Scores in the Semis of DWTS

Week 9 is semi-final week.  The couples danced a Latin and a Ballroom they hadn't danced before.  Plus, there is a head to head Cha Cha. 

"What's a head to head Cha Cha?" I hear you ask.  Well two couples dance 15 seconds of Cha Cha and the judges pick the winner.  The other two couples dance and the judges pick the winners.  Then the winners go head to head and the judges pick the overall winner.  And they get a bonus 15 points.  Cha-ching.

Speaking of head-head, Kym Johnson danced despite her neck injury.  I suspect they are going to get some sympathy votes from the viewers if the studio audience are anything to go by!

Here are the scores:

Ralph Macchio and Karina Smirnoff - 25 & 23 = 48
Hines Ward and Kym Johnson - 30 & 30 = 60
Chelsea Kane and Mark Ballas - 28 & 30 & 15* = 73
Kirstie Alley and Maksim Chmerkovskiy - 27 & 27 = 54

*Chelsea and Mark won the head-head.

• Ralph really didn't seem that engaged this week - perhaps some after-effects from his injury.
• I felt Hines and Kym were slightly over marked but hey, she deserves it.
• Chelsea and Mark were perky as always, the judges seemed a bit down on their first dance
• Kirstie is still doing amazingly well, and she's 60!

Ralph is obviously in the hole with the only other couple in danger being Kirstie and Maks.

Stevie Nicks tomorrow!

Dancing with the Stars Semi-final Scores

There were no gimmicks or filler in tonight's performance show!  Just a regular DWTS semi-final!

After Kurt Warner's elimination we're left with Bristol Palin (generally accepted to be the least gifted dancer),  Kyle Massey (cheeky chappie), Brandy (keeping Maks under control) and Jennifer Grey (walking wounded).

Each couple had to dance a Ballroom number and a Latin number that they hadn't performed before.

Here are the judges' scores from week 9:

• Brandy and Maks - 27 & 30 = 57 - Their Paso was OK, but their Argentine Tango was hot!
• Jennifer and Derek - 30 & 30 = 60 - Their Cha Cha and Waltz were both perfect.  Seriously.
• Bristol and Mark - 27 & 26 = 53 - Bristol's Paso was excellent - she really came out of her shell and performed.  Her Waltz wasn't nearly as good and I felt she was marked too high.
• Kyle and Lacey - 29 & 29 = 58 - Kyle's Samba was great and maybe deserved a 30.  His Samba was way over-scored though.  He seemed to stand still for half the dance!

The scores are very close - meaning it's going to be on the viewers' votes!  

Semi-final Week on DWTS

It's pretty straightforward on Dancing with the Stars this week - the couples perform one new Ballroom dance and one new Latin dance.  We then have a results show, and then everyone wonders why Bristol hasn't been voted off.  At least the last part has been consistent for the last few weeks.

The Results Show sees Annie Lennox singing a couple of songs from her new Christmas album "A Christmas Cornucopia".  Also performing is Enrique Iglesias.

It's "Design-a-Dance" night too, where the Macy's Stars of Dance perform based on viewers votes for the song, the style and the professional dancers.

The Monday show is on for 90 minutes from 8pm EST and the Results Show is at 9pm Tuesday for one hour.

Who are in the finals of Dancing with the Stars?

This week was the semi-finals of Dancing with the Stars - probably the worst time to be voted off.  So close, but didn't reach the final.

After the performing twice, the couples' scores were:

Nicole/Derek 59
Evan/Anna 59
Erin/Maks 56
Chad/Cheryl 52

It's closer than it looks as the viewers votes can have a large effect.

At the end of the results show, we were left with two celebrities - Erin and Chad.

And Chad was voted off. 

Chad was much more personable than I expected, and he really is quite witty (an under-used word nowadays).  With no "formal" training he went further than I expected and definitely grew as a dancer.  He just needs to get over that natural shyness.  Here is the samba he and Cheryl performed in week 9 (the one where he took his shirt off):

Chad Ochocinco & Cheryl Burke - Samba

Posted to Chad Ochocinco Videos on May 18, 2010

Click to Play | View Details

So it's Nicole, Evan and Erin in the finals.  They will dance four times next week, including the freestyle round.

It's going to be a great finale!

Dancing with the Stars Semifinal Judges' Scores

Week 9 of Dancing with the Stars had the final four couples perform twice - a Ballroom round and a Latin round.

I have to say the quality and passion of the dances contributed to one of the best DWTS shows I have seen (and Tom agreed with me!).

Here are the scores:

Erin Andrews & Maksim Chmerkovskiy (Viennese Waltz/Paso Doble) - 27 & 29 = 56
Nicole Scherzinger & Derek Hough (Argentine Tango/Cha-Cha) - 30 & 29 = 59
Chad Ochocinco & Cheryl Burke (Waltz/Samba) - 27 & 25 = 52
Evan Lysacek & Anna Trebunskaya (Foxtrot/Paso Doble) - 29 & 30 = 59

• Erin danced beautifully in the Waltz, and was almost perfect in the Paso.  She and Maks definitely have chemistry.
• Nicole and Derek should have got 60, but Len is a grump.
• Chad is definitely the most improved, and I thought the judges were harsh on his Samba.  He jumped on the "take off your shirt" bandwagon.  Hey - if it works, jump on it!
• Evan was showing his personality a little more this week and it helped.  I felt the Paso was a little stilted, but I'm not a dancing judge, I prefered their foxtrot.

Chad was in the bottom two last week, and has the lowest score this week.  However, Tom shared that all four contestants had received the most viewer votes at some time this season.  Erin was in the bottom two a couple of weeks ago - it's so complicated!

I would like to see Chad stay, but I suspect he is most likely to go.

Dancing with the Stars Results Show Week 9: Miley Cyrus and Sarah McLachlan

The remaining four couples will each perform a new Latin and a new Ballroom dance meaning the performance show on Monday will only be 90 minutes long.

Given there are only four couples left the producers have stuffed more into the results show in week 9 to make up for fewer gloomy celebrities under a red light.

Miley Cyrus is to perform the live television debut of her new single off her upcoming album "Can't Be Tamed".  They were thinking of letting her dance but thought it was too risky given her recent predilection for lap dancing.

The Design-a-Dance will feature Melissa Rycroft and Joey Fatone tangoing to a KISS song.  The celebrities, song and costumes were all chosen via vote on ABC.com.

It's the second round of the college competition, between Rutgers and Utah Valley University.

And finally, Sarah McLachlan will perform two songs - a new single "Loving You is Easy" and her classic, "Angel".  Accompanying her on the dance floor will be Jonathan, Anna, Kym, Dmitry, Damian and Lacey.

I'm looking forward to Sarah McLachlan, and it will be nice to see Melissa and Joey.