Danielle’s Final Dance! (Week 8)

Summary

Pod Meets World – Danielle’s Final Dance! (Week 8)

Podcast: Pod Meets World
Date: November 5, 2025
Host: Danielle Fishel (with contributions from her dance partner, Pasha)
Episode Summary by [Your Name]

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Episode Overview

In this heartfelt episode, Danielle Fishel reflects on her journey on Dancing with the Stars following her elimination in Week 8. As she recounts her experiences—from early rehearsals to forming close bonds with cast members and her emotional last dance—Danielle offers listeners a candid look behind the scenes. The episode covers the challenges and triumphs of her time on the show, valuable life lessons, her strategy as team captain, overcoming self-doubt, and expressing gratitude to her support system.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Danielle’s Elimination and Emotional State

• Danielle opens up about her feelings after being eliminated from Dancing with the Stars (DWTS), describing a mix of sadness and pride.
• Reflects on the routine changes her participation brought to her daily life and expresses apprehension about the abrupt change post-elimination.

Quote:
"I'm obviously very sad to be leaving the competition. I'm sad to have my day-to-day life so drastically change now... I have literally woken up every single day and looked forward to rehearsal." (03:17)

2. Her Partnership with Pasha

• Describes her "dreamlike partnership" with Pasha, her professional dance partner, highlighting their instant rapport and mutual respect.
• Shares affection for Pasha’s family, especially his wife Dani and their daughter Kiki.

Quote:
"You have no idea what you're in for when... you throw yourself into something so wholeheartedly... It couldn't have gone any better." (05:21–06:18)

3. The Contemporary Dance & Its Meaning

• Explains the theme for her final contemporary dance—societal and internal pressures on women.
• She shares that the dance was inspired by her own experiences and recent cancer diagnosis, emphasizing the importance of living life authentically.

Quote:
"Our story is about the impossible standards placed on women, both from society and from ourselves... The only cure for it is to live life your way, living out your dreams. Because... life is short, and we never know when we're living our last day or dancing our last dance." (07:11)

• Expresses disappointment that her story was not included in the show's introduction package, yet feels no regret about her own performance or efforts.

4. Reflections on Team Dance and Collaboration

• Discusses the challenges of coordinating a group dance with only seven hours of practice.
• Highlights Whitney's leadership in keeping the group in sync and the camaraderie among contestants and pros.

Quote:
"Whitney is the first person to say, I can do this... How can I help? What can I do?" (14:35)

5. Self-Doubt and Body Image

• Danielle candidly addresses the mental and emotional struggles she experienced, particularly during contemporary week.
• Talks about self-criticism, comparison to other dancers, and how stress led to disordered eating patterns.
• Credits supportive cast members like Whitney and Mark Ballas for their encouragement.

Memorable Moment:
Mark Ballas' pep talk during a rehearsal meltdown:
"Mark literally, like, grabbed me by the shoulders... 'Danielle, take a deep breath. Tune out all the noise... You have got this.'" (25:50)

6. Team Captain Strategy – The "Alliance"

• Shares behind-the-scenes strategy with Dylan for team selection, including Excel spreadsheets and gameplay to ensure their dream team.
• Narrates the suspenseful team-pick process and her satisfaction at forming a close-knit team.

Quote:
"We had become really very much best friends on this little ballroom competition show... Dylan put together an Excel spreadsheet with all the different possibilities..." (38:36)

7. On Elimination and Leadership Responsibility

• As team captain, Danielle is relieved that she was the one to go home rather than another team member, reflecting her sense of responsibility and protective leadership style.
• Touches on her philosophy as a director: taking responsibility for mistakes, and giving credit to the team for successes.

Quote:
"If someone from the winning team was going to go home, I'm so happy it was me, 100%... Even as a director, my overall feeling is always that everything that happens on a set is my responsibility." (30:58)

8. Highlights from Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Night

• Recaps "killer" performances by others, notably Alex and Val’s Paso Doble to "Living on a Prayer," and shares an amusing behind-the-scenes anecdote about Flavor Flav’s scoring mishap.

Quote:
"I was standing up in the skybox, just listening to the song, watching the performances, and I was like, man, this is a banger of a night." (28:16)

9. Thoughts on Scoring

• Expresses confusion and mild frustration with the DWTS scoring process; suggests use of half-points might help reflect nuances in performances.

10. Gratitude and Looking Forward

• Gives thanks to her husband Jensen Karp, Pasha, the DWTS production staff, pros, and fellow contestants.
• Announces her intention to continue the podcast through the remainder of the DWTS season with behind-the-scenes interviews.

Quote:
"It's really been the experience of a lifetime... I'm still going to keep this podcast going until the season ends. I'm still going to bring you some great guests." (44:19)

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On the dance’s message:
  "We are somehow always too much and never enough at the same time. And the only cure for it is to live life your way, living out your dreams." – Danielle (07:11)

• On partnership:
  "I am so lucky. Just so, so, so lucky that Pasha was my partner. He was truly the best." – Danielle (06:18)

• On leadership:
  "As the director, my overall feeling is always that everything that happens on a set is my responsibility... when anything goes right, I always look for someone to give the credit to." – Danielle (30:58)

• On team building:
  "Dylan put together an Excel spreadsheet with all the different possibilities... by the time we went through the spreadsheet, I had written to him in one text: 'Dream team: Whitney, you, me, Jordan.' And he was like, that's the team." – Danielle (38:36)

• Mark Ballas’ pep talk:
  "Stop. Stop. Don't pay attention to anybody else. Just look at me right now... take a deep breath. Tune out all the noise." – Mark Ballas (paraphrased by Danielle) (25:50)

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Timestamps for Key Segments

• Elimination reflections & partnership with Pasha: 03:14–06:49
• The contemporary dance theme & behind the scenes: 07:11–13:00
• Team dance week & Whitney’s leadership: 13:00–15:52
• Struggling with contemporary, self-doubt & Mark Ballas' advice: 22:17–27:57
• Recap of Rock and Roll Hall of Fame night & scoring anecdotes: 28:16–30:58
• Team captain strategy & alliance with Dylan: 37:38–44:17
• Gratitude, future podcast plans, and closing remarks: 44:19–48:41

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Episode Tone and Style

Authentic, emotional, candid, and grateful. Danielle shares both the highs and lows, balances humor with vulnerability, and voices sincere appreciation for her DWTS journey.

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For Listeners Who Missed the Episode

This episode offers an intimate, behind-the-scenes look at Danielle Fishel’s DWTS journey—from her emotional goodbye to the details of dance strategy and teamwork. Besides recounting the technical aspects, Danielle’s openness about the mental and emotional challenges of competition, coupled with her leadership style and gratitude, make for an inspirational listen whether or not you followed the season.

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Transcript

[Danielle Fishel]

This is an I Heart Podcast.

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[Danielle Fishel]

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[Danielle Fishel]

Okay, only 10 more presents to wrap. You're almost at the finish line. But first there the last one. Enjoy a Coca Cola for a pause that refreshes.

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Hello from home.

[Danielle Fishel]

Once again I am Danielle Fishel Podcaster, TV director, mother of two, and even at spelling bees. I am T o P a n g a from the 90s family sitcom Boy Meets World. But in 2025 I was a contestant on season 34 of Dancing with the Stars. I am just off the press line for Rock and Roll hall of Fame night despite having no prior dance experience and the fact that the last time I danced in public may have been at my wedding, which was seven years ago tonight, by the way, here I am back in my house after making it to the final eight. Throughout this entire experience, I have continued to record this here podcast sharing every detail and behind the scenes story with you as I fought my way through a slayer like mosh pit of talented dancers and explained explosive personalities all in the hopes of winning a Len Goodman mirror ball trophy. As you are probably aware at this point, I Tonight was my last night. It was my last dance. I was eliminated and I have such a like wide range of emotions. I'm obviously very sad to be leaving the competition. I'm sad to have my day to day life is going to so drastically change now. I have literally woken up every single day and looked forward to rehearsal and looked forward to what dance we were learning that week and to seeing Pasha and collaborating with him and hanging out with him.

[Pasha (Dance Partner)]

Talking about not seeing him every day is gonna make me very sad. We had the most dreamlike partnership you could possibly ask for with someone that you get thrown together with. You have no idea what you're in for when you know, you throw yourself into something so wholeheartedly and something that's gonna be so much a part of your life and same for him. You know, this is.

[Danielle Fishel]

This is his livelihood. This is something he's been, he's, you know, he's a professional dancer for his entire life and every year he puts himself out there and has no idea who he's going to get. And you never know how, you know, personalities mesh. I, I think I am comfortable speaking for both of us when I say.

[Pasha (Dance Partner)]

It couldn't have gone any better. Like, I'm so lucky. Just so, so, so lucky that Pasha was my partner. He was truly the best. And with him, of course came Danny, his wife, who I just, I'm completely obsessed with as well, and I love. And their daughter Kiki, who I'm so.

[Danielle Fishel]

Lucky, loves me and wants to hang out with me and lets me hold her and just, I just love their family so much.

[Pasha (Dance Partner)]

So talking about him and not seeing him and them every day is going to take some getting used to. I really didn't want to cry this early on in the podcast because overall, I feel so extremely positive about everything we did. And it would be a lot harder.

[Danielle Fishel]

To be walking away from the show if I could look back and say, oh, you know, I think maybe I got eliminated because I didn't put in the extra work here or because I didn't try hard here or because, you know, some. Some reason, like there's. If there was something I could point to, then maybe I would feel worse. But we did every single thing we possibly could with what we had available to us. Were there songs we wanted that we didn't get, that didn't clear? Sure. Were there theme nights that, you know, didn't necessarily speak to us, but we had to give it our all anyway. Of course, all of those things. I mean, even for example, you know, with tonight's dance, the contemporary, which we were able to do to Dream on by Aerosmith, which was such a dream come true for both of us. Like, Pasha and I just love that song, and it was very, very special to both of us. So we were really excited about that. But we got the song cleared, and we knew we were going to be able to do our contemporary to Dream On. Right away, Pasha was like, what's the story you want to tell? What does this mean to you? You Contemporary is a very personal dance. It's usually about something. It's got some emotion. And he said, what is it about? And I said, I know the song like the back of my hand, but I'm going to listen to it again and see what speaks to me. And I listened to it quite a few times, back to back to back. And I wrote to Pasha, I said, okay, our story is about the impossible standards placed on women, both from society and from ourselves. If we pursue work outside the home and have a family, we're told that we should be with our kids more. If we stay home, we're told we don't work and are uninteresting. If we're too thin, we're told to eat a burger. And if we gain weight, we're told to get off the couch. When we get Botox or fillers, we're accused of not aging gracefully. And when we age naturally, we're called old and ugly. We are somehow always too much and never enough at the same time. And the only cure for it is to live life your way, living out your dreams. Because as my cancer diagnosis pointed out to me last year, life is short, and we never know when we're living Our last day or dancing our last dance. And he right away, like, love wrote, love it. That's it. Great. This is going to help me choreograph the whole thing. And he did. He went and choreographed it. And pasha is a really skilled dancer in all ballroom and latin dances. He doesn't feel as comfortable with contemporary dances and choreography. So he worked with two people that he knows, loves, and trusts that are absolute experts in contemporary, and he worked with them to put together the dance that spoke to exactly what I wrote in my text. The societal pressure and outside noise and judgments and all of that. And then tonight, while we were on the ballroom floor, I was, like, listening to my package, and I was like, none of that was even mentioned. Like, none of my story was. Was even in the package. And we don't have any. You know, those are just things that are completely out of our control. Like, we don't have. We don't get to see the package. We don't get to have notes on the package. We don't get to have. We don't know. We don't know what's in there. So, yeah. Are there things that. That I can look back on and say, like, maybe if those things had been different, the outcome could be different. But I have one thing about this experience that I look back on and think to myself, oh, I regret this moment because I gave it my all. I really, really did. And no one gave it. I mean, pasha gave it his all plus sum. I mean, Pasha is. He is just the hardest working person, and he was working all hours and just doing his absolute best. And so there's nothing. There's nothing I would change about the entire experience. Not one thing. There's nothing I could. There's nothing I could do. And if this is where the journey ends, and it is. I'm really. I'm really proud. I'm really proud. I look back on every week as. As like a special individual, unique little moment in time that I'll remember forever. On top of having the contemporary dance this week, it was also team dance week. And if there was ever a time to have to be eliminated in the competition, I think after that, team dance is the time to do it. You saw us all celebrating after the dance ended. Every single second of that dance was hard earned. You know, we only had a total of seven hours as a group to put that together, and our. So our pros had to choreograph it and teach it to us, and we had to nail it in seven hours. And that's not Seven hours, even in one day. That's seven hours broken up into two days. It was two different rehearsal times. And then, of course, we had our camera blocking. And then today, we were able to kind of like, all right, we've got 10 minutes. Let's try to rehearse some moments. And yeah, I mean, it was such a fun week watching the pros work and watching them trust and respect each other and collaborate and truly, all week, best idea wins. Any. Anyone who had an idea, anyone who had a suggestion of the pros. The celebs were. Were not necessarily lobbing suggestions, but we were comfortable to say, like, this doesn't feel right. Is there something else we could do here? Or. Or just even just asking all the questions, like, what are we supposed to be doing when we do this? But it was such a great week. And truly, like, right up until the last second, I was like. There was, like, right before we started, where I was like, oh, my gosh, my brain is, like, melting, and I couldn't get this one part. And I was like, we need to start again. And we started again. And. And then I really feel like we killed it. I mean, it was just so much fun. And because we only had seven hours and because there were so many different moving parts, and because then you're dealing with all the cameras and where are the cameras going to be and what are you supposed to do? And we can't see each other and know Alfonso's having to run out. He's, like, off on the side, and then he has to run out. And we had to, you know, have our backs to Alfonso for that part, the celeb part, where the pros aren't allowed to be on the floor with us. And everyone, all the pros asked Whitney. They were like, who's going to count? I just. Someone needs to count so that we can make sure we're all together, because nobody cares if you're counting as long as you all look together like, yeah, go ahead, count it out so you know you're on the right counts. And Whitney was like, I know the counts. I will count. And so Whitney took it on herself to be the leader there for all of us to make sure we were all on. And she did that at the request of our pros. And, you know, Whitney is. Gosh, I can say so many wonderful things about every single person on this cast. Whitney is the first person to say, I can do this. Do you want me to do this? Can I take on this? Can I take this on? Can I? How can I help. What can I do? And I'm gonna start crying again. And this past week, that was really.

[Pasha (Dance Partner)]

Difficult for me with the contemporary dance. Whitney was one of the first people I reached out to, and so was mark. I texted whitney and I said, I'm having a really hard time this week. And she said, you know, talk to me. And we ended up sending each other voice notes back and forth.

[Danielle Fishel]

And.

[Pasha (Dance Partner)]

She was really, gosh, she's good people. She's really good people. I'm going to miss her. I'm gonna miss jordan so much, too. Of course I'm gonna miss my boy Dylan, My little. My alliance partner from day one. I almost feel as bad that I let Dylan down as much as I did pasha. It's funny, like, I apologized to pasha. I said, I'm sorry I didn't get us to the finals. And he apologized.

[Danielle Fishel]

He said, no, I'm sorry I didn't.

[Pasha (Dance Partner)]

Get us to the finals. I was like, no, no, no, no. This is on me, not on you. I kind of feel the same way about Dylan. Feel like I let our alliance down. Oh, my gosh. And Robert. Robert and I both got super emotional saying goodbye to each other. We all did.

[Danielle Fishel]

I'm gonna miss alex.

[Pasha (Dance Partner)]

I'm gonna miss andy. I'm gonna miss Elaine. I'm truly. I'm gonna miss everybody. Such a good group. I didn't even name all the pros because honestly, I'd just be sitting here saying, I'm gonna miss every single person. I'm gonna miss the troop so much. They called me, like, troop mom. This is what I felt like. I felt like I felt like their troop mom. I'm so proud of them. I just cheer them on every single week. I'm still gonna be doing that. Just gonna be cheering them on from home, which honestly kind of looking forward to. I'm also really looking forward to washing my feet because I still haven't washed my feet from when I was barefoot all night, which is just disgusting.

[Danielle Fishel]

We will be taping a live episode of danielle with at disney california Adventure park on December 4, 2025. If you live in the southern california area or if you can be in the southern California area on December 4th. We have an opportunity for to join us between now and November 24th of 2025. You can enter for your chance to win tickets to attend the Coast 103.5 Private Holiday Party at Disney California Adventure park on December 4, 2025, including an overnight stay at the Disneyland resort hotel for a family of four and two. Day one park per day, tickets to Disneyland park or Disney California Adventure Park. Plus, you will have the chance to meet us while we are taping an episode of Danielle with Inside Disney California Adventure Park. Visit coast1035.comDanielewith now to enter for your chance to win.

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[Danielle Fishel]

You know what? I can see you as Mr. Darcy. You got a little call in Firth.

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[Danielle Fishel]

Limu is that guy with the binoculars watching us.

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[Danielle Fishel]

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[Danielle Fishel]

So one of the reasons this was.

[Pasha (Dance Partner)]

A really hard week for me is.

[Danielle Fishel]

That, you know, we were dancing a contemporary, and now that I'm not on the show anymore, I feel really comfortable.

[Pasha (Dance Partner)]

Saying I don't like it. I don't like contemporary. I just.

[Danielle Fishel]

No.

[Pasha (Dance Partner)]

Just no. It's. It's a no from me, dog.

[Danielle Fishel]

I don't like it. I don't like it at all. I like being in a frame, which is weird. I didn't think I was gonna like that When I first joined the show. I thought, I'm only gonna like the Latin dances and I'm probably gonna like the stuff jazz number and a contemporary. And you know what? It's really not for me. I have realized that my neck is significantly longer than I thought it was now that I have learned how to keep my shoulders down. And now that my shoulders are down, I love being in a frame. It's so nice. It's so comforting. And when you have a good partner like I did with Pasha, being in that frame and. And having that connection is just really feels great. It feels really nice and it feels beautiful and. And then contemporary felt very like the opposite of everything I had worked so hard for. It was like, okay, have a gut punch and be like a rag doll and have loose fingers and no broken wrists and, you know, straight arms, but still loosey goosey fingers. And it just felt very opposite of everything I had been doing. And also I have a very flexible spine, but I'm very flexible in my spine, like going back. Like, I could do a lot of back bends. And that's why you saw Pasha and I do a lot of dips and back bend style stuff because he knew it was easy for me and. And looks good. And so we capitalized on that as often as we could. But the shortest part of my body, you know, I'm 5:1. The shortest part of my body is my waist. My torso is Literally like two and a half inch long. Like from my lowest rib to my hip bone is like literally 2 inches. I have a very short waist and so a lot of the like breath expansion stuff or even contraction is like, I feel like even if I, and I'm not saying I was doing it perfectly, far, far, far from it, but even if I were to work on it a lot, I still don't think it would ever look super impressive. It's just not going to look super impressive as it does on, like, you know, I'm going to use Haley and Anya as two examp examples from troop. Like to watch them do a contemporary and with their beautiful long torsos and their beautiful long bodies, it's like I look at that and I'm like, oh my God, gorgeous. Or Jenna doing a contemporary, I'm like, oh, look at that, it's stunning. And then it's like, even if I really did my best, best, best, it's never going to look like that. It's never going to look that beautiful. I just don't have that shape. So it was a tough week for me. It was just a really tough week and I had a. I was like really hard on myself. I had a lot of negative self talk and I, I, in order to then comfort myself from all that negative self talk, I found myself just like massively overeating, which then made me feel really bad, both physically and just mentally and emotionally. Like, I was just really, I was coming home and massively overeating and then feeling sick. And I was like, where is this coming from? Like, all of this is just really disordered. Disordered thinking, disordered eating. Like, what is going on? And I really did realize just how much I was resisting. Like this dance was bringing up a lot of stuff for me and bringing up a lot of old bad habits. And yeah, it was a rough week and I, I talked to Whitney about it, I obviously talked to Pasha about it and I also talked to Mark, I talked to Mark Ballas about it and he is another one who's just so supportive. And so today when we were about ready to do our group dance and I literally had like a meltdown right before it started. I like, like all of this, like everything kind of left my brain and I, we started trying to do like a mini rehearsal and we were supposed to do these four claps and I only did three. And then I turned my hands and then I was like. And I was like, wait, we need to start again. Then we started rehearsal again and then I did something Else. That was so weird. And I literally just, like, looked out, locked eyes with Mark, and I was like, I'm having a meltdown. And, like, everyone went to go say to me, like, you've got this. And Mark literally, like, grabbed me by the shoulders, looked at me, and he was like, stop. Stop. Don't pay attention to anybody else. Just look at me right now. And he was like, danielle, take a deep breath. Tune out all the noise. Forget that there are all these people here. Just lock in like, you have got this. You know what you're doing. Take a deep breath. And. And I was like, okay. And he gave me a hug, and I said, okay, I've got it. And I walked back out, and we did one more rehearsal. Rehearsal went fine, and then we did it, and. And it all went off without a hitch. And it was incredible, and it was amazing. And our team dance got the first perfect score of the season, a perfect 40. And the confetti cannons went off, and it felt great. I was so proud of my team, and I was so proud of everything we had done all week. And that is for sure, a massive core memory, not just from Dancing with the Stars. For the rest of my life, I will remember what it felt like to.

[Pasha (Dance Partner)]

Be a part of that team all week, and then what it felt like to go out there as a team and really kill it and then be recognized for it with a perfect score. I'll remember it forever. So anyway.

[Danielle Fishel]

Rock and Roll hall of Fame night. What an incredible night. I was so happy with everybody's songs. I was standing up in the skybox, just listening to the song, watching the performances, and I was like, man, this is a banger of a night. Like, first of all, Alex and Val living on a prayer. That dance, that paso, was outstanding. Just outstanding. Brought the house down so great. I couldn't have loved it anymore. I love their dances. I love Alex. I love Valley. I thought that was just an absolutely killer dance. And overheard in the ballroom was Flavor Flav saying that him selecting a 9 on the board in front of him was a mistake, that he had wanted to give them a 10, which means that was supposed to have been the first perfect score of the season and that Alex and Val would have had a 40 had he not hit a 9 instead. But he went to go hold up his 10 paddle and was then told in his ear you had selected a nine. And I have not seen it yet because I haven't had a chance to watch the show. But apparently he kind of made a face when he had to hold up the nine. And it was because he had intended to select a 10 and accidentally selected a 9. So that is interesting. I thought Flavor Flav brought a lot of really fun energy, if you know what I'm saying.

[Pasha (Dance Partner)]

You know what I'm saying?

[Danielle Fishel]

Do you know what I'm saying? I thought it was really good energy. I am gonna say. I. The scoring on this show does confuse me. It is a little confusing. I do think that maybe they could benefit from halves, you know, like an 8.5 and an 8 and a 9 or a 9.5. But, like, even when I think about the team dance scores and I think about, like, you know, I think mainly my main question would be, I guess, for Derek, when he gives a critique to team Cool about the dance, but then is, you know, says, I think the. I think the first dance was better, but then gives us both the same score. And I'm like, okay, so some of that stuff is a little confusing to me. I don't think that's out of line to say. Just sometimes, you know, people are entitled to do whatever they want and. And pick the scores that they want.

[Pasha (Dance Partner)]

But.

[Danielle Fishel]

But it is a little confusing as both a person on the ballroom floor and also, I think as a viewer, sometimes those things are a little confusing. Going back to our team dance, I was team captain, which I took very seriously. And I honestly, if. If someone from the winning team was gonna go home, I'm so happy it was me, hundred percent. If I had been the team captain and anyone else went home, I would have been furious with myself. So all week, they kept stressing to us, you know, well, typically, someone from the losing team goes home. Someone from the losing team goes home. And I was like, okay, well, then I really don't want us to lose, because I don't want our team to have somebody have to go home. And then, of course, the winning team had somebody go home. And I'm just so happy that it was me, because if it had been anybody else, I really would have beaten myself up about that. And now I don't have to beat myself up about that. At least it was me. And even as. As a director, my overall feeling is always that everything that happens on a set is my responsibility. If something bad happens, even if I had nothing to do with it, it's still my responsibility. And I say, I'm the first person, as the director to say, that's on me. And then when anything goes right, I always look for someone to give the credit to. Anytime something goes right, anytime something Goes, well, I might always going to say that couldn't have happened without the props department. That couldn't have happened without the wardrobe department. That couldn't have happened without so and so actor. That couldn't have happened without blank. And I just feel like that's a really great way of making your team know that they are valued and also that they're protected, that if something goes wrong, I'm not gonna throw them under the bus. It's my responsibility. I'm in charge. And that's exactly the attitude I brought to this team dance was like, okay, I have to set the tone. Even though the pros are the ones doing all the choreography and are definitely taking the lead and definitely teaching us and doing all the time management. As far as, like, setting the tone, that was what I wanted to do. I just wanted to set a really positive, lovely tone where everyone felt valued and respected and safe. Safe to speak up, safe to say what they wanted and valued that their energy and their genius that they bring to this is of worth. And so I hope that I did that.

[Liberty Mutual / Podcast Promo Announcer]

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[Danielle Fishel]

You know what? I can see you as Mr. Darcy. You got a little Colin Firth.

[Liberty Mutual / Podcast Promo Announcer]

Okay, that's really sweet. I appreciate that, but are you sure I'm not the dad? I'm not Mr. Bennett.

[Pasha (Dance Partner)]

Here.

[Liberty Mutual / Podcast Promo Announcer]

Listen to Earsay, the Audible and iHeart Audiobook Club on the iHeartradio app or wherever you get your podcasts.

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[Danielle Fishel]

Limu is that guy with the binoculars watching us.

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[Danielle Fishel]

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[Danielle Fishel]

Putting together this team was not by chance funny story that I I told also on the show and I guess they chose not to use in our package but since day one in New York at gma Dylan and I formed an alliance. Feels and sounds kind of like a joke because we shot it as a TikTok where I said you know do you want to form an alliance with me? It was from the office office and he said yes, yes I do. But we took it very seriously. We really could we really told ourselves we're in an alliance and our plan was together the two of us. Let's make it to the finals and we have become really very much best friends on this little ballroom competition show. And on the cup on the Monday.

[Pasha (Dance Partner)]

Before.

[Danielle Fishel]

We had to do the team picks, we, Dylan and I were talking and we were like, who, who becomes the team captains? Because there's not a whole lot of them. Like we don't get a lot of early information. We will know like, oh, team dance is coming up. But they don't ever, they don't really like sit us down a full week before and go, FYI, here's how it works and we'll determine who's the lowest, you know, the lowest voted or the lowest rated couples. And then those people will become team captains. We just kind of have to like figure it out a little bit on our own. And so we were like, wait, who, who becomes team captains? How does this work for this team dance? And we realized it was the two lowest scored contestants. So Dylan and I went through and added up all the points throughout the entire season. And we figured out that Andy was the lowest and then the next lowest was Jen and then the third lowest was me. And then Dylan, I think was a couple above me, maybe he was fourth, I don't remember. And I was like, wow, okay, Jen and I were only separated by two points. And so there were two ways I could end up being the second lowest after Andy. One, that week, last week, if Jen did better than me in the scores for only separated by two points, if she gets four nines and I get two eights and two nines, we're now at the very least tied. Or if she just overall scores better than me, more than two points better than me, I now become the second lowest voted. The other way I could end up being the second lowest is if Jen went home. So the fact that there were two ways that it could end up being that I was no longer third on the list, that I was going to be number two on the list meant that I wanted to start thinking about who would I pick if I end up being a team captain. I want to be prepared. I don't want to on the night, you know, all of a sudden be find out I'm a team captain and have not thought of this at all. So Dylan and I started talking. What are we going to do? What do we think the perfect strategy is? And of course I wanted to be on a team with Dylan. One, because I love him and two, because he is partnered with Danny, who I think is one of the best choreographers. And I also just, I just wanted to be with them. So I Texted Dylan. And I was like, what is our strategy here? And Dylan put together an Excel spreadsheet. This is one of the benefits of being in an alliance with someone who can win traders. He put together an Excel spreadsheet with all the different possibilities of, well, let's see, depending on who goes home, this, you know, you might want to pick this person or this person or that person or whatever. And by the time we went through the spreadsheet, I had written to him in one text, Dream team, Whitney, you, me, Jordan. And he was like, that's the team. And then the next morning, which was Tuesday morning, the day of the live show, last week's live show, he said, I was up thinking about this all night. And I said, I was too. And he said, if you pick Whitney first, I really think you should make your second pick Jordan, because there is no way Jordan is going to go till the very end. And I think you gamble with me as your third pick. He said, I don't care about it. Looking like I'm last to be picked on the schoolyard. He's like, just, let's take a gamble. Of course there's a possibility that Andy ends up picking me and. And I don't end up on your team, but I. I think it's worth the gambler. And I think you need Jordan and Whitney. And I was like, okay, I think you're right. I think that's probably the smart move. And then we get up there into the skybox, and we're picking, and Andy gets to pick first. And I had suspected that if Andy was gonna pick first, he was gonna pick Robert first. And sure enough, Andy goes, Robert. I'm bringing Robert. And I go, okay, it's now my turn. I go, I'm taking Whitney. And Whitney comes to my side. And then Andy gets to go with the second pick. And Andy picked Alex. And he takes Alex And I go, okay, here's my second pick. I'm going to take Jordan and I get Jordan on my team. And now it's down to Elaine and Dylan as the last two. But Elaine wasn't there because she had been injured. And so it was Allen standing there. So it was Allen and Dylan standing in of us. And Andy goes, Dylan. And my heart sinks. I'm like, my gamble, my gamble of taking Dylan third is not going to pay off. And then immediately after, Andy says, I love you, but I've got to go with Elaine. And Alan goes walking over to Andy and Dylan and I locked eyes, and Dylan goes, oh, my God, it worked. He mouthed it to me from across the skybox. And I. I'm like. And Dylan comes walking over and. Yeah, I just. I don't know.

[Pasha (Dance Partner)]

It was so special.

[Danielle Fishel]

And then the way the week went and the team dance went, I really felt like, yeah, that was good. That was good strategy. It really worked for us. It was such a special week. And the fact that even I, you know, the fact that I got eliminated tonight is just not even. It really can't bring down the immense joy and pride and fun I had in these last, you know, 11 weeks of my life. It's been almost three months, and I wouldn't trade them for anything. Look at my little beautiful picture here. I think this was a gift just from things remembered, but I'm not sure. It could have actually been from someone, but without a card. But it's got a picture of Pasha and me in it. At the bottom, it says Dancing with The Stars Season 34. And I love it. I have so many great memories from this experience that I'll have with me for the rest of my life and including doing this podcast for you guys. Thank you for humoring me and letting me just have this experience. It's been so fun. I'm not stopping. There are still three weeks left in the competition, and I'm going to keep this podcast going until the season ends. I'm still gonna bring you some great guests. I wanna interview Kimmy, my hairdresser. I wanna interview Daniela, the costumer. I wanna interview Alfonso. I'd love to interview Julianne. I have so many people I want to interview and bring to you guys. So I'm still. I'm still going to do all that. I'm still going to make sure that goes on. Even though I am no longer in the competition, I still am a part of the Dancing with the Stars family now. And especially this 20th year and this 34th season. I don't know if I'm going to be in the ballroom next week for the 20th anniversary. There's a big party, and I might. I might go for that. And then I will be in the finale. Everybody comes back for the finale. I'll probably get to do a little. A little 28 counts or something with Pasha, which will be really fun. And, yeah, that's it. I have loved every moment of this journey, and I thank you for all of your votes. I thank you for all of your comments. I thank you for all of your support. It's really been the experience of a lifetime. And. And also, there's just so many people I have to thank that I will start crying. But thank you to my husband, Jensen Karp, producer husband of this podcast.

[Pasha (Dance Partner)]

Who I really wouldn't have been able to do this experience without. He's just been. He's been there every week. He's been there every single day for our kids.

[Danielle Fishel]

Kids.

[Pasha (Dance Partner)]

He's made sure they were taken care of. He's made sure the house is functioned. He's made sure everything has gone off without a hitch. So that I've really been able to just give myself this gift for these last three months of just really focusing on me. And it was really, really, really, really nice. It was quite a gift. So I owe him a big gift. And also, of course, thank you to Pasha, who made this entire experience beautiful from the first day we met. And I'm so glad that we're neighbors and we're in each other's lives forever. And thank you to Dina and to Conrad from the BBC and from Dancing with the Stars. I love you, the entire crew. I. If I were to name everybody, it'd take me forever, but. But some people. I really, specifically, really love the hair and makeup and wardrobe team, all of security. I love the security guys. They're so great. Dave, Mike, everyone. I love you all. All the camera guys, all the producers, everybody at highland, honestly reminds me I have a bunch of shirts I have to give out. I made topasha air shirts with the logo of Pasha holding me in that Argentine tango last final pose. And I have him in my car. And there it was. A gift for everybody at highland. And now I have to.

[Danielle Fishel]

Now I have to give those out. Anyway, thank you all for listening to this episode of Danielle with. I will see you all next week. I. I might wear my dancing with the stars robe. I won't be in hair and makeup. You're gonna. You're gonna see, like, back to normal normal. Daniel, Danielle. Not this, like, such a glamorous version of Danielle that. That I get to experience that's now gone until the finale. Anyway, thank you all. Talk to you next time.

[Pasha (Dance Partner)]

Bye.

[Danielle Fishel]

Danielle with the stars, produced and hosted by Danielle Fishel, executive producers Jensen Karp and Amy Sugarman, executive in charge of production, Danielle Romo, producer, editor and and engineer Tara sudbaksh. Theme song by Justin Segal. Follow us on Instagram at daniellewithstars and vote for me.

[Liberty Mutual / Podcast Promo Announcer]

And Doug. Here we have the limu emu in its natural habitat, helping people customize their car insurance and save hundreds with liberty Mutual. Fascinating. It's accompanied by his natural ally, Doug.

[Danielle Fishel]

Uh, Limu is that guy with the binoculars watching us?

[Liberty Mutual / Podcast Promo Announcer]

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[Pasha (Dance Partner)]

Okay, only.

[Danielle Fishel]

10 more presents to wrap. You're almost at the finish line. But first, there the last one. Enjoy a Coca Cola for a pause that refreshes.

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[Danielle Fishel]

That'S odoo.com the weather outside is frightful, the fire is so delightful, and you're living your best holiday life in Old Navy Jingle Jammies because honestly, it's not the season without them. They're instant spirit wrapped in flannel. Get the whole family in matching sets for the photo, the cocoa, and the big morning. Old Navy has the classics like plaid and plenty of fun new options too, including exclusive Disney prints. Think Mickey and Friends, Stitch and Angel, even Star Wars Jammies. Find Jingle Jammies and all your festive favorites [e-mail] this is an I Heart podcast.