Reality dancing competition show “Dancing With the Stars” returned for its 35th season Sept. 15. The stars span from reality show alum, Olympians, actors, social media personalities and more. The season started with 16 pairs of celebrities and professional dancers, six of which have already been sent packing.
Connor Leavitt and his partner Adele Zaikman were eliminated during the week one premiere. Leavitt is best known for appearing in “The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives.” Leavitt and Zaikman performed a salsa to the song “Whoop! There it is” and scored a 12, the lowest of the night.
Sarah Jane Nader and her partner Hailey Bills, who were the third same-sex couple on the show, were eliminated on the second night of the premiere. Nader is an actress and model who stars in the Hulu series “Love Thy Nader.” They did a jive to “Sk8tr Boi” and scored a 14, leaving them in 15th place.
The next couple eliminated were Giada De Laurentiis and Alan Bersten during week two, “Viral Hits Night.” They performed a tango to “Venus” and a salsa to “Bella Ciao.” De Laurentiis is an Emmy award-winning chef and TV personality who has written 11 New York Times bestselling cookbooks.
Week three was “Yacht Rock Night.” Taylor Hanson and his partner Britt Stewart were sent home. They performed a quickstep to “Tell Her About It,” a cha-cha to “Cake by the Ocean,” and a foxtrot to “What A Fool Believes.” Hanson is best known for his band with his two brothers, HANSON.
Model and TV personality Ciara Miller and her partner Brandon Armstrongwere eliminated during week four’s “Mariah Carey Night” where they performed a jazz routine to “Emotions.” Miller is known for appearing on season three of “The Traitors” and “Bravo’s “Summer House.” Previously, they performed a foxtrot, a tango and a cha-cha.
Guillermo Rodriguez and Witney Carson went home week five, which was “Super Bowl Night” themed. They performed a salsa, a paso doble, a foxtrot, a samba and a cha-cha. Rodriguez is a comedian and talk-show personality, best known for his 13 years on “Jimmy Kimmel Live.”
Tatyana Ali is a Broadway-trained actress and singer. She was partnered with Jan Ravnik. So far, they have performed a jive, a foxtrot, a quickstep and a jazz routine. They received their highest score of 29 on a salsa to “Squabble Up” in week five.
“Bachelorette” runner-up Tyler Cameron and his partner Sharna Burgessscored their highest score on a jazz routine to “The Time (Dirty Bit).” They also performed a tango, a salsa, a jive and a foxtrot.
Jenna Dewan and her partner Valentin Chmerkovskiy have performed a tango, a jive, a samba, a rumba and a paso doble. Dewan is an actress starring in ABC’s “The Rookie.” Their week five paso doble to “Bad Romance” is tied for the highest-scoring dance of the season with a 36.
Ezra French is a two-time Paralympic gold medalist. He and his partner Daniella Karagach share the highest-scoring dance with their salsa to “Hot in Herre.” They have also performed a tango, a cha-cha, a foxtrot and a rumba. French is the 12th contestant with a disability on the show, and performs with a prosthetic leg.
French is not the only Olympian. Gold-medalist figure skater Amber Glenn is also trying to win the Mirrorball with her partner Pasha Pashkov. Together, they performed a cha-cha, a tango, a foxtrot, a rumba and a samba. Glenn was the first openly LGBTQ+ U.S. Women’s Olympic Figure Skater and advocates for visibility and inclusion.
Maura Higgins is a reality TV personality, host and creator, best known for her runner-up finish on “The Traitors.” Higgins performed a foxtrot, a cha-cha, a quickstep, a waltz and most recently a tango to “Only Girl (In the World)” with her partner Mark Ballas.
Jackson Olson and his partner Emma Slaterperformed a cha-cha, a foxtrot, a paso doble, a waltz and during week 5 a salsa to “Uptown Funk.” Olson is a second baseman for the Savannah Bananas, a barnstorming baseball team.
Actor and dancer Harry Shum Jr. is partnered with Jenna Johnson. Shum is best known for his roles in “Glee” and “Grey’s Anatomy.” They performed a cha-cha, a Viennese waltz, a jive, a tango and a samba to “Yeah!” for their week 5 dance.
Julia Stiles and her partner Ezra Sosa did a quickstep, a tango, a salsa, a Viennese waltz and a jazz routine to “Jenny From the Block,” in which they nodded to her role on “Save the Last Dance.” Stiles is an actor, known for her roles in “10 Things I Hate About You” and “Silver Linings Playbook.”
The last couple is Connor Wood and Rylee Arnold, who performed a cha-cha, a tango, a foxtrot, a rumba and for their week five routine a samba to “Hips Don’t Lie.” Wood is a comedian and podcaster, best known for the podcast he co-hosts with Brooke Averick, “Brooke and Connor Make a Podcast.”
Next week will be “Dedication Night,” where each star dedicates the dance to someone or something important in their lives. To catch this next episode, tune in on ABC or Disney+ Tuesday night at 8 p.m. or stream the season on Hulu.
