'Dancing With the Stars' Season 20 premiere: Dance-by-dance recap

ByCari Skillman KABC logo
Tuesday, March 17, 2015
'Dancing With the Stars' couples review their first performances
The pro dancers and their partners have completed their first night in the 'Dancing With the Stars' competition, and one team fox-trotted their way to the top of the leader board.

LOS ANGELES -- We're celebrating 10 years and 20 seasons of the glamour, glitz and glitter that is "Dancing With the Stars." Twelve new celebrities have been paired with familiar professional dancers to compete for a new and upgraded golden mirror ball trophy. There were fireworks and flips, juicy wiggles and lots of jiggles, and even more giggles.

PHOTOS:"Dancing With the Stars" week 1 highlights

Here's a recap of the opening night performances, from highest to lowest score:

RUMER WILLIS - 32 out of 40

The actress, singer, and daughter of famous parents Bruce Willis and Demi Moore is breaking out on her own in a big way with this first week's dance. Rumer Willis is paired with Val Chmerkovskiy and the two actually know each other through mutual friends. Val can see she's dedicated to learning and has potential. Her biggest critic is Rumer and Val hopes to get her to stop beating herself up and "just do it." Their Foxtrot to Hozier's "Take Me to Church" is as graceful and elegant as anything you'd see weeks into the competition. Head judge Len Goodman praised its lovely "light and shade" elements and said it was the dance of the night. Julianne Hough called her a vision and thinks they are the couple to watch. Carrie Ann Inaba thought the dance was passionate, intense, and fierce, and Bruno Tonioli raved about their focus and power.

RIKER LYNCH - 31 out of 40

Women of a certain younger age are undoubtedly fans of Riker Lynch. For those who aren't familiar with the musician and actor, he's a bassist in a band called "R5", one that also features his brothers. He's also been a Disney Channel star, and was a "warbler" on "Glee." But for now, Riker is dancing into our lives for the coming weeks, learning from one of the best, pro Allison Holker. Their Jive is set in a pretend rock show, complete with adoring, yelling young fans. Len called Riker a "wild child" and appreciated his full-on, flat-out energy and attack. Bruno thought Lynch had the coolest "vibe" since his friend Billy Idol (name dropper). Carrie Ann was honest and said while he wasn't the most graceful, Riker's explosive and athletic ability was fun to watch. And his second cousin, Julianne (full disclosure!), spent most of her time praising Allison's choreography.

NASTIA LIUKIN - 30 out of 40

While we're on the subject of the Hough family ... Derek's back! He had announced previously that he was sitting out this season so he could focus on performing in New York with the Radio City Rockettes. But maybe it was the prospect of adding a gold trophy to his five silver ones that lured him back to the ballroom. Nastia Liukin, herself, is used to seeing gold; she's a medal-winning Olympic gymnast. And she happens to go to school at NYU so that's convenient for Derek's schedule. They performed a fancy Foxtrot to a mashup version of "New York New York." Len liked it alright, but thought it lacked flow. Bruno thought they were firing on all cylinders and Carrie called it polished and clean but ... busted! There was a lift.

ROBERT HERJAVEC - 28 out of 40

The "Shark Tank" businessman is dealing with something much tougher than any board meeting... the ballroom! Luckily for Robert Herjavec, we have the return of former champ Kym Johnson to lead him through these rough ballroom waters. There's a lot of laughing and giggling during their Cha Cha rehearsals and, believe it or not, that continues into the performance. The shark is fun! Julianne said she was not expecting his infectious energy. Bruno also called it a pleasant surprise. Len added he too was shocked and thought Robert would be a fish out of water on the dance floor, but his smile lit up the place.

NOAH GALLOWAY - 26 out of 40

Iraqi war vet and now motivational speaker Noah Galloway is challenging himself by joining the competition this season. Noah lost an arm and a leg during combat, but he has not let the accident hold him back. Pro dancer Sharna Burgess will have to be creative with her choreography, but Noah promises what he lacks in limbs he'll make up in determination. They are assigned the Cha Cha, which is pretty tough for anyone to do, much less someone who's missing one knee. (He lets us know that's the difference between his injury and Amy Purdy's... Amy had her knees!) Julianne praised the connection they've already made as a team. Bruno thinks Noah has a presence that is unique. Len called his being here a triumph and Carrie Ann thanked him for broadening her scope of what dance is and can be.

CHRIS SOULES - 26 out of 40

The most recent "Bachelor" has traded his new fiancee Whitney Bischoff for a pro dancer, also named Witney. Chris Soules is paired with last season's champ, Witney Carson. She heads out to the farm in Iowa to meet him and they begin learning the Jive in a barn. So you just know what song is coming up for them: "Footloose!" Let's dance! Julianne has fond memories of this song having starred in the remake. Bruno thought he was rough and rugged yet totally charming. Carrie Ann sees tons of potential and charisma and Len said that with some polish, like you'd use on an old pickup truck, he also sees potential.

MICHAEL SAM - 26 out of 40

The football player hopes a little DWTS training can help him dance right back into the NFL. He's juggling training for this show with preparing to go to the NFL Veteran Combine, a football tryout. His partner is Peta Murgatroyd, who just happened to have won this thing with another football player, Donald Driver. Michael Sam quickly learns that dancing takes even more stamina than playing football. They perform a fun and sassy Cha Cha to "Uptown Funk", but get busted for his bad footwork. Julianne called his feet sloppy while Len's word was atrocious. Carrie Ann asked him to wipe the pasted on smile off his face and show us his authentic self.

PATTI LABELLE - 25 out of 40

The biggest cheer of the night came for the legendary Ms. Patti LaBelle. The 70-year-old entertainer plans to give this her all, but she promises to "pimp slap" her partner, Artem Chigvintsev, if he starts yelling at her. Patti was surprised at how physically grueling dancing can be. Her Foxtrot training left her a little dizzy and even nauseous, but she persevered and her performance to her own song "Lady Marmalade" was a hit. Len loved her naturalness and ease on the dance floor. Julianne called her a gorgeous graceful goddess. Bruno's words were elegant and composed and Carrie Ann said she thought the dance was simple but graceful.

SUZANNE SOMERS - 25 out of 40

Coming in as second oldest of Season 20, Suzanne Somers showed us right away that she has not put away that ThighMaster she made famous all those years ago. The girl's got some legs! The 68-year-old performer thinks age is just a number and hopes to prove she can do this. Her partner, Tony Dovolani, has some cheeky fun choreographing a Cha Cha to "Physical", complete with ThighMaster props. Carrie Ann tells Suzanne she wants to be her, calling her a ray of sunshine. Len praised the concept, but wants her to burst out of her shell a bit; Julianne concurred and wants to see Suzanne's sexier side.

WILLOW SHIELDS - 25 out of 40

The "Hunger Games" star lets producers have some fun with her hit movie franchise in a sketch that has her choosing her dance partner in the same way they choose tributes in the movie. Just when it looks like Val is the "chosen one", Mark Ballas comes forward to volunteer. At 14, Willow Shields is the youngest competitor ever on the show, but Mark thinks she has a maturity that goes beyond her years. Len called their Cha Cha sparkling and bubbly "like a glass of Alka-Seltzer." Julianne thinks she has some sass. Carrie Ann said she has a good mix of pizzazz and sophistication and Bruno said it, oh yes he did... the odds are definitely in her favor.

CHARLOTTE MCKINNEY - 22 out of 40

If you saw the Super Bowl, or any story about the Super Bowl ads, or the Internet after the Super Bowl, then you saw Charlotte McKinney. She flaunted her gravity defying assets in a Carl's Jr. commercial. She will apparently be flaunting them during DWTS, if her opening bit with partner Keo Motsepe is any indication. Suffice to say, it was some "faux" nude fun with strategically placed props. In learning the Jive, which is very bouncy, Keo even offers to help tape down her breasts. She thinks it's a joke but after he gets out the role of duct tape, she actually says it works! Carrie Ann praised her energy but wants a little more focus. Len complimented the fact that she made a few mistakes but didn't let it phase her and Julianne told her to focus on her legs, because her top half is great. No one is going to dispute that!

REDFOO - 22 out of 40

And tying for the bottom spot with Charlotte: Redfoo. The singer and his partner, Emma Slater, prove to have boundless energy and great smiles. He just needs a bit more technique. Len told Redfoo his dancing was like his hair... a little wild! Julianne wants a little more wiggle, while Bruno asked for more wackiness. Carrie Ann thinks he has his own kind of wonderful, but needs to look at the whole dance and not just parts.

VIDEO: 'Dancing With the Stars' couples review their first performance

All 12 couples return for week two! No elimination... yet!