‘Dancing With the Stars’ Goes on With Fake Cheers, No Audience, to Mixed Reviews

Dancing With the Stars Season 29 began on Monday night with many major changes, and not just in the hosting position. Thanks to the coronavirus pandemic, there was no audience in the ballroom, creating an eery experience for fans at home. ABC and the show’s producers followed the precedent set by pro sports broadcasts by adding fake audience noise. They even played booing when judge Bruno Tonioli gave Chrishell Stause criticism.

This season is the first hosted by Tyra Banks, who replaced co-hosts Tom Bergeron and Erin Andrews. The judges’ table was also stretched out to allow for social distancing, and the celebrities were not gathering on the balcony together after each dance. Former pro dancer Derek Hough was brought in at the last moment as a new judge since Len Goodman could not travel to the U.S. due to coronavirus travel restrictions. Tonioli and Carrie Ann Inaba did return to judge the new season, with Tonioli showing off his silver hair color.

Hough actually has experience with coronavirus safety measures. In March, he was still working on World of Dance for NBC just as the coronavirus pandemic began. The show’s finale was also filmed without a season, and the finale was filmed a day earlier than planned. Hough told Variety fans at home would not really notice many of the changes. “For me, the one thing I would kind of miss if I was a pro and if I was teaching a celebrity is [for] the celebrity to feel what it feels like to dance in front of — even just hundreds of people — just a live audience,” Hough said. “There’s something really special about that. But for the people at home, you’re not going to feel the difference.”

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