Fittingly, only our three Dancing with the Stars SA finalists have received 10s from the judges. The first was Connell, who scored 10s from Bryan, Debbie and Jason - nearly landing a full house - with his rumba in episode 7.
In episode 8, with a three-piece judging outfit, he scored another ten from Debbie Turner for his Charleston.
Eden’s Charleston in episode 9 came close to matching the almost magical 39, garnering 10s from both Debbie and Jason!
Jason admitted he hadn’t seen Eden as a contender at the beginning of the competition but did now. “You are knocking it out of the ballpark every week,” he said. “That was everything a Charleston should be.” Tebogo stated that it was a “yummy performance,” while Bryan thought Eden had “sailed out of the safe harbor and it was remarkable.” “It was an absolute joy from start to finish,” according to Debbie.
But the shocker of the season came in episode 10 with Connell’s Paso Doble. Because it was the first time Tebogo had used her 10 paddle the entire season!
Breaking ranks with her fellow judges – who thought Connell had intensity but lacked technique in the twist-turns and that he “attacked the floor” – Tebogo said that “there was a lot about it that I loved.”
And finally, we had our first full house of the season in our most recent live show – and it came for “ambassador of dance” Zola Nombona. Interestingly, it too was a Charleston!
Bryan donned Debbie’s glasses to imitate her, and said Zola was “utterly charming… and we were enthralled.” For her part, Debbie stated that “if we could bottle what you have we’d be millionaires – I cannot fault your performance.” All Jason could get out was “I loved it!” So did we!
Dancing with the Stars SA airs on M-Net (DStv channel 101) on Sundays at 17:00. Join the conversation on the Dancing with the Stars Facebook page, or on Twitter and Instagram using the hashtag #DWTSSA.