We warned you that Dancing With The Stars season 19 contestant Alfonso Ribeiro was a professional dancer merely disguised as an amateur. Ribeiro may be best known for his long-running role as cousin Carlton on the Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, but long before that he was a child star on Broadway. As a kid, Ribeiro starred in a Broadway musical called–wait for it–The Tap Dance Kid. That’s a little different from the experience of, say, Tommy Chong, Michael Waltrip or even the effervescent Sadie Robertson. They are amateur dancers–which is what Dancing With The Stars is supposed to be about! Alfonso Ribeiro, on the other hand, once authored a dance instruction book (Alfonso’s Breakin’ & Poppin’ Book).
You want an idea of how good Ribeiro is–and how illustrious his dancing career has been? When he left the title role of Willie in The Tap Dancing Kid on Broadway, the part was taken over by Savion Glover. Glover is widely considered to be one of the greatest and most influential dancers of his generation. Alfonso Ribeiro won the opening night on Dancing With The Stars season 19 by a long shot. The producers knew what he was going to bring, too–they put in the final slot. He was essentially the headliner, and the judges went nuts for Ribeiro’s performance–as they should have. Did we mention that Ribeiro used to dance with Michael Jackson? It’ll be a pleasure to watch Alfonso Ribeiro dance on Dancing With The Stars season 19–but it’s not a fair fight. It’s as if the other dancers are being asked to play basketball against Kobe Bryant. You could see it on their sad faces after Alfonso Ribeiro performed. They can’t win.
