Olympic medalist Ilona Maher indeed proved her strength on the stage (quite literally) in the latest episode of DWTS. She lit up the Disney Night on Dancing With the Stars with her powerful and unique portrayal of Luisa Madrigal from Encanto. Alongside partner Alan Bersten, who fully committed to his role as one of Luisa’s donkeys with elaborate make-up, Maher delivered a vibrant jazz routine. And that gathered them an impressive score of 25 out of 30 points. Fans had been eagerly awaiting her performance of “Surface Pressure,” and the bronze medal-winning rugby star didn’t disappoint. While the performance undoubtedly impressed the judges, it caught the attention of a very special viewer. 

Meanwhile, everyone’s favorite ‘Pommel Horse Guy’ too was ready to prove his Herculean strength. The young gymnast embraced his role as Hercules for his Charleston routine with partner Rylee Arnold. Stephen Nedoroscik’s performance of “A Star is Born” from the Hercules soundtrack brought the energy to the ballroom, scoring him a 24 out of 30. However, it wasn’t Stephen’s muscular portrayal that stole the spotlight offstage.

In a rather heartwarming twist, Rylee Arnold’s 3-year-old niece became captivated by Maher’s portrayal of Luisa. Lindsay Arnold, Rylee’s sister, shared an adorable video on TikTok showing her little girl watching the DWTS performance intently. Not only did she watch Maher’s performance but she was really inspired by the show. As Ilona danced her way through the routine, the toddler tried to mimic Luisa’s strength, attempting to lift things around her in true “Surface Pressure” fashion. 

The performance of her aunt with Nedoroscik did not seem to impress and inspire the little one equally as Maher’s. The innocent charm of the little girl aspiring to be a strong female character instantly resonated with fans. It was an unexpected moment of inspiration from Ilona Maher’s embodiment of Luisa’s strength that seems to have made a lasting impression on Rylee Arnold’s niece. The video quickly gained attention as fans could not keep from watching the little one’s stunts that she was trying to pull off on the quest of becoming Maher-like strong.

However, although Rylee’s gymnast partner failed to impress the little audience, Stephen Nedoroscik jokingly stated, “Hercules likes to flex, so buying into this character will be super easy for me!” However, to camouflage into the character’s skin, Stephen had to resort for help to spray tan. And for the first time in his life, he had to bulk up with the help of a tanning machine. 

Rylee could not resist sharing a video where Stephen Nedoroscik was caught laughing as the DWTS make-up team got him all tanned up. “Oh he is so ready to be hercules on @dancingwiththestars tonight!!!”, wrote Rylee captioning the video. Stephen too seems to have been quite thrilled after he got to see himself in the mirror.

Flexing his muscles, he was all geared up for pulling off the ‘Herculean performance’ on the stage. However, this isn’t the first superhero show from Nedoroscik that left his fans in awe. Dressing up as DC’s Superman to compliment his Clark Kent look, he took over the stage and hearts of his fans on the very second week of DWTS season 33. On the other hand, Ilona Maher has turned out to be an inspiration for many. Because she has gracefully emerged as a star, discarding all negativities thrown in her way.

Ilona Maher takes center stage in DWTS 

The American Rugby Union athlete is a superstar with a lot of accolades to her name. Unfortunately, she did not have quite a path full of roses en route to her athletic journey. Having a height-to-bodyweight ratio of 5’10” to 200lbs, Maher is typically categorized as ‘Overweight’. This has stuck with her throughout her career as Maher has been the target of innumerable fan trolls and has encountered several instances of body shaming. Thankfully, the rugby union athlete does not let her so-called physical obstacles come in her way.

And now, her confidence has been oozing on the Dancing With The Stars floor as well. In her latest performance, Maher looked stunning in a blue gown. However, the one thing that caught everyone’s attention was that the dress revealed a lot of skin. To be more specific, it let her flaunt more of her muscular features, the same ones that she has been mocked for. 

Always an advocate for body positivity, Ilona Maher told the Access Hollywood reporters, “I want to show all my shoulders, all the, whatever part of me, the cellulite it is when I dance, and I was like less fabric, less fabric because I’m very proud of what my body can do, and I’m very proud of how it looks and what it’s done for me and taken me in my career.”

In the latest Disney-themed week, Maher took up the avatar of ‘Luisa Madrigal’ from Encanto, who is portrayed as a character with super strength in the story. Thus, apart from Stephen Nedoroscik, other personalities from the sporting realm are also stepping up their game to make DWTS a spectacular joyride for the fans.