Dance Moms recap: Mutiny On The Abby

Tonight’s episode of Dance Moms begins with another parking lot conference, during which the mothers decide it’s their job to determine whom the competition team will be at the studio that belongs to Abby Lee. Even Holly’s onboard. She says they must stand up for what is right. Like telling a business owner how to run her business.

To put their plan into action, they begin by gliding silently past an incredulous Abby and hiding out in the ladies room. Then they come out of the ladies room. They sit across from Abby and have themselves a silent pout. Atta girls.

Speaking of girls, the little ones are not there. Now neither are the mothers. Abby calls Melissa and tells her if she’s going to jeopardize Maddie and Mack’s future over this nonsense, she has lost her marbles. Then she heads off to rehearse Ally’s solo for Fort Wayne, since that’s all she’s got to work with.

Shelley — man, that woman still reminds me of a Pittsburgh Jacqueline Laurita — is feeling lonesome in the mom loft, so she heads down to find out what is going on. Abby says she has no idea. That Maddie needs her. That the rest of the crew would be just as well off in Girl Scouts. But Maddie needs to dance and she needs to dance for Abby.

Turns out, the mom never left the premises. Instead, they’re staging a semi sit-in, er out, in the parking lot. This must have been one seriously dull day of filming. And I do not understand Jill’s pants at all.

When Abby comes out to confront them, they once again refuse to speak or even make eye contact. Oh fer the … really? If you’re this ticked, ladies, go grab Kelly and find another studio that will adopt the lot of you as a family unit. Because if your kids pulled this crap on you about something they didn’t like, I’m not sure you’d find this type of behavior too amusing. And they’re kids.

Abby calls out Dr. Holly in particular, telling her that she would never be so rude were it just the two of them. Melissa and Jill head for safety in their vehicles, Melissa shielding her face with a box of SweetTarts. Or maybe she’s holding them up in offering in case Abby comes for her. Holly just remains frozen in place.

Incredulous once again, Abby returns to her minions and tells them they have so much work to do, what with having to replace the entirety of the competition team. But the first call she makes is to 911 to report a pack of high-heeled silent trespassers in her parking lot. The minions are amused. Then Abby sets to work calling the best kids from her auditions and summons them to PA, as the cops chase the marauders in luxury vehicles away.

Next day, looks who’s shown up at the Candy Apples.

“You’re out of your radius for shopping for stretch pants, aren’t ya?!” Cathy teases Jill, who has resurrected her caveman vest for the occasion. Her social call does not go well. Cathy calls her a studio-hopper and bids her adieu. But not before insulting her little bitty purse.

Back in Pittsburgh, Ally shows up, followed by the dance scabs. We have Bella, who is 10, and her mother Marcia. And Kaeli and her mother Gloria. Another pair is still flying in.

Meanwhile, the Pitt Crew has assembled at Christi’s for drinks and munchies. Wherever Abby goes, they decide, people are going to be expecting to see their little dance stars and what a disappointment it will be when they don’t. Then they come up with a plan. They’re going to come up with a dance and a place for the girls to perform and advertise it on social media. Ohhhhh. OK. Remember back a few months when the girls were out on meet-and-greets of their own and Abby was having a Twitter-based snit about it? It’s all making sense now, isn’t it?

But who, wonders Holly, will choreograph the rogue performance. Christi knows whom: the girls.

OH. MY. GOD. Abby’s got a sparkly heart stuck to her head. OK, that’s not what I’m really oh-my-God-ing. She’s on the phone with Yuh-vette! Abby’s Ultimate Yuh-vette! Yuh-vette is calling Abby! To tell her that she and Hadley and their studio will be at the self same competition this weekend. Abby can’t quite remember Hadley’s name. Abby makes cuckoo finger while Yvette talks.

Over in Indiana, we find out that Yvette has been really worried about Hadley since she got the boot from AUDC. Yvette opines that when Abby found out she was a dance teacher, her daughter stopped getting a fair shake. Hadley says every time she goes to practice, she hears Abby calling her road kill. This makes Yvette weep. Time for a Yvette-ism: you get what you give. And Abby’s going to get hers some day.

Meanwhile, Abby is informing her new dance team that Sofia is coming and Sofia is an even better dancer than Maddie. Abby says Sofia is a child prodigy who is all over the internet and the television and is a major deal at dance competitions and she will waltz in here and take over the place if they let her. And here she comes through the darkness now! Sofia is ten, toothy, tiny and helium-voiced. Her mother, Jackie, is soft-spoken and blonde. These are our Mommies now, Dance Moms fans.

And Marcia is wearing cow print shoes.

Abby cannot abide Sophia’s “Minnie Mouse” voice. Before she can dance for Abby she’s going to have to get some muscle in that thing. Sofia looks worried. She thought she came her to dance, not take voice lessons. Speaking of worried, mama drama is already beginning with The Scabs. Jackie asks the others if they’ve brought their solo costumes, and they inform her they have no need. No solos for their girls.

Before things can get too out of hand, the Queen of Hearts and Stars shows up to inform the group they are going to Dance Xpressions in Fort Wayne and they had better maintain her reputation for winning or else.

Sophia’s insta-solo is called “My New Reality” and it’s about Abby’s new reality, what with her new dancers and all. Marcia has had enough. She doesn’t know why she brought her kid here, if some other kid is going to come in and be the star. Gloria says she’s happy to be here, whatever the case.

The group dance, “Cry,” is lyrical and elegant and is about saying goodbye to the old things and welcoming in new experiences.

Speaking of the old things, it’s Kelly’s turn to host the Pitt Crew Support Group and tell the girls about their secret plan to make Abby realize how much she needs them. While they rejoice about dancing at the mall, Melissa gets a text from Shelley — what?! Melissa has an intruder’s digits?! — informing her that Sofia and the Scabs are ready to take on Fort Wayne. The mothers do one of these, then head off to see how their little choreographers are faring.

Looks like Yvette is the new Cathy, at least momentarily. Abby tells the Scabs that they have to beat Yvette’s Thrive! Dance Company team and erase the memory of the Pitt Crew. Meanwhile, it’s time for the big performance at the Century III mall, which appears deserted. I’m going to guess this leads to a scene in which we realize the halls are empty, because the lobby is filled to the brink with screaming fans.

Competition time for Abby. She greets Hadley and Yvette and when Yvette inquires about the unfamiliar faces trailing behind her, she smiles serenely and says, “Sometimes you’ve got to take out the trash.”

Back at the mall, the Dance of Autonomy is not exactly going gangbusters, despite the fact that the mothers are all wearing matching t-shirts to encourage it.

Meanwhile, Gloria decides it might be a good idea to sneak a solo for Kaeli past Abby, for the purpose of impressing of her. Oh lady. No.

Time for the Ally, Sofia, Hadley solo showdown, in place of the Maddie, Chloe, Kendall solo showdown. This is just too weird. Ally shall be the Chloe — her solo is beautiful and balletic and graceful. Hadley shall be the Kendall — her  solo is sassy, but more showy than technical. Sofia — whose voice has magically dropped a couple of notches, making her sound oddly like Maddie — says she becomes a bit of a head case before her solos, but before her performance is over, Yvette already appears to be wiping away tears of defeat.

Downstairs, Gloria is fibbing that she is entering Kaeli’s solo on behalf of Abby, who is just to busy to do it — but upstairs, Marcia rats her out. Abby says if Gloria does that, she and her child are off the team. Huh. Seems Marcia and Gloria were friends. Were. They begin to have at it, and Abby realizes she’s just assembled more of the same.

The Thrive group’s performance is called Criminal and it seems to amuse Abby more than concern her. Mostly because her group dance is seems much more technical and skillfully performed. Let’s find out, because it’s Awards time. Ally gets second in the teen division and Abby’s livid at the slight.

Hadley gets second place in the junior solo division. Sofia gets first. Meet your new Maddie and Chloe. Abby says Hadley was the road to Sofia’s kill.

But the group awards are a scandal. Abby’s group gets second. Thrive gets first. Abby gets mortified. I think it’s a dab of hooey, too. But she doesn’t let Yvette see her sweat.

Meanwhile, back in Pittsburgh, the mall is now packed with screaming fans. The girls thank them for coming, then do their dance. Even without Abby at the helm, Maddie is the star of the show. And without Abby, the mothers have to face that the dance was only mediocre. Back to her senses, Holly says it proves that the girls need discipline. They need a dance teacher.

Their dance teacher, meantime, is expressing her displeasure at her new dancers, and Shelley grabs Ally and makes a break for it. All the way back the Big Easy, it turns out, as we find out in the teaser for next week episodes. Looks like the others are in the wind, too, even Big Deal Sofia. So that can only mean … the mamas and the Hylands return.

What say you, Dance Moms fans? Did you enjoy getting a peek at another group of talented dancers or was this a waste of chance to see Maddie, Mac, Chloe, Nia and Kendall compete? Are you hoping we haven’t seen the last of Yvette? Are you hoping we have? And is it time to get back to the pyramid, the original Pitt Crew and all the things that make Dance Moms your favorite show? Tell me in the comments section below.

New episodes of Dance Moms air Tuesday nights at 9pm on Lifetime.

14 Comments

  1. I have to thank you for the efforts you have put in penning this website. I really hope to see the same high-grade blog posts by you later on as well. In truth, your creative writing abilities has motivated me to get my own, personal website now 😉

  2. Debra- no, I typed it! I was in a bit of a rush so I wasn’t looking when I misspelt my name haha. your post was still great!!

  3. The original dance moms are ungrateful idiots – It was great to watch a show that proves that all they are about is capitalizing for money. The original idiots wouldn’t have any of these opportunities if it wasn’t for Abbey! Abbey deserves respect and loyality – I hope Abbey finds dancers and moms that are worthy of her!

  4. Talia , did you post from a phone? autocorrect is evil:) In my post i should have proof read, i meant, the people in the mall likely DIDN”T care if the choreography was good:)

  5. I couldn’t stand Yvette and never watched that show again, however, i prefer her over Cathy. I felt last night’s episode was a load of manuer and a waste of my time. Abbe’s mantra was “I don’t solicit students”, yet here she does. How can she put those kids on stage representing her and her studio when she never taught a single one of them? As for the girls dancing in the mall, I am sure all the folks who came to see them cared one bit if the coregraphy was great. The new kids? Not me. I want to see little Mackensie. Remember when her bow fell out and Abbe had a fit, and Kensie won? She made me laugh when she said “I won anyway Abbe”. That child will never bow down to the mighty dance God Abbe Miller. Who, btw, was a nobody before the moms and kids made her think she is a superstar.

  6. I really liked that they switched it up on the show this week. Yes, I love the original DreamTeam, and yes I miss the Hyland’s. However, although I love Dance Moms, the episodes are becoming very repetitive- very quickly. Every week we see the same events occur- pyramid, mama drama, rehearsals, mama drama, hair and makeup before competition, mama drama, performances, Abby gets mad at the girls if they didn’t perform as well as she would’ve liked, mama drama, awards, Abby gets mad again, mama drama, preview for next week. Don’t get me wrong; I love the Dance Moms, dancers, and I do enjoy watching Abby Lee. But them doing the exact same thing every week makes it look very scripted, something that the producers don’t want us to think the show is. I’m sure some of the more climactic scenes of the show are pre-planned, but a lot of it is very real. The reality is, how diverse can each episode of a recurring theme-show be- they’re dancers who rehearse, perform, are yelled at, and have crazy moms. This week new mothers and dancers were brought into the mix, giving both the moms and Abby a break from one another. I’m sure the DreamTeam really enjoyed performing for fans at the mall, and the girls that took their place at ALDC were honored to perform under Abby’s name. Now- if we have this type of situation again next week with the DreamTeam on strike and the replacements back again, we’re starting the same repetition we had before. So at this point we’re kind of at a road block. This is why I think they brought Sophia in- because even though the replacements will be gone next week and the DreamTeam will resume their weekly dance rituals, Sophia is a reminder to the fans that we have to begin expecting the unexpected, and that not everything will be the same in each episode this season. I’m 99% sure there will be no pyramid again next week because Abby didn’t see the girls dance last week. However, if she does pyramid for the replacements Sophia will be on top. Yvette very much reminds me of Cathy- not personality wise but with her brawls with Abby. Although Yvette and Abby aren’t as “violent” per-say with their choice of words for one another, you can definitely see the parallels between the relationships. Even though Yvette does resemble Cathy, once again we see how the producers are switching things up with a Cathy LIKE person, not Cathy herself.

    Overall, I was impressed with last nights show. We saw things on Dance Moms we’ve never seen before, making me want to see what else this season has in store. I’m hoping the DreamTeam returns next week, but am also hoping that the show brings forth many more surprises and unexpected turns for the viewers. Even my dad (who absolutely despises of Dance Moms) enjoyed last nights show as it wasn’t the same show that we’ve been watching since 2011.

  7. Abby is the reason for the show. she is the the teacher and has made the girls grow. the moms are idiots. And yes everyone is replacable. Just like sports.

  8. My problem is that Abby thinks she’s god and she isn’t. All the girls have talent by the way or they wouldn’t be on the squad. Of the moms I see Holly as being the one the most concerned about her daughter. Jill and Melissa are typical stage moms who want fame for their daughters which is understandable. Christi want Chloe to be happy but it turns her nutso in trying to achieve it. Kelly wants her girls to shine.

  9. If Abby keeps new girls for awhile THEY would become known like the first girls. There are SO many good dancers around, they need to get back to dancing. Maddie and maybe Chloe are the ones with dance futures. Some of the moms are about the 15 minutes and money they can get. Abby will be around when the others are gone. Everyone is replaceable just like sports.

  10. I for one am glad this is just one episode. The moms and the girls MAKE the show. Without them, Abby wouldn’t have a show. Abby gets on my nerves talking about “protecting the Abby Lee Dance Company name”. Seriously?! If it were that important to her, she wouldn’t pull this kind of crap and then place it on television. Obviously, making more drama and money off that drama is more important to her, which is sad. What those girls are being exposed to (the lies, the hatred, the bitterness, and the arguing) will have a lasting effect on those girls. Sure, the dancing has brought them a “family” that they love and friends that will probably last for what seems like forever, but I see SO MANY issues with the show and it makes me wonder how much damage it’s really causing to their minds on what’s acceptable and what’s not, as well as what it means to be themselves. I know the show is edited for the drama and all and that there are good times, but still you have to wonder. I love the show just as much as the next person, but I’m to the point where the drama and hate is so much, it’s almost not worth my time to watch it.

    • I just love the show change or no change it is a beautiful and energetic show, but Abby should mix some of her new pic dancers with the original ones and the parents should show Abby more respect and trust what she is doing with their kids because children learn and practice what they see. I love the show I look forward to it every Tuesday and I am from Trinidad W.I.

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About Lori Acken 1195 Articles
Lori just hasn't been the same since "thirtysomething" and "Northern Exposure" went off the air.