Singer/actress Idina Menzel attends 'The Elvis Duran Z100 Morning Show' at Z100 Studio on December 1, 2014 in New York City. (Photo : Getty Images/Stephen Lovekin)
"Dancing With the Stars" Week 9 was getting heated and ended up sending Marilu Henner and Derek Hough home. The couple did their best but could not fare with the other contestants as they landed at the bottom of the leaderboard.
As the stars felt the pressure, performances which previously received high scores could end up with low scores. Contestants just have to get even better because being good is not enough to survive.
The "Dancing With the Stars" stage on Nov. 7, Monday, had neon lights as bright as on Broadway as the six couples performed to famous songs. Tony Award winner Idina Menzel was a guest judge. The contestants performed as others shone more brightly than the rest. The event ended with one couple going home, missing the semifinals by just a week.
Sixteen-year-old Laurie Hernandez and partner Val Chmerkovskiy did an Argentine tango. They danced to a song from the musical, Chicago. Hernandez came with a slinky dress, then did seductive and sharp dance moves that stunned the judges. They received a perfect score of 40.
Another couple who got a perfect score was couple Jana Kramer and Gleb Savchenko. They pulled off an emotional routine that impressed the judges, despite Savchenko's knee starting to act up and swell.
Henner and Hough's Samba performance gained straight 9s from the judges but they were still at the bottom. The couple had a reasonable night but their performance was not on par with the others. It was the first time that Hough was cut off from the competition early while Henner tried to wear a smile.
Henner brought with her praises from guest judge Idina Menzel, as well as from Julianna Hough, Bruno Tonioli and Carrie Ann Inaba. The pair was happy to go home on a high note.
"We had a great time," Henner told US Weekly. "Two fabulous dances, my favorite costume and of course my favorite partner."
Hough told his partner that her exit was "with a bang." Henner noted what she learned from the experience are both strengths and weaknesses.
Meanwhile, Sharna Burgess will be dancing with James Hinchcliffe again on Nov. 14, E! News reported. Burgess had to be on the sidelines in the past weeks to recover from a knee injury.
Watch Henner and Hough's recent performance below:
