Hayley Erbert Hough makes an emotional return to the ballroom as dancers pay powerful tributes at Dedication Night

And then there were nine! Dancing with the stars was an emotional roller coaster on Tuesday as attendees headed to the ballroom to dedicate their performances to the people who have influenced their lives.

It was particularly personal for actress Chandler Kinney, who performed a contemporary number to Lee Ann Womack's “I Hope You Dance” with her partner Brandon Armstrong.

“I dedicate today’s performance to my mother,” Chandler told Yahoo Entertainment before taking the floor. “She sacrificed so much for me just so I could have a chance to achieve my dreams.”

Kinney described her dance as “the purest physical manifestation of thoughts and feelings” and said each movement reflected her deep bond with her mother.

“She is always there to catch me when I fall, to pick me up and walk through life side by side,” she said.

As judge Carrie Ann Inaba said during the show, “Dance is all about communication,” and the stars took it to heart.

Brooks Nader and his partner Gleb Savchenko were sent home at the end of the evening, but before they did, they turned up the heat with a salsa tribute to the model's three younger sisters – who made a fun cameo on the floor of the ballrooms made.

Family was a central theme of the evening, with Phaedra Parks delivering a heartfelt rumba dedicated to her mother Regina to Céline Dion's “Because You Loved Me” and NBA champion Dwight Howard honoring his children with his own rumba.

Joey Graziadei wowed with his Viennese Waltz, which he dedicated to his fiancée Kelsey Anderson and which earned him high praise from Bruno Tonioli, who crowned him “King of the Ballroom.”

Super Bowl champion Danny Amendola delivered a stirring contemporary performance dedicated to his late college football coach and mentor Mike Leach.

Olympic gymnast Stephen Nedoroscik and his partner Rylee Arnold scored their first “nine” with a powerful Argentine tango, a tribute to the pommel horse king's U.S. men's gymnastics team. Likewise, Olympic rugby player Ilona Maher performed a rumba dedicated to the U.S. women's rugby team.

Perhaps the most emotional moment of the evening came when judge Derek Hough and his wife Hayley Erbert Hough performed a dance to Benson Boone's “Beautiful Things.” The performance marked Erbert Hough's triumphant return to the ballroom after she was diagnosed with a cranial hematoma in December 2023.

“You never know what you’re capable of until you go through something like this,” she said after the performance.

Dancer and choreographer Jenny Oehlwein told Yahoo Entertainment that dance has the ability to release emotions that people often bury deep inside.

“There are no emotions that you can’t release through movement and song,” she said. “What we don’t release energetically, we store and it manifests physically in your body.”

For Oehlwein, Hayley's comeback was proof that dance often says what words cannot say.

“Music allows you to escape into a memory, be it love, joy or anger,” said Oehlwein. “Finding that truth makes it the most authentic performance.”

Dancing with the stars returns with its Disney episode on Tuesday, October 22nd at 8pm ET on ABC.

How did the stars fare?

Judges: Carrie Ann Inaba, Mark Ballas (guest), Derek Hough and Bruno Tonioli

Brooks Nader and pro Gleb Savchenko: EXCLUDED

• Dance: salsa

• song: “Mi Gente” by J Balvin and Willy William

• Devotion: Her 3 younger sisters

• Score: Carrie Ann 8, Mark 8, Derek 8, Bruno 8

• In total: 32/40

Joey Graziadei and pro Jenna Johnson: SURE

• Dance: Viennese waltz

• song: “Lose Control” by Teddy Swims

• Devotion: His fiancée, Kelsey Anderson.

• Score: Carrie Ann 9, Mark 9, Derek 9, Bruno 9

• In total: 36/40

Danny Amendola and pro Witney Carson: SURE

• Dance: Contemporary

• song: “Unsteady (Erich Lee Gravity Remix)” by X Ambassadors

• Devotion: His late NCAA head coach Mike Leach.

• Score: Carrie Ann 9, Mark 9, Derek 9, Bruno 9

• In total: 36/40

Stephen Nedoroscik and professional Rylee Arnold

• Dance: Argentine tango

• Song: Song: “Seven Nation Army” by the White Stripes

• Devotion: US men's gymnastics team

• Score: Carrie Ann 8, Mark 9, Derek 8, Bruno 8

• In total: 33/40

Chandler Kinney and pro Brandon Armstrong: SURE

• Dance: Contemporary

• song: “I Hope You Dance” by Lee Ann Womack

• Devotion: Your mother

• Score: Carrie Ann 8, Mark 8, Derek 8, Bruno 8

• In total: 32/40

Ilona Maher and professional Alan Bersten: SAFE

• Dance: Rumba

• song: “My Way” by Yseult

• Devotion: United States women's national rugby sevens team

• Score: Carrie Ann 8, Mark 8, Derek 8, Bruno 8

• In total: 32/40

Jenn Tran and pro Sasha Farber: SAFE

• Dance: Foxtrot

• song: “The Archer” by Taylor Swift

• Devotion: Taylor Swift

• Score: Carrie Ann 8, Mark 8, Derek 8, Bruno 8

• In total: 32/40

Phaedra Parks and pro Val Chmerkovskiy: SURE

• Dance: rumba

• Song: “Because You Loved Me” by Celine Dion

• Devotion: Your mother

• Score: Carrie Ann 8, Mark 8, Derek 8, Bruno 8

• In total: 32/40

Dwight Howard and pro Daniella Karagach: SURE

• Dance: Rumba

• song: “Shoot For The Stars” by Dwight Howard

• devotion: His children

• Score: Carrie Ann 7, Mark 7, Derek 8, Bruno 7

• In total: 29/40

Who has been eliminated so far?

• Week 2: Anna Delvey and Tori Spelling

• Week 4: Reginald VelJohnson and Eric Roberts

• Week 5: Brooks Nader and Gleb Savchenko