LOS ANGELES — All 10 remaining couples on Dancing With the Stars survived Tuesday’s Dedication Night, after the show announced at the close of an emotional episode that nobody would be eliminated this week.
Co-host Julianne Hough said producers did not want to send anyone home on such a meaningful night. The twist comes with a catch: the judges’ scores and viewer votes from this episode roll over to next week, when two couples will be cut. The Season 35 couples return Oct. 27 for Horror Movie Night.
Figure skater Amber Glenn and partner Pasha Pashkov led the leaderboard with 38 of a possible 40 points for a contemporary routine set to the Sia song Breathe Me, a tribute to her sister built around her own mental health struggles. Two judges gave the pair perfect 10s.
Paralympic sprinter Ezra Frech and Daniella Karagach opened the night with a contemporary number honoring his mother, who joined them on the floor, and scored 37. Guest judge Kym Johnson handed Frech the first 10 of the season. Jenna Dewan also earned 37 for a Viennese waltz to Unchained Melody with her mother, dancing with Alan Bersten, who stepped in for Val Chmerkovskiy during his suspension from the show.
Julia Stiles and Ezra Sosa scored 36 for a tribute to the Australian actor who played opposite her in the 1999 teen comedy 10 Things I Hate About You and died in 2008. Several of their castmates from that movie joined the couple on the floor at the end. Harry Shum Jr. and Jenna Johnson also posted 36 with a foxtrot that told the story of his parents. Maura Higgins and Mark Ballas earned 35 for a paso doble saluting Ireland.
Four couples finished tied at 32. Tatyana Ali, dancing with Jan Ravnik, honored the late James Avery and brought in host Alfonso Ribeiro, her onscreen sibling from The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, for her best score of the season. Jackson Olson of the Savannah Bananas and Emma Slater danced a quickstep for his mother, and Connor Wood and Rylee Arnold dedicated a waltz to his father, who is fighting lymphoma.
Tyler Cameron and Sharna Burgess also scored 32 for a routine honoring his late mother, during which Cameron and his fiancee announced they are expecting a baby girl.
