“We’re all worried,” said Emmitt Smith to co-host Brooke Burke-Charvet near the start of Tuesday’s Dancing With the All-Stars double elimination results show.
That’s right —- two celebs were about to be sent packing. Kirstie Alley was at the bottom of the leaderboard, way below everyone else. The actress, 61, definitely seemed doomed. But who else would get the boot? Kylie Minogue kicked off the show in such a short white dress that she looked ready to take the floor for a sexy samba. But instead, she sang Locomotion, her 1988 hit.
And then came the first results. Tom Bergeron told Melissa Rycroft and Shawn Johnson they’re going to the semifinals. No surprise there (although Monday night judge Len Goodman tried to make us think Shawn might be in trouble.) The cast of Broadway show Newsies performed. And so did Ne-Yo, who sang his new song Let Me Love You(Until You Learn to Love Yourself). Time for the first elimination. Kelly Monaco and partner Val Chmerkovskiy and Kirstie Alley and partner Maks Chmerkovskiy chatted with Brooke. Said Kelly, “It’s hard to be up here with Maks and Kirstie, knowing one of us is going home.”
Kirstie, however, was optimistic. “I feel lucky. We have the best fans in the world. The opportunity to do this the second time around is nothing short of a A) a miracle, and B) sort of stunning!” But Tom Bergeron announced that Kirstie was done. Going home. She didn’t weep. She smiled and said this season “was very special to me.” She said she “learned more about dancing.” And she added, “I want to thank Maks because he’s so patient with me.” She also thanked the judges and the fans. Next up: Stars picked dances and themes for each for next week’s semifinals. Kelly and Val picked “Caveman Hustle” for Melissa and Tony Dovolani.
Emmitt And Cheryl Burke picked “Knight Rider Banghra” (Indian folk dance) for Shawn and Derek Hough. Apolo Anton Ohno and Karina Smirnoff picked “Mad Monk Merengue” for Gilles Marini and Peta Murgatroyd. Gilles and Peta then picked “Big Top Jazz” for Apolo and Karina. Shawn and Derek picked “Espionage Lindy Hop” for Emmitt and Cheryl. Kelly and Val were left with the “Surfer Flamenco.” Anna Trebunskaya performed with Val Chmerkovskiy, Tiler Peck and Robert Fairchild, principal dancers from the New York City Ballet.
Finally, the moment we’ve all been waiting for. Emmitt was deemed safe, leaving Apolo and Gilles (up until last week, the highest scorer in the competition) as the final two. Both guys looked nervous. Eliminated (gasp!): Gilles. The crowd moaned. “In the end, it’s just an incredible experience,” said Gilles. “I tried my very best. Peta was an angel out there,” he said, “and I want to thank my wife. …, Without her, I’m really nothing.” – usatoday