Comedian Andy Richter may not be the strongest dancer on “Dancing with the Stars” Season 34, but what he lacks in technical dance skills he makes up for with charisma and kindness. Despite having the lowest scores throughout the competition, fans have voted to keep Richter in the running for the Mirrorball Trophy.
For Week 5, Richter’s Dedication Night performance will likely be his best yet because he is dedicating his dance to his daughter, Cornelia. Richter and his professional dance partner Emma Slater will be performing a salsa routine to “Jump In the Line” by Harry Belafonte. There is a lot of fan excitement surrounding this performance!
Andy Richter’s Dedication Night Performance
Slater gave fans a sneak peek of what is to come on Show Day, Tuesday, October 14. She did this by posting several photos on Instagram of herself, Richter, and Cornelia in rehearsals. There is also a picture of a bright pink paddle with the number 10, to mimic the scorecards that judges use after each routine. Cornelia created it. With this paddle, Richter has adorably found a way to get his first perfect score.
In the caption, Slater shared her thoughts about the incredible experience of working with Cornelia. She also expressed her hope that it will be a cherished memory for her in the future.
“I can’t wait to dance this tomorrow with princess Cornelia! It makes me so happy that we were able to do this dance with her. I know it means a lot to Andy. It’s not often that we get to create moments like this on the show, with added people that mean so much to them,” Slater wrote. “She chose the music the color of the dresses (we have matching ones) and decorated my maracas and a 10 paddle! Hoping that this will be a memory for her that she will cherish. @richtercommaandy.”
Fans Show Some Love
Richter’s fan base has been incredible with their dedication to keeping him in the competition. Unsurprisingly, they reacted to the post with an outpouring of love and energy to get the voting started and keep their favorite in the ABC dance competition.
“I already know this episode is gonna make me SOBBBB,” a comment reads. “Oh my gosh she is actually the cutest,” another person shared.
It has been an incredible journey for Richter, but he almost didn’t compete. “In April, I got an email about doing it, about being, here’s your invitation to be on Dancing With the Stars,” Richter recalled in an interview on Sirius XM’s “Conan O’Brien Needs a Friend” podcast.
He continued, “I was home at the time. It was in the morning. Honest to God, my first reaction was turn it down and don’t tell anyone. Don’t let anyone know that I’ve been asked. Because they’d be like, ‘why wouldn’t you do it?’ It’s because crabby baby does not want to be pushed out of his comfort zone, basically, is the long and short of it.“
“I didn’t want to do it. Then I thought, no, I need to do this. I need to do this just to get moving,” he confessed. “And it got me to go to the gym and do cardio, which I loathe, started to do a lot more stretching just to kind of prepare myself.”
Richter can be incredibly proud of himself!
