After last week’s recital, it was back to the competition grind this week on Dance Moms.
As Abby began pyramid, Kelly and her kids still hadn’t shown back up after storming out during rehearsal last week. Unsurprisingly, Abby gave the bottom spots of the pyramid to Paige and Brooke for just that. After Nia and Mackenzie, Maddie was shockingly the next dancer on the middle tier of the pyramid. Maddie should have enthusiastically raised her hand to take Paige’s solo last week, according to Abby, but instead Abby had to volunteer her herself. Chloe was second to the top of the pyramid for being the “MVP” of the recital when she taught herself Paige’s spot in the group dance. Last but not least, the treasured top spot on the pyramid went to Kendall for winning the Dance Track magazine cover.
Abby went on to announce that this would be a very important competition because they would be up against their arch rival Candy Apples. To ensure a win, Abby would be entering a group dance entitled “Open Waters.” On top of that, Abby would be putting together a trio to go against Cathy’s. ALDC’s trio would be called “Cast Aways” and include Chloe, Kendall, and (after some encouragement from dance mom Holly) Nia.
The Candy Apples Dance Center was getting ready for the competition too, and Cathy once again threw together a new team. According to the ALDC moms, Cathy keeps searching for a group of kids that will beat theirs, but hasn’t found once yet. This week’s Candy Apples team featured some old and new faces – Hadley, Nicaya, and Mari from the old team, and new dancers Lucas and Brooke. Cathy’s affirmed that this new group will be a “technically savvy team.”
Back at ALDC, Abby thought thatt something was off in the group dance. Since Brooke and Paige never showed up, the number of girls wasn’t working for the number. To compensate, Abby decided to pull another Abby Lee dancer into the number – teenager Payton. And as the moms say, with Payton comes her mother Leslie. Fortunately, the moms decided that this time they’re okay with the addition as long as they can beat Candy Apples.
On competition day, both ALDC and Candy Apples headed to Lancaster, PA feeling confident. “Our routines are going to knock Cathy right off her broomstick,” Abby asserted.
Candy Apple’s trio took the stage first. The two girls and one boy donned leather costumes as they danced, according to Cathy, a “spy musical theater jazz” routine. The routine was almost as confusing as its made-up genre, with choreography all over the place. Abby through it was a complete mess, commenting, “I’m not sure if the whole thing was improv.”
The ALDC trio, a contemporary jazz routine, on the other hand, looked very put together. Although the spacing between the three girls was just a little bit off, their movements were in sync, and they looked very pretty in their bright blue dresses and bandanas. Abby even complimented Nia’s performance in the dance, saying she’s “on the right path.”
The next entry was Candy Apple’s group dance entitled “Four Seasons.” Each of the girls was supposed to represent one of the seasons while the boy was season-neutral. Their costumes made it difficult to discern who was what, though. The dancing itself was good but not phenomenal. Cathy, however, thought her group did an amazing job. Watch the routine in the video below to decide for yourself.
The ALDC dance was a very graceful number that looked a lot smoother than Candy Apple’s. The only thing that wasn’t beautiful in it was the prop – a wedge of wood that was supposed to resemble a beach. Abby said that the girls did an excellent job, although it wasn’t the “most exciting routine” she’s ever done. She consented that for putting it together in two days, it was “pretty good.”
Both teams waited with baited breath as the award ceremony revealed the ranking of each group. For the trio category, Candy Apples placed seventh while ALDC placed fifth. Although they beat Candy Apples, Abby didn’t look pleased about fifth place. In the small group category, Candy Apples came in third and ALDC won first.
Everyone was ecstatic about their group win back in the ALDC dressing room, none more so than Payton and her mother Leslie. Christi wasn’t shy about telling Leslie that she would still rather Kelly in the group, to which Leslie shouted, “After the win you have enough nerve to say that to me?”
Christi shrugged it off, merely commenting that “Leslie is like the boil on the butt of humanity.”
I guess we’ll find out if Payton, Brooke, or Paige are back on the team next Tuesday!
Photo: Facebook