- The 20th anniversary episode features the return of former champions and professional dancers.
- During the Relay Dance competition, celebrities will dance with former Mirrorball champions.
- The individual dances are inspired by iconic freestyle routines from previous seasons of the show.
“Dancing with the Stars” will be celebrating its 20th anniversary Tuesday night in a special episode featuring a number of familiar faces from the show’s past seasons.
The show started in 2005, and 20 years and 34 seasons later, it is still going strong — and this week’s “20th Birthday Party” episode will be celebrating all of it.
Fans will get to see the return of past Mirrorball champions, some of the show’s original pros and a beloved former host.
The episode will also feature two rounds of competition, including the Relay Dance competition.
Celebrity contestants will dance without their pros in the Relay Dance competition
After performing their individual dances, the couples will participate in the Relay Dance competition. In this challenge, one couple will perform the first half of a song and then a second couple will complete the song. The judges will decide a winner for each relay, who will earn two bonus points.
This year, the relay round comes with a twist: For the first time ever, the celebrity contestants will dance without their pro partners. Instead, they will be joined by former celebrity champions of the show to perform a quickstep, Viennese waltz or jive.
Because they finished at the top of the leaderboard last week, Whitney Leavitt and Mark Ballas received immunity from the Relay Dance competition and will not participate in it. They will automatically receive two bonus points as part of their immunity.
Here is a look at which former champions will be joining this season’s celebrity contestants.
- Alix Earle will dance with Season 33 winner Joey Graziadei
- Robert Irwin will dance with Season 32 winner Xochitl Gomez
- Dylan Efron will dance with Season 20 winner Rumer Willis
- Andy Richter will dance with Season 29 winner Kaitlyn Bristowe
- Elaine Hendrix will dance with Season 24 winner Rashad Jennings
- Jordan Chiles will dance with Season 4 winner Apolo Anton Ohno
The couple’s dances will be inspired by iconic freestyle performances
In honor of the 20th anniversary, each of the couples will be performing a dance inspired by iconic freestyle dances from past seasons.
The dance styles featured this week will be: foxtrot, Argentine tango, quickstep, salsa and cha-cha.
Here’s a look at what each couple will be performing:
Alix Earle and Val Chmerkovskiy
Social media personality Alix Earle and partner Val Chmerkovskiy will perform a foxtrot to “Singin’ in the Rain” by Matthew Morrison.
The performance will be inspired by Nev Schulman and Jenna Johnson’s Season 29 freestyle.
Robert Irwin and Witney Carson
Wildlife conservationist Robert Irwin and Utahn partner Witney Carson will perform a foxtrot to “Footprints in the Sand” by Leona Lewis.
Their dance is inspired by a freestyle performed during Season 21 by Irwin’s sister Bindi and her partner Derek Hough. The dance is a tribute to the Irwins’ father Steve, who died in 2006.
Whitney Leavitt and Mark Ballas
Utah influencer and “The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives” star Whitney Leavitt and partner Mark Ballas will perform an Argentine tango to “Cell Block Tango” from “Chicago the Musical.”
Leavitt and Ballas’ dance is inspired by a freestyle by Gabby Windey and Val Chmerkovskiy in Season 31.
Dylan Efron and Daniella Karagach
Reality TV star and content creator Dylan Efron and partner Daniella Karagach will perform an Argentine tango to “Ain’t No Sunshine” by Bill Withers.
The tango is inspired by Milo Manheim and Witney Carson’s freestyle from Season 27.
Andy Richter and Emma Slater
Comedian Andy Richter and his pro partner Emma Slater will perform a quickstep to “Puttin’ on the Ritz” by Robbie Williams.
Their dance is inspired by a freestyle from Season 25 by Jordan Fisher and Lindsay Arnold.
Elaine Hendrix and Alan Bersten
Film and TV actress Elaine Hendrix and partner Alan Bersten will perform a salsa to “It Takes Two” by Rob Base & DJ EZ Rock.
Their salsa will be inspired by Mario Lopez and Karina Smirnoff’s freestyle from Season 3.
Jordan Chiles and Ezra Sosa
Jordan Chiles, an Olympic gymnast, and her Utahn partner Ezra Sosa will be performing a cha-cha to “Get Up” by Ciara featuring Chamillionaire.
Their dance is inspired by Wayne Brady and Witney Carson’s freestyle from Season 31.
Some of the show’s original pros return for the opening number
In honor of the 20th anniversary of the show, Tuesday’s episode will have an exciting opening number to a reimagined live version of the “Dancing with the Stars Theme” by Ray Chew.
The dance will be choreographed by Derek Hough and will feature the current pros and troupe as well as six original pros from the first season.
Here are the former pros that will be joining the opening number:
- Alec Mazo
- Ashly DelGrosso
- Louis van Amstel
- Jonathan Roberts
- Charlotte Jorgensen
- Edyta Śliwińska
During the episode, the show will also be honoring former competitors and performers on the show who have died over the years. The emotional number will be performed by Ezra Sosa and Rylee Arnold to “Always Remember Us This Way” by Lady Gaga.
Longtime former host returns as a special guest judge
Five years after his shocking departure from “Dancing with the Stars,” former host Tom Bergeron will be returning to the ballroom as a guest judge on the show’s 20th anniversary episode.
Bergeron hosted the show for 28 seasons, starting with its premiere in 2005, until he exited the show in 2020. His appearance on Tuesday, Nov. 11, will be his first time returning to the show since he left after Season 28.
“It feels really good,” Bergeron said Tuesday on “Good Morning America” about his return. “I’m really looking forward to it.”
Bergeron left his position as the show’s host after being publicly critical of the show’s decision to cast then-President Donald Trump’s White House press secretary Sean Spicer in Season 28.
He will be joining the judges table as a guest judge alongside Carrie Ann Inaba, Derek Hough and Bruno Tonioli.
“I’m anticipating that it’s going to be a wonderfully emotional, nostalgic night,” he said, according to People. “It’s so much fun to watch my friends do the work. I don’t have to throw to commercials. I don’t have to worry about the timing.”