DANCING WITH THE STARS Showdown: The Show's 1000th Dance!

Tonight was a night of high scores and personal bests for the DANCING WITH THE STARS celebrities, and also marked a few milestones for the show itself: the halfway point for this season, and the show's 1000th competitive dance. With all that in mind, it's no wonder that the contestants brought their A-game, and for many, tonight was the highlight of their season thus far. 

Kicking off the night was Ralph Macchio with his partner, Karina. Although Ralph has proven himself to be a strong contender and an energetic dancer - ironically, the upbeat numbers are where he falters, and while dancing to "Sweet Home Alabama" he fell just a little short of an impressive performance. Following Bruno's usual over the top commentary, the judges awarded Ralph and Karina two sevens with an eight from Carrie Ann. 

Chris Jericho next took the stage with Cheryl, dancing to the most run-filled version of "America the Beautiful" to ever air on television. In contrast to the overly stylized version of the song, however, Chris brought forth a wonderfully understated performance that was by far his best dance of the season. The judges agreed, giving them two nines and - finally, after much ado - an eight from Len.

Next up was a seemingly uncomfortable Petra Nemcova tapping into her Elvis side with Dmitry. Though she admits that she never really knew much about Elvis, having grown up in the communist Czech Republic, she gives her best impression during rehearsal. Petra unfortunately doesn't carry the attitude out onto the dance floor, resulting in a boring performance, and the pair receives a disappointing twenty-two points.

Romeo and Chelsie decide to take on a classic with "New York, New York" - and work it! Romeo works on both his technique and his "sixties swagger" during rehearsal; both are out in full force when he performs. He earns two nines, with an eight coming from Len.

Not to be outdone, Hines Ward and Kym fully commit to their performance. In rehearsal, Hines jokingly dons a bandanna, channeling Ralph Macchio's "Karate Kid" and thanking him for the inspiration. Whatever actually brought his newly renewed focus, it worked, and the pair receives nines across the board for their military-inspired "Proud to be an American" dance.

Accident-prone Kirstie Alley next takes the stage, and I have my fingers crossed that she can get through the week without some sort of mishap if only because it's seeming as though that's becoming more her signature than anything else. At any rate, her rehearsal features a cameo appearance from none other than John Travolta, who gives the pair some "advice" on how to take their dance up to the next level. Though their performance isn't exactly stunning, there are no mishaps and it's a solid one, garnering them twenty-three points.

Speaking of advice, Kendra Wilkinson needs to learn how to separate advice from unfounded insults. She takes Carrie Ann's comments from last week (about a lack of elegance) as insults rather than constructive criticism, and while I'm sure that she's had to put up with her share of less-than-kind words, there was nothing very unkind about what Carrie Ann had to say. Eventually, after talking it over with partner Louis, she agrees that it was probably not meant to be hurtful; she admits as much after yet another stiffly awkward dance when facing the judges. Still, she shows a much marked improvement from last week with two sevens and an eight from Carrie Ann for the show's 1000th competitive dance.

Rounding out the lineup are Chelsea Kane and Mark, dancing to another Disney star's song - Miley Cyrus's Party in the USA. While the two have been taking the themes and fitting them to their imaginations, this week they stuck with the "America" theme and Chelsea proved that she has dance moves as well as creativity. The judges award them twenty-six points in the form of two nines with an eight from Len.

Who would you keep around in the competition, and who would you like to be sent packing? Tune in tomorrow to see if your wishes are granted!

Viewers may cast their votes for their favorite teams via phone on Monday night during and up to 30 minutes after the "Dancing with the Stars" performance shows. Wireless customers with AT&T may also text message their votes by texting the word "VOTE" to the number that corresponds to the team they want to support (message and data rates may apply). Viewers may also vote online at www.abc.com starting from the opening of each episode on the East Coast, until 8:00 a.m., PT the following day. Fans may cast the maximum limit of votes for each voting method.

"Dancing with the Stars" is the U.S. version of the international smash hit series, "Strictly Come Dancing." This version is produced by BBC Worldwide Productions. Conrad Green serves as executive producer and Rob Wade is co-executive producer. Alex Rudzinski directs. "Dancing with the Stars" is broadcast in 720 Progressive (720P), ABC's selected HDTV format, with 5.1 channel surround sound.

 

 

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