It was the Semifinals during week eight of Dancing With the Stars: Juniors season one, which premiered Sunday, December 2 on ABC! For this night, the four remaining couples competed in two rounds of dancing. First, each semi-finalist performed a new individual dance, and then they teamed up with another couple in round two for the duo fusion routines!
With thoughts on the night of performances, here is Paul Bentley, along with scores from The Readers, which were determined by an online poll!
Round One: Individual Dances
The four remaining couples performed an individual dance to a new style for the first round of dances.
[Order of the Judges’ Scores: Val Chmerkovskiy, Mandy Moore, Adam Rippon]
Mackenzie Ziegler and Sage Rosen, Mentored by Gleb Savchenko
Paso Doble
The Edge of Glory by Lady Gaga
The Judges’ Scores: 10, 10, 10 (30/30)
The Readers’ Score: 10
Paul Bentley’s Thoughts: Mackenzie’s powerful way of motion was absolutely perfect for the Paso Doble. She and Sage did justice to that Lady Gaga song with such intensity and technicality. I love how Gleb’s choreography allowed us to see some variety from Mackenzie, with everything from the content in hold to the section at the end with the capes. After falling just a little bit short with the judges in their past few performances, this dance was the perfect time for them to make an impact and receive the first perfect score of DWTS: Juniors! It was a well-deserved score, but with the competition being so tight, that Mirrorball Trophy could be won by any of the remaining finalists!
Paul Bentley’s Score: 10
#TeamGleb
Sky Brown and JT Church, Mentored by Alan Bersten
Argentine Tango
Thunder by Imagine Dragons
The Judges’ Scores: 10, 9, 10 (29/30)
The Readers’ Score: 10
Paul Bentley’s Thoughts: Now that was a traditional Argentine Tango, and I enjoyed the heck out of it! Sky and JT really understood and emitted the sharp feel of the style, showing us that even though they’re little kids, they are fully capable of giving us a serious, content-filled routine! I agree with Mandy that Alan has trained these two really well, especially since I have noticed how much sharper and cleaner Sky has become over the span of this season. Sky was just a tiny bit behind from JT at times, and there were a couple of wobbles, but this was still one of my favorite dances of the season! Sky has the best facial expressions!
Paul Bentley’s Score: 9
#TeamAlan
Miles Brown and Rylee Arnold, Mentored by Lindsay Arnold
Cha-Cha-Cha
Shake Senora by Pitbull featuring T-Pain and Sean Paul
The Judges’ Scores: 9, 10, 9 (28/30)
The Readers’ Score: 10
Paul Bentley’s Thoughts: Miles is one busy kid! The fact that he had limited rehearsal time this week yet still performed that great really shows how much natural talent he has. Team Lindsay had yet another successful routine this week, although I do have to admit that I have seen better from them. While this Cha-Cha-Cha was still really fun and loose, the sections in hold were a bit sloppy, and his footwork was a bit too wide, especially at the beginning . It just needed to be cleaned up a little more. But hey, Miles and Rylee didn’t get as much practice this time as they’ve had before, so considering that, they did a very commendable job!
Paul Bentley’s Score: 9
#TeamLindsay
Ariana Greenblatt and Artyon Celestine, Mentored by Brandon Armstrong
Foxtrot
We’re All in This Together by High School Musical Cast
The Judges’ Scores: 9, 9, 10 (28/30)
The Readers’ Score: 9
Paul Bentley’s Thoughts: Before I say anything about the dance, I just want to say this: Can you believe that High School Musical came out almost 13 years ago?! That means that the song Ariana and Artyon danced to came out before they were even born! Where has the time gone?! Anyway, this Foxtrot, despite a few hiccups, was a nice, solid dance. I think Ariana had a bit of trouble keeping steady with the timing and naturally slow movements of the ballroom dance, but I still saw improvements in her hold from her Quickstep the episode before. This wasn’t their best dance, but it was still a strong performance nonetheless!
Paul Bentley’s Score: 9
#TeamBrandon
Round Two: Duo Fusion Dances
For the second round of performances, the four couples were paired up into two teams of two couples for a Duo performance. The Duo performances fused two different dance styles together and allowed the junior celebrities to perform with each other for the first time this season. After this round of dances, it was announced that there would be no elimination this week, which meant that everyone remaining in the competition would advance to finale night.
[Order of the Judges’ Scores: Val Chmerkovskiy, Mandy Moore, Adam Rippon]
Mackenzie & Gleb and Miles & Rylee
Duo Samba/Jazz Fusion
Party in the U.S.A. by Miley Cyrus
The Judges’ Scores: 10, 10, 10 (30/30)
The Readers’ Score: 10
Paul Bentley’s Thoughts: Mackenzie & Sage and Miles & Rylee was a really good matching. These two pairs have similar styles, and the celebrities in both of these couples are good at quick and powerful dances. Both the Samba content and the Jazz content were spot on, giving us good technical sections with the Samba, and adding some flair to that with the Jazz mixed it. Miles might have been the smallest one on the team, but he blended into the team perfectly! And Mackenzie really shined with sharpness, which transitioned between the Fusion styles really well. This team was easily destined for 10’s, and they deserved them without a doubt!
Paul Bentley’s Score: 10
#TeamGleb #TeamLindsay
Ariana & Artyon and Sky & JT
Duo Jive/Foxtrot Fusion
369 by Rhett George
The Judges’ Scores: 10, 9, 9 (28/30)
The Readers’ Score: 10
Paul Bentley’s Thoughts: The little kids were put together on the same team, which meant that they would have to live up to the bigger kids on the other team, and they did exactly that! Sky & JT and Ariana & Artyon are easily two of the most fun and energetic pairs of the season, and just like the other duo, these guys were the perfect match! Sky was especially feeling the music and having a blast with it, and Ariana was moving it like no tomorrow! The Foxtrot content gave the performance stability and was executed well, but the Jive content was the highlight of the dance for me, despite it having some sections where the couples were a bit out of sync. This Fusion Duo dance was not an easy task, but it ended up being a stellar routine!
Paul Bentley’s Score: 9
#TeamBrandon #TeamAlan
Week 8 Scoreboard
Dancing With the Stars: Juniors Week 8 Scoreboard
| |||
Couple
|
Dance Style
|
Judges’ Scores
|
Overall Score
|
Mackenzie and Sage
|
Paso Doble
|
10, 10, 10 (30/30)
|
60/60
|
Duo Samba/Jazz Fusion
|
10, 10, 10 (30/30)
| ||
Sky and JT
|
Argentine Tango
|
10, 9, 10 (29/30)
|
57/60
|
Duo Jive/Foxtrot Fusion
|
10, 9, 9 (28/30)
| ||
Miles and Rylee
|
Cha-Cha-Cha
|
9, 10, 9 (28/30)
|
58/60
|
Duo Samba/Jazz Fusion
|
10, 10, 10 (30/30)
| ||
Ariana and Artyon
|
Foxtrot
|
9, 9, 10 (28/30)
|
56/60
|
Duo Jive/Foxtrot Fusion
|
10, 9, 9 (28/30)
| ||
Semifinals Awards
Most Entertaining Dance: Mackenzie & Sage and Miles & Rylee’s Duo Samba/Jazz Fusion
Mackenzie and Miles, as always, brought their A-game for their Fusion Duo dance. Everything came together so well, and even when two people were doing one thing while the other two people were doing another thing, all four kids would come together into one cohesive and fun routine. I loved every second of it!
Best Costumes: Mackenzie and Sage’s Paso Doble Costumes
I really dug the Lady Gaga style of Mackenzie and Sage’s Paso Doble costumes. The black was fitting for the theme of the Paso Doble, and both of their outfits had some modern elements to them that made it feel abstract in a good way!
Best Choreography: Sky and JT’s Argentine Tango
Alan was given some modern music to work with this week, but he stuck to the traditional style of Argentine Tango for Sky and JT, which worked in their favor since it showcased a really cool, serious side to them! Those lifts were fantastic, too, which must have required a lot of practice from the kids!
Strongest Couple: Mackenzie and Sage
Mackenzie and Sage were champions in both their Paso Doble and their Duo dance this week. Mackenzie danced her heart out, and Sage matched up to that. Being that they received two perfect scores this week is very telling of how strong of the couple they really are!
Most Improved Child Celebrity: Sky Brown
Sky has grown so much on her journey on this show. The level of maturity she exemplified in her Argentine Tango, and the amount of radiant and natural energy she showcased in her Duo dance was astounding!
Stand-Out Moment of the Night: No Elimination!
I never like seeing the kids eliminated on this show, so the fact that there ended up being no elimination was awesome! Seeing everyone’s reactions to there not being an elimination was absolutely fantastic!
Furthermore
Paul Bentley’s Thoughts: So here we are… only one episode left! So who will in the Mirror Ball Trophy?! Personally, I think all of the finalists have proven to be worthy of the win, although I do have my favorite. Even though I won’t really be disappointed with any of the results we get, I am rooting for Team Alan to win! Sky and JT have just been such a pleasure to watch this entire season, and they have truly surpassed my expectations of what they have been able to do on the show. Bravo to them… and bravo to all four remaining couples!
Week 9 Show Information
Week nine is the final week of Dancing With the Stars: Juniors season one! All twelve teams from this season will be back in the ballroom for this special, holiday-themed one-hour finale! The four remaining couples will perform in two rounds of dances. First, they will repeat a dance they did earlier in the season, but this time they will be dancing on the stage with their pro mentor for the first time ever! Then, for the second round, all the rules go out the window for the holiday themed-Freestyle round, where the Juniors will perform to a winter holiday/Christmas song! And at the end of the night, after a studio audience vote and all of the judges’ scores are finalized, the winners of the first ever season of DWTS: Juniors will be announced!
According to the DWTS press release, here are the repeat performances the finalists will do with their pro mentor for round one:
- Ariana Greenblatt and Artyon Celestine will dance a Repeat Jazz with mentor Brandon Armstrong to Rolex by Ayo & Teo, originally performed during Juniors’ Choice Night (Week 5)
- Mackenzie Ziegler and Sage Rosen will dance a Repeat Cha-Cha-Cha with mentor Gleb Savchenko to What If by Johnny Orlando & Mackenzie Ziegler, originally performed during Juniors’ Choice Night (Week 5)
- Miles Brown and Rylee Arnold will dance a Repeat Salsa with mentor Lindsay Arnold to Who Let the Dogs Out by Baha Men, originally performed during the Premiere (Week 1)
- Sky Brown and JT Church will dance a Repeat Salsa with mentor Alan Bersten to Light It Up by Major Lazer featuring Nyla & Fuse ODG, originally performed during the Premiere (Week 1)
And here are the holiday Freestyle dances for round two:
- Ariana Greenblatt and Artyon Celestine (mentored by Brandon Armstrong) will dance Freestyle to You’re a Mean One, Mr. Grinch by Lindsey Stirling featuring Sabrina Carpenter
- Mackenzie Ziegler and Sage Rosen (mentored by Gleb Savchenko) will dance Freestyle to Drummer Boy by Justin Bieber featuring Busta Rhymes
- Miles Brown and Rylee Arnold (mentored by Lindsay Arnold) will dance Freestyle to Sleigh Ride by District 78
- Sky Brown and JT Church (mentored by Alan Bersten) will dance Freestyle to Underneath the Tree by Kelly Clarkson
Links
#SemiFinals #DWTSJuniors
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