’s the time in the season when Maks and Len fight! Yay!
Judges’ Comments
Len: “It was totally full of heel.” “This is your worst dance of the whole season, in my opinion.”
Bruno: “It worked at times but… the rumba never stops moving.” “You were doing the staccato.” “It didn’t quite gel as well as it could have.”
Carrie Ann: “I definitely saw for the first time relaxing and trusting your natural sexiness.” “Sometimes you force the move so much.” “It’s like blossoming and not-blossoming all at once.”
Scores: 7+6+7 = 20
Was that dance really only 1 point better than Chaz’s? Maks’ rather public and possibly dangerous comments about the difference in judging standards isn’t exactly wrong. Will things be getting interesting on Dancing with the Stars? Hmmm…
J.R. Martinez and Karina Smirnoff
Dancing the quickstep
My Comments: It’s probably a good sign when the beginning of a dance makes me think of Donald O’Connor. It’s impressive considering that he’s going up against actors, that J.R. is the best performer of this competition. He makes you totally believe in the character of a Broadway song-and-dance man. The dance was lovely, and the performance was even better. It’s hard to know if this or Ricki’s dance was the best of the night…
Judges’ Comments
Len: “You are truly relentless!” “Tonight, you have really come up a notch.”
Bruno: “You’ve created a rip-roaring, audience-rising, 11 o’clock number that makes the show a hit!”
Carrie Ann: “Bob Fosse would have been proud.”
Scores: 10+9+10 = 29
Seriously, Len? Seriously? Ah well, hard to complain.
Anyway, that’s it for the individual dances. Which means that it’s time for Kristin Chenoweth! She has far more voice than anyone that size has a right to. Although both songs are good, I have to go with “Maybe This Time” as the better one. This is probably because I’m not a big fan of “I Could Have Danced All Night.” It definitely has nothing to do with the singing.
By the way, for anyone not keeping up with the show’s constant name changes, GCB is what was earlier called Good Christian Belles and even earlier Good Christian Bitches. Stupid acronym title aside, it’s a mid-season show to watch for…
Group Dance!
While there is probably some reason to watch the dancers and choreography, this is more an excuse to enjoy more Carson Kressley.
- Hope is very tall.
- The loss of Carson Kressley is a sad one for Dancing with the Stars.
- Ricki Lake talks about weight too much.
- Lifts are terrifying-looking in rehearsals.
- Fedoras + feather boas = Broadway
- 14 people on one floor is a lot.
- The individual bits seem to be a lot of the pros dancing around the celebrities. (With the possible exceptions of Ricki and Nancy with their complicated-looking flips)
- What lesson should we take away from a money-themed medley like that?
And that’s it for Broadway night on Dancing with the Stars!
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Did you enjoy Broadway on Dancing with the Stars? Who was the best dancer? Who was the worst? Who is in the most danger of elimination? Leave your comments below!
(Image courtesy of ABC)
Senior Writer, BuddyTV
Laurel grew up in Mamaroneck, NY, Grosse Pointe, MI and Bellevue WA. She then went on to live in places like Boston, Tucson, Houston, Wales, Tanzania, Prince Edward Island and New York City before heading back to Seattle. Ever since early childhood, when she became addicted to The Muppet Show, Laurel has watched far too much TV. Current favorites include Chuck, Modern Family, Supernatural, Mad Men and Community. Laurel received a BA in Astrophysics (yes, that is possible) from Colgate University and a PhD in Middle Eastern Studies and History of Science from Columbia University before she realized that television is much better than studying.
