ABC/Craig Sjodin(LOS ANGELES) — On Monday night, Dancing with the Stars returned for the second week of the competition and the first evening of a two-night television event. Monday’s theme was classic ballroom dances — waltzes, tangos, quicksteps and foxtrots. It also was the first night of elimination and Shark Tank star Barbara Corcoran was the first to go.
Debbie Gibson started the night with a quickstep to “This is My Time” by Amy Stroup and received good reviews from the judges, with Bruno Tonioli saying, “Your chemistry was sizzling. You’re having a good time, we’re having a good time. That’s the key. Shoulders better. Footwork, you should never look like you’re racing it. Just more exactitude.” Her exactitude earned her a 20 out of 30.
Nikki Bella said she wanted to prove she’s more than muscles and headlocks, and dedicated her waltz to her Nana. She earned high praise from the judges, Carrie Ann Inaba called her performance “stunning.” Nikki earned a 21.
Lindsey Stirling and Mark Ballas did a quickstep that earned them 21.
Barbara Corcoran tangoed to “Whatever Lola Wants” and while Len Goodman said she improved from last week, she only scored 17 points, which put her in jeopardy.
Nick Lachey and Peta Murgatroyd danced a foxtrot to Barry Manilow’s “Mandy,” and were critiqued by Carrie Ann for not being loose enough. Nick got a 19.
After their foxtrot, Nick’s wife, Vanessa Lachey and partner Maks Chmerkovskiy earned strong praise from the judges, with Carrie Ann saying Vanessa was like “liquid gold,” earning her a high score of 24.
After taking a spill in rehearsal, Drew Scott did a quickstep. While Carrie Ann was positive, Len Goodman said, “If you were a property, I would have a job getting a mortgage. It’s too loose, and gangly.” Bruno disagreed and called their performance “a fantastic luxury performance.” They earned 20 points.
Frankie Muniz and Witney Carson wowed in red for their tango to Imagine Dragons’ “Whatever It Takes” and while Carrie Ann and Bruno raved, Len was booed for saying he thought “it was a little overaggressive.” Nevertheless, in spite of having broken his back in 2009, he impressed them enough to bring in a 23.
Terrell Owens wowed the crowd with his sizzling foxtrot with Cheryl Burke and improved greatly from last week with a score of 20, although Len said their performance was too raunchy for ballroom night and got booed again. Bruno was enthralled and called it a “sextrot.” Terrell still made the biggest improvement of anyone since last week and earned a very respectable 20.
Sasha Pieterse and Gleb Savchenko worked on her “ballroom face” and danced a Viennese waltz that earned the Pretty Little Liars star a 23.
Paralympian Victoria Arlen and Val Chmerkovskiy tangoed into the judges’ hearts for a score of 24, tying her with Vanessa Lachey.
Five-time NBA champ Derek Fisher danced a foxtrot and took some criticism for his technique but still managed a 19. His mother was in the balcony and told Erin Andrews that she agreed with the judges, saying, “I thought they were spot-on. It’s difficult when in his profession for almost 20 years, you’ve used that booty for defense. Now you have to learn to tuck and stand. But he’ll get it.”
For the last dance of the night, Hamilton star Jordan Fisher returned with Lindsay Arnold for a Viennese waltz and said he hoped to top last week’s high score and have the best dance of the night. Len got booed again for saying he thought their dance was, “a little bit sharp in the movements.” He earned a 24, tying with Vanessa Lachey and Victoria Arlen.
In jeopardy at the end of the show were Terrell and Cheryl, which drew boos, and Barbara and Keo Motsepe Both were in the bottom of last week’s scores, but the first couple to be eliminated was Barbara and Keo.
The scores:
Vanessa Lachey and Maks Chmerkovskiy: 24
Victoria Arlen and Val Chmerkovskiy: 24
Jordan Fisher and Lindsay Arnold: 24
Frankie Muniz and Witney: 23
Sasha Pieterse and Gleb Savchenko: 23
Nikki Bella and Artem Chigvintsev: 21
Lindsey Stirling and Mark Ballas: 21.
Debbie Gibson and Alan Bersten: 20
Drew Scott and Emma Slater: 20
Terrell Owens and Cheryl Burke: 20
Derek Fisher and Sharna Burgess: 19
Nick Lachey and Peta Murgatroyd: 19
Barbara Corcoran and Keo Motsepe: 17
Dancing with the Stars returns Tuesday for Latin night at 9 p.m. on ABC.
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