Either way, it's week 4, and the nine remaining dancers are ready to dance their classical hearts out. Whatever the music choices, it should be a pretty exciting week -- despite several performances, there is still no front-runner in this season's competition!

Hines and Kym did manage to pull into the lead with their celebratory samba, but they remain only a few points ahead of their competitors. Only 15 points separate the leaders from last place (Sugar Ray and Anna) in cumulative scores, with the others even closer to the lead.
Basically, everybody has a shot at the Mirror Ball.

I'm honestly not entirely sure of what to expect from Classical Week. Probably, the band will trade in the bongos and pop singers for violins, and the dances will definitely have more of an old-fashioned edge to them. And there are no jives this week. Instead, we will be treated to waltzes, Viennese waltzes and paso dobles. These are vastly different styles of dance for many of the competitors, so it should be interesting.

Before we look to the future, however, it might be wise to remember the past. You can do so easily with BuddyTV's week 3 recap.



So let's get onto this classical craziness!

Timpanis! Violins! Cellos! It doesn't get any classier than this. Hey, they managed to get some pop into the mix with famous classical types. I have no idea of who they are, of course, because I am an uncultured boor. But I'm sure they're really cool.

Before we get to see any competitors, the Dancing with the Stars troupe is going to show us how the paso doble is supposed to be done. I assume this is so we can mock the feeble efforts that follow. Unless they're really good, of course. Then we can be impressed.

First up is...

Romeo and Chelsie Hightower
Dancing the paso doble

Judges' Opinions:
Len: "Romeo, have a bit of decorum, dear boy." "It was full of passion. It was full of attack and intensity." "You've got to work now on getting a little more precision." 
Bruno: "Focused! Powerful! Action-packed! And six-packs as well." "You managed to get [the musical phrasing] right."  
Carrie Ann: "There was a little bit of lift, so I had to deduct for that." "That was the first time I'd seen a paso with swagger." 

My Opinion: Hey, Romeo likes classical music. That's kind of cool. OK, are we going to get a big orchestral intro before everyone? I think Romeo and Chelsie look pretty good, but it's kind of hard to tell, since the screen is really, really dark. The lighting people didn't do so well here. He's maybe not being as aggressive as he should be, but they're going fast and look good. But I really can't see too much! The black costumes aren't helping much either. Cool ending. And not just because of the gratuitous shirtlessness.    

Scores: 7+8+8 = 23


Kendra Wilkinson and Louis Van Amstel
Dancing the Viennese waltz

Judges' Opinions:
Len: "Bruno sometimes forgets, you guys are beginners." "I'm not saying it was fantastic..."  
Bruno: "Kendra, you messed it up and you know it." "Become the character! Become the Black Swan! Natalie Portman!" "It's just so beautiful, I can't bear to see it kill." 
Carrie Ann: "Elegance is not so different from sexy. It's like you're afraid of elegance." "You looked like you were holding back." 

My Opinion: Please, better lighting this time... Please? Hey, the opera lady is singing! Kendra looks like she is walking a little too much at the beginning. She looks lovely in the spins though. It seems like Kendra doesn't have the daintiness needed to make the waltz look right. There are tiny moments of hesitation that break up the flow, but it's overall pretty good. Great tricks too!  

Scores: 6+6+6 = 18


Sugar Ray Leonard and Anna Trebunskaya
Dancing the Viennese waltz

Judges' Opinions:
Len: "Sugar Ray Leonard turns into the Sugar Plum Fairy." "The more I got into it, the more I smiled." "I was thoroughly entertained." 
Bruno: "It had a wonderful, cartoonish charm." "Technically it wasn't perfect, but as entertainment, it was excellent."  
Carrie Ann: "You have this sparkle that is unbeatable." "There is something so entertaining and so charming..."  

My Opinion: Ooh! I love "The Nutcracker!" Yay! Slow, very ballet-style start. Hopefully, they'll get to the waltzing soon. There they go. It's pretty, but I'm not sure that Sugar Ray is doing much dancing. What he's doing looks pretty good (although he's obviously not too comfortable with the ballet look), but there's just not much of it. The dance was all about Anna.  

Scores: 7+7+7 = 21


Petra Nemcova and Dmitry Chaplin
Dancing the paso doble

Judges' Opinions:
Len: "I would have liked a little more authority through your feet and your legs." "You really came out, tried to show the emotions of the dance."  
Bruno: "It is not Petra. It is Carmen!" "By the look of it, you're going to get plenty, Petra!"  
Carrie Ann: "Petra, you are on a roll." "It was absolutely gorgeous..." 

My Opinion: I'm not entirely sure Petra can look angry or mean. She's way too cheerful. And the music isn't helping. Granted, she does look a bit angry now that she's in costume and make-up. There is maybe too much swagger going on or something, but Petra looks a little odd. Or perhaps it's the effort from holding that angry face. Oh my. There go her clothes. This is obviously stripper night at Dancing with the Stars.   

Scores: 8+7+8 = 23

Did Tom just say "Low blood sugar" when announcing Ralph and Karina?


Ralph Macchio and Karina Smirnoff
Dancing the waltz

Judges' Opinions:
Len: "You've been in the wilderness for two weeks. You're back!" 
Bruno: "Totally heartfelt! Brilliant storytelling through dancing! And thank you very much for continuing the lines."   
Carrie Ann: "When you dance, you're so honest." "I was swept in, I was carried through the story."  

My Opinion: Will there be more undressing in this dance? Seems to be the theme of the night, and they did say they were going super-sexy... Awww... Juliet's dead. Or not. This is definitely a very pretty dance. They actually seem to be working with the music, which has seemed difficult for people tonight. Even Ralph's hands do seem better. I actually really liked that. And yes, Karina did keep her clothes on. The dance was a very chaste kind of sexy.  

Scores: 8+8+9 = 25


Hines Ward and Kym Johnson
Dancing the paso doble

Judges' Opinions:
Len: "You are the most determined of all of our celebrities, you come out every week at 100 percent."  
Bruno: "Oh yes you do have the killer instinct!" "Truly explosive!"  
Carrie Ann: "You were in the zone, my friend!" "You nailed it, you were in control!" 

My Opinion: Fire! And I don't just mean the flames, because the beginning of the dance is pretty impressive. It's another quick dance, this time with the advantage of me being able to see it. Hines looks a bit worried about the dance, but his actual movements look good. Very angry. Well, until he turned to grin when the music stopped anyway.  

Scores: 9+8+8 = 25

And the crowd does not like that. Not at all. Booing all around.


Chelsea Kane and Mark Ballas
Dancing the Viennese waltz

Judges' Opinions:
Len: "You are a fantastic dancer, so why is it that every time I see you, there's something I don't like?" "Her job at 22 is to interpret a dance that is 300 years old." "Overall, I liked it, because this girl is a really good dancer." 
Bruno: "It was magical, fabulous, musical and bewitching." "Technically speaking, it was the best dance of the night!"  
Carrie Ann: "Tonight, I agree with Bruno!" "Chelsea, you're in your stride." 

My Opinion: The spotlight guy may have an issue with Len there... So much for any idea that Mark would allow for things to be normal in his choreography. Still, they don't seem to be taking too many weird liberties with things. That should make Len happy, despite Mark's acrobatics and hat. Chelsea seems to be hitting her steps, and she looks like she is dancing well.  

Scores: 9+8+9 = 26

Best score of the night, even if Len is a curmudgeon.


Chris Jericho and Cheryl Burke
Dancing the paso doble

Judges' Opinions:
Len: "The dance wasn't bad, OK, but it starts off quiet... You had that menacing look... The music conquered you, you didn't conquer the music." 
Bruno: "Magestic! Thor! The god of thunder!" "You got the accents so well!"  
Carrie Ann: "You were so connected to the music." "Your technique was really good." 

My Opinion: Bassoon time! Is that a pencil-thin mustache I see on Chris? Cool. They're very shiny tonight. This is a slower paso doble to begin with, but if I remember this music correctly, it will speed up. I'm not sure Chris is doing as much as some of the other dancers, but he definitely looks the part of a mean matador. And yes, he killed Cheryl at the end there. That was almost scary.  

Scores: 8+7+8 = 23


Kirstie Alley and Maksim Chmerkovskiy
Dancing the waltz

Judges' Opinions:
Len: "Everything needs to improve."  
Bruno: "I thought you did amazingly well." "You're light on your feet and you've got great musicality."  
Carrie Ann: "Whose shoe comes off in the middle?" "You didn't miss a beat." ("She did miss a beat!" - Len)  

My Opinion: And now we get the song from The Shawshank Redemption! Yes, I know it's from classical stuff too. But that's my association. Um, did Kirstie's shoe come off? Wow, if so, they have the worst luck. The dance still looks very good though. It's pretty and slow, even if the interactions and expressions are a little off at times. 

Scores: 7+7+8 = 22


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Who was the best dancer tonight? Who do you expect to go home? And how do bad things keep happening to Kirstie? Let us know what you think by leaving a comment below!

(Images courtesy of ABC)