Heavy/ABC Cheryl Burke critiques Harry Jowsey.
Former “Dancing With the Stars” pro Cheryl Burke had a lot to say about season 32 contestant Harry Jowsey and his pro partner, Rylee Arnold.
Following Jowsey and Arnold’s Viennese Waltz on the November 14, 2023, episode of the show, Burke critiqued the number on her podcast. On the November 16, 2023, episode of “Sex, Lies, and Spray Tans,” Burke wondered why Jowsey was wearing “tennis shoes” during rehearsal.
“Especially when you’re Harry, you cannot get away with wearing tennis shoes. I don’t care if you’re doing interviews. I’d be making my dance partner literally walk everywhere in the ballroom shoes that he’s wearing for the week,” she said.
“Just because the pro is wearing tennis shoes doesn’t mean you can. And I hope, you know, I hope that changed throughout the rehearsal time,” Burke continued. “The more hours in the proper dancing shoes in rehearsal, the more comfortable he’ll feel,” she added.
Despite feeling that way, Burke said that the dance was the “best” Jowsey had done all season.
Here’s what you need to know:
Fans Reacted to Cheryl Burke’s Critique of Harry Jowsey & Rylee Arnold
For the most part, fans agreed with Burke’s take. Quite a few viewers took to a Reddit thread to discuss Jowsey’s decision to wear tennis shoes rather than his ballroom shoes, and some agreed that it could actually be hurting him.
“I remember Len was big on this too. There was multiple times he would call contestants out for not wearing the correct shoes during the Dances,” one person wrote.
“It maybe too that, it’s harder to dance in those type of shoes if your not used to it, so maybe when they learn the steps first and get comfortable, then they’ll adjust better to those shoe, I can imagine trying to imagine even walking in the women shoes let alone dance and bounce around in them,” another Redditor added.
“It makes a lot of sense. A men’s ballroom shoe has flexibility and mobility that allows him to understand how to place his foot. I still think he could also stand to have his ankles in a flexible band to help promote spacial awareness,” a third comment read.
“I agree with Cheryl. Also I hate people dancing on sneakers like WTHeck is that,” someone else said.
Many Fans Have Been Highly Critical of Rylee Arnold
Season 32 is the first time that Arnold has starred on the show as a pro. While a lot of people seem to like her and think that she’s doing a great job, there’s also been a lot of criticism about her technique.
Each week, there’s a new Reddit thread that bashes Arnold. Some fans don’t think that she’s choreographing numbers to her partner’s strengths, while others think that she’s making Jowsey do the bare minimum.
The harsh criticism has been upsetting to both Jowsey and Arnold.
“I just want to say, today has been extremely difficult. Poor Rylee is really upset, I’m really upset,” Jowsey said on Snapchat after reading some not-so-nice comments. The video was later reposted by a fan on TikTok.
Jowsey later defended his partner.
“This is Rylee’s first season. I’ve never danced before. We’re learning, we’re figuring it out, that’s the point of this show. It’s to have someone who’s never danced before, put’em on the world stage, and tell them to try and figure it out,” he added.
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