'Dancing With the Stars' Recap: Week 2 Results Show

Sadly, but not surprisingly, the first celebrity contestant eliminated from "Dancing With the Stars" this season was Martina Navratilova. Each week the judges' scores are combined with the television audiences' votes and the couple—the celebrity and his or her professional partner—ranked lowest is eliminated. In light of her poor performance of the jive on this week's competition show, Navratilova's elimination was not unmerited, though it was perhaps unjust. Her initial dance—the respectable foxtrot she performed Week 1—was under-scored by the judges, which probably took its toll on her self-confidence and maybe even the viewers' votes. Also, the misguided choreography she was required to do in her jive dance in Week 2 did not showcase her well at all. I was told she was the AARP's contestant of choice, so one can only imagine what an unhappy night it was for the over-50 set.

The disheartening news was announced at the end of last night's results show, an entertaining evening rich in flashy performances by the ballroom pros who serve on competition nights as the celebrities' partners. (For those tuning in for the first time this season, the results show was preceded by a one-hour re-cap program, "The Story So Far," that re-ran each of the 12 couple's performances from the first two competition shows.) In between the replaying of excerpts from the previous night's competition routines and the announcements of which couples were safe, viewers were treated to performances by the pop rock group Sugarland.

For dance lovers, however, the real drawing card of the results shows is the chance to see the pros strut their stuff unencumbered by their amateur partners. The troupe opened the show with a flashy ensemble jive number. The voluptuous Peta Murgatroyd danced a fiery pas de deux with Tristan MacManus, which was followed by a lively sextet and a fun quartet for a man and three women. Not only is the caliber of the dancing world-class, but the production values exhibited by the entire show are top-of-the-line. No expense is spared in costuming the dancers. Their outfits dazzle, as well as artfully complement the kinetics of the choreography, which last night was created by Jason Gilkinson, one of the most sought-after ballroom dance-makers in the world. This first results show was first-rate all the way!