As the dancers and their moms enter the studio, Abby tells them that they were victorious at last week's competition, but there are still issues with the group. Specifically, Paige missed a leap sequence when she was in the center of the stage, Kendal did something wrong with the position of her hips, and Nia is starting to blend in too much and needs to start pulling focus in a positive way.
Dance Moms Week 4 Pyramid
Abby leaves the bottom spot covered on the pyramid, saying she will get back to it. As the dancers prepare for the Hollywood Vibe competition in St. Louis, the first team member on the bottom of the pyramid is Paige. Abby is concerned that she doesn't apply corrections. Nia is next, for some technical issues that she hasn't corrected. Kendal is the last one at the bottom of the pyramid, and is still on probation so hasn't received her team jacket yet.
In the middle of the pyramid are Mackenzie (who Abby praises, saying she proved herself in her solo last week), and her sister Maddie. Chloe is at the top of the pyramid. Abby tells Maddie that Chloe is basically at the top because she won 1st place with her solo last week, and Maddie can't be complacent any more. She needs to continue working and improving.
This week, Chloe and Maddie will perform solos and compete against each other. There will also be a trio with Chloe, Maddie and Kendal. The moms elaborate that, since they were about four years old, the trio has always been Chloe, Maddie and Paige. Paige thinks that, "since Miss Abby is mad at Brooke and my mom, she's taking it out on me." Abby's reasoning is that she needs to see if Kendal can keep up with Chloe and Maddie and get off her probation.
The group dance at Hollywood Vibe will be a contemporary/lyrical routine about a bully. Abby chooses Nia to be the "bully" role. Her mom Holly is happy that she has a feature role, but isn't thrilled about her daughter portraying a schoolyard bully.
New Dancer on Abby Lee's Team
Abby then introduces the final person on the pyramid, essentially Brooke's replacement. It is Peyton, the 14-year-old dancer who auditioned for Kendal's spot and was not chosen. She has danced at Abby's studio for four years. The girls are excited about this, since they know Kendal and at least Maddie has danced with her in the past.
Kendal's mom, Jill, is not happy with the addition and is worried that Peyton is going to jump in on Kendal, with both girls going for the same spot.
Hollywood Vibe Competition Rehearsals
The group begins learning choreography for the bully routine, and Holly is upset at what Nia is being asked to do, which includes pushing Maddie to the ground. Holly confronts Abby downstairs, telling her that she is uncomfortable with the role Nia is playing. Abby wastes no time and gives the featured part to Peyton instead. She also tells Nia that it is her mom's fault that the featured role was taken away from her.
Peyton's mom, Leslie, thinks that her daughter is a better dancer than Kendal. Jill retorts that there must have been a reason that Peyton wasn't chosen at the audition, and Kendal was.
While the trio is rehearsing, Abby has Paige in the studio running the music. Kelly says there is no reason for this, and she is just rubbing it in Paige's face that she is no longer in the trio. Abby thinks that Paige wouldn't have picked up the choreography as easily as Kendal, although she has never praised Kendal for this ability in the past.
With the moms in the dressing room, the girls come out to model their new costumes for the bully routine. Christi says, "This is like prosti-tots, the sequel," referring to their previous skimpy costumes with knee-high socks in a risque jazz routine. These costumes are school-girl uniforms, plaid skirts with white button-down shirts tied high at the waist. At first, they are wearing ripped fishnet stockings, but Abby "compromises" with the moms and tells them to wear knee-high socks instead.
Performances at Hollywood Vibe
Leslie and Jill show their dance-mom caliber in the dressing room before the girls perform. Jill tells Kendal, "You do good in that trio, this $20 is yours." (Maddie notes here that the other moms don't usually do that, unless it's with "ice cream or something".) Leslie tells Peyton, "I know you're trying, but you have to try harder."
In the trio, Chloe starts in the wrong spot. The girls are sitting on the edge of the stage, and Chloe is too far away from the other two. Otherwise, it looks good and they stay together. Afterward, Abby says something about Kendal's foot being wrong, and tells her she isn't getting her sweatsuit this week. She also yells at Chloe for not spacing correctly, but Christi says that it was because there was a stage mic in the place where Chloe was supposed to sit. Abby blames the moms for not going in and checking out the stage ahead of time.
Maddie performs her lyrical solo "The Girl I Want to Be", and Chloe also performs a lyrical solo called "Proof". Both look about the same as they have been performing for the past year.
Before the group goes out to the stage, they are running through their dance. Leslie starts trying to take over, saying they have to go or they will be late. Holly tells her they need to run the number so that they know it before they go to the stage. Abby tells them that it's her name and reputation out there, but Christi argues that when the girls are on stage, it's their reputations too.
The group performs (their routine is called "What Comes Around"), and their routine is not the best they have performed. Jill says that nothing really stood out or got her attention, except Peyton "because she was 8 feet taller than the other kids". When the girls return to the dressing room, Abby criticizes Peyton for not hanging the "Kick Me" sign correctly on Maddie's back. Peyton retorts that she is better than the rest of the girls in the group, which surprises everyone in the room. Abby is appalled: "She said it, it's out there, and it was wrong and it was bad. It will take years to regain their trust."
Hollywood Vibe Competition Awards
The only dance that placed in this competition was apparently Maddie's solo. She received 1st place in Junior Solos, and Chloe did not place. The Junior Trio also didn't place (to Kelly's relief), and the Intermediate Modern Small Group didn't place. Abby tells Kendal and Peyton that they are still on probation, and no one is happy. At least that's how the edited show portrayed it.
So, what REALLY happened at Hollywood Vibe? Maddie did win 1st Place Junior Solo. But, did you notice that Chloe was sitting in the audience when Maddie performed her solo? That's because they actually weren't competing in the same category. Chloe won 1st place INTERMEDIATE lyrical solo (remember, she is actually a year older than Maddie and they don't always end up in the same category).
Maddie's solo also took the Overall Junior Solo award, and an Outstanding Choreography award. She also won a Junior Grand Prize Scholarship.
Also, guess which routine won 1st Place Intermediate Modern Small Group? According to Hollywood Vibe's results website, it was Abby Lee's "What Comes Around." The routine also placed as a "Battle of the Stars Finalist" and has the chance to compete at Hollywood Vibe's nationals.
Why wasn't any of this shown in the episode? This is the first time they have blatantly edited the show to make it look like the group didn't place (they did this in the past with solo acts). It remains to be seen whether they decide to compete at Hollywood Vibe's nationals. Next week: Brooke wants to return!
Terry Finch - Terry Finch is a dance teacher and choreographer in Central PA with an extensive training and teaching background in many forms of ...
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