“Dancing with the Stars” Season 34 is off to a good start with stars like Robert Irwin, who was partnered with Witney Carson, and “Secret Lives of Mormon Wives” star Whitney Leavitt, who was paired with Mark Ballas, leading the scoreboard.
Fans have been flooding social media to share their thoughts on what took place on premiere night on September 16. Still, ahead of the show, beloved DWTS alum and professional dancer Sharna Burgess shared her thoughts on the voting system.
Sharna Burgess Comments on Hilaria Baldwin & the Scoring System
On September 15, Burgess answered several fan questions on her Instagram Stories. This included a question about whether she would do the scoring for DWTS on her social media again, like she had done last year. In response, she wrote, “Also on that scoring thing, I don’t know how they are gonna go scoring Hilaria who has a better technique starting the show than anyone who has ever done it.” She is referring to Alec Baldwin’s wife, wellness influencer Hilaria Baldwin, who has ballroom training.
“She’s competed in Blackpool, which is the holy grail of ballroom competitions,” Burgess wrote. “I’ve seen a sneak peek and … like technically (on that small piece) no notes. I could be off base and the first ep will say alot but man that’s going to be hard to judge. Like logistically for jer journey, you don’t want 9s and 10s every week.”
Now that we have watched the show, we know that Baldwin and her professional partner Gleb Savchenko (who also celebrated his 42nd birthday September 16) did well. But they didn’t earn the highest scores! Irwin and Leavitt both earned a 15/20, and Baldwin came in a close third place with 14/20.
The Scoring on DWTS Season 34, Episode 1
On premiere night, the contestants were only judged by Bruno Tonioli and Derek Hough. Earlier on September 16, Carrie Ann Inaba had shared on Instagram that she was not going to be on the show because she was unwell.
“I wanted to share that I will not be at the show tonight as I am feeling quite under the weather. I’m resting up and can’t wait to be back next week in good health,” she wrote. “In the meantime, I wish all the contestants the very best of luck. I’ll be cheering you on from home.”
Hough made a bold claim about Irwin on opening night. He stated that Irwin’s performance was “the best first dance I’ve ever seen on the show,” The Hollywood Reporter reports.
In Season 21, Irwin’s older sister, Bindi Irwin, competed on the show and won the Mirrorball Trophy alongside Hough.
On the lower end of the voting was Corey Feldman and pro partner Jenna Johnson, and Andy Richter and pro partner Emma Slater, with a score of 9/20. Now, we wait to see what happens next Tuesday. “Dancing with the Stars” Season 34 can be seen live on ABC and Disney+. It can also be streamed on Hulu and Disney+ the next day.
