Las Vegas Weekly

November 24, 2008 · 7:45 AM

Morning Call Exclusive: Lance Bass battles injuries and hopes Marie Osmond’s gifts will hex his opponents tonight!

By Robin Leach

Lance and Lacey give a salute to prime-time television.

Photo: ABC TV

When pop singer Lance Bass competes against Dancing With the Stars finalists TV host-actress-model Brooke Burke and Super Bowl champion Warren Sapp tonight, he’ll have some secret ammunition thanks to Flamingo headliner Marie Osmond! Not only has the sassy singer given him tips from her run on the ABC show, but she’s also given him a good luck doll -- and two gifts to hex his competition!

I talked with Lance when he came to Las Vegas last week to launch the new 2008 Beaujolais Nouveau harvest at our Paris Las Vegas. He told me about the entire experience and revealed that he has signed on for the show’s tour, which has a Dec. 29 stop here at The Orleans Arena.

Photo: Flamingo Las Vegas

Lance Bass has a backstage briefing with Marie Osmond.

“I love Vegas -- anything to bring me to Vegas is fine with me,” he said. He’ll be teamed with pro-partner Lacey Schwimmer, and Vegas hometown singer Toni Braxton is going out on the road for the DWTS tour, too. Although Vegas Academy dancer-singer Julianne Hough isn’t touring this time, her brother Derek Hough will be part of the group.

Incidentally, Toni will be back on tonight’s finals show along with all the other eliminated contestants this season, including Kim Kardashian, Susan Lucci, Misty May Treanor, feisty Cloris Leachman and Cody Linley.

Here’s what Lance told me about the entire Dancing With the Stars experience: “Marie gave me some pointers for the finals. So after four hours of rehearsals, I flew here and went straight to see her backstage at the Flamingo. She told me not to faint. She gave me a nice doll of hers for good luck and then she gave me something to hurt Warren and Brooke with in the competition. It was no surprise that she made it to the finals, but who knew a 300 pound man could move that fast.

“We’ll be doing three dances on the finals. It’ll take me about five hours of rehearsal to get the samba down. It took me four hours to get the hip-hop number down. The Latin numbers have taken me much more time to get down. But for the finals, I get to do one dance that we’ve already performed this season, so that’s a case of just re-learning it.”

Photo: Scott Doctor/www.greatscottstudios.com

Lance Bass poses at an easily recognizable Strip resort visage.

Lance admitted that he’s relieved he’s facing his friend Brooke tonight and not Vegas’ own Julianne Hough. She was eliminated last week along with her partner, Hannah Montana star Cody Linley, after an injury-plagued season.

Lance said: “I was literally scared of her. She’s really the queen of the show. I love Julianne, but she knows how to win it, so I’m glad she’s gone and I don’t have to face her. Now, though, I have to battle with my best friend Brooke. She’s the biggest threat because she’s been in first place every week of the shows. She could do anything, and the judges would love her with 10s.

“I think it will simply come down to who dances the best. It won’t have anything to do with personality. I can’t believe I’ve made it because this was one rough ride. It is much tougher than I thought it would be. Everyone has been hurt this season, and with me I had a couple fractures in my foot and cortisone shots and they are all fine. It is way more taxing on the body; every inch of my body is sore. It has been sore for three months now. My back is going out, my knees are going out, and it is ridiculous.

Photo: ABC TV

Lacey Schwimmer and Lance Bass on the dance floor.

“Both Marie and my partner Lacey tell me to ‘suck it up.’ Lacey is only 20, though, and has already had knee surgery. She is a tough cookie, but be honest I’m the older one in that team! I keep re-fracturing my feet, and it is because I do the same move and slam my foot into the floor. Oh yeah, it is painful. You dance on the balls of your feet and that is where it is. I’d done hip-hop before with ’N Sync, but I have not had any training in ballroom, which is very difficult.

“We only had three weeks of dance rehearsals before the actual show began. Now I think this is our 10th week, so now you understand why my body has been broken and is hurting so much with three months of pain. I think we’re pretty evenly matched for tonight. All three of us are different from each other. Everyone has their own fans, their own style, and it will be interesting to see who comes out on top.

“Since week one, we always thought we were going to leave. The judges didn’t really like us too much this whole season, so, yeah, every week we were threatened with leaving. Then the week before last, we got to the top of the leader board. It felt great and it motivated me and it makes me want to do the best dance of the season on Monday.

Photo: ABC TV

Lance and Lacey, getting the dance on.

“There’s a lot of extra pressure with the finals in a way. Brooke is one of my best friends. It is so great that we are doing this together. We have been a big support system for each other. It is not as stressful as we thought it was going to be since we are such good friends. We are having so much fun, I will be happy if she wins, and she will be happy if I win. Our competition between us was just for both of us to make it to the finals.

“Everyone thought Brooke was a shoe-in. Now that Lacey and I have had a good week; people say we could take it. But then the unknown is Warren -- maybe he could sweep it all in an upset. The show has opened up a lot of doors. Once it’s over, I will be rehearsing for the tour -- and then I’d love to go back to Broadway. I would love to open or produce a show. Hairspray was so perfect for me -- so let’s hope something new unfolds for me. I have a lot of meetings in New York right after the finals and before the tour, so fingers crossed something big will break from it.”

ABC is expecting record-viewing numbers tonight for the already top-rated show, and Vegas DeLuxe will have the overnight report, backstage photos and judges’ comments right here tomorrow morning -- well before the viewers make the voting for the final decision on the big winner of the disco-ball trophy tomorrow night.

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