‘Dancing With The Stars’ Recap: Dance Offs On Grammy Night Bring Tough Competition To Quarterfinals

SPOILER ALERT! This post contains details from the Season 35 Dancing with the Stars quarterfinals.

It’s hard to believe Dancing with the Stars Season 35 is nearly over, but we’ve officially reached the quarterfinals.

There are seven couples remaining, but only five can make it all the way to the finale later this month. One couple is facing elimination on Grammy night, where the contestants will be performing to some of the biggest hits in music from artists including Evanescence, Sisqó, Beyoncé, Janet Jackson and more.

For the second week in a row, the couples are performing a second dance on Tuesday night. This week, they’re going toe-to-toe for the dance off, which pits two couples directly against each other to a live accompaniment. The pairings are as follows: Amber vs. Ezra, Jenna vs. Tatyana and Connor vs. Maura.

After earning immunity with the highest cumulative score to-date last week, Harry and Jenna will sit out of the dance off. Sheryl Crow, Brandy and Monica, and Maren Morris will join the stage to perform some of their hit songs for the head-to-head competition.

Let’s get into it.

INDIVIDUAL DANCES

Paralympian Ezra Frech with Daniella Karagach. These two were in a flow state last week, and after earning a 10 from Derek for their Disney Night performance, they’re taking on an Argentine tango to “Crazy in Love (Remix)” by Beyoncé for Grammy Night. SCORE: 27 out of 30

Olympian Amber Glenn with Pasha Pashkov. As if she hasn’t already, Amber says she really wants to show off her inner athlete on the ballroom floor this week with a paso doble to to “Bring Me to Life” by Evanescence. SCORE: 28 out of 30

Reality star Maura Higgins with Mark Ballas. After barely escaping elimination last week, Maura is putting all her focus into an Argentine tango to “Thong Song” by Sisqó. She’s working through some pain in her rib, so that’s proving to be a challenge in rehearsals, but she pushes the pain aside and delivers a performance that Carrie Ann calls “a work of art.” SCORE: 27 out of 30

Actress Jenna Dewan with Val Chmerkovskiy. She got a perfect score last week, so Jenna is riding high and ready to take on a jazz routine to “All For You” by Janet Jackson. She previously performed at the Grammys, so she’s also got to stake her claim when walking on the floor Tuesday night. SCORE:

Actress Tatyana Ali with Jan Ravnik. This Fresh Prince star has been friends with Will.I.Am for more than two decades, so she much do justice to a tango to “Boom Boom Pow” by Black Eyed Peas. She’s got to nail the sharpness of this choreography in order to wow the judges. SCORE:

Comedian and podcaster Connor Wood with Rylee Arnold. Based on the comments from the judges last week, he’s got to take the lead if he wants to impress them tonight with an Argentine tango to “SexyBack” by Justin Timberlake featuring Timbaland. Now, if only he could stay on his axis point, as Carrie Ann points out. SCORE: 27 out of 30

Actor Harry Shum Jr. with Jenna Johnson. Harry says he’s avoiding doing salsa dancing for so long because it reminds him of a hard time in his childhood, so dancing a salsa to “Die with A Smile” by Lady Gaga and Bruno Mars is bringing up a lot of emotions for him. SCORE: 29 out of 30

DANCE OFF

Amber Glenn and Pasha Pashkov vs. Ezra Frech and Daniella Karagach competed in a Rumba to “The Boy Is Mine” by Brandy and Monica. WINNER: Amber & Pasha (+2 bonus points)

Jenna Dewan and Val Chmerkovskiy vs. Tatyana Ali and Jan Ravnik faced off in a Cha-Cha to “The Middle” by Zedd, Maren Morris and Grey. WINNER: Jenna and Val (+2 bonus points)

Connor Wood and Rylee Arnold vs. Maura Higgins and Mark Ballas. will compete in a Cha-Cha to “All I Wanna Do” by Sheryl Crow. WINNER: Maura and Mark (+2 bonus points)

Who goes home?

After a night of tough competition, Jenna and Val are sent home. Next week is the semifinals.