Disclaimer: I was invited to LA to attend a press event and expenses were covered by Disney and ABC. I was not compensated for this coverage.
Photo Credit: ABC/Adam Taylor
I am so excited to finally tell you about my adventures in LA during the Dancing With The Stars Episode where all of the stars performed a tribute to famous couples over time some were fictional and some were not! They named this show the Dynamic Duo! I was able to be a part of this episode in more ways than I could ever imagine!
I prepared for the show with my fancy makeup and I even went with some silver and purple eye shadow since I wanted to feel fancy! Getting ready for the night was fun, but I had no clue how exciting my night was going to end! When we arrived at CBS where Dancing With The Stars was filmed, we exited and went past the back parking lot where all of the stars parked!
We entered and went right past the stars as some were already dressed and ready to go, probably from their rehearsals prior to the show! I walked right past Bethany Mota and that made me so happy! I have been a fan of her for awhile since she is such a social media goddess!
We were able to go up on stage prior to the show where I was able to take pictures on stage and at the judging booth before heading to our seats! The stage is an optical illusion on TV, the balcony only has two rows of seats and we were right above the stage on the first row on the balcony! When they interview the couples after the performance, they were right next to us!
The hosts were Tom Bergeron and Erin Andrews! The judges were Carrie Ann Inaba, Len Goodman, Julianne Hough and Bruno Tonioli!
Photo credit: (ABC/Adam Taylor)
Lea Thompson & Artem Chigvintsev took on a Bonnie & Clyde persona and scored a 32 with their Jazz routine.
Photo Credit: ABC
Michael Waltrip and Emma Slater were Tarzan and Jane and they danced the Foxtrot. They scored a 25 and were later eliminated from the show.
Photo Credit: ABC
Janel Parish and Val Chmerkovskiy danced a contemporary routine as Romeo and Juliet and scored a PERFECT score from the judges with a final total of 43! Janel was very excited since she liked contemporary! It was a beautiful routine!
Photo Credit: ABC
Tommy Chong and Peta Murgatroyd took the stage as Johnny and June Carter Cash. They had the low score of only 29 that evening. The show definitely focuses a bit on Tommy’s age, but don’t let the numbers fool you, he can move!
Photo Credit: ABC
Sadie Robertson and Mark Ballas did an Adam and Eve Contemporary routine and it was honestly one of my favorites! They had an apple prop that they passed around as they danced and I did later ask them about it during our dinner event.
Photo Credi: ABC
Alfonso Ribeiro and Witney Carson did a Batman and Robin routine where Alfonso flew from the balcony to begin their Cha Cha routine! They scored a 41!
Photo Credit: ABC
Finally Bethany Mota and Derek Hough did an “I love Lucy” & Ricky Salsa routine! They scored a very high score of a 40! Do you think that Bethany’s social media reach is helping out with the votes?
Photo Credit: ABC
Since Janel and Val won immunity they were definitely safe for the following week. The dancing partners then had to go head to head where eventually Michael and Emma were sent home. You can feel how intense the show was the entire time.
The entire night consisted of 2 ½ hours of screaming, standing, and clapping. I was way more worn out than I would be if I were cheering on the Royals at Kauffman Stadium during the World Series!
After the show we ran into Bruno Tonioli as he spoke to us briefly before walking to our ride to dinner!
We went to a wonderful restaurant bar on the room in Hollywood called Mixology for live tweeting for the west coast broadcast. We were told that depending on the schedule “maybe” a special guest or two would stop by. By the end of the night we were having drinks, eating, and watching TV with:
Selfie time with Sadie!
Sadie Robertson, 17 Year Old star from A&E’s Duck Dynasty.
Mark! (& my friend photobombing!)
Mark Ballas, Sadie’s dancing partner!
Janel Parrish , broadway star and singer who stars in “Pretty Little Liars”.
Valentin Chmerkovskiy, Janel’s dance partner!
Janel and Val!
Lea Thompson and Artem Chigvintsev, Lea’s dance partner.
Lea & Artem!
Lindsay Arnold, Allison Holker, Jenna Johnson, and Keo Motsepe other stars ended up meeting up with us as well!
Dancer, Allison Holker! If you look really close that is Sean Berdy in the background from “Switched at Birth”!
Even their families joined us!
Willie Robertson from Duck Dynasty!
TONIGHT at 8:00pm ET the FIVE remaining couples will compete in the semi-finals during “Plugged/Unplugged” night! That is today Monday, November 17th!
Tonight, the semi-finalists including Tommy Chong, Bethany Mota, Janel Parrish, Alfonso Ribeiro, and Sadie Robertson will perform to two different versions of the same song. The plugged will be the original version, then the unplugged will consist of a version of the same song where a special guest will perform during it!
Couples will be dancing to the following “Plugged/Unplugged” songs:
• Tommy Chong & Peta Murgatroyd – “Tainted Love” by Soft Cell and “unplugged” version by Hannah Peel
• Bethany Mota & Derek Hough – “I Want You Back” by Jackson 5 and “unplugged” version by The Civil Wars
• Janel Parrish & Valentin Chmerkovskiy – “Blame” by Calvin Harris, featuring a guest “unplugged” performance by Time For Three
• Alfonso Ribeiro & Witney Carson – “Love Runs Out” by One Republic, featuring a guest “unplugged” performance by Christina Grimmie
• Sadie Robertson & Mark Ballas – “Problem” by Ariana Grande, featuring guest “unplugged” performance by Noah Guthrie