Tonight on
Dancing with the Stars, it was all about the paso doble and the Viennese waltz, bringing out, respectively, dramatic and fiery passion or elegant romanticism in the nine performances.
This season of
Dancing with the Stars is looking to be as competitive as ever. The judges gave some fantastic scores - five tens were awarded tonight. All in all, a very exciting evening of performances, featuring much furling and unfurling of capes and even a unicycle! Read on to see the standings based on the judges' scores.
Kristi Yamaguchi and Mark Ballas, Jason Taylor and Edyta Sliwinska - 29
Tied for first place, Kristi and Jason are truly tough competitors. You don't win athletic accolades like these two have without their drive for perfection and competitive spirit. Kristi and Mark delivered a technically perfect and passionate paso doble tonight, while Jason and Edyta brought an intense sexiness never before seen in a Viennese waltz. These two are going to be tough to beat.
Shannon Elizabeth and Derek Hough - 28
If there were ever a team who could catch the two in first place, it has to be Shannon and Derek. Shannon was the picture of grace tonight and really moved so effortlessly across the floor. She even won over Len, who is normally stingy with tens, but not tonight! Their great performance was even more impressive considering that Derek was hospitalized for a neck injury just last Tuesday. If they can do this with a pro who is not quite at 100 percent health, then I can't wait to see what they are capable of as the weeks go by.
Cristian de la Fuente and Cheryl Burke - 26
Despite some tense days in the rehearsal studio, Cristian and Cheryl pulled out a dramatic and very masculine paso doble tonight. If this were a fashion competition, however, they would absolutely win, hands down. Their dominatrix-style latex outfits were a sight to behold. Good thing these two are both very sexy individuals!
Marlee Matlin and Fabian Sanchez, Mario and Karina Smirnoff, Marissa Jaret Winokur and Tony Dovolani - 24
In a three-way tie for fourth place are the three M's: Marlee, Mario and Marissa.
Marlee and Fabian danced a wonderfully romantic Viennese waltz to Billy Joel's "Always a Woman." Except for a few posture issues, the judges were very pleased again with Marlee's musicality. However, Marlee was hoping that tonight would be the night that she broke out from the middle of the pack. Maybe she'll get the chance next week.
Mario and Karina danced a fast-paced and ferocious paso doble that really split the judges. Bruno thought it was great, and gave it a nine, while Len thought that Mario lacked versatility in his dancing, and awarded him a seven. Carrie Ann was somewhere in the middle, with an eight.
For Marissa and Tony, this was finally the night in which their performance brought praise from the judges. They danced the paso doble, which, compared to the other performances, was only mediocre. However, compared to all of their previous performances, it was definitely a step in the right direction.
Priscilla Presley and Louis van Amstel - 22
By all rights, Priscilla and Louis should have been higher in the leaderboard tonight. Their Viennese waltz tonight was a solid performance - not perfect, but definitely worthy of more than 22 points. However, the judges had to deduct points because Priscilla and Louis accidentally performed an illegal lift.
Adam Carolla and Julianne Hough - 19
I hate to say it, but this might be Julianne's last week on season 6 of
Dancing with the Stars. She and Adam performed a paso doble that was interesting, to say the least, involving a unicycle. However, their scores were so far below the next team's score that, by my calculation, they'll need more than 1.4 percent more votes than Priscilla and Louis just to make it to next week. Check back tomorrow for the
Dancing with the Stars results show to see if they make it.
Which female dancer had the best outfit?
-Debbie Chang, BuddyTV Staff Writer
(Image courtesy of ABC)