“Dancing with the Stars” (DWTS) returned for its 34th season on Sept. 16, with many fan favorites entering the competition. The stars included Olympic gymnast Jordan Chiles, “Pentatonix” member Scott Hoying, “Boy Meets World”actress Danielle Fishel, actor and comedian Andy Richter, nature conservationist Robert Irwin and more. Season 34 also introduced a new professional dancer to their “pro” roster, Jan Ravnik. Ravnik gained recognition as one of the dancers in Taylor Swift’s “The Eras Tour.” The show’s premiere started with a bang, with Irwin’s jive being praised as having “the best week one dance ever” from judge and former DWTS pro, Derek Hough.
In second week, the theme was One-Hit Wonders Night, and each star and pro duo danced to a famous one-hit wonder. In a double elimination, actor Corey Feldman and his partner Jenna Johnson and NBA All-Star Baron Davis and his partner Britt Stewart were eliminated.
On Dedication Night, former pro Kym Johnson returned as a guest judge, and the dances featured beautiful tributes to people who played a major role in the stars’ lives. This year, the couples were allowed to have their dedicated person appear in their dance. The emotional tributes drew strong reactions from the judges and the audience, and no one was eliminated.
Week sixes Wicked Night featured lively performances to songs from the movie, and had the director, Jon M. Chu, as a guest judge. With an opening number to “No One Mourns the Wicked,” choreographed by Christopher Scott – the choreographer from the “Wicked” films – the night was set up to be full of fun and excitement. Irwin and Witney Carson performed a jazz routine to “Dancing Through Life.” Irwin portrayed the film’s character Fiyero, and he truly embraced the character. The night also saw the first 10s of the season, with three of them awarded to Whitney Leavitt and Mark Ballas for their quickstep to “Popular.” Chiles and her partner Ezra Sosa received the same score for their rumba to “For Good.” The night ended with the elimination of Hoying and his partner, Rylee Arnold.
Halloween Night took place on Oct. 28 and saw the return of a former pro, Cheryl Burke, as a guest judge. The night featured a dance marathon, with the winning couple receiving an additional five points. The controversial winners were Leavitt and Ballas. Many fans believed influencer Alix Earle and her partner Val Chmerkovskiy should’ve been the ones to claim the prize. The night ended with the elimination of Ravnik and his partner, Jen Affleck.
On Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Night, the hosts, Julianne Hough and Alfonso Ribeiro, participated in team dances. Ribeiro’s team received a perfect score, and Hough’s team received a 38/40. The night had more surprises in store with live performances by “Chicago” and “Kool & The Gang.” Fishel and her partner Pasha Pashkov were eliminated. Many fans were disappointed to see Fishel go, especially since she was on the team that received a perfect score just minutes before.
On Nov. 11, DWTS celebrated its 20th year on television. Many iconic figures from the show returned to take part in the celebration. Former longtime host Tom Bergeron returned to guest judge, and the original pros hit the dance floor in the opening number to start the night off. The remaining couples recreated iconic dances from the show’s history. Irwin received the first perfect score of the season for his foxtrot to “Footprints in the Sand,” dedicated to his late father, Steve Irwin. Dylan Efron, Earle and Leavitt also received perfect scores for their dances. The stars also performed in what’s called a “relay,” where they were paired with former Mirrorball Champions and competed against each other, with the winner of each round receiving two bonus points. The three winners were Efron and Rumer Willis, Irwin and Xochitl Gomez and Chiles and Apolo Anton Ohno.
The Semi-Final’s theme was Prince Night, and each couple danced to two songs by Prince. One of the dances featured the couples performing repeat styles from earlier in the season, and the other with them performing new styles we hadn’t seen them do before. The night ended with the controversial elimination of Leavitt and Ballas.
For the first time in DWTS history, the finalists performed three dances in the finale. The dances included a judge’s choice, an instant dance and the famous freestyle round. During the instant dance round, contestants blindly chose a dance style they’d done earlier in the season and were given a random song to dance to. They had five minutes to come up with brand new choreography and perform the dance on the fly. The freestyle dances this year represented each star’s time on the dance floor. Elaine Hendrix and Alan Bersten performed a Broadway-style dance to “I Hope I Get It” from “A Chorus Line,” while Efron and Daniella Karagach performed a beautiful slow dance to “Something in the Heavens” by Lewis Capaldi. Chiles and Sosa’s performance to Normani’s “Motivation” featured a surprise appearance by the artist herself. The night, and season, ended with Irwin and Carson being named the Season 34 Mirrorball Champions.
