As the Dancing With the Stars show celebrated its 20th Birthday in grand style, the air was filled with the joyous hues of a gala as if it were a night to remember forever. The ballroom was a hive of activity, brimming with the legends of the show, and as the first number opened, six pros from season one took center stage, accompanied by none other than Tom Bergeron, who made his guest judge debut after a hiatus since his controversial firing in 2020.
Chatting with The Hollywood Reporter, Bergeron expressed his elation at returning to DWTS and teased that his judging style would remain "pretty much the same as the way I hosted it." (Read Bergeron's full profile here.) The 34th season is drawing to a close, though it would be hard for viewers to notice given the abundance of couples still in the competition. The celebrity cast includes Secret Lives of Mormon Wives star Whitney Leavitt, social media star Alix Earle, Olympic gymnast Jordan Chiles, The Traitors season three winner (and Zac Efron's brother) Dylan Efron, actress Elaine Hendrix, conservationist (and son of Steve Irwin) Robert Irwin, and comedian-actor Andy Richter, who was sent packing in this week's episode.
The 20th Birthday Party celebration saw two unique rounds of dance. First, couples performed numbers set to the songs of freestyle routines from DWTS past. Next, each celebrity danced with a former mirrorball champion in the relay dance round. During the relay dances, two couples competed head to head, with one duo performing during the first half of the song while the second pairing followed. The judges selected the winner from each round, who was awarded two bonus points to their score.
Whitney and Mark did not partake in the relay dance round as they were granted immunity last week, which earned them an additional two points to their overall score for the night. Before the relay round, Robert and Witney earned the first perfect individual score of the season, dancing to the tune of his elder sister Bindi Irwin's freestyle song as a tribute to their father. Pro dancer Mark Ballas shared with THR that being partnered with the conservationist has been "a once in a lifetime opportunity," and if they won season 34, it "would just mean everything to me."
Following closely behind them were Dylan, Alix, and Whitney, who each scored a respective 40/40. After the 20th Birthday Party episode, only two weeks of competition remain, including next week's Prince Night (which will serve as the semi-finals) and Nov. 25's three-hour finale. The couple with the lowest combined total of judges' scores and viewer votes is eliminated at the end of each episode. Live voting takes place during the East Coast airing of each show and ends shortly after the final performance is completed.
Here's a look at the full list of scores for week eight of DWTS season 34 (aka the 20th Birthday Party episode):
Individual Dances:
Elaine Hendrix and Alan Bersten: 36/40
Robert Irwin and Witney Carson: 40/40
Andy Richter and Emma Slater: 29/40
Dylan Efron and Daniella Karagach: 40/40
Jordan Chiles and Ezra Sosa: 37/40
Alix Earle and Val Chmerkovskiy: 40/40
Whitney Leavitt and Mark Ballas: 40/40 (+2 bonus points from Rock & Roll Hall of Fame night)
Relay Dances:
Jordan Chiles and Apollo Anton Ohno (season four champ) (WINNER, +2 bonus points)
Elaine Hendrix and Rashad Jennings (season 24 champ)
Dylan Efron and Rumer Willis (season 20 champ) (WINNER, +2 bonus points)
Andy Richter and Kaitlyn Bristowe (season 29 champ)
Alix Earle and Joey Graziadei (season 33 champ)
Robert Irwin and Xochitl Gomez (season 32 champ) (WINNER
