DWTS Week 4 Recap

This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at Youngstown chapter and does not reflect the views of Her Campus.

Oh Toodles!! Welcome back to another Dancing with the Stars recap lovely readers! This week was Disney week, as you could tell by the intro. I was definitely excited about this week’s theme compared to last week’s (whose recap you can check out here). We started off strong with the opening number. It was, in my opinion, the best I have seen in a very long time. Let’s now get to the dances and my scores! 

Whitney and Mark (10) ~ Foxtrot 

They did it again! These two come out every week and continue to set the bar. I fell in love with the storytelling as soon as the dance started. I mean, come on; this was a performance that should have an encore (preferably on the Dancing with the Stars tour). I’m not even a musical theatre girly, but they were definitely taking me back to middle school when Hamilton was the craze. They could’ve been in the ensemble back then. Let’s not even glance over the lip syncing they did and Travis Garland’s voice! Whitney and Mark are simply the top of the competition. As our chapter president said, this dance “ate.” I fear it did indeed dethrone Alix and Val from being my favorite of the night. 

Jordan and Ezra (9) ~ Quickstep 

This beautiful queen being Princess Tiana for Disney night was more special than any could comprehend. She and Ezra gave us a dance that had great animation and joy in it. It was playful, yet powerful, especially with the set up. Her holds in frame were gorgeous. I honestly think that fast paced dances may just be her thing. I struggled with my scoring because though I feel Alix and Val did better, I also feel that Jordan and Ezra did a lot better than others. 

Robert and Whitney (8) ~ Cha cha 

I did not know that Robert was going to be in the Zootopia sequel, but I love that for him. If you think about it, it’s very much on brand. I liked their dance this week. It was very heartwarming and full of life. I felt the “cha cha” element in their dance was on point. I just love how much he reminds me of Bindi when he dances (which makes me think, will he bring home a second mirror ball for the Irwins?). I do agree with Carrie Ann about the muscle comment, but it can always be worked on. I feel like the scores should have been a bit higher, but can’t go back in time, right?

Elaine and Alan (8) ~ Quickstep 

Elaine did a lot better than last week and delivered a nice, clean, and energetic dance. She also did a better job at letting Alan lead and had good body contact in the dance too. To me, she has been fading in the competition a bit as the weeks go on, and that just makes me sad. I need her to give me a showstopper and make me remember how much of a threat she is to these other competitors. As far as the theme, I personally have never ridden the Space Mountain ride, but Alan definitely sold the theme with that alien transformation (whoever did the makeup and prosthetics this week needs applauded).

 Alix and Val (9) ~ Viennese Waltz 

These two climbed to the top of the competition with their dance this week! I loved the opening of this dance and the acting Alix displayed. She really channeled her inner Maleficent and brought the storytelling to another level. The moment with her and Val doing the puppeteer act was top tier. This dance was everything! Those kicks and the way they moved and glided like butter across the floor was almost flawless. That spin to the ground could’ve been a little better before she got back up, but the lead into it was great. The moments when they were in frame definitely gave Viennese waltz too. I think the scores could’ve been higher, but hey, I don’t write the judges’ checks. This was absolutely one of my favorites of the night. 

Hilaria and Gleb (7) ~ Quickstep 

I enjoyed the opening of this dance and the costumes. Once it was known they were doing Star Wars, the costumes definitely made more sense. Hilaria always gives a clean dance through and through. Did it wow me? No, and have they had other dances that are more exciting, yes. I don’t really have much more to say, because again, it wasn’t out of this world, but they did do well.

Danielle and Pasha (7) ~ Quickstep 

Starting off, I just have to say, I did not like the mix of their outfit colors. Besides that, she did really well for a quick step. Once again, Danielle is blowing me away. Was it my favorite performance of hers? No, but did it do what I needed it to do, yes. I didn’t really notice the mistakes, but maybe I was distracted in those moments. I will be honest though, I wish they had a different song because I feel like they do the Jungle Book almost every single Disney night. It would have been nice to see her as a Cinderella or something. 

Jen and Jan (8) ~ Jazz  

The performance was very jazzy, but it was too reminiscent of all the tricks and flips they did in week 1, which disappointed me. It was a good dance overall though. I just need more from them and for them to start blowing me away, especially if they want to win or make it to the end. I just feel like they are not wowing me enough, which isn’t going to bring them far. Also, why not just do “A Whole New World” if Jen was going to be Jasmine? “Friend Like Me” was between Aladdin and Genie, so I don’t really get that. 

Dylan and Daniella (7) ~ Quickstep 

After their dance last week, I was curious to see how they would do this week. I liked the dance, and I loved the color scheme and set up. Dylan’s outfit confused me because it gave me Toy Story vibes (which it would have been cute for them to do that), but I loved Daniella’s outfit. I feel like they handled the height difference as well as they could for the quick step. They also had good feet action. Also, not having him do High School Musical is insane!

Scott and Rylee (7) ~ Salsa 

When I heard they were doing “Bop to the Top,” I was screaming! I was so excited and just knew this would be their night. However, I was not really satisfied. They had some mishaps at the end with hand placements and I don’t know, it just lacked attitude and sass. It missed the Sharpay Evans spirit. I felt like Scott’s arms extensions could have been better accentuated too. It also did not give salsa vibes for me. I could have used more hips and maybe some more tricks. However, it was not a bad dance, it just didn’t quench my thirst. 

Andy and Emma (6) ~ Viennese Waltz 

Now I will say that he seemed looser than in previous weeks, and I love that for his improvement. I also liked Emma’s outfit and commitment to the theme (though I did wonder how hard it was to breathe with that prosthetic nose). However, we are in week four and this is a dancing competition. We should not be sending people who have the potential to be in the top eight home in week four. I love Andy’s personality, but the dancing needs a lot of work and improvement. 

Elimination: Hilaria and Gleb 

Andy is still here, and I love him, but this is about dancing, and he is at the bottom of the totem pole in my eyes as far as that goes. Do I think Hilaria would have won the thing? No, but I still think she should have stayed longer than Andy. At this point, I’m convinced that America is just going to keep pushing him through. It’s honestly starting to get annoying, yet comical each week to see this happening (again love Andy and he is a sweetheart). 

That’s all I have for you guys this week. You can find all my past recaps and more of my pieces if you click here. Come back for next week: Dedication Night!