WEBVTT - The Last Dance (Week 11) 0:00:16.079 --> 0:00:22.119 And just like that, Season thirty four of Dancing with 0:00:22.200 --> 0:00:26.599 the Stars has come to a close. The winner has 0:00:26.720 --> 0:00:31.840 been crowned, the freestyles have been performed, the confetti canons 0:00:31.880 --> 0:00:37.159 have exploded, and I am Danielle Fischel, podcaster, TV director, 0:00:37.440 --> 0:00:42.360 mother of two, and soon to be vagabond, traveling city 0:00:42.520 --> 0:00:46.200 to city in the Dancing with the Stars Live Tour. 0:00:47.240 --> 0:00:51.360 In the end, it seems I did, indeed become a 0:00:51.400 --> 0:00:58.840 professional dancer. I am home now. I am just back 0:00:58.920 --> 0:01:04.120 from one of ther's biggest TV moments, the closure for 0:01:04.240 --> 0:01:09.959 one of the most memorable few months of my life. Tonight, 0:01:10.200 --> 0:01:13.840 I was lucky enough to perform one last time on 0:01:13.880 --> 0:01:20.560 the show. But the real news here is that Robert 0:01:20.959 --> 0:01:28.119 Irwin is our King of the ballroom. More on that 0:01:28.440 --> 0:01:32.720 in just a bit. Because I continue to record this 0:01:32.800 --> 0:01:37.520 podcast even through the final musical note, chronicling my own 0:01:37.680 --> 0:01:41.360 journey through the show, learning dance from scratch and living 0:01:41.400 --> 0:01:45.039 to talk about it, and I continue to fulfill my 0:01:45.200 --> 0:01:49.640 professional duty. Please to report back as your eyes and 0:01:49.720 --> 0:01:55.960 ears from the season finale. So, oh my gosh, what 0:01:56.800 --> 0:02:01.800 a day, What a week, what a few months. The 0:02:01.840 --> 0:02:07.200 finale has obviously been in full swing for at least 0:02:07.200 --> 0:02:11.280 the last week, but the prep starts for it weeks ago. 0:02:11.720 --> 0:02:15.360 You know, the pros are all anybody who's still in 0:02:15.360 --> 0:02:19.960 the competition is already having the conversations about finale week. 0:02:19.960 --> 0:02:22.760 As a matter of fact, the week I was eliminated, 0:02:22.760 --> 0:02:28.160 which was week eight, we had our first creative meeting 0:02:28.200 --> 0:02:30.680 about a finale, about a freestyle. What are we going 0:02:30.720 --> 0:02:32.799 to do if we if we, you know, get to 0:02:32.880 --> 0:02:37.560 the freestyle. So for weeks the couples have been talking 0:02:37.600 --> 0:02:39.880 about their plans and what are they going to do 0:02:40.280 --> 0:02:42.840 if they are fortunate enough to make it to the finale, 0:02:43.520 --> 0:02:47.200 and the pros have been thinking about the choreography, and 0:02:47.280 --> 0:02:51.240 the songs have been cleared and the ideas are happening. 0:02:51.320 --> 0:02:54.560 So it's been weeks in the making, but it has 0:02:54.639 --> 0:02:59.240 really been full swing obviously since last week. I got 0:02:59.240 --> 0:03:03.040 to do two little performances on the show. I was 0:03:03.080 --> 0:03:06.280 a part of the opening number, which is the returning 0:03:07.080 --> 0:03:11.120 Returning Contestants number. Everyone who was a part of the 0:03:11.160 --> 0:03:15.920 season this year had a part in the opening number. 0:03:16.440 --> 0:03:23.200 Mine part was with of course Pasha and Jen and Johan. 0:03:24.320 --> 0:03:27.120 We started in the garage. It was a kind of 0:03:27.160 --> 0:03:30.760 a cha cha salsa number. You know, like a little 0:03:30.960 --> 0:03:37.240 salsa bit, which was really fun. Our dresses were not 0:03:37.480 --> 0:03:43.400 exactly salsa style dresses. They were more, you know, traditional 0:03:44.560 --> 0:03:49.120 ballroom style dresses. But they wanted everybody in. They wanted 0:03:49.200 --> 0:03:51.280 us in purple, and the dresses they had that were 0:03:51.320 --> 0:03:54.240 in purple were like that. But it was a beautiful dress. 0:03:54.280 --> 0:03:57.920 I loved mine. I love purple, and I loved the 0:03:57.960 --> 0:04:00.680 opening number. I thought the opening number was really fun. 0:04:00.800 --> 0:04:03.680 It was great to be back in rehearsal with everybody. 0:04:03.880 --> 0:04:09.119 We only had one true rehearsal day. We all got 0:04:09.160 --> 0:04:15.400 together on Saturday, and Lauren wasn't able to be there, 0:04:15.720 --> 0:04:19.839 and Scott wasn't able to be there, and Whitney and 0:04:19.880 --> 0:04:24.200 Mark were not there either. Everybody those people were all 0:04:24.320 --> 0:04:29.080 out of town and so then we got to Scott 0:04:29.120 --> 0:04:31.840 did not come into town until today, So today was 0:04:31.880 --> 0:04:33.520 the first day I got to see Scott and his 0:04:34.080 --> 0:04:37.200 husband Mark. Always so great to see them. I did 0:04:37.240 --> 0:04:39.760 not have enough time with them today. When I saw them, 0:04:39.800 --> 0:04:41.960 I said, one day, it's just not enough with you. 0:04:42.800 --> 0:04:46.000 But the rehearsal was really fun. We had a really 0:04:46.000 --> 0:04:49.400 wonderful choreographer for the opening number. He was spectacular to 0:04:49.440 --> 0:04:53.080 work with. And so fun and and you know, you 0:04:53.120 --> 0:04:56.200 can tell when there's somebody who's really good at what 0:04:56.240 --> 0:04:59.360 they do, and everything just goes super seamlessly. So our 0:04:59.360 --> 0:05:02.760 rehearsal day for the opening number was only two hours, 0:05:03.320 --> 0:05:06.279 and nope, I take it back, it was four hours. 0:05:06.360 --> 0:05:11.039 I forgot our little bumper rehearsal that we had. The 0:05:11.040 --> 0:05:13.560 bumper is the bit that I got to do with 0:05:13.640 --> 0:05:17.760 Whitney and with Andy where Andy ripped open his shirt 0:05:17.760 --> 0:05:22.400 and had a hairy chest. We had two hours for 0:05:22.440 --> 0:05:24.120 that one, and then we had four hours for the 0:05:24.160 --> 0:05:27.120 opening number. And of course everybody works in their own 0:05:27.120 --> 0:05:30.680 individual groups with their pros, so we were put in 0:05:30.760 --> 0:05:35.440 our positions by the choreographer, and then our pros had 0:05:35.480 --> 0:05:38.680 been taught our choreography, and then the pros teach their 0:05:38.760 --> 0:05:40.880 celebs and so we all kind of go off into 0:05:40.880 --> 0:05:44.479 our own little corner learn the choreography and then put 0:05:44.520 --> 0:05:47.800 it all together. And it was just a fun days. 0:05:48.120 --> 0:05:49.960 It was so good to see everybody again. It was 0:05:50.000 --> 0:05:52.320 great to see Corey again. Obviously I haven't seen Corey 0:05:52.320 --> 0:05:56.320 since the very first two weeks. It was so good 0:05:56.320 --> 0:06:00.120 to see my boy Baron again. Barren and I have 0:06:00.560 --> 0:06:03.479 been close since day one, so it was really great 0:06:03.480 --> 0:06:05.839 to see him. I didn't get to see Lauren on 0:06:05.880 --> 0:06:07.560 that day. She wasn't in town, so I got to 0:06:07.560 --> 0:06:11.440 see her yesterday for camera blocking or gosh, I was like, 0:06:11.520 --> 0:06:14.279 yesterday may have been Sunday. We did camera blocking on Sunday. 0:06:15.200 --> 0:06:19.000 It is great to see her too. She looked spectacular. 0:06:19.520 --> 0:06:21.920 I don't know if you guys have heard her new song. 0:06:22.000 --> 0:06:24.440 By the way, Lauren Hareggie's new song. It's been out 0:06:24.440 --> 0:06:27.000 now for maybe a little over a month. I am 0:06:27.040 --> 0:06:29.440 such a fan. It's so good. You guys really need 0:06:29.480 --> 0:06:31.560 to go check it out. So check out Lauren Hereki's 0:06:31.560 --> 0:06:34.360 new song. It was just fun. It was just fun 0:06:34.360 --> 0:06:38.080 to be back with everybody, and you know, doing the 0:06:38.240 --> 0:06:45.000 bumper with Whitney and Andy was just also so fun. 0:06:45.200 --> 0:06:48.400 You know, like what's not to have fun with this? 0:06:48.680 --> 0:06:52.760 With this cast, it's just everything everything you think it 0:06:52.839 --> 0:06:58.599 is it is is just amazing. My husband would like 0:06:58.839 --> 0:07:02.080 me to say that I. 0:07:02.000 --> 0:07:07.000 Am the only eliminated contestant to have been at every show, 0:07:09.200 --> 0:07:13.880 which makes me sound like the loser that I am, 0:07:14.160 --> 0:07:15.200 But that's okay. 0:07:15.920 --> 0:07:20.880 I'm gonna accept that. Yes, I went to every show. 0:07:20.960 --> 0:07:23.680 I got eliminated. In week eight. Week nine was the 0:07:23.680 --> 0:07:28.280 twentieth anniversary, and everybody was invited to the twentieth Anniversary, 0:07:28.640 --> 0:07:32.360 and I did not want to miss that celebration. And 0:07:32.400 --> 0:07:36.360 then Week ten was Prince Knight, and I really I 0:07:36.440 --> 0:07:38.800 wanted to be there too. I didn't want to miss that. 0:07:39.320 --> 0:07:42.600 Tonight was the finale, and of course I got to 0:07:42.680 --> 0:07:45.960 dance in it. So there were two dances or two 0:07:46.000 --> 0:07:50.880 weeks that I technically shouldn't have been there, but I 0:07:50.920 --> 0:07:55.200 went anyway, And I honestly, I don't even feel that 0:07:55.240 --> 0:08:00.200 embarrassed about it, because I just love it so much. 0:08:00.320 --> 0:08:03.280 I love the people, I love the environment, I love 0:08:03.320 --> 0:08:07.760 the music, I love watching the dances. It's just it's 0:08:07.800 --> 0:08:10.520 the greatest place on Earth. Sorry, Disneyland, you may be 0:08:10.640 --> 0:08:13.160 the happiest place on Earth, but the Dancing with the 0:08:13.200 --> 0:08:29.600 Stars Ballroom is the greatest place on Earth. So during 0:08:29.640 --> 0:08:32.440 the week, while we were practicing our opening number and 0:08:32.520 --> 0:08:37.880 then our bumpers, we didn't really interact much or see 0:08:38.600 --> 0:08:44.160 the finalists there at they were rehearsing at our main 0:08:44.320 --> 0:08:46.720 Dancing with the Stars rehearsal space, which is on Highland. 0:08:47.160 --> 0:08:51.120 They were rehearsing there and they sent the rest of 0:08:51.240 --> 0:08:55.240 us to a different rehearsal studio because there were so 0:08:55.400 --> 0:08:59.080 many of us, and so I didn't really get to 0:08:59.120 --> 0:09:03.440 see a lot of the finalists throughout the week. I 0:09:03.440 --> 0:09:05.760 did get to see them a little bit on camera 0:09:05.840 --> 0:09:08.480 blocking day, and even then I really tried to give 0:09:08.520 --> 0:09:12.640 everybody their space because you could tell that everyone had 0:09:12.679 --> 0:09:18.280 been working really hard and everyone was a little stressed. 0:09:18.920 --> 0:09:23.959 They had to know six dances this week. They had 0:09:23.960 --> 0:09:27.240 to do their freestyle, they had to learn a new dance, 0:09:27.960 --> 0:09:35.480 and then they had to have choreography for four instant dances. 0:09:35.520 --> 0:09:38.160 And because they didn't know the song. You know, they 0:09:38.160 --> 0:09:43.160 can have choreography planned, but you know, it changes when 0:09:43.200 --> 0:09:45.800 you know the song and when you haven't done it before. 0:09:46.280 --> 0:09:49.040 So anyway, they had to know six dances. They had 0:09:49.040 --> 0:09:51.120 to have six dances in their muscle memory and on 0:09:51.160 --> 0:09:56.560 their brain. And I really just obviously lent my support 0:09:56.600 --> 0:09:58.520 and said hello and would give a hug, but also 0:09:58.720 --> 0:10:02.720 gave everybody their space to just be in the moment. 0:10:05.240 --> 0:10:10.960 The overall feeling today for the finale was really celebratory. 0:10:12.360 --> 0:10:15.560 Leading up to this week, there were moments where you 0:10:15.600 --> 0:10:18.840 could tell people were stressed and there was a lot 0:10:18.880 --> 0:10:22.959 to think about and then when the actual day arrived today, 0:10:24.440 --> 0:10:27.719 everyone I talked to all the finalists, I said, how 0:10:27.760 --> 0:10:30.960 are you feeling? What's going through your head? Like, how 0:10:30.960 --> 0:10:33.559 are you feeling right now? And all of them said, 0:10:34.280 --> 0:10:38.560 I am just having the best time. It just feels 0:10:38.559 --> 0:10:41.160 like a party. And they said, all the work's been done, 0:10:41.360 --> 0:10:44.280 there's nothing else I can do, Like, even as far 0:10:44.320 --> 0:10:46.839 as the performances go, they knew they were going to 0:10:46.880 --> 0:10:50.080 get judged, but the judging wasn't then going to carry 0:10:50.120 --> 0:10:54.520 over into like is someone going home tonight? And you'd think, oh, well, no, 0:10:54.520 --> 0:10:57.120 no one's going home tonight. But even worse than that, 0:10:57.280 --> 0:10:59.559 one person's gonna win and everyone else is going to 0:10:59.600 --> 0:11:03.600 find their their place. But nobody was stressed about that part. 0:11:03.760 --> 0:11:07.360 Everyone was like, it's out of my hands. All the 0:11:07.400 --> 0:11:09.400 work of the season is behind me at this point, 0:11:09.440 --> 0:11:12.080 other than the dances I need to perform tonight and 0:11:12.120 --> 0:11:13.760 I can just go out there and have the time 0:11:13.800 --> 0:11:17.360 of my life and like, whatever happens happens. And so 0:11:17.480 --> 0:11:21.679 everyone I spoke to just said it felt like a 0:11:21.720 --> 0:11:25.360 really joyous celebration and like a party. It didn't have 0:11:25.440 --> 0:11:30.280 its normal maybe the anxiety that normally surrounds a live 0:11:30.320 --> 0:11:37.360 show night. For the finale, each couple was selected by 0:11:37.400 --> 0:11:41.640 a judge, and the judge then got to choose what 0:11:41.920 --> 0:11:48.280 dance they wanted to see from them. So I loved this. 0:11:48.480 --> 0:11:52.800 I thought this was really fun. I'm not sure how 0:11:53.000 --> 0:11:56.319 or why the judges necessarily picked the songs that they 0:11:56.559 --> 0:12:00.000 or the styles that they picked, or if they even 0:12:00.200 --> 0:12:03.600 really did was it really I mean, there's really only 0:12:03.679 --> 0:12:06.040 so many dances left that they haven't done, so I'm 0:12:06.040 --> 0:12:09.360 not really sure. I'm not really sure about this whole, like, 0:12:09.640 --> 0:12:11.400 you know, picking the songs, like there's really not that 0:12:11.480 --> 0:12:14.120 many left. But I still I thought it was great. 0:12:15.400 --> 0:12:18.680 I I don't think you can go wrong with any 0:12:18.720 --> 0:12:21.480 of the judges. I have a real soft spot in 0:12:21.480 --> 0:12:25.600 my heart for Bruno. I just think he's I just 0:12:25.600 --> 0:12:29.280 think he's truly wonderful and he makes me laugh, and 0:12:29.360 --> 0:12:34.160 I also think he gives very thoughtful critiques. And yeah, 0:12:34.200 --> 0:12:36.360 so I probably if I, if I had my drothers, 0:12:36.800 --> 0:12:39.680 I probably would have ended up with Bruno the way 0:12:39.960 --> 0:12:44.840 my boy Dylan and my girl Danny did so. Alex 0:12:44.920 --> 0:12:49.520 Earl and Val did a samba to hip hip Chin Chin, 0:12:51.200 --> 0:12:55.960 and boy did I think that was stellar. I thought 0:12:56.000 --> 0:13:01.960 her samba was so good. I loved her colorful frilly 0:13:02.040 --> 0:13:07.960 pants and her just unbelievable six pack. What a what 0:13:08.080 --> 0:13:13.760 a song. And then Derek picked a quick step for 0:13:14.160 --> 0:13:17.000 Robert and Whitney to do and they did it too. 0:13:17.240 --> 0:13:21.160 Are You Going to Be My Girl? By Jet and 0:13:21.280 --> 0:13:23.560 I thought that was so fun. I was it's so 0:13:23.760 --> 0:13:28.559 great to see Robert do a quick step. His energy, 0:13:29.040 --> 0:13:34.400 his enthusiasm, his just he's he's so cut out for that. 0:13:34.640 --> 0:13:37.880 So that was a really good choice by Derek. And 0:13:37.920 --> 0:13:43.679 then Bruno picked a passa Doble to Stampede by Alexander 0:13:43.760 --> 0:13:50.720 Jean featuring Lindsay Sterling for Dylan and Danny oh Man. 0:13:52.640 --> 0:13:57.680 That that was something else, something else. First of all, 0:13:59.360 --> 0:14:04.240 to watch how far Dylan has come over the season, 0:14:04.360 --> 0:14:07.240 to see where he started week one and then to 0:14:07.360 --> 0:14:12.760 see where he ended up tonight is just gosh, It's 0:14:12.840 --> 0:14:17.040 such an incredible journey. So proud of him, so so 0:14:17.240 --> 0:14:22.720 proud of him. And then also on like a shallow note, 0:14:22.880 --> 0:14:28.600 he is so unbelievably ripped. He's so ripped. I was like, 0:14:28.720 --> 0:14:32.080 where are you finding the time, sir to work out 0:14:32.480 --> 0:14:35.480 like this? It probably has more to do with what 0:14:35.680 --> 0:14:39.000 he's eating than the workouts, but my goodness, I felt 0:14:39.040 --> 0:14:42.320 like I could see tendons, like I could see individual 0:14:42.440 --> 0:14:48.480 tendons inside his body. And for Elaine and Alan, Derek 0:14:48.560 --> 0:14:51.480 picked a rumba to take My Breath Away by Jay 0:14:51.600 --> 0:14:57.360 hall Boy. I thought that was beautiful too. The performances tonight, 0:14:57.440 --> 0:15:01.000 as you would expect for a finale, were real wonderful. 0:15:01.360 --> 0:15:05.479 I didn't get to be in the skybox for Elaine's 0:15:05.560 --> 0:15:09.160 dance because shortly after her dance was something I had 0:15:09.200 --> 0:15:10.600 to do with one of my dances, so I had 0:15:10.640 --> 0:15:12.240 been pulled out, so I was watching it on the 0:15:12.280 --> 0:15:21.600 monitor off and on, but really just incredible, beautiful, graceful, gorgeous. 0:15:21.640 --> 0:15:26.080 And then Carrie Ann and Aba picked Apasa Do Blay 0:15:26.480 --> 0:15:31.280 to Break in Dishes by Rihanna for Jordan and Ezra, 0:15:32.000 --> 0:15:37.320 And first of all, is there a better song than 0:15:37.400 --> 0:15:43.200 Breaking Dishes? I love that song so much. It's such 0:15:43.240 --> 0:15:47.840 a vibe. I can't help but just dance and move 0:15:47.960 --> 0:15:51.920 every time I hear that song. And Ezra's so cute. 0:15:52.080 --> 0:15:56.120 He was telling me that during the week he just 0:15:56.200 --> 0:16:00.880 kept serving face all through their Pasa Do and Jordan 0:16:00.960 --> 0:16:04.680 had to be like, sir, you are supposed to look intense, 0:16:05.360 --> 0:16:10.440 stop stop giving looks, and oh my god, I just 0:16:10.680 --> 0:16:14.800 I loved it. I loved it so much. I thought 0:16:14.840 --> 0:16:20.720 it was unbelievable. Jordan another one who her journey from 0:16:20.760 --> 0:16:24.120 where she started to seeing her tonight in the finale 0:16:24.840 --> 0:16:29.320 just really she just has grown so much and her 0:16:29.440 --> 0:16:33.480 confidence is through the roof now as it should be. 0:16:34.240 --> 0:16:38.200 And to see the risks that they have taken through 0:16:38.200 --> 0:16:42.040 the season have been some of my favorites. I just 0:16:42.120 --> 0:16:45.640 think some of the decisions they have made, even if 0:16:45.800 --> 0:16:49.120 they didn't necessarily pay off the way they were hoping 0:16:49.240 --> 0:16:51.280 they would like, they ended up being you know, whether 0:16:51.400 --> 0:16:55.200 or not everything landed perfectly, You can't. You're never going 0:16:55.280 --> 0:16:57.320 to do that if you're going to be willing to 0:16:57.440 --> 0:17:01.400 take risks. Part of that is that some of them 0:17:01.440 --> 0:17:05.560 aren't going to land perfectly every time, but when they do, 0:17:06.119 --> 0:17:10.560 when they do land, man is it special. And I 0:17:10.600 --> 0:17:18.080 think if I had to pick riskiest partnership, riskiest choreography, 0:17:19.080 --> 0:17:23.240 most willing to take risks of this season, it would 0:17:23.240 --> 0:17:25.600 be Jordan and Ezra. And I will tell you it 0:17:25.800 --> 0:17:31.560 made it thrilling. I love that about them and it 0:17:31.680 --> 0:17:34.879 made it exciting to watch every single week and you 0:17:35.040 --> 0:17:38.120 just couldn't help but root for them every single week 0:17:38.359 --> 0:17:41.040 just to see what they came up with next. It 0:17:41.119 --> 0:17:46.159 was definitely they were definitely maybe the most exciting couple 0:17:46.400 --> 0:17:50.680 for me to watch because of those risks. So kudos 0:17:50.720 --> 0:17:56.560 to Ezra on his first ever finale and wow, wow, 0:17:56.800 --> 0:18:00.560 pretty pretty exciting, and congratulations to Jordan for just absolutely 0:18:00.640 --> 0:18:04.760 killing it and for both of them for holding each 0:18:04.760 --> 0:18:07.760 other down. You know it. Really it really felt like 0:18:07.800 --> 0:18:12.600 a partnership where even though Ezra was the pro, he 0:18:12.680 --> 0:18:17.320 recognized that performance wise, you're not gonna get a partner 0:18:17.560 --> 0:18:22.639 that's more confident in front of people than a gold medalist, 0:18:22.800 --> 0:18:26.239 you know, like that Olympian mentality as he mentioned, And 0:18:26.320 --> 0:18:29.240 so he knew when it was time to like, I'm 0:18:29.240 --> 0:18:32.520 gonna let her hold me down, and vice versa. She 0:18:32.600 --> 0:18:34.880 knew when to say, like I need to lean into 0:18:34.960 --> 0:18:37.120 you and to trust you and to let you take 0:18:37.160 --> 0:18:40.520 you take, let you take lead, and uh yeah, it's 0:18:40.560 --> 0:18:57.040 just a really that was a beautiful partnership. Another amazing 0:18:57.160 --> 0:19:03.040 thing about this finale was the dance. And I gotta 0:19:03.080 --> 0:19:08.719 tell you behind the scenes, the instant dance. So they 0:19:08.760 --> 0:19:12.160 started talking to us about the instant dance weeks ago. 0:19:12.359 --> 0:19:14.800 They wouldn't tell us when the instant dance was going 0:19:14.840 --> 0:19:18.040 to happen, and they but they did tell us there's 0:19:18.080 --> 0:19:20.520 going to be something called an instant dance. Here's how 0:19:20.560 --> 0:19:23.280 it's going to work, and you don't know exactly when 0:19:23.280 --> 0:19:25.399 it's coming up. But if I were you, guys, I 0:19:25.440 --> 0:19:30.080 would start prepping those things now. And they said it 0:19:30.119 --> 0:19:33.280 can be any one of your first four dances and 0:19:33.520 --> 0:19:35.679 you're not going to know the song. And I remember 0:19:35.720 --> 0:19:38.159 being like, I'm sorry, what we have to do? 0:19:38.280 --> 0:19:38.359 What? 0:19:40.600 --> 0:19:44.960 And I then was out of the competition, and I 0:19:45.040 --> 0:19:47.280 was even thinking, like as far as watching the show, 0:19:47.359 --> 0:19:52.040 I was like, this feels very stressful and like it 0:19:52.080 --> 0:19:56.359 doesn't really seem fair. And I thought, also, it's how 0:19:56.400 --> 0:19:59.640 good could they possibly be when they are only hearing 0:19:59.640 --> 0:20:02.160 their song? And I mean, I guess what I'm trying 0:20:02.160 --> 0:20:05.399 to say is, in my mind, I was mentally pooh poohing. 0:20:06.359 --> 0:20:08.760 I was pooh poohing the instant dance. I was like, 0:20:08.840 --> 0:20:11.760 we don't need this, we don't need this. Maybe if 0:20:11.800 --> 0:20:15.320 it were only two to choose from or something like, 0:20:15.359 --> 0:20:18.120 maybe that would make it better. I was wrong. I'm 0:20:18.160 --> 0:20:20.639 just gonna come right out and say it I was 0:20:20.680 --> 0:20:24.840 wrong as a viewer, as someone sitting up in the 0:20:24.880 --> 0:20:28.560 skybox watching it, not having to be one of the 0:20:28.560 --> 0:20:30.920 pros and not having to be one of the celebs, 0:20:32.840 --> 0:20:38.159 it was the most exciting part of the night. It 0:20:38.200 --> 0:20:41.880 was even more exciting than the freestyles because we knew, 0:20:42.040 --> 0:20:45.600 like none of us had seen them, none of us 0:20:45.600 --> 0:20:47.640 had seen them during rehearsal, none of us had seen 0:20:47.720 --> 0:20:51.399 us during camera blocking, because there wasn't anything to camera block, 0:20:51.480 --> 0:20:55.360 there wasn't anything to see. So it had this buzz 0:20:55.560 --> 0:21:01.680 and this feeling of anything can happen, and the fact 0:21:01.880 --> 0:21:07.239 that it is less produced and less perfect, and you 0:21:07.280 --> 0:21:12.240 get to see your celeb, your fave, possibly make a 0:21:12.320 --> 0:21:15.080 mistake where there's not a whole lot of mistakes going 0:21:15.119 --> 0:21:18.840 on at this stage of the game, and you got 0:21:18.840 --> 0:21:20.719 to just see them a little out of their element, 0:21:20.800 --> 0:21:24.520 a little thrown off and a little less polished. It 0:21:24.640 --> 0:21:28.520 was wonderful to watch. So I'd just like to say, 0:21:29.800 --> 0:21:31.800 not that many people know that I was pooh pooing 0:21:31.840 --> 0:21:35.159 the instant dance, but I'm here to tell you I was, 0:21:35.600 --> 0:21:38.000 and I was wrong. I thought it was actually really exciting. 0:21:38.160 --> 0:21:40.159 So I don't know if they plan on doing it 0:21:40.200 --> 0:21:44.040 every year, but it was as a viewer, I thoroughly 0:21:44.600 --> 0:21:48.960 enjoyed it, and you know, they didn't. They didn't. Nobody 0:21:49.119 --> 0:21:54.400 scored so drastically different than anyone else that it made 0:21:54.400 --> 0:21:57.960 it like, oh gosh, it's really could end up hurting somebody. 0:21:58.000 --> 0:22:01.160 It's not like they gave fours for the Instant Dance 0:22:01.200 --> 0:22:03.199 and somebody else got tens. It was like, you know, 0:22:04.119 --> 0:22:06.840 nines and tens, and I thought it was I thought 0:22:06.840 --> 0:22:10.520 it was really great. I do want to share a 0:22:10.560 --> 0:22:14.160 little story about my boy Dylan, and I'm probably gonna 0:22:14.160 --> 0:22:16.680 start crying telling it. I'm get some I'm going to 0:22:16.720 --> 0:22:21.280 try to keep it together. So the day that we 0:22:21.400 --> 0:22:26.080 all had to pick our paddles up and pick the 0:22:26.160 --> 0:22:29.040 Instant Dance, Dylan and I also had to do it. 0:22:29.040 --> 0:22:31.480 I'm telling you this. The prep for these things goes 0:22:31.520 --> 0:22:35.439 way back. And so Dylan and I were talking on 0:22:35.520 --> 0:22:38.080 the day that we had to pick our paddles and 0:22:39.040 --> 0:22:43.600 I said, what are you hoping to get? And he said, oh, man, 0:22:44.400 --> 0:22:47.040 I just really want to get a foxtrot. I really, 0:22:47.080 --> 0:22:50.320 I just want a foxtrot. I feel like I loved it. 0:22:50.400 --> 0:22:53.239 I loved that dance, and he's like, so I just 0:22:53.440 --> 0:22:57.119 really just started trying to manifest it. Like I just 0:22:57.119 --> 0:23:01.080 started thinking, like, think foxtrot, think fox trot, thing foxtrot. 0:23:01.440 --> 0:23:03.040 And he's like, and you know the table they have 0:23:03.119 --> 0:23:05.200 in front of you, like the way the panel the 0:23:05.200 --> 0:23:09.040 paddles are. He's like, I really started thinking, like where 0:23:09.320 --> 0:23:12.280 if I were a producer, where would I have put foxtrot? 0:23:12.320 --> 0:23:15.320 Like I told them I wanted foxtrot. And so he's like, 0:23:15.320 --> 0:23:18.040 I'm looking at him and I'm thinking, like they probably 0:23:18.080 --> 0:23:19.880 think I'm going for a paddle that's right in front 0:23:19.920 --> 0:23:21.199 of me. So I'm not gonna pick one of those. 0:23:21.240 --> 0:23:22.919 I'm gonna pick one of these. And he's like, and 0:23:22.960 --> 0:23:27.560 I just started like sending energy of like foxtrot, foxtrot, foxtrot, 0:23:27.840 --> 0:23:30.919 And he's like and I don't know, Like I just gosh, 0:23:30.920 --> 0:23:34.080 I hope I picked foxtrot. And I was like, you 0:23:34.119 --> 0:23:37.200 did you pick picked foxtrott. Of course, I don't know. 0:23:37.400 --> 0:23:40.399 No one knows. We were fully blindfolded. They had one 0:23:40.440 --> 0:23:43.000 of the lawyers from the show who had to be 0:23:43.080 --> 0:23:45.280 in the room with us to make sure no one 0:23:45.320 --> 0:23:50.399 could cheat. Like they were taking this serious, and so 0:23:50.640 --> 0:23:53.639 I don't know, but I'm just you know, this is 0:23:53.640 --> 0:23:55.920 my friend and he wants foxtrot, and so I'm gonna 0:23:55.960 --> 0:23:59.239 tell him, yeah, you did that, you got foxtrot. I 0:23:59.280 --> 0:24:03.720 know it. We're manifesting that for you. You got foxtrot. So I, 0:24:04.359 --> 0:24:06.080 you know, see him a couple days later, maybe at 0:24:06.080 --> 0:24:08.120 this point, it's a couple of weeks later, and somehow 0:24:08.160 --> 0:24:10.639 instant dances come up again and I go, well, you know, 0:24:10.960 --> 0:24:14.040 you know, you manifested foxtrot for yourself, and he goes, oh, 0:24:14.560 --> 0:24:18.440 I told Danny that I really wanted foxtrot, and and 0:24:19.040 --> 0:24:21.320 Danny said that she didn't think foxtrot would have been 0:24:21.400 --> 0:24:24.119 the best for us. So now I'm really worried about it, 0:24:24.119 --> 0:24:26.280 because what if I did pick foxtrot and then it's 0:24:26.320 --> 0:24:28.119 not and it's not good, Like what if it's not 0:24:28.200 --> 0:24:31.080 the right one? And so then he kind of got 0:24:31.080 --> 0:24:35.240 in his head and he convinced himself that he didn't 0:24:35.280 --> 0:24:44.159 want foxtrot. And then when he pulled the battle and 0:24:44.200 --> 0:24:47.920 he saw that he got foxtrot tonight, he was bummed. 0:24:48.760 --> 0:24:51.560 His first feeling was that he was bummed, and he 0:24:51.680 --> 0:24:54.919 was worried that it wasn't going to be, that he 0:24:54.960 --> 0:24:56.680 wasn't going to be as prepared for it as he 0:24:56.720 --> 0:25:00.400 would have been had it been something else. And then 0:25:00.520 --> 0:25:05.240 just to watch him go out there and absolutely just 0:25:05.320 --> 0:25:08.119 put on the performance of a lifetime with that fox drop. 0:25:09.080 --> 0:25:13.200 It was so beautiful. And when you know, you talk 0:25:13.240 --> 0:25:16.840 about the journey of dancing with the stars and all 0:25:16.880 --> 0:25:23.000 the different types of journeys, you can have Dylan's journey 0:25:23.119 --> 0:25:27.679 of coming in there exactly like he said to Julian tonight, 0:25:27.760 --> 0:25:32.760 coming in there and thinking I'm not good at this. 0:25:34.320 --> 0:25:37.840 I'm gonna have to put on kind of a shtick. 0:25:38.200 --> 0:25:40.240 I'm gonna have to put something on. I'm gonna have 0:25:40.280 --> 0:25:42.000 to be a comedian. I'm gonna have to go for 0:25:42.119 --> 0:25:46.640 production value. I'm gonna have to go for comedy because 0:25:48.400 --> 0:25:51.320 quote unquote, I can't dance. I'm not good at this. 0:25:53.520 --> 0:25:59.760 And then to see him just ten weeks later get 0:25:59.760 --> 0:26:03.840 the own into a situation like an instant dance and 0:26:03.880 --> 0:26:09.879 to truly be able to dance from his heart and 0:26:09.960 --> 0:26:15.520 to do it so beautifully. I spend a lot of 0:26:15.560 --> 0:26:24.280 my time as a director encouraging young people and actors 0:26:24.600 --> 0:26:30.919 to trust their instincts, to believe in themselves, and that 0:26:31.000 --> 0:26:34.920 when their guts tell them something and they feel something, 0:26:35.000 --> 0:26:38.679 to follow it, and to always stay in touch with 0:26:38.720 --> 0:26:42.359 what your instincts are telling you, and to see that 0:26:42.560 --> 0:26:45.920 moment tonight for Dylan where I got to pull him 0:26:45.920 --> 0:26:52.439 aside and say, your instincts, your instincts were exactly right. 0:26:53.040 --> 0:26:57.760 You manifested that for yourself. You wanted a fox trot, 0:26:58.920 --> 0:27:02.120 you picked a fox trot, and then you came out 0:27:02.160 --> 0:27:06.959 there and you killed it. I never, in my forty 0:27:07.040 --> 0:27:09.120 four years of life thought I would be crying about 0:27:09.119 --> 0:27:14.959