“Dancing with the Stars” began season 35 with a two-night premiere Sept. 15 and 16. The show’s cast has 16 stars this season, ranging from gold-medal athletes and movie stars to a comedian and a celebrity chef, as previously covered by The Post.
The eight male stars kicked off with their performances Thursday. The first week's dances featured hit songs from the year each star was born.
The split season premiere meant one couple was sent home each night. Voting on night one proved a bit of a challenge when the online system crashed. That limited the audience's input to text message votes, which required extra attention to clarify voting between Conner Leavitt and Connor Wood by adding their last initials.
Jackson Olson, a player for the Savannah Bananas, danced first with pro Emma Slater, earning fives across the board for their cha-cha.
Judge Derek Hough prefaced their scores with the judges' high expectations for the dancers.
“This season, you’re going to have to earn every single point,” Hough said. “So don’t be surprised at where the scores land tonight.”
Tyler Cameron followed Olson with a tango to “Are You Gonna Go My Way” by Lenny Kravitz, earning 17/30.
Third was Leavitt, whose wife was a star on season 34. He is partnered with new pro, Adele Zaikman. The pair performed a salsa and earned a score of 12. Hough compared Leavitt’s dancing to Phil Dunphy from sitcom “Modern Family.”
Guillermo Rodriguez and pro Witney Carson danced the second cha-cha of the night to “Mr. Big Stuff” by Jean Knight. They scored the lowest of either night with 10/30. Rodriguez is also the only star who received a three from a judge either night.
Paralympic gold-medalist Ezra Frech danced the tango next. He and his partner, Daniella Karagach, received a 20 from the judges. Wood and pro Rylee Arnold scored a 16 after that performance with their cha-cha to “I Like It, I Love It” by Tim McGraw. Music artist Taylor Hanson performed a quickstep next for a 16/30 as well.
The final night one performance was former “Glee” cast member Harry Shum Jr.’s cha-cha to Earth, Wind & Fire’s “Let’s Groove.” He and pro Jenna Johnson scored the highest score of the night with a seven from each judge for 21/30.
When it came time to announce the safe couples, it came down to Wood, Leavitt and Rodriguez.
The night ended with the first couple being sent home: Leavitt and Zaikman.
Viewers tuned back in Wednesday night to watch the female stars dance and find out which pair would go home after only one performance.
The night opened with Tatyana Ali of “The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air” and her jive with pro Jan Ravnik. They scored the lowest of night two with a 12. Olympic figure skater Amber Glenn danced the cha-cha with Pasha Pashkov next, receiving a six from each of the three judges.
Reality star Ciara Miller danced a foxtrot with Brandon Armstrong, and celebrity chef Giada De Laurentiis performed a tango with Alan Bersten. They scored a 15 and a 16, respectively.
Actress Julia Stiles followed with a quickstep to Dolly Parton’s “9 to 5.” She received an 18/30 with pro Ezra Sosa. Reality star Maura Higgins danced a high-scoring 21/30 foxtrot with Mark Ballas next.
Sarah Jane Nader, known from her family’s show, “Love Thy Nader,” is dancing with a female pro this season. Hailey Bills is another new pro alongside Zaikman this season, having just been promoted from being a troupe dancer. The women danced a jive to Avril Lavigne's “Sk8er Boi,” earning a score of 14.
Actress Jenna Dewan ended the second night with a tango. She scored a 19 with pro Val Chmerkovskiy.
Going into the elimination reveal, Ali and Ravnik were trailing the next pair, Nader and Bills, by two points. The final three couples came down to Ali and Ravnid, and Nader and Bills, alongside De Laurentiis and Bersten.
Nader and Bills were announced as the couple who would be leaving the show, meaning that for both nights of the premiere, new pros and their stars were eliminated.
The next episode on Sept. 22 will feature the 14 remaining stars dancing to viral hits, as revealed by Andy Richter on the show’s official podcast.
