Actress Miriama Smith was voted off Dancing of the Stars on Tuesday night leaving former Silver Fern Temepara George and ex-Warriors captain, Monty Betham to fight out the grand final on 16 April.
The three celebrities, who have all been profiled exclusively in SPASIFIKmag.com over the past month, provided the show with one of its most memorable and tense performances.
The Tuesday vote-off saw one of the highest ratings ever for the popular television show. And the anticipation was justified as the three finalists put on almost flawless performances which made it hard for the judges to separate.
Monty’s second dance, the tango, put him in jeopardy of getting voted off as he recorded the evening’s lowest score of 29. But proving that this show is partly a popularity contest, the voters saw it the other way.
Temepara went through automatically to the final gaining the majority of the votes - and fairly so after topping the scoring with 70 points. This meant either Monty or Miriama were going to go. Unfortunately for Miriama, it was her. She had dominated the scorings in the first few shows, but after suffering an injury was below her best last week. She looked to have recovered, especially with an energetic jive; but it was not enough to stave off elimination.
The result now means two celebrity contestants of Pacific descent will contest the final. It will also be the first time two sporting celebrities will vie for the crown.
Temepara seems to be in the box seat after getting the highest score 36 with her waltz, and consistently impressing the judges. But while being the less talented dancer, Monty’s personality and popularity could swing the votes his way. All will be revealed next Tuesday evening, 16 April.
