Disclosure: I attended this event as part of an all expense paid press trip on behalf of Disney and ABC. All opinions are completely my own.
Tonight is the night! It’s the LIVE finale of Dancing with the Stars. I cannot believe another season is almost over. So much happened this season, and did you see Val when he was talking about Tamar on this past week’s episode? It’s so sad they had to back out, but Tamar’s health has to come first. So, who do you think will win tonight? I definitely have a few favorites, but I’m going to try and remain neutral because they are all so amazing. I’m trying!
WITNEY CARSON, CARLOS PENAVEGA — at CBS Television City.
Dancing with the Stars Experience
I’ve been on a few TV show sets in the past few years, but the Dancing with the Stars set was surreal. It was big, colorful, and exciting. There were people everywhere and they even had everyone down on the dance floor before the show started. We were dancing our hearts out to Disco Inferno. It was a phenomenal experience.
One thing I realized is that there are a tremendous amount of things that happen during commercial breaks, and that those 3 minutes go by quickly when you’re trying to Tweet to your followers and get back up and start clapping. The people working on the stage tear down the set, put up a new set, the dancers practice their upcoming dances, and support one another. In the audience, we take those three minutes to sit down and Tweet because as soon as we get to the 20 second mark, we’re back on our feet and clapping. We were there for the entire two hour recording and stood for the majority of the time, but it was worth it.
The energy surrounding the dancers was amazing. Lots of screaming, yelling, clapping, and having a great time. There were some moments that stood out to me. My absolute favorite of the night was the trio dance with Bindi Irwin, Derek Hough, and Mark Ballas. It was absolutely stunning. The other dance that I absolutely loved was between Val Chmerkovskiy and Jenna Johnson. It was very moving.
Were you happy with the outcome? I can tell you we were thrilled that nobody was eliminated. It will make for a very exciting finale tonight!
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CARRIE ANN INABA, JULIANNE HOUGH, BRUNO TONIOLI — at CBS Television City.
After the live taping was wrapped up, we went back down to the dance floor and had a quick picture with the judges, Bruno Tonioli, Julianne Hough, and Carrie Ann Inaba. Also joining us was host, Tom Bergeron. Here’s the picture that Tom Bergeron shared on his Instagram page.
WITNEY CARSON, CARLOS PENAVEGA, ALEK SKARLATOS — at CBS Television City.
I couldn’t leave without at least one Dancing with the Stars selfie!
About the Season Finale
After weeks of competitive dancing, the final four couples advance to the FINALS of “Dancing with the Stars” this MONDAY, NOVEMBER 23 (8:00-10:01 p.m., ET). Alek Skarlatos and Lindsay Arnold, Bindi Irwin and Derek Hough, Carlos PenaVega and Witney Carson, and Nick Carter and Sharna Burgess have one last night of competitive dancing, fighting to win the judges’ and America’s votes to be crowned the “Dancing with the Stars” champion on TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 24 (9:00-11:00 p.m., ET) on the ABC Television Network.
On Monday, November 23 (8:00-10:01 p.m., ET), the finalists will compete in two rounds of dance. In the first round, one judge will help each couple choose the creative elements of each dance, which is a re-do to a new song. Carrie Ann Inaba will work alongside Linsday and Alek, as well as Bindi and Derek. Julianne Hough is with Nick and Sharna, and Bruno Tonioli is with Carlos and Witney. In the second round, in one of the biggest competitive dances of the season, the couples take on a freestyle dance featuring special effects, additional dancers and unexpected surprises. There will be special performances from Meghan Trainor, singing “Like I’m Gonna Lose You,” and Who Is Fancy, Ariana Grande and Meghan Trainor performing “Boys Like You.” At the end of the night, the couple with the lowest combined viewer and judge votes from the previous two weeks will be eliminated.
In the two-hour season finale on Tuesday, November 24 (9:00-11:00 p.m., ET), the three finalists advance to the final stage of the competition. There will be live dancing and show-stopping performances at the Grove shopping center and in the DWTS ballroom. The night kicks off with a high-energy opening number, featuring a reunion of all 13 of this season’s couples at the Grove. The finale will be filled with performances from Alexander Jean, Andy Grammer, Chaka Khan, Elle King and Nick Carter. Kim Zolciak returns to the ballroom to dance a Samba with Tony Dovolani to “I Dream of Jeannie,” which she was never able to perform, along with encore dances from the eliminated celebrities. The cast of the upcoming “Dancing with the Stars: Live! Dance All Night Tour” will perform a dance to Avicii’s “Broken Arrows” as a sneak peak of the 90-minute show traveling the country this winter. The three finalists will each dance a repeat dance from this season. In the last element of competition, the couples will perform a new routine as part of a “24-Hour Fusion Challenge.” The remaining couples will fuse two contrasting dance styles that they’ve performed this season and they’ll have less than 24 hours to prepare that dance for judges’ points. At the end of the night, the winner of the coveted Mirrorball trophy will be announced!
I’m sure you already know how to vote, but in case you need a refresher.
Viewers may cast their votes for their favorite teams via phone on Monday night during and up to 60 minutes after the end of the “Dancing with the Stars” broadcast in each time zone. Online voting at www.abc.com and on Facebook at https://apps.facebook.com/votedwts/ is open for 15 hours, beginning from the start of the episode Monday, November 23 on the East Coast at 8:00 p.m., ET/5:00 p.m., PT and closing at 11:00 a.m., ET/8:00 a.m., PT the next day.
Dinner
After hanging out at the Dancing with the Stars live taping, we went over to Mixology 101 and had a bit of dinner. We timed dinner to coinside with the West Coast airing of Dancing with the Stars and we were able to watch it on the TV screens in the restaurant. Also at the restaurant was Alek Skarlatos and his family. Alek was very gracious and agreed to get some pictures with us while we were all there. Take a look.
Social Media
Facebook | Twitter | Hashtag: #DWTS | Instagram | Vine | ABC Publicity on Twitter
Don’t miss the Dancing with the Stars Season Finale action on ABC MONDAY 8|7c and TUESDAY NOVEMBER 24 9|8c to see who will take home the coveted Mirrorball Trophy!
