‘DWTS’ Classical Week to Feature Joshua Bell, Jackie Evancho and Gavin DeGraw

Monday’s “Dancing with the Stars,” themed Classical Night, opens with a stunning live performance from classical music superstar Joshua Bell, who will be performing “Vivaldi’s Summer,” accompanied by the Troupe, MONDAY, APRIL 30 (8:00-10:01 p.m., ET) on ABC. Other special musical artists joining the evening are soprano prodigy Jackie Evancho and world renowned Italian tenor Vittorio Grigolo, who will grace the stage, accompanying dance performances throughout the evening. Jackie Evancho will be performing “Dark Waltz” during a pro dance performance with Tristan MacManus and Karina Smirnoff. The seven remaining couples will compete to famous pieces of classical music and return to the ballroom floor later in the night for their always entertaining Team Dances. Team Paso’s Melissa & Maks, William & Cheryl, and Donald & Peta battle Team Tango’s Katherine & Mark, Maria & Derek, Roshon & Chelsie, Jaleel & Kym during Monday night’s show.

Earlier this season, he charmed audiences as we watched him Samba and Foxtrot, but Tuesday night Gavin DeGraw returns to the ballroom as a special musical guest. He will be performing his new hit single “Sweeter,” accompanied by Karina Smirnoff and Louis Van Amstel, TUESDAY, MAY 1 (9:00-10:01 p.m., ET) on ABC. And the final Dance Duel will be held this week, with the bottom two couples performing the Rumba, to the same song at the same time as the judges decide who the next eliminated couple will be, TUESDAY, APRIL 24 (9:00-10:01 p.m., ET) on ABC.

Tuesday night not only brings back DeGraw and eliminates one more couple, it also brings us “Dancing with the Stars: Ballroom Battle.” This competition features six pro dancers who paired together and held auditions for amateur couples throughout America. One couple was selected to represent each pro-dancer team in a head-to-head Ballroom Battle. On Tuesday, the three winning couples with their coaches – Cheryl Burke, Tony Dovolani and Louis Van Amstel – will compete in a live finale on stage. Each couple will perform a no-holds-barred Jive and the judges will name the Ballroom Battle champions.

Also, during Tuesday night’s show we will have an “AT&T’s Spotlight” performance will spotlight Richard “Steelo” Vazquez, who will perform with the Groovaloos for a very exciting and uplifting performance. “Steelo” was one of the top B-boy dancers working in music, film and television and a member of the popular dance group The Groovaloos. Sadly, in 2011 he suffered a brain aneurysm which resulted in him losing his ability to speak and walk. He spent six months in the hospital and now goes to physical rehabilitation five days a week, seven hours a day. On Tuesday, Steelo will reunite with the Groovaloos for the first time since his aneurysm. Although he isn’t back to full strength, this performance will be a testament to the perseverance he, his family and friends have shown despite all odds being against them.

Platinum recording artist Gavin DeGraw is no stranger to the top of the charts. He first broke through with the 2003 release of his debut album, “Chariot,” which sold over a million copies, earned platinum certification and yielded three hit singles: “I Don’t Want to Be,” “Follow Through” and the title-track, “Chariot.” DeGraw’s self-titled second album debuted at No. 1 on the digital sales chart and at No. 7 on Billboard’s Top 200 album chart in 2008, earning him his first Top 10 album. It spawned the hit singles “In Love with a Girl,” which Billboard dubbed “a rocking homerun,” and the gold-certified “We Belong Together.” In 2009 DeGraw released “Free” as a gift to his die-hard fans clamoring for recorded versions of his live favorites. He released his third studio album, “Sweeter,” in September of 2011. The album’s first single, “Not Over You,” co-written with OneRepublic’s Ryan Tedder, is a huge chart topping hit, and the just released 2nd single, the title track “Sweeter,” is sure to follow in its footsteps.

Joshua Bell has enchanted audiences worldwide with his breathtaking virtuosity and tone of rare beauty, earning him the title “classical music superstar.” An Avery Fisher Prize recipient and Musical America’s 2010 Instrumentalist of the Year, Bell is the Academy of St Martin in the Fields’ newly named Music Director. Bell came to national attention at age 14 in his debut with Riccardo Muti and the Philadelphia Orchestra. Today he is equally at home as a soloist, chamber musician, orchestra leader and composer who performs his own cadenzas to several of the major concerto repertoire. This season include dates with the Los Angeles Philharmonic, Montreal, Dallas, Colorado, Atlanta, San Francisco and National Symphony orchestras. An exclusive Sony Classical artist, “French Impressions,” his latest album of French sonatas with Jeremy Denk was released in January, 2012. Since his first LP recording at 18, Bell has recorded more than 36 CDs garnering Mercury, Grammy (r), Gramophone and Echo Klassik Awards. Joshua has performed on many film scores including “The Red Violin” which won an Oscar and recently recorded “The Flowers of War.” He was named by Billboard as the 2004 Classical Artist of the Year and recently he received the Paul Newman Award for services to children and the arts.

Jackie Evancho was introduced to the world on the show “America’s Got Talent,” where her astonishing vocal talent shined in the competition. “O Holy Night,” Jackie’s major label debut, was released in November 2012, and it was the year’s #1 best-selling debut recording with sales exceeding 1 million. It rocketed into the Billboard 200 at # 2, and the EP’s chart and sales success secured Jackie’s position as the year’s top-selling debut artist as well as the youngest female solo artisit to debut during the SoundScan era. IN addition to its pop chart success, “O Holy Night” reached # 1 on the Billboard Classical Chart and # 2 on the Billboard Holiday chart. Her latest album, “Dream With Me,” her first studio album, debuted on the Billboard Top 200 chart at # 2 and was certified Gold after only four weeks of release. “Dream With Me,” features a repertoire of classical arias and pop classics handpicked to suit Jackie’s angelic voice. Due to her spectacular successes, in 2011 Jackie was named to Billboard’s “21 Under 21″ list, their annual ranking of the most powerful minors in the music industry. Now at the age of 12, Jackie also continues to cultivate her other musical abilities, learning to play both the violin and piano.

Born in Arezzo, Tuscany and raised in Rome, Vittorio Grigolo was only four when he discovered his passion for music and now his exceptional vocal and dramatic talents have been widely praised by the world’s press. As one of the leading tenors of his generation, he now performs in the world’s most prestigious opera houses. His recent operatic appearances include the lead roles in “Faust,” “Manon,” Lucia di Lammermoor,” and “Rigoletto.” He brings the same energy to his live concert performances as he does to his operatic roles. In 2010 Vittorio collaborated with Zubin Mehta and the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra in a special gala concert performance of Rigoletto in Tel Aviv and at the beginning of 2011 he gave a tour of sold out concerts in Germany and Switzerland. With a gold and platinum -selling solo album, a Grammy nominated recording of Berstein’s “West Side Story” and his album “The Italian Tenor” reaching #1 on the US Billboard Classical album chart, Vittorio is an established recording artist. His second album on Sony Classical, “Arrivederci” includes his personal selection of the most beloved Italian songs and opera arias ever written for the tenor voice.

By Tuesday evening’s end, one couple will be eliminated, as determined by a combination of the judges’ scores and viewers’ votes on dances performed on Monday’s performance show. Who among the seven couples will be the next to leave the ballroom?

* DONALD DRIVER and partner PETA MURGATROYD
* ROSHON FEGAN and partner CHELSIE HIGHTOWER
* MELISSA GILBERT and partner MAKSIM CHMERKOVSKIY
* KATHERINE JENKINS and partner MARK BALLAS
* WILLIAM LEVY and partner CHERYL BURKE
* MARIA MENOUNOS and partner DEREK HOUGH
* JALEEL WHITE and partner KYM JOHNSON

Hosted by Tom Bergeron (“America’s Funniest Home Videos”) and Brooke Burke-Charvet (“Dancing with the Stars” Season Seven Champion), the celebrities perform choreographed dance routines which will be judged by renowned Ballroom judge Len Goodman and dancer/choreographers Bruno Tonioli and Carrie Ann Inaba. Viewers may cast their votes for their favorite teams via phone on Monday night during and up to 60 minutes after the “Dancing with the Stars” performance shows. AT&T customers may also vote by texting the word “VOTE” and entering the number that corresponds to the team they want to support (message and data rates may apply).