‘Listen to Your Heart’ Recap: What Happens in Vegas…
By Haley Kluge
LOS ANGELES (Variety.com) – SPOILER ALERT: Do not read if you have not yet watched the fifth episode of “ The Bachelor Presents: Listen to Your Heart.”
The final four couples on “The Bachelor presents: Listen to Your Heart” headed to Las Vegas on the May 11 episode.
The eight contestants packed up their bags and hopped on tour busses for a road trip. Each couple shared a bus and alone time as they traveled the daunting four-hour drive from Los Angeles.
Ryan Neal and Natascha Bessez, Chris Watson and Bri Strauss, and Trevor Holmes and Jamie Gabrielle headed directly to Sin City, while Matt Ranaudo and Rudi decided to take a detour. The two spent the night on the road in lieu of their grand hotel. Once they finally arrived in Nevada, Matt expressed hesitations about their relationship.
“I’m still trying to figure this whole thing out,” he confessed to Ryan. “I don’t know if I’m there, there yet, but I know that I like her. … Baby steps.”
Bri and Chris were the first date of the Vegas adventure, where they sang the soundtrack to A Little White Chapel wedding. Trevor and Jamie headed to an ice skating rink for the second date, where they exchanged statements of “I’m falling in love with you.” Matt and Rudi went to a Shaggy concert and jammed out to “It Wasn’t Me,” and Natascha and Ryan rounded out the bunch with an outing to crush things at a junkyard.
While most of the dates went well, Rudi and Matt faced conflict when she confessed her feelings to him that went unreciprocated. “As much as I do like her, I want to make sure we’re doing the right thing and that we’re not rushing into this whole thing,” he said.
“I know we’re musically so compatible, but for me, it’s like “what’s the f—ing point if you’re not there,” she said. “Just ‘cause we sing well together? Yes, I wanted that, but I also wanted to find love.”
Despite the setback, the two began rehearsals for their next performance. “When we’re on stage together or when we’re even rehearsing together, everything is just better,” she said.
All of the couples wrapped their rehearsals in preparation for their live performances at the Nomad Hotel.
Former Bachelor Arie Luyendyk Jr. and wife Lauren Burnham, music power couple Ashlee Simpson-Ross and Evan Ross and Train front man Pat Monahan joined host Chris Harrison to evaluate the contestants’ live performances.
Chris and Bri’s performance was praised for being emotional and passionate. Trevor and Jamie’s “goofiness” and “playful” dynamic received admiration. However, Natascha and Ryan took a risk and reinvented Ed Sheeran’s “Perfect,” which the judges felt was “performative” and disjointed.
“Hearing you guys talk, you can feel the love. But watching you guys perform, it was two different people,” Simpson-Ross evaluated.
The night ended on a high note, as Rudi and Matt received rave-reviews for their rendition of Lady Gaga and Bradley Cooper’s “Shallow.”
“I want to keep playing music with her forever, so I’m excited to move forward with her,” Matt shared.
Ryan and Natascha’s shaky performance ultimately sent them home.
“We were meant to be on this journey together and it was beautiful,” Natascha said after their elimination. “I was so happy and so fulfilled just by the way that he made me feel.”
After the elimination, Harrison joined the remaining three couples. “It’s time to hit the road again,” he told them, as he invited the six contestants to Nashville, where they would compete in the finale.
“Listen to Your Heart” airs Mondays at 8 p.m. on ABC.
