SEASON PREMIERE

ABC'S 'DANCING WITH THE STARS' RETURNS WITH A SPECIAL SEASON PREMIERE, FEATURING A CAST OF 12 CELEBRITIES WHO ARE READY TO COMPETE FOR THE COVETED MIRRORBALL TROPHY, ON SEPT. 16

For the First Time, Celebrity and Professional Dancer Pairings to Be Revealed During Broadcast; Voting Changes, Brand-New Set and New Creative Team Behind Competitive Dances

"2019 Season Premiere" - "Dancing with the Stars" is back and better than ever with a new, well-known and energetic cast of 12 celebrities who are ready to move out of their comfort zones and hit the ballroom floor. The competition begins with a two-hour season premiere, live, MONDAY, SEPT. 16 (8:00-10:00 p.m. EDT), on ABC. (TV-PG, L) Episodes can also be viewed the next day on ABC.com, the ABC app and Hulu.

With a lineup of celebrities including a supermodel, a former White House press secretary, a Bachelorette, pro-athletes from the NFL and NBA, a Supreme and a TV icon to name a few, the new celebrity cast is adding some glitzy bling to their wardrobe, breaking in their dancing shoes and readying themselves for their first dance on the ballroom floor. For the first time ever, viewers will find out during the season premiere broadcast which celebrities are paired with their favorite professional dancers. Highlights of the new season include voting changes, a brand-new set, a new creative team behind the competitive dances and the return of a loved pro, Peta Murgatroyd, and two new professional ballroom dancers.

Throughout the first evening, the celebrity and pro duos will perform the time-honored dances of the Cha Cha, Foxtrot, Salsa or Tango. Some of the songs featured in the premiere will include Whitney Houston's "I Wanna Dance with Somebody," Shania Twain's "Man, I Feel Like a Woman!," Donna Summer's "She Works Hard for the Money," Jonas Brothers' "Sucker," Michael Buble's "Feeling Good," Lizzo's "Juice" and Imagine Dragons' "Whatever it Takes," among others.

For the show's first broadcast, there will not be a viewing audience vote, and only the judges will score the routines. Those scores will carry over and be combined with judges' scores from week two, which also marks the first weekly live viewing audience vote of the season (via abc.com and SMS/text) - and the first elimination. The live votes will occur each week only during the live broadcast in the EDT/CDT time zones (but fans in all U.S. time zones may vote within that window).

Moving forward with each subsequent Monday night, the live vote combined with the judges' scores will be revealed during the broadcast.

The celebrity cast and professional dancers are listed below.

Celebrities:

· Supermodel and actress Christie Brinkley

· "The Office" actress Kate Flannery

· Country artist Lauren Alaina

· Popstar Ally Brooke

· "The Bachelorette" Hannah Brown

· Legendary "Supremes" singer Mary Wilson

· Former White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer

· TV and film actor James Van Der Beek

· Two-time NBA Champion Lamar Odom

· Super Bowl MVP Ray Lewis

· Comedian and actor Kel Mitchell

· TV host and "Queer Eye" star Karamo

Professional dancers:

· Brandon Armstrong

· Lindsay Arnold

· Alan Bersten

· Cheryl Burke

· Witney Carson

· Val Chmerkovskiy

· Sasha Farber

· Jenna Johnson

· Daniella Karagach

· Keo Motsepe

· Peta Murgatroyd

· Pasha Pashkov

· Gleb Savchenko

· Emma Slater

Hosted by two-time Emmy-winning host Tom Bergeron and Erin Andrews, "Dancing with the Stars" is the hit series in which celebrities perform choreographed dance routines that are judged by a panel of renowned ballroom experts, including head judge, Len Goodman, and dancers/choreographers Bruno Tonioli and Carrie Ann Inaba.

"Dancing with the Stars" is produced by BBC Studios. Andrew Llinares is executive producer.