Cheryl Burke has been given the clearance to return to the Dancing With The Stars ballroom after contracting COVID-19. The pro dancer recently announced her breakthrough case of the virus, causing her to miss out on two live performances of the ABC competition. Since her partner and beloved Peloton instructor Cody Rigsby was in close quarters with Cheryl days before her diagnosis, he was kept in quarantine for good measure. It turns out the better safe than sorry game plan worked in ABC's favor as Cody also tested positive just a few days later.
In terms of the competition, Cody and Cheryl are still in the running for the Mirrorball Trophy. Since Cheryl tested positive the day before the live taping of the September 27 episode of DWTS, ABC producers deliberated and decided the pair would be judged on their rehearsal footage during the show. Though they received a score of 24 out of 40 for their salsa performance to "Don't Go Yet" by Camila Cabello, Cody felt disappointed as he didn't think that footage would ever see the light of day. He was embarrassed by his sweaty gym attire and his lack of facial expressions that would have made his performance come alive. Moving forward, Cheryl planned to coach Cody and a substitute partner via Zoom for the following week of the competition. However, Cody later tested positive as well, forcing him to stay home in quarantine. Going back to the drawing board, ABC producers allowed the couple to perform solo from the comfort of their own respective living rooms. They each were tasked with turning their homes into a makeshift dance floor as they performed live, virtually and side by side. The couple received the lowest score of the night but were saved by fan votes.
Two days later, Cheryl revealed on Instagram that she has been cleared to return to the ballroom dance floor for next Monday's live show. That said, Cody will likely remain in quarantine until Friday, which means he can perform in the live show but will only have the weekend to learn and rehearse two dance performances. While Cheryl is thankful for everyone's well wishes and support, she admits the pair has "lots of work to do" and really needs Cody's fans to vote in order to stay in the competition as their bodies recover from COVID-19.
In terms of the couple's low score for the legendary Britney Night episode, in which every couple performed to one of the pop star's iconic tracks, Cheryl told ET that she was disappointed by the judges' feedback. "I thought we killed it. I feel like we accomplish a lot," she said. "It was harder than if I was dancing and physically touching my partner because I could maneuver and manipulate his body if anything were to go wrong, and there's also camera angles. There's a lot of times when the director will have a close-up of your face and you won't even know the couple messed up with the footwork."
The DWTS judges' scores were too harsh on Cheryl and Cody. The show has never had to deal with a situation where each performer had to dance virtually, without a glam team or even a real set, and make it look just as glamorous and perfect as the real deal like the rest of their competition got to enjoy. Plus, their bodies are fighting the virus that completely changed the world we know today. It's extremely difficult to get one's body to move when they're sick, not to mention the challenge of just remembering the entire routine with the brain fog that COVID-19 brings. Hopefully, Dancing With The Stars viewers see Cody and Cheryl's last two weeks for what it is and give them another chance one they're both healthy and back in the ballroom.
Dancing With The Stars airs Mondays at 8pm on ABC.
Sources: Cheryl Burke/Instagram, ET