Dancing with the Stars Spring 2008: The Ninth Elimination

Tonight on Dancing with the Stars, another celebrity was eliminated from the competition, leaving just three couples to duke it out for the Mirrorball Trophy on next week's finale. But first, the Kids' competition, confessional clips, a tribute to Thriller, and more. As always, the show began with an overview of last night's action, including Marissa's stumble and Kristi's return to the top spot.

The next segment started with a review of last night's judges' leaderboard, which found Marissa at the bottom with 52 points, and Kristi at the top with 57. Len asked that Kristi and Mark perform their Tango as the night's judges' encore dance, and naturally the duo complied. Then the kids' competition continued with the three finalists performing for studio audience votes. First up were the winners of the nine and under round, Aaron and Roshell, who performed a cha cha cha that Len called "sharp, crisp... absolutely spot-on".

After a break, Samantha interviewed the final four contestants backstage. Kristi remarked that it feels good to "just get out and dance well" at this point, while Marissa said that making the finals would "mean the world" to her. Cristian claimed to be "happy and surprised" to be in the semis, and Jason said that if both he and Cristian make the finals, they'd be friends again on the 21st. The Travis Payne dancers and Omarion then performed a tribute to Michael Jackson's epic album Thriller, which featured snippets from several different songs.

The ten and under couple, Jaryd and Cara, were next to hit the dance floor in the Kids' Competition. They performed a Samba that Carrie Ann called a "perfect blend of entertainment and technique." The final couple (from the thirteen and under round), Brandon and Brittany, offered up a Paso Doble set to the Phantom of the Opera theme. Bruno called it a "Paso Incredible" and Carrie Ann said she was "seriously impressed". Len said he knew that the other two couples were cute, but Brandon and Brittany are "the real deal". Tom directed the audience to vote for the most entertaining duo.