Dancing With The Stars‘ 500th episode celebrated the dancing show’s tremendous run going into the Fall TV schedule, and while a lot of it was fun, there was one segment that could’ve been better. I already wrote about how I felt the Instant Dance Challenge was a bold concept, but I thought it wasn’t a great hook for a few reasons. But what about someone who was actually involved, such as DWTS pro Witney Carson?
Carson gracefully waltzed through a conversation with CinemaBlend before preparing for the Season 33 semifinals with her dance partner and former NFL star, Danny Amendola. I knew previously from my conversation with Brandon Armstrong and Chandler Kinney that some were nervous about the Instant Dance Challenge, and she told me how its inclusion may have impacted her performance that night overall, saying:
Well, I’m a very honest person, but I’m also a good sport. So I was happy to play along. I think the show is really evolving and changing all the time. And personally, I felt like there was a big loom over the night. I felt like [with] the competitive dances, I couldn’t put as much focus on that during the week and the night because I was so worried about the instant dances. I think Danny [Amendola] could feel that too. So I felt like we were a little bit off that night because of the instant dances. I don’t know if it was just like an overall energy, but I think it took away from the competitive dances for me personally.
Dancers not only had to prepare their celebrity contestants for their first dance, but then practice another four dances to cover all the bases for what could be chosen at random for the Instant Dance Challenge. As Witney Carson said above, she felt the challenge impacted the contestants even before it happened, and affected how much concentration went into the first dance.
It’s unsurprising to hear Carson say that, as she and Danny Amendola finished the night with the second-lowest score on the leaderboard. Don’t forget, just a month ago, they topped the leaderboard with a big night and created a viral dance move that even Ilona Maher tried replicating. Was their most recent performance attributed to nerves? I can only speculate after hearing what Witney Carson had to say.
Dwight Howard and Daniella Karagach were eliminated in the latest episode, despite topping the leaderboard the previous episode with a Halloween performance viewers won’t soon forget. It speaks to the volatility of the final stage of the game, and how Season 33 might be the most competitive Dancing With The Stars season I’ve seen in quite a few years.
It feels like anyone’s game to win as we head into the final two episodes, though two of the three frontrunners I shouted out after the premiere are still in the running to win. Even so, I’d hate to say they have a better chance at winning than any of the others, though I can’t help but feel like this is Chandler Kinney and Brandon Armstrong’s competition to lose. They’ve been near the top of the leaderboard nearly the entire season, but with how wild the swings have been with judging, it still feels too soon to definitively say anything.
Dancing With The Stars airs on ABC and Disney+ on Tuesdays at 8:00 p.m. ET. I’m excited to see the semifinals, especially since there’s no Instant Dance Challenge coming. I hope everyone can put their best foot forward and punch a ticket to the finale.