ABC

“The Hills” starlet Kristin Cavallari, who earned a standing ovation for her high-energy samba last night, was voted off  ABC’s “Dancing With the Stars” tonight in a stunning season 13 elimination that had the audience booing.

Cavallari gained famed for her appearance in the hit reality shows “Laguna Beach: The Real Orange County” and “The Hills.”   During her three weeks in the competition, the judges had praised her performances – she had scored well and appeared to be making progress on the dance floor.

She and professional dance partner Mark Ballas danced the samba last night to Beyonce’s “Crazy in Love.”  The pair earned 24 out of a total of 30 points, putting them squarely in the middle of the pack.

Watch Cavallari and Ballas live on “Good Morning America” Wednesday.

Elimination in the competition results from a combination of judges’ scores and audience votes. The celebrity with the lowest combined scores is sent home.

The final three stars and their pro partners will battle  one another for the championship and the mirror ball trophy.

Cavallari, 24, and World Cup soccer star Hope Solo were both in danger of getting eliminated tonight. The audience booed when host Tom Bergeron revealed that Cavallari had danced her last dance. Cavallari’s jaw dropped in surprise, and several people in the audience looked stunned.

“I’m a little surprised, to be honest, but I’ve had such a great time, and I’ve had an awesome experience, so it is what it is,” Cavallari told host Brooke Burke Charvet after Ballas hugged her.

Goodman described Solo’s and Cavallari’s placement in the bottom two as “madness.”

“This is truly crazy,” he said. “My expectation was that these two couples would be fighting for the final. … ”

Appearing on “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” after her elimination, Cavallari joked with host Kimmel about contestant Chaz Bono’s possible advantage being transgendered. Bono had a lower score of 18 but survived elimination on Tuesday night.

“Hey I do [regret not having a sex change operation] — I’d like to go back in time,” Cavallari laughed.

“The Hills” star went on to talk about her new foray into reality television competition on “Dancing” and discuss the work she put into her performances.

“I thought I improved the three weeks I was on — and I thought compared to the first week I definitely got better,” she said.

Her partner Ballas, who has won the competition in the past, conceded that at end of the day it is the viewer’s choice, but he thought that Cavallari was underscored.

Cavallari also joked with Kimmel that her story for the night was not wrenching enough. On the episode the dancers were to pick a song from a big year for them personally. While contestants like Rob Kardashian and Nancy Grace chose wrenching life moments like the death of a parent and the birth of twins, Cavallari picked the year she had to decide to do reality TV or go to college.

“Maybe I didn’t have a good enough story,” she said. “Looking back maybe I should have done something a little better. Obviously I should have gone with [a sob story].”

Tonight’s show included performances by American R&B singer/songwriter Mary J. Blige and British R&B singer/songwriter Estelle. The British singer got the audience going when she launched into “The Twist,” and had people surging to their feet when she introduced Mr. Twist himself, singer Chubby Checker.

The jean-clad Checker gave a rousing performance of his classic – even as he danced with Estelle – then segued into the follow-up hit, “Let’s Twist Again.” He was briefly joined on the dance floor by head judge Len Goodman, who drew cheers for his twist.

The competition continues Monday, with former talk show host Ricki Lake, actor David Arquette,  activist Chaz Bono, TV host Nancy Grace, reality TV personality Rob Kardashian,  fashion guru Carson Kressley , Iraq war veteran and actor J.R. Martinez , singer Chynna Phillips and Solo.