DWTS 23 Week 1 Premiere Live Blog and Performance Videos

This season marks the return of Julianne Hough to the judges table, as well as the returns of quite a few former pros. Maks, Allison, Gleb, Derek, Emma, and Cheryl are all back. That of course means some of our old favorites are sitting this season out, such as Mark, Tony, Karina, and Peta. In this first week, the couples are tasked to perform one of the following four dance styles: Cha-Cha-Cha, Foxtrot, Jive, or Viennese Waltz.

The good news for the couples and their fans is that no one will be eliminated from the show tonight or this week. All thirteen couples will return next Monday to perform a second time before the first boot of the season happens live next Tuesday. From that point forward, the show resumes the regular schedule of performances and eliminations every Monday. Because of that, all votes and scores from the judges will be combined for the first two weeks of competition.

For anyone voting for the first time, there are three easy methods. You can use the phone number that corresponds to the celebrity you wish to vote for. You can also go to ABC.COM‘s official DWTS page and vote there. Finally, you can use FACEBOOK and vote on the official DWTS page. Please note that the two online methods are combined with each registered email. For example, if you use ABC.COM and vote, you will not be able to cast any votes on FACEBOOK unless you are using a different email than the one used on the network site.

*For any further questions about voting this season, please see the following page: http://dwtsvote.abc.go.com/faqs.php

With all that official business out of the way, are you guys excited? The initial cast reveal on Good Morning America was lackluster at best, but the pre-premiere party last week definitely made up for it. We have a nice, diverse cast in front of us and hopefully, a competitive one too. So, who will end up succeeding Nyle & Peta as champions? Let’s get this party started and find out!

And we begin at the Griffith Observatory in LA as all the professional treat us to an epic opening routine. Fabulous opening as we head into the ballroom. Tom welcomes us to the show. And here come the stars. Everyone looks great- all smiles, in costume, and excited. The opening number was choreographed by… the one and only Mandy Moore. – Watch Performance VIDEO

Marilu & Derek – Jive
Marilu almost had a heart attack seeing Derek at her door. She is thrilled he is her partner. She is nervous and excited. Solid opening to the show and a really good start for Marilu. The jive is tough for a week one dance- you need a lot of energy and you need to look strong and precise with those moves. Marilu has a ton of energy and the moves, while not as sharp as they could be, were decent enough where it looked good. Its great to have Derek back, doing what he does best in the choreography department.  – Watch Performance VIDEO

Len found it to be full of energy with no messing about. He says it was fabulous. Julianne calls it quick with sharp footwork. She wants Marilu to watch that her upper half doesn’t get too stiff. Bruno says Derek didn’t make it any easier for Marilu on week one but be careful not to tighten up. Carrie Ann loves the control. She wants her to watch her spots because she at times looks like she isn’t sure where to look.
Carrie Ann- 7, Len- 7, Julianne- 6, Bruno- 7 = 27/40
You can vote for Marilu by calling 1-800-868-3408 during the show and for 60 minutes after the broadcast in each time zone. You can also vote online at ABC.COM and/or on FACEBOOK (voting is combined via this method) from the start of the East Coast show till 11AM Eastern Tuesday. During the first week of the season, voting online closes later, at 8PM Eastern on Tuesday. 

James & Sharna – Foxtrot
James was in a nearly fatal accident on the racetrack. He is a big class clown and loves to laugh and make people laugh. Wow. I did not expect James to be this elegant and graceful! This is a really solid foxtrot. Nice rise and fall, strong posture, and he and Sharna look amazing together out there. No major issues at all in this one.  – Watch Performance VIDEO

Len was surprised. He calls it knockout. Julianne found it calm, graceful, and smooth. She reminds him of Helio (her old partner). Bruno loved the confidence and ease. He can’t wait to see James do a latin routine.
Carrie Ann- 8, Len- 8, Julianne- 7, Bruno- 8 = 31/40
You can vote for James by calling 1-800-868-3405 during the show and for 60 minutes after the broadcast in each time zone. You can also vote online at ABC.COM and/or on FACEBOOK (voting is combined via this method) from the start of the East Coast show till 11AM Eastern Tuesday. During the first week of the season, voting online closes later, at 8PM Eastern on Tuesday.

Calvin & Lindsay – Cha-Cha-Cha
Calvin played football for nine years. He wants to prove his sister wrong. He has huge feet (15’s)! People are already poking fun at Calvin’s dancing. Not bad. Not great, but not bad. Okay, so Calvin has some distinct things he needs to work on. Musicality is one. He and Lindsay needs to practice, practice, practice to perfect those little things that when you are dancing, make a huge difference to the viewing audience. Lindsay put together a really fun routine here and Calvin did it well enough but considering the first two dances tonight, it was obvious step down. But the potential is there.  – Watch Performance VIDEO

Julianne loved Calvin’s smile. She says it is a long road ahead. She was impressed though. Bruno loves how big it was. He says it wasn’t perfect but all he needs is some control. Carrie Ann says Calvin lit up the room. But he does have some work to do.
Carrie Ann- 7, Len- 6, Julianne- 6, Bruno- 7 = 26/40
You can vote for Calvin by calling 1-800-868-3403 during the show and for 60 minutes after the broadcast in each time zone. You can also vote online at ABC.COM and/or on FACEBOOK (voting is combined via this method) from the start of the East Coast show till 11AM Eastern Tuesday. During the first week of the season, voting online closes later, at 8PM Eastern on Tuesday.

Maureen & Artem – Viennese Waltz
Maureen is 60 and she has been waiting for this her whole life. She’s very scared. Dancing is a major insecurity for her. And Artem feels very protective. Aww. Maureen makes you want to root for her. A nice dance. It was pretty. Maureen has a bit of an issue with fluidity. You could tell Artem is really driving this dance and Maureen is almost hanging on for dear life. She had some good moments for sure but in hold, at times, it looked kind of clunky. A little refinement would go a very long way here.  – Watch Performance VIDEO

Bruno says Maureen moves very well. But he wants her relaxed more, smoother footwork, more fluidity, etc.. Carrie Ann loves the vulnerability. She would suggest that Maureen trust Artem a bit more. Len loves the enthusiasm. He says it needs refinement. The details need work.
Carrie Ann- 6, Len- 5, Julianne- 5, Bruno- 6 = 22/40
You can vote for Maureen by calling 1-800-868-3409 during the show and for 60 minutes after the broadcast in each time zone. You can also vote online at ABC.COM and/or on FACEBOOK (voting is combined via this method) from the start of the East Coast show till 11AM Eastern Tuesday. During the first week of the season, voting online closes later, at 8PM Eastern on Tuesday.

Babyface & Allison – Foxtrot
Babyface has been producing music for decades. Allison is back after taking a season off. Babyface wants to make his mom (who passed on) proud. He wants to do something out of his comfort zone. Classic Allison choreography. She loves to add a little modern movement even in the most old school of dances. I appreciate that. Babyface was good here. Again, the word refinement needs to be used. He was actually better out of hold, which might mean he will excel at latin routines as opposed to ballroom. In hold, he needs to work a bit on the footwork so the dance can look a bit more fluid.  – Watch Performance VIDEO

Carrie Ann thinks Babyface is right at home. She thinks he lit up the stage. Len thought it got hectic on occasions but he wants Babyface to keep the performance level and work on the technique. Julianne wants him to work on his rise and fall but she found it timeless and classic.
Carrie Ann- 7, Len- 6, Julianne- 6, Bruno- 7 = 26/40
You can vote for Babyface by calling 1-800-868-3402 during the show and for 60 minutes after the broadcast in each time zone. You can also vote online at ABC.COM and/or on FACEBOOK (voting is combined via this method) from the start of the East Coast show till 11AM Eastern Tuesday. During the first week of the season, voting online closes later, at 8PM Eastern on Tuesday.

Amber & Maks – Foxtrot
Amber was an exotic dancer. Maks laughs as he says this isn’t that kind of show. He is joking about her curves. She says Maks is the perfect partner for her. Remember my comments earlier about Maureen holding on for dear life during her routine? Yeah, same here for Amber. It’s all about having more confidence in your ability. Once you get the steps down, you don’t need to worry so much. Again, better dancing outside of hold (which is an issue considering this is a foxtrot which requires a lot of time in hold). Many of Amber’s movements are good. With more practice, she has the potential to be really strong out there.  – Watch Performance VIDEO

Julianne feels like Amber doesn’t give herself enough credit. She wanted more smiling during the routine. Bruno was pleasantly surprised. He thinks Amber disconnects. He wants her to stay connected throughout. Carrie Ann loves the confidence. What she wants is more trust out of Amber in the dance.
Carrie Ann- 6, Len- 6, Julianne- 6, Bruno- 6 = 24/40
You can vote for Amber by calling 1-800-868-3401 during the show and for 60 minutes after the broadcast in each time zone. You can also vote online at ABC.COM and/or on FACEBOOK (voting is combined via this method) from the start of the East Coast show till 11AM Eastern Tuesday. During the first week of the season, voting online closes later, at 8PM Eastern on Tuesday.

Vanilla Ice & Witney – Cha-Cha-Cha
Rob is excited. Witney is in it to win it. Rob (Vanilla Ice) has a very busy schedule. He is on tour. And they are dancing to his song. Alright. I’m sure that got many people excited. I’m sure it was a crowd favorite. However, very little of that was an actual cha-cha-cha. And the parts of it that were, Vanilla didn’t exactly excel at. Witney has to be careful not to try and modernize the dance so much that it becomes something different entirely. Vanilla has natural rhythm, so I see no reason why he won’t improve with future routines.  – Watch Performance VIDEO

Len loved watching the dance. He says it didn’t have enough cha-cha-cha. Julianne says the dance made her very happy. She wants more content. Bruno says Vanilla still has it but yes, the cha-cha-cha was a bit too disguised.
Carrie Ann- 7, Len- 5, Julianne- 6, Bruno- 7 = 25/40
You can vote for Vanilla Ice by calling 1-800-868-3413 during the show and for 60 minutes after the broadcast in each time zone. You can also vote online at ABC.COM and/or on FACEBOOK (voting is combined via this method) from the start of the East Coast show till 11AM Eastern Tuesday. During the first week of the season, voting online closes later, at 8PM Eastern on Tuesday.

Jana & Gleb – Viennese Waltz
Jana and Gleb are a striking pair. Gleb wants them to be sexy while dancing. Jana has recently separated from her husband so she wants this to be a healing experience. Well, this is an interesting interpretation of the viennese waltz. Quite sexy. Quite seductive. Quite risky. I wonder if it will pay off for the judges. The dancing was solid. A few moments where Jana looked unsteady but nothing to really talk about. I need to see more (and of a different style) from Jana to see her abilities but it looks like she could do well.  – Watch Performance VIDEO

Bruno called it sexy and raunchy. He can’t wait to see the rumba. Carrie Ann mentions it wasn’t traditional. She thinks Jana has very nice lines. Len thought it was too dramatic. He just wanted them to go out there and dance.
Carrie Ann- 7, Len- 6, Julianne- 6, Bruno- 8 = 27/40
You can vote for Jana by calling 1-800-868-3406 during the show and for 60 minutes after the broadcast in each time zone. You can also vote online at ABC.COM and/or on FACEBOOK (voting is combined via this method) from the start of the East Coast show till 11AM Eastern Tuesday. During the first week of the season, voting online closes later, at 8PM Eastern on Tuesday.

Jake & Jenna – Jive
This is Jenna’s first season as a pro. They share the same birth year. Even their signs go together. Jake wants to show he is more mature now. Eek. That was a bit of a mess. Those kicks and ficks need to be better and they need to match. I counted three times Jake was off as compared to Jenna. He also missed her hand on two occasions. He’s young, athletic, and does have some natural rhythm. So I am going to guess practice is the name of the game for these two. Fun choreography by Jenna but it needs to be matched with the dancing.  – Watch Performance VIDEO

Julianne finds them cute. But she wants Jake to work on his feet. Bruno loved the energy but the footwork was messed up. Carrie Ann feels like there is something good going on but Jake got lost from the beginning.
Carrie Ann- 5, Len- 6, Julianne- 5, Bruno- 6 = 22/40
You can vote for Jake by calling 1-800-868-3404 during the show and for 60 minutes after the broadcast in each time zone. You can also vote online at ABC.COM and/or on FACEBOOK (voting is combined via this method) from the start of the East Coast show till 11AM Eastern Tuesday. During the first week of the season, voting online closes later, at 8PM Eastern on Tuesday.

Rick & Emma – Cha-Cha-Cha
Rick has been involved with politics since 1985. He is excited to dance for his daughter’s wedding. Emma thinks Rick’s daughter will be proud. LOL. Oh boy. Alright, so Rick needs work. And a lot of it. He got a few of the moves right. Emma did some nice choreography here. But… yeah. Rick needs work. The feet, musicality, remembering the steps..it all needs improvement.  – Watch Performance VIDEO

Len calls it pedestrian. But does compliment Rick who has never danced before. Julianne says Rick went full out but it was a little crazy. Bruno calls it bold and brash and not very subtle. He says it was the timing. The timing is very important and that needs to be worked on.
Carrie Ann- 5, Len- 5, Julianne- 5, Bruno- 5 = 20/40
You can vote for Rick by calling 1-800-868-3410 during the show and for 60 minutes after the broadcast in each time zone. You can also vote online at ABC.COM and/or on FACEBOOK (voting is combined via this method) from the start of the East Coast show till 11AM Eastern Tuesday. During the first week of the season, voting online closes later, at 8PM Eastern on Tuesday.

Terra & Sasha – Jive
Terra just had a baby less than a month ago. Sasha is thrilled to have Terra as a partner. He has never met a little person in his life. She doesn’t want any sympathy. She is scared but she wants to show people it can work. Wow. Well, credit to Sasha for being an awesome partner. This looks like a major challenge. But Terra wants to be graded like everyone else, so she should be. Some of the jive was good. Some of it needed work. The kicks and flicks could have been stronger too. Not a bad debut performance and she should be proud of herself. But more practice for sure.  – Watch Performance VIDEO

Carrie Ann saw a huge start- not a little person. She is all praise for Terra. Len says Terra delivered twice in a month. Julianne thinks Terra is a firecracker. Julianne loves the underdog.
Carrie Ann- 7, Len- 6, Julianne- 6, Bruno- 6 = 25/40
You can vote for Terra by calling 1-800-868-3412 during the show and for 60 minutes after the broadcast in each time zone. You can also vote online at ABC.COM and/or on FACEBOOK (voting is combined via this method) from the start of the East Coast show till 11AM Eastern Tuesday. During the first week of the season, voting online closes later, at 8PM Eastern on Tuesday.

Ryan & Cheryl – Foxtrot
Cheryl is back. Ryan brings up the controversy immediately. Cheryl wants to help Ryan find his way. His fear is that he is going to be a failure and he will make Cheryl look bad. He wants to prove to the world that he has changed. Okay. Better than I had anticipated. Some good steps in there for sure. I think Cheryl did well here by not going crazy with the choreography but making it enough of a foxtrot where Ryan could stand out. It wasn’t perfect by any means and some more practice would have helped but it showed there is potential there for growth. Just how much remains to be seen of course.  – Watch Performance VIDEO

Bruno thought Ryan looked the part. He thinks Ryan needs to be more graceful. Carrie Ann feels like Ryan has a long way to go but… and she is interrupted because something is going on in the ballroom.

We hear some yelling and Tom quickly cuts to commercial. I have no idea what that was. Damn.

Back from commercial, Tom says we had a little incident. Apparently, someone was yelling and coming at Ryan. That’s unfortunate. Okay, back to Carrie Ann. She says Ryan needs to work but they are only there to judge his dancing. Len thinks people should be proud of Ryan as he performs at a high level.
Carrie Ann- 6, Len- 6, Julianne- 6, Bruno- 6 = 24/40
You can vote for Ryan by calling 1-800-868-3411 during the show and for 60 minutes after the broadcast in each time zone. You can also vote online at ABC.COM and/or on FACEBOOK (voting is combined via this method) from the start of the East Coast show till 11AM Eastern Tuesday. During the first week of the season, voting online closes later, at 8PM Eastern on Tuesday.

Laurie & Val – Cha-Cha-Cha
Laurie is 16. She is excited to be paired with Val. She wants to win this. Val is a huge fan of hers and just watched her compete in the Olympics. Laurie is full of energy. Yeah. We all knew that was coming. A dynamite performance from someone who can obviously dance very well. I’m not going to knock her for being on the show despite having experience but I am going to judge her performances on a higher standard as the season goes forward. That was a mid-season quality level cha-cha-cha. And she plays the performance part of it just as well as the dance. I am looking forward to seeing her do a more subdued ballroom routine to see how it plays out. But… awesome.  – Watch Performance VIDEO

Carrie Ann says Laurie is awesome. She loves that Laurie is hungry for knowledge. She loves that Laurie is humble as well. Len says Laurie went down the proper latin route. He thought it was terrific. Julianne calls it a real cha-cha-cha and her only critique is for Laurie to work on her hip action. She calls Laurie the total package. Bruno is delighted to see someone with Laurie’s talent in the ballroom.
Carrie Ann- 8, Len- 8, Julianne- 7, Bruno- 8 = 31/40
You can vote for Laurie by calling 1-800-868-3407 during the show and for 60 minutes after the broadcast in each time zone. You can also vote online at ABC.COM and/or on FACEBOOK (voting is combined via this method) from the start of the East Coast show till 11AM Eastern Tuesday. During the first week of the season, voting online closes later, at 8PM Eastern on Tuesday.
—
Leaderboard For Week One
Laurie- 31
James- 31
Marilu- 27
Jana- 27
Babyface- 26
Calvin- 26
Vanilla Ice- 25
Terra- 25
Amber- 24
Ryan- 24
Maureen- 22
Jake- 22
Rick- 20

An interesting night in the ballroom, huh? It is really unfortunate that someone (or a few people) had to go and make a scene, putting a damper over a very strong night of dancing. People are allowed to have their respective opinions about Ryan and what went down in Rio but that’s no reason to try and sabotage a show. Not cool. Ignoring that, this was a solid premiere where we saw some really good dancing for week one. I’ll have much more to say during my first power list of the season, coming later this week.

What did you guys think of the premiere? Did you enjoy the show overall? Are you glad to see so many old faces back in the ballroom? Have any couples stolen your hearts right from the start? Do you see any potential winners already? Which couples do you think could be in danger already? Feel free to sound off about it all in the comments.

A POLLS thread for you guys to vote on will be up in a few. :)