Cheryl Burke Shares Her Hot Takes on Night One of 'Dancing with the Stars'

Dancing with the Stars kicked off its 33^rd season on Tuesday night and among those tuning in was former pro dancer Cheryl Burke, who now hosts the podcast Sex, Lies and Spray Tans, on which she and former competitors – celebs and pros – dish the dirt on what it was like behind the scenes of the hit ABC series.

And now, the podcaster, is dishing with Parade on her hot takes from premiere night, some of which may surprise you.

“I didn’t have a lot of expectations, I have to say, going into this season,” Cheryl admitted. “I wasn’t really excited about just one person. I felt like there was an odd number of athletes, like a quarter of the contestants are athletes and it was like, ‘I don’t know,’ but after watching it I was like, ‘Oh, this is going to be entertaining,’ because of the entertainment value, the personalities, the pairings, although I don’t agree with every pairing. However, most of them I agree with. I was pleasantly surprised by some of their execution as well when it comes to certain couples.”

So, here’s the lowdown from our Zoom chat:

Related: DWTS Judge Carrie Ann Inaba Calls Out the Audience After Anna Delvey’s Cha Cha

When Anna took the floor — and they left her for last — the audience went silent. Then Carrie Ann Inaba took them to task for that a little bit. What do you think of Anna’s casting and do you think Carrie Ann should have pointed that out or just gone on with her critique?

I actually agree with Carrie Ann. I just wish they wouldn’t have cut her off the way that [they did]. She didn’t get a chance to actually give her critique because they cut her off after she said the energy changed. Mind you, I’m glad she pointed it out because I felt it behind my laptop. It was odd. It is important to address it because, at the end of the day, the casting is done. She is part of Season 33’s cast of celebrities for Dancing with the Stars, and, yes, do I think it’s important to look at the dancing, but this is also not just a dance show. So, I go back and forth, right? I flip flop as far as I agree with what Carrie Ann said.

But I also think Anna needs to do her part by opening herself up a little bit and show that she’s human and show emotion, and whatever emotion she chooses to show needs to be shown sooner rather than later if she wants to last longer.

There’s also a ringer in the group. Chandler Kinney, who has the highest score, has studied ballet, tap, and contemporary. I asked her and she didn’t deny that it does help translate into ballroom. What are your thoughts when they cast people who’ve had that much dance experience?

First of all, I’m proud of Brandon Armstrong. No one ever talks about the pro dancers, and I feel like this is a shame because we are half of this partnership. I think one of the judges, preferably Derek Hough, should start talking to the pros, giving them notes on what they can do better, what they did great, so there’s that. I am so impressed with Brandon because I always got on him for not having enough content, and when there was content, it wasn’t consistent, or the execution wasn’t right. But boy did he just stop me. It was the first time in all the seasons Brandon has been a part of that he really took it seriously enough to where it looks like he even got personal ballroom training during the hiatus. Maybe I’m wrong but wow, and it does help, of course, that he has Chandler. But I can tell his determination is different than other seasons.

Now as far as ballet and other dance training goes, I don’t think it helps. I think it hurts. If anything, it does help with musicality, but a lot of people have rhythm this season on the show. I would say most of the contestants do but when it comes to ballet, it’s the opposite of ballroom. First, you’re definitely not partnering as much. Second, the exaggeration and you have to untrain your brain. When I had AJ McLean as a partner, it was really hard for me to turn him into a ballroom dancer because he was so used to bad habits — what we call bad habits.

I would think that ballet would at least give them a little grace, which so many of the contestants are lacking.

Yes, but I also think the judges are harder on them.

Related: Eric Roberts on Why It Took Him 19 Years to Appear on Dancing with the Stars

We have two old guys this season. We have Eric Roberts and Reginald VelJohnson. Next week two people go home. Do you think voting will be able to save them? Do you have any idea who you think might be the first to go?

I don’t know if it’s going to be a bottom three or a bottom 2, but I think Brooks Nader and Gleb Savchenko could be in danger if they don’t showcase their fun — not flirty, we already got that side, but like the fun, nerdy, self-deprecating — not sure if Brooks has that side of her or not, but I think it’s important to just be human. I really do and I think that’s what’s missing between Brooks and Anna for sure. It’s hard to relate to them. I forget about Brooks and Gleb, which is a shame.

If I were to go through everybody, I don’t think it’s going to be Eric or Reginald yet. I think it’ll happen soon after, but I don’t think they’ll be the first.

Do you think that having two Bachelor contestants might split that Bachelor nation vote, which is always a huge vote?

Maybe, but I also feel like Sasha Farber and Jenn Trann are so cute. Oh, my God — I mean this is so unhealthy — my therapist would slap me on the wrist if I said this — but I’m just going to say it. I hope that they end up becoming something after this season is over. They’re so cute together.

You mentioned we had a lot of athletes. I’m rooting for Stephen Nedoroscik, our pommel horse guy. I loved his jive.

I thought jive was a perfect dance for them. He’s super flexible. It would be interesting to see him do the more mature dances. I do see a natural hump in his back which worries me a little bit. I also want to see maturity through his movement, which I hope they slowly develop as a team. It’s week one, they did an amazing job. They had great energy, there were some technical issues. I’m already putting him up on a pedestal because he is an Olympian and I do expect a lot from him, so I’m not sure if it’s going to help or hurt, but they’ve got nothing to worry about. They have always been my Top 3 or 4, however many people are going to make the finals. 

I always think that for the male celebrities it’s a little bit harder than for the females because they have to learn to lead. Joey did such a great job.

He is the best Bachelor from the franchise that Dancing with the Stars has ever had. I’ll give him that regardless. If he was in any other season, I think it would be a lot easier for him to easily make that final, but unless you are horrible, I’m pretty sure the Bachelor/Bachelorette on the show, they definitely make it far. The Bachelorettes do.

Daniella Karagach and Dwight Howard were so funny. She was so smart to play into their height difference.

If anyone could do it it’s her. Dwight was my original partner during my last season, but he backed out last minute, thank God. I would have been falling off that dance floor for real, but if anyone can handle the height, she’s brilliant. Daniella and Pasha Pashkov are the best decisions the show’s ever made to get these two people as pros.

Related: Derek Hough Weighs in On Season 33 of Dancing with the Stars

That leaves Phaedra Parks and Val Chmerkovskiy. Dancing with Val is always a plus.

I wish Val was with Anna Delvey. I think if anyone could crack anyone open, it would be him as far as showing her vulnerable side. I think in a way that Anna would be so intimidated by Val that she’d have to show emotion. I think for someone’s first season, like Ezra Soza, he would have been perfect for Phaedra, but it is what it is. Phaedra is full of personality. The only note I had for her, she’s got the musicality, she’s got the personality, she’s gorgeous, like Ilona Maher could take a note from the way that Phaedra just owns who she is as a woman. It’s so inspiring to see that. I would just say for her to learn her choreography as soon as possible so you can work on the detail, because the devil’s in the detail

This is Season 2 for your Sex, Lies and Spray Tan podcast. Where did the name come from?

In all honesty, people are like, “Oh it’s from that movie.” I’ve never seen Sex, Lies and Videotapes. I have no idea what that is, but my boss was the one who made it up. He saw this Us Weekly cover with my face on it, along with I think it was when Max Chmerkovskiy, Derek and I returned and it was like this dance off. It was like blah blah and blah, and it was similar to Sex, Lies and Spray Tans and that’s where it came from. There wasn’t much thought behind the title even though it may feel like that.

What topics are you going to be covering this season?

What’s so amazing about this podcast is like with Lea Thompson and Charity Lawson, I had no idea what they were going through. It happens as I am interviewing them. I do my research. Obviously, if they’ve written books, I’ve read the books before I interview them, but most of the time the books don’t include their time on Dancing with the Stars, especially when it came to Charity. I had no idea that she was dealing with all the bullying and death threats, and even with Lea, it’s so relatable. I think a lot of people will understand that as a 50-year-old woman when Lea was doing the show, she questioned her whole sexuality and if this was inappropriate.

It’s really interesting to hear people’s take on their experience, but at the end of the day, like I’ve said over and over again, this has been an amazing experience for all of us. What’s so great about this podcast is no one’s edited or filtered. We also go through ups and downs like with any journey.

One reason why I love my podcast is because it’s about why is this show so intense, why is there so much scandal around Dancing with the Stars. The reason is it’s seven days a week; it’s all consuming.

Do you know who some of the other upcoming guests are?

We’ve got Antonio Sabato Jr., who was my partner back in Season 19, Kate Flannery is coming on soon. Kate was Pasha‘s first celebrity partner when he started, and then we’ve got Penn Jillette, Cody Rigsby, another one of my partners, and Danica McKellar. We’ve got lots of guests coming on so I’m very excited.

Dancing with the Stars airs Tuesday nights at 8 p.m. ET/PT, simulcast LIVE on ABC and Disney+, and available next day on Hulu.

Next, Who Went Home on the Dancing with the Stars Premiere Night?