On November 22, 2022, the season 31 finale of Dancing with the Stars aired. What a season it was! This season had amazing dancers and performers. There was tons of diversity and new things brought to the stage.

This season’s cast included:

Charli D’Amelio (social media star) and Mark Ballas– 1^st place

Gabby Windey (bachelorette star) and Val Chmerkovskiy– 2^nd place

Wayne Brady (actor, singer, and comedian) and Witney Carson– 3^rd place

Shangela (drag queen) and Gleb Savchenko- 4^th place

Daniel Durant (actor) and Britt Stewart– eliminated in semi-finals

Trevor Donovan (actor) and Emma Slater- eliminated in semi-finals

Vinny Guadagnino (reality star) and Koko Iwasaki- eliminated in episode 8

Heidi D’Amelio (reality tv star) and Artem Chigvintsev- eliminated in episode 8

Jordin Sparks (singer) and Brandon Armstrong– eliminated in episode 7

Jessie James Decker (country singer) and Alan Bersten- eliminated in episode 6

Joseph Baena (fitness model) and Daniella Karagach– eliminated in episode 5

Selma Blair (actress) and Sasha Farber– forfeited on episode 5

Sam Champion (GMA host) and Cheryl Burke– eliminated in episode 4

Cheryl Ladd (actress) and Louis Van Amstel- eliminated in episode 3

Teresa Giudice (reality show star) and Pasha Kovalev– eliminated in episode 2

Jason Lewis (actor) and Peta Murgatroyd- eliminated in episode 1

This season we saw history be made. The first drag queen, Shangela, competed and made it all the way to the finale. She gave us some of the most entertaining performances, making you feel alive.

Also, Daniel Durant an actor who is unable to hear competed. He showed the audience that even though he was unable to hear the music he was able to perform. He did an amazing job and was truly an inspiration to watch.

Another altering competitor was Selma Blair, she was diagnosed with MS but still pushed through her pain to perform. She was an inspiration to many as well.

This season held tons of emotion within every performance. Each partnership grew from performance to performance. It was an extremely entertaining to watch, I was hooked!

The winner of the mirror ball trophy this season was TikTok mega star Charli D’Amelio and her partner Mark Ballas. She exceled beyond the expectations that were set in place for her. She was loved by the fans and the judges. Her and Mark had a great chemistry and immediately became friends. Each week they put in tons of time and effort into the routines. Every time they stepped out onto that floor, they gave the dance everything from within. They deserved that win!

This season the top four duos were very close in skill and performance. The runner up right behind Charli and Mark was Gabby Windey and Val Chmerkovskiy. These two duos were neck and neck throughout the whole season. Gabby put in loads of effort trying to learn from Val. Resulting in her growing each week and always fixing her mistakes.

Another honorable mention of this season was Wayne Brady and his partner, Witney Carson. He did an outstanding job! Wayne is a natural performer, he blew my mind every time my eyes locked on the screen.

Some sad news that was tied along with this season was the retirement of a very special man. Head judge, Len Goodman has been on this show since the premiere in 2005. He was a great addition and key part of this show. The show will not be the same without him judging the competition.

If you haven’t already go watch season 31 on Disney+!