'Dancing With the Stars': Story Night Theme with Personal Stories in Dance; Hines Ward, Petra Nemcova the New Leaders

In a previous season on "Dancing with the Stars" they had a Story Night, so I was thrilled they brought it back. It should be a constant staple, because we get an opportunity to learn more about the celebrities and see a rare side of them. Monday night (April 4) saw the first time the judge's awarded "9's" in their scores. Before we know it we may see "10's" and a perfect score soon. This season is becoming a complete turnaround with a leader one week and a set of new ones this week. Hines Ward and Petra Nemcova each earned the top score and tied the leader board. There was a lot that went on Monday night, so let's get to it.

My Favorites from Story Night

Chelsea Kane - How nice it must be to dance to a song written about you. Her story was about her first love. The band's songwriter wrote a song for her and she began dating him. Chelsea was certainly back to her hot moves she had during week one. Their cha-cha-cha was sizzling. (23)

Hines Ward - I loved his song choice of Earth Wind & Fire's "Fantasy." It is one of his mother's favorite songs. His samba dance was dedicated to her for always being there no matter what throughout his life. Kym and Hines literally lit up the dance floor. They received the first "9" of the night. (25)

Petra Nemcova - She definitely shined all the way through with grace, beauty and storytelling. Her waltz to Josh Groban's "You Raise Me Up" was the perfect choice of dance and song for her moving and touching story. Petra's story was about returning a year later to Thailand after the tsunami in 2005. After that she began her Happy Hearts Fund devoted to helping children affected by natural disasters. The image I selected for this review article reflects her foundation. She was the second to receive a "9" and it came from head judge, Len Goodman. (25)

Kirstie Alley - If you've watched figure skating during the Olympics or at any other time the skaters do fall quite often. I'm surprised I have not seen that happen on "Dancing with the Stars." The speed of the pro dancers is beyond amazing. However, at the beginning during the rumba to "Over the Rainbow" by Israel "IZ" Kamakawiwo'ole something happened where Maks fell and then Kirstie fell right afterwards.

When they got up it looked like Maks would not be able to continue to dance, but he persevered. They were able to go on as if nothing happened. Quite frankly I have never seen anything like it on the show. Kirstie's story was about the tragedy she went through when her parents were hit by a drunk driver. Her mother was killed, but her father survived. In a way their fall on the dance floor was an analogy to the trials and tribulations of life. You simply get up and continue on. (21)

Other Good Performances

Chris Jericho - Here was a truly moving tribute to his late mother. Chris went into this using his birth name, Chris Irvine. There was no character, no façade or any other theatrics. He chose the song "Let It Be" by The Beatles for his rumba. At the end I even had a tear in my eye. It was a very beautiful dance. Too bad the scores weren't higher. (21)

Sugar Ray Leonard - Talk about a vast improvement from his past two dances. Sugar Ray was in his element with the paso doble to Bobby Brown's "My Prerogative." His story was based during his second comeback when people all around him said he would not succeed. Well, he certainly showed them. At least his score got him out of the teen's. (20)

Ralph Macchio - Why the judges harped on his rumba to the song "Stay Gold" I'll never know. The judges loved him during week one and then turned on him last week. Now they were at it again. His story was a dedication to his wife and their marriage of 24 years. At any rate, I enjoyed the dance. Hopefully Ralph can rise to the occasion once again. (21)

Honorable Mentions

Kendra Wilkinson - This was certainly an improvement to her ballroom dance last week, but seems to excel in the Latin dances. She danced the rumba to a song by Musiq Soulchild. I loved her costume and its vibrant color. The dance was hot. Her story was about the challenges regarding her relationship and eventual marriage. This was dedicated to her husband. Kendra received her highest score thus far. (23)

Romeo - His story was about losing two cousins he was very close to. They were both so young when they died. Romeo chose the song "I'll Be There" by The Jackson 5, one of my favorite songs by that family group. Apparently either the story or whatever had bothered him during the rehearsal footage may have affected his performance. Len had only a few words to say about it "you have taken a step backwards." (20)

The first couple of the night was Wendy Williams, but she received the lowest score of the night at "15." It's as if she went back to week one. Her foxtrot lacked any kind of movement or fluidity. More than likely she is going home. She did not seem to put much emotion or effort into her dance. Selena Gomez and One Republic will be the music guests on the results show.

SOURCES:

Dancing with the Stars, ABC.com

Happy Hearts Fund (HHF), Happy Hearts Fund.org

Kelley L. Carter, "'Dancing with the Stars': Hines Ward, Petra Nemcova Score with Personal Songs", MTV.com