'Dancing With The Stars' week 10: Dance-by-dance recap, elimination
LOS ANGELES, CA -- The semi-finals on "Dancing with the Stars" began with a big question mark: Will Alfonso Ribeiro dance? They didn't keep us in suspense for long. He and Witney Carson were introduced first and they were moving and shaking in the opening.
The producers billed this round as "four aces and one wild card" or four good dancers and Tommy Chong. They've all made it through nine tough weeks. This round was as challenging as any they'd faced. They all had to do two different routines, but to the same song: one "plugged" and one "unplugged."
Here's a recap of the semi-finals from highest to lowest score:
JANEL PARRISH - 40 out of 40 for Paso Doble; 38 out of 40 for Argentine Tango; 78 total
It never hurts to have last season's "DWTS" champion stop by your rehearsal to give a few tips. It made perfect sense since last season Maksim Chmerkovskiy won the mirror ball, and his little brother Val Chmerkovskiy has it squarely in his sights. Maks' number one piece of advice: give the people what they want. For the first dance, that meant a fiery Paso Doble. The judges were blown away and honored them with a perfect score. Carrie Ann Inaba said she wanted more. Len Goodman said the dance had everything you'd want: technique and performance. Janel's second dance was the Argentine Tango. It earned a 10 from Julianne Hough, who told Janel she has a gift, and from Bruno Tonioli, who said the music may have been unplugged, but the couple was switched on!
VIDEO: Janel Parrish, Val Chmerkovskiy talk about not holding back
BETHANY MOTA - 36 out of 40 for Samba; 40 out of 40 for contemporary; 76 total
Bethany got a little freaked out in rehearsal this week when Derek Hough told her he'd hit a creative speed bump. He told her he was tapped out, and not in the zone - something no one wants to hear from a coach! Derek then realized he does this every season, and there's a time when the student needs to take a bit of the leadership role. Thank you Obi-Wan! Bethany told him to stop overthinking things. They trusted each other. And bingo! They're back in business. The couple earned all 9's for their Samba. Len called it cotton candy - light and fluffy, but a little sticky. Bethany and Derek's second dance earned a 10 from all the judges. The contemporary routine utilized a picture frame as a prop and it worked perfectly. Bruno called it a modern masterpiece. Carrie Ann said she didn't want to blink and miss anything. Julianne thought the routine was picture perfect.
VIDEO: Bethany Mota, Derek Hough talk about freestyle on 'DWTS'
ALFONSO RIBEIRO - 36 out of 40 for Argentine Tango; 39 out of 40 for Contemporary; 75 total
They did show us Alfonso at the beginning of the show to let us know he was in the ballroom, in costume and ready to dance. Of course, later we learned just how much pain he was in this week. He had been nursing a pulled groin, which led to tweaking his back rather badly. Lots of doctors and tests and massages filled his week, and not as much rehearsal as he probably would have liked. But Witney choreographed some great routines and Alfonso powered through. He was brought to tears when hearing the judges' comments, not just because he was happy to be standing, but because he was in real pain. Len told him that pain is temporary, glory lasts, and applauded him for working through things. Their second dance was contemporary and earned a 10 from Carrie Ann, who told Alfonso he had showed us a new side with this routine. He also received a 10 from Julianne and Bruno.
VIDEO: Alfonso Ribeiro, Witney Carson talk about injuries
SADIE ROBERTSON - 37 out of 40 for Quickstep; 37 out of 40 for Argentine Tango; 74 total
Our youngest competitor was visibly upset with herself after she messed up the end of her routine last week. Thing is, it was a mistake only she and Mark knew about. The pressure was getting to her, but she worked through it. Mark choreographed a pretty tricky routine, and she was in tears a few times at rehearsal, but in the ballroom Sadie was all poise and polish. Len said he was disappointed, then, psych! Disappointed, because there was nothing in the routine he didn't like. So from Len, a 10! Sadie and Mark's Argentine Tango was also strong. Mark choreographed a guitar as almost a third person in the routine. You knew Len wouldn't like it, and he didn't. But the other three judges thought it was very clever.
VIDEO: Sadie Robertson, Mark Ballas talk about improvement
TOMMY CHONG - 28 out of 40 for jazz; 34 out of 40 from Rumba ; 62 total
Tommy let us know he thought for sure he was a goner LAST week. His bags have been packed for New York for a few weeks now. But Tommy's fan base is strong and they kept him rolling along for longer than anyone thought. Their first routine was a sultry jazz number that had the audience on its feet. Cue Cheech Marin cutaway! The judges used words like love and respect in describing how they felt about Tommy. Len admitted that he couldn't have done what Chong has done, and Len is six years younger! Their second routine was the Rumba and it had the judges and the audience swooning. Julianne called it magical and fantastical. Bruno said it was straight from the heart. Carrie Ann thought it was poetry in motion.
VIDEO: Tommy Chong, Peta Murgatroyd talk about their friendship
It was a quick elimination after so much dancing. Tom read off names: Alfonso is safe! Janel is safe! Bethany is safe! That brought it down to Sadie or Tommy. We all knew what was going to happen next. Yes, it was the last dance, after a great ride, for Tommy and Peta.
Next week, a two-night grand finale!
