Willis comes out as early frontrunner, with Riker Lynch and Nastia Liukin as other strong contenders in the competition.
- Mar 17, 2015
AceShowbiz - The 20th edition of "Dancing with the Stars" kicked off on Monday, March 16. The cast entered the ballroom as the competition began with a performance by Willow Shields, who is paired with Mark Ballas. They were introduced with a pre-taped video that took on "The Hunger Games", which Willow stars in.
Willow and Mark danced the cha cha. Len Goodman and Julianne Hough said it's well done for a first dance. Bruno Tonioli said, "The odds are definitely in your favor, that takes some doing. You broke the ice now, next time attack it more," while Carrie Ann Inaba predicted that she's "going to go far." The judges gave her 25 out of 40 points as they all said she needed to work more on her legs.
Robert Herjavec and Kym Johnson also danced the cha cha which blew Julianne away. She also praised his "sharp legs." Bruno and Carrie Ann noticed that Robert seemed to have a lot of fun and they liked it, but Bruno warned him about his timing. Len said the "Shark Tank" star shocked him in a good way, but added, "You are too light on your feet though and your hips could have worked a bit more." The judges gave him 28 points.
Riker Lynch and Allison Holker danced the jive, which was very impressive for a first performance. Bruno gushed, "You are cool, hip and your timely is great." Carrie Ann said "it was fun, but not brilliant," while Len shared some advice to prepare him for next week's dance. Julianne called the partnership "the perfect combination." The "Glee" actor got 31 points.
Next to dance were Charlotte McKinney and Keo Motsepe, who performed a jive. There were many techinal flaws as Carrie Ann pointed out her "rough start." Julianne said, "You need to work on your legs, the top half is great." Bruno also gave a contrusctive criticism, saying, "It must take monumental effort with your front frontage, come back next week and have no mistakes." The judges gave him 22 points.
Patti LaBelle and Artem Chigvintsev danced the foxtrot and won the judges' hearts. Julianne sang praise to the singing legend, "You obviously have a precense, you were like a graceful goddess." The judges also commended Artem for letting Patti's inherent charisma shine. The pair earned 25 points.
Chris Soules and Witney Carson danced the jive to "Footloose". Julianne said, "Your feet were a little loose, but overall, it was so much fun." Carrie Ann warned him about his "T-Rex arms," while Len saw "great potential" in "The Bachelor" star. The newly engaged farmer earned 26 points.
Michael Sam and Peta Murgatroyd danced the cha cha which was deemed "spunky and funky" by Bruno. He, Julianne and Len criticized his footwork, but liked the dance overall. The NFL star earned 26 points.
Nastia Liukin and Derek Hough danced the foxtrot. Carrie Ann said "it was fantastic," but criticized the lift. Julianne called it "an explosive first dance," but told her to "work on your flexible upper back." The judges gave the Olympic gold gymnast 30 points.
Redfoo and Emma Slater danced the cha cha. It was fun, but technically it wasn't good. Len commeted, "You dance like your hair, wild and un kept - but it was fun." Bruno added, "I love the wackyness, more of that please. The footwork needs to be controlled."
Noah Galloway and Sharna Burgess also danced the cha cha. Julianne commened Sharna's choreography which accomodated the one-arm situation of the U.S. army vet and amputee. Bruno praised Noah's unique presence, while Carrie Ann went emotional as saying that Noah broadened her "scope of what dance is about." The judges gave him 26 points.
Also dancing the cha cha, Suzanne Somers and Tony Dovolani earned 25 points. Bruno couldn't help commenting on Tony's crazy '80s workout outfit, but said the dance was "very well executed." Len and Julianne agreed that it was a little too safe.
Saved for the last, Rumer Willis and Valentin Chmerkovskiy wowed the judges with their foxtrot. "That was incredible, you are in it to win it," Carrie Ann gushed. Len added, "It was intense, this could be your season," as Bruno said Rumer had "the best arms I have seen tonight."
