On Sunday, November 18, just one day before the Dancing With the Stars season 27 finale, the sixth episode of Dancing With the Stars: Juniors aired, which featured the six remaining couples performing dances in honor of the people they are thankful for.
With thoughts on the episode, here is Paul Bentley, along with scores given by The Readers, as determined by an online poll.
Giving Thanks Dances
In the spirit of Thanksgiving, the six remaining junior couples performed a dance in dedication to the people that they are most grateful for in their lives, which everyone chose their family. At the end of the night, one team was eliminated from the competition based on the judges’ scores and the votes of the studio audience.
[Order of the Judges’ Scores: Val Chmerkovskiy, Mandy Moore, Adam Rippon]
Ariana Greenblatt and Artyon Celestine, Mentored by Brandon Armstrong
Salsa
Pintame by Elvis Crespo
The Judges’ Scores: 9, 9, 9 (27/30)
The Readers’ Score: 8
Paul Bentley’s Thoughts: Brandon gave Ariana and Artyon a competition-style Salsa, and I was all for it! This dance was sort of reminiscent of their Cha-Cha-Cha from week one, but this performance definitely had its own flair to it. Ariana was so into the Latin action, and as Val said, did justice to Puerto Rico! XD Ariana brought out her same amazing energy that she always has, but I think it could have been controlled just a tad bit better since she was indicating the music a bit much in her upper body. She also seemed to have a bit of trouble keeping her center of balance at certain points, but she did well with the challenge she was given.
Paul Bentley’s Score: 8
#TeamBrandon
Mandla Morris and Brightyn Brems, Mentored by Cheryl Burke
Foxtrot
Isn’t She Lovely by Stevie Wonder
The Judges’ Scores: 9, 9, 9 (27/30)
The Readers’ Score: 9
Paul Bentley’s Thoughts: Well wasn’t this Foxtrot just lovely?! XD Team Cheryl really hit it out of the park with this one. It was a good kind of simple, which gave us the capacity to appreciate the little details in this dance. Mandla was a great leading man for Brightyn, not letting the height difference get in the way of a nice, sturdy hold! Although, maybe the height different got in the way just a little bit because Mandla’s knees were bent for a lot of the time in hold. But besides that, this was a dapper, snazzy routine. And how cool was it that he got his father to perform for him?! This was definitely a special dance that I was glad to watch.
Paul Bentley’s Score: 9
#TeamCheryl
Akash Vukoti and Kamri Peterson, Mentored by Witney Carson
Jazz
Eliminated- 6th Place
Jai Ho! (You Are My Destiny) by A.R. Rahman and The Pussycat Dolls
The Judges’ Scores: 8, 8, 7 (23/30)
The Readers’ Score: 8
Paul Bentley’s Thoughts: Akash is such a delight. He attacked this Bollywood-style Jazz with Kamri better than any other dance he has done, and it made for a fun, adorable routine! I could tell from his focused face alone how determined he was to give it his all! Granted, his feet were a bit shuffley and his fingers could have had some more shaping, but you know what? Akash is the youngest kid on the show and doesn’t really have any prior performance experience outside of spelling bees. I am very impressed by how far he has come and how maturely he has handled the show. Even though Team Witney was eliminated this week, I’m glad Akash was able to do a dance special to him. He has become one of my favorite people to ever perform on DWTS (the main show and the Juniors version), so this was the most upsetting elimination of the season for me so far!
Paul Bentley’s Score: 8
#TeamWitney
Miles Brown and Rylee Arnold, Mentored by Lindsay Arnold
Foxtrot
Ain’t No Mountain High Enough by Marvin Gaye & Tammi Terrell
The Judges’ Scores: 9, 9, 8 (26/30)
The Readers’ Score: 9
Paul Bentley’s Thoughts: Is there any dance Miles and Rylee aren’t amazing at?! This Foxtrot was absolutely stellar! And I have to hand it to Lindsay yet again for the superb choreography that had a lot both in out of hold, as well as a seamless combination of fast and slow that transitioned into each other really well. Mandla has become such a dynamic dancer, being able to go from a hard-hitting Hip Hop Jazz one episode, to doing a refreshing, feel-good Foxtrot the next! His musicality is on point, and to add to that, he really knows how to “fill” every beat of the music with little shoulder movements or head bops to give it some more pizazz. This was a perfect Foxtrot in my eyes, so really, Adam? An eight?!
Paul Bentley’s Score: 10
#TeamLindsay
Sky Brown and JT Church, Mentored by Alan Bersten
Foxtrot
Unconditionally by Katy Perry
The Judges’ Scores: 9, 10, 10 (29/30)
The Readers’ Score: 10
Paul Bentley’s Thoughts: Watching Sky and JT dance always makes me genuinely happy. There’s just a certain aura they give off that makes even my heart melt. XD Sky showed us an elegant side to her that we haven’t gotten the chance to see yet, and just like with all of her other dances, I absolutely loved it. She really understands how to move to the music, and she does so with such maturity and grace. She and JT genuinely look so elated when they dance, which is exactly why I have come to love DWTS: Juniors so much. And, as Mandy said, some credit has to go Alan for being able to train them so well. Kudos to everyone on Team Alan!
Paul Bentley’s Score: 10
#TeamAlan
Mackenzie Ziegler and Sage Rosen, Mentored by Gleb Savchenko
Samba
Cheap Thrills by Sia featuring Sean Paul
The Judges’ Scores: 9, 9, 9 (27/30)
The Readers’ Score: 10
Paul Bentley’s Thoughts: First of all, Mackenzie’s footwork was through the roof in this Samba. Second of all, Sage was absolutely in the zone. And third of all, Maddie and Mackenzie matched each other really well. Adding Maddie to the dance at the end didn’t necessarily enhance the dance per say, but it showed how well she is at mirroring. And besides, it’s pretty cool for Mackenzie that she got to have her sister perform with her! One little thing I noticed was that Mackenzie was too stop-and-go in certain sections, although I think Gleb’s choreography challenged them in that aspect. It was a nice routine that highlighted once again that Mackenzie is able to do anything that is thrown at her!
Paul Bentley’s Score: 9
#TeamGleb
Week 6 Scoreboard
Dancing With the Stars: Juniors Week 6 Scoreboard
| |||
Couple
|
Dance Style
|
Judges’ Scores
|
Overall Score
|
Ariana and Artyon
|
Salsa
|
9, 9, 9 (27/30)
|
27/30
|
Mandla and Brightyn
|
Foxtrot
|
9, 9, 9 (27/30)
|
27/30
|
Akash and Kamri
|
Jazz
|
8, 8, 7 (23/30)
|
23/30
|
Miles and Rylee
|
Foxtrot
|
9, 9, 8 (26/30)
|
26/30
|
Sky and JT
|
Foxtrot
|
9, 10, 10 (29/30)
|
29/30
|
Mackenzie and Sage
|
Samba
|
9, 9, 9 (27/30)
|
27/30
|
Giving Thanks Night Awards
Most Entertaining Dance: Akash and Kamri’s Jazz
Akash and Kamri’s Jazz was so much fun. I love the Bollywood style, and Witney did it absolute justice. Akash was so into the performance, and it made me smile!
Best Costumes: Sky and JT’s Foxtrot Costumes
Sky and JT were adorably elegant in their light pink formal wear for their Foxtrot. I loved the colors of the costumes and the background, which complimented the music and the choreography really well.
Best Choreography: Ariana and Artyon’s Salsa
Ariana and Artyon’s dance is exactly the type of dance I think of when I think of Salsa! Sometimes modern Salsas have a bit too much Hip-Hop or other non-Salsa elements thrown into it, which is fine, sometimes, but I can appreciate a nice, stripped-down, authentic Salsa like this!
Strongest Couple: Sky and JT
I’ve said it before, but I’ll say it again. Sky and JT have such a great connection with each other, and when they do their performances, all I can think about is how perfect they are as dance partners. They are by far the best matched pair on the show!
Most Improved Child Celebrity: Mandla Morris
I was a bit concerned about how Mandla would do in hold, but his Foxtrot made me realize I had nothing to worry about. At the beginning of the series, Mandla was clearly stellar in the non-ballroom dances, but after his dance this week, it made me realize that his more traditional dancing is actually incredibly good, too!
Stand-Out Moment of the Night: Stevie Wonder Performing for Mandla’s Foxtrot
It’s one thing to have your father perform live for your dance. It’s a whole other thing when your father is the legendary Stevie Wonder! He is an icon, and it’s great that Mandla was able to pay tribute to him through dance.
Furthermore
Paul Bentley’s Thoughts: It hasn’t even been a week yet and I already miss Akash and Kamri! All of the Juniors left are so deserving of that Mirror Ball Trophy at the end! The one thing I hate about this show is having to see the kids eliminated, but I guess without it, we wouldn’t have the show. It just sucks. :/ No matter what, I hope that all of the couples on this show are proud of themselves, because they have truly done some amazing things on this show!
Week 7 Show Information
Five teams remain, and only three episodes are left! Next week, Dancing With the Stars: Juniors is stepping in a Time Machine, where the couples will perform routines to the themes of past and future eras. At the end of the night, another team will be eliminated, leaving us with the final four!
According to the DWTS: Juniors press release, here are the dances the remaining couples will be performing:
- Ariana Greenblatt and Artyon Celestine (mentored by Brandon Armstrong) will dance a ‘40s Quickstep to Classic by MKTO
- Mackenzie Ziegler and Sage Rosen (mentored by Gleb Savchenko) will dance an ‘80s Jazz to Call Me Maybe by Carly Rae Jepsen
- Mandla Morris and Brightyn Brems (mentored by Cheryl Burke) will dance a Futuristic Paso Doble to Gangsta’s Paradise by 2WEI
- Miles Brown and Rylee Arnold (mentored by Lindsay Arnold) will dance a ‘50s Jive to Rock Around the Clock by Bill Haley & His Comets
- Sky Brown and JT Church (mentored by Alan Bersten) will dance a ‘20s Charleston to A Little Party Never Killed Nobody (All We Got) by Fergie & Q-Tip & GoonRock
Links
#JuniorsChoice #DWTSJuniors
No comments:
Post a Comment