The Finals!

Hello everybody, and welcome to the final night of competition for Season Six of “Dancing with the Stars.” It is the Finals. Tonight, there are three couples left out of a competition that featured 12 at the start, and which has showcased some very fine dancing and some fine things about dance along the way. Tomorrow night, the totals of the Judges’ scores and the votes from the American people and the audience around the world will determine a winner; there will be musical performances, and dances by some of the couples who have danced this season. However, tonight is the last night of competition dancing, and the couples will be doing two dances each towards that purpose tonight.

We start with our Host Tom Bergeron reminding us that “The End Is Near.” The three couples remaining will be doing a Freestyle Dance as well as a “Cha-Cha Face-Off.” The opening credits roll: Of the 12 couples shown, only three are still here to dance tonight. In the audience are some of the other folks who danced this year, as well as in past seasons, supporting their friends and the show itself. One of the people in the first row is Tony Award winner Marissa Jaret Winokur, keeping true to the pledge she made last week: That even if she was not voted through into the finals, she would come and be there as a supporter in the seats. The three remaining couples come out: Actor and Chilean Air Force pilot Cristian De La Fuente, along with his partner, two-time “Dancing Stars” Champion Cheryl Burke. Olympic Champion Figure Skater Kristi Yamaguchi and her partner Mark Ballas, and Miami Dolphins Footballer (And NFL Man of the Year) Jason Taylor, along with his partner, “Dancing With The Stars” stalwart Edyta Sliwinska. Host Tom Bergeron says that there have been thousands of hours of training, lots of dancing, gallons of spray tan – mostly on Edyta – and three trips to the Emergency Room this season. (I believe that’s one of Cristian and two for dance pro Derek Hough.)

The first dance they will be doing tonight is the Cha-Cha face-off. All three couples will be doing the same style of dance to the same music. They draw for the order they will go in. Cristian De La Fuente gets the first place. Jason gets the second. He says that he likes this because he can see the first person going to see where they are and won’t have to go first, and he doesn’t have to follow Kristi either. Kristi will go third. All three couples had a group rehearsal of their dance with each other, and of course they checked out each others’ moves and each others’ routines. Mark and Kristi don’t have their routine fully choreographed yet, so Jason and Cristian razz Mark about that a bit, saying he’s trying to be secretive and see their moves to take them for his routine with Kristi. Then it is time for all of them to dance.

Cristian and Cheryl come out first, in bright Magenta outfits. They do sharp moves and turns, and he finishes his first part out there by running Cheryl across the floor and then sliding with her. Then Jason and Edyta hit the floor. They do some basics and body rolls along with some very nice Cha-Cha, then he jumps over her, boosting himself up on her shoulders. Then Kristi shimmies out in a black, gray and white fringe outfit, and kisses Bruno Tonioli. Kristi and Mark go out on the floor and do some break aparts and shimmies before he dips her into a *low* around the world move down close to the dance floor. She then does a move I call a “three stage spin to dip” because it is a spin-in to a dip, but broken into different parts by sharp breaks in the motion, very well coordinated and a different twist on what might otherwise seem a usual move in the Finals at this level. Then the other dancers come out and rejoin them. All three couples are together and dance. They line up in two rows, with Jason, Kristi and Cristian out front and their partners in back. Then they do a final pose where Jason and Cristian lift Kristi up and the three Pros kneel under her to complete the dance. Jason is at her shoulders, and Cristian is at her feet, using one hand to brace her up. Then we hear the Judges’ reaction to the dance.

Len Goodman says that Cristian has “All the gear in the rear” with his body movement and hip action. He says that Jason would have been better served had the group dance been the Foxtrot, which he is better at doing. Len says that Kristi is the “total package” of emotion and ability.

Bruno Tonioli is next. Host Tom Bergeron informs Bruno that he has Kristi’s lipstick under his nose. (Guess she was going for boogers! Ha ha!) Bruno said that the three couple dance was “…the threesome of the year, I had to join in.” Bruno also told Cristian that he was hugely improved and that it was great to see him dancing now. He told Jason that he got a bit off the time in his dance but that he did OK, and he told Kristi that she had the honors of the class and that he liked her dancing out there. He also told Kristi that as for the lipstick part, “maybe later.”

Then it was time to hear from Carrie-Ann Inaba. She liked Cristian, and told Jason that while the Foxtrot was best for him he did alright on the Cha-Cha. However, when it came to Kristi, Carrie-Ann said it was Ladies’ night tonight because Kristi was tops in her book “hands down.”

Then, the judges assign each couple a grade based on their work in the Cha-Cha “Face Off” dance.

They score Cristian De La Fuente and Cheryl Burke at 8 + 9 + 9 = 26. The 8 is from Carrie-Ann.

As Jason Taylor and Edyta Sliwinska await their scores, Jason says that his strategy to deal with nerves was just to have fun with the dance. He said that if they could come back for a Viennese Waltz or Foxtrot round, they’d get everyone. He also said that there was a height requirement for Latin dances and that he was too tall at 6 foot 6 inches. His and Edyta’s scores came back at 8 + 8 + 8 = 24.

Kristi Yamaguchi and Mark Ballas received scores of 10 + 10 + 10 = 30. Hostess Samantha Harris asked Kristi Yamaguchi about a celebrity woman not winning in the past four seasons, and Kristi said that that came up somewhat but she was going for it with her dancing.

Then we go on to the Freestyle round. Now each one of our couples will do a freestyle dance where any style of dance, or mix thereof, are fair game; along with the lifts that are usually frowned upon by the judges. 

The first couple to go in the Freestyle round will be Kristi Yamaguchi and Mark Ballas. Before they go, we get a bit more interview time with them. Mark says that Jason Taylor will bring his strength and Cristian De La Fuente will bring his personality to the Freestyle, so they want to bring “all that and more.” Mark also wants to do a spot where Kristi flips him into the air by his foot. Kristi worries that he’ll kick her in the teeth and says she’s glad her dad is a dentist. So Julianne Hough comes by to show Kristi how a woman can do the move on a guy. After Julianne does a lift clinic for the ladies, they come out to the ballroom to dance.

They come out in robes and drop them to reveal black pinstripe “suit” outfits with sequins and Chuck Taylor Converse shoes. They did a song that talked about “Working Day and Night.” The song sort of reminded me of some round dancers that I know, who despite having very long hours that they work, still stick with dancing and put a lot of time into dancing and dance activities as well. In the case of Kristi and Mark, they come out and start Moonwalking, combining some hip-hop elements into Latin styling. They do a lot of side by side style work with arm and body choreography as well, and are very coordinated on their parts here as well as their stuff in close position. They also did the spot where she flipped up Mark and he landed it well. It also looked like he missed kicking her, which I am sure pleased both her and her dad. They ended up lying down on the dance floor on their backs apart from each other. After the song and their energetic freestyle, they came over to the Judges’ area and Host Tom Bergeron said “I wouldn’t be surprised if you didn’t get up.” Bergeron described it as an “exhausting” dance.

Bruno Tonioli was the first judge to give comment, and he told them that he liked the hip-hop and cha-cha fusion, and that their dance was “Worthy of the Championship.” Carrie-Ann Inaba told Kristi that usually the guys were the bigger “crowd pleasers” in the Finals, but she showed she could hang with them there and said she kept up with the guys tonight. Len Goodman said that he was not a lover of hip-hop, when it was mixed with Latin dance in the Latin dance rounds of the show. However he said this held his attention in the Freestyle and that he loved the energy. As they awaited their scores, Kristi said that the Trophy was so close, and talked about “Girl power” as Samantha Harris again reminded her that it had been a while since a female celebrity had won on the show. Carrie-Ann agreed, saying “Girl power” as she gave the dance a 10. Kristi and Mark’s scores for the Freestyle were 10 + 10 + 10 = 30.

Kristi thanked all the people for having her here on the show tonight. Then host Tom Bergeron asked if “BFFs” Jason and Cristian could put aside their buddy-buddy ways and dance in the competition next, after the coming commercial break. After the break, we heard that the second couple to dance in the Freestyle round tonight would be Jason Taylor and Edyta Sliwinska.

As they prepare for the Freestyle, Jason again tells Edyta that being 6 foot 6 inches and doing the Freestyle aren’t going together well. He also has a couple mishaps while practicing their lifts. Edyta takes a couple spills but tells him to keep trying. Edyta says that after six seasons on “Dancing With The Stars,” she has finally reached the Finals, and she really wants to go for it. With an athletic partner in Jason, she feels she has a chance. His wife and kids come by to help him and cheer him on. His kids also help him with lift practice, because they are lighter than Edyta. Then it’s on to the ballroom.

They come out to dance with Jason in a classic “Miami suit” of white linen and Edyta in a dress that soon becomes a Bikini with a hip wrap. They dance to a song about South Beach in Miami; they throw lots of strutting action in, with some South Beach hip hop flavor and hip rolls and club style moves. He spins Edyta *very* high in the air and then he loses his shirt and she rips his undershirt off to finish the dance. The crowd cheers for them and so do Carrie-Ann and Bruno, as Len smiles and shakes his head.

Carrie-Ann Inaba goes first. “Nice ending. I like the ending,” she tells them. She also said that she liked to see Edyta in the Finals after six seasons, and that those were the most ambitious lifts for Jason ever. “Who knew Jason Taylor could get funky?” she said. Len Goodman told Jason “I could see us at South Beach, you in your Speedos and me in my thong.” Uh, thanks for sharing Len. Bruno Tonioli told Jason “If you got it, flaunt it. It’s like watching centerfolds” and that the dance was good too, with great lifts. Jason and Edyta’s scores for the Freestyle were 9 + 9 + 9 = 27.

Up in the third and final dance of the Freestyle round and of the evening were Cristian De La Fuente and his partner Cheryl Burke. Cristian said that it is the Final, and that means it’s Freestyle.” He went on to say that “In the past, the Freestyle was the dance that could make you or break you. I’m already broken, so bring it on.” Cristian said he knew what he was getting into when he decided to keep dancing in the competition so he wanted no sympathy. For added motivation, Cheryl showed him one of the Disco Ball trophies she won before. Despite falling hard on his arm during practice, Cristian remains motivated and stays at it.

In the ballroom, they come out to dance their Freestyle to music many Round Dancers would recognize, “Suavamente.” They started out on stage. Cristian ran down the stairs and then Cheryl took a big jump right into his arms on the floor. They went into sharp samba style body rolls, then he did a one armed lift of her up onto his side and he spun her around. He did one-armed underarm turns and several other lifts up the side of his body with one arm through the course of the dance. He also did a really quick boost of her up in the air, face to face, with one arm after she ran up to him on a pass. They finished their Freestyle, and then it was on to the judges.

Len Goodman is the first to speak. He says that he has to consider things fairly in relation to the other dances and that his lifts just weren’t up to the level of the other couples’ out there. He said he liked the flavor of the dance though. Bruno Tonioli told Cristian and Cheryl that he hadn’t seen that much shaking in the legs since the Northridge Earthquake. He called Cristian a “True Latin Stallion.” Carrie-Ann Inaba said that as Judges, they were looking to see who will win it tonight. She said she wasn’t sure he’ll match Kristi, but that she looks at him and sees a winner. As Cristian and Cheryl await their scores, Cristian says that “When you get a challenge in life, you can’t give it up ‘til you give everything you’ve got.” Cristian and Cheryl’s scores come back: 9 + 8 + 9 = 26. The 8 is from Len Goodman and draws some heat from the crowd. Cristian says “They’re airing this show in Chile” and he asks viewers in Spanish to vote for him. “Latino power” he says.

As the show ends, the standings are as follows:

1 – Kristi Yamaguchi & Mark Ballas (Cha Face-off, Freestyle) 30 + 30 = 60

2 – Cristian De La Fuente & Cheryl Burke (Same) 26 + 26 = 52

3 – Jason Taylor & Edyta Sliwinska (Same)   24 + 27 = 51

It would seem that the show gave Kristi and Mark a quite commanding lead, but the viewers will have their say as well before all is said and done. The results show is on Tuesday. It is listed at 9 PM Eastern to 11 PM (Check local listings) but apparently another hour of programming is on before that at 8. Take care and thanks for reading!

David in New Jersey