S04.E15: Lights! Camera! Dance!

[halgia]

Melissa takes control during Mackenzie's music video shoot, but the power quickly goes to her head. After racking up 13 wins in a row, the pressure is on the Abby Lee Dance Company to continue their stellar winning streak. All the dances this week are in tribute to Abby's ailing mother and emotions are high.

Originally aired April 8, 2014.

[dmmetler]

So apparently doing extremely well with a bad solo is lower than being just part of the group? Sigh....

[BusyOctober]

Chloe needs to run away from this show ASAP.  It's been obvious for a long time that Chloe's choreography has been sub-par.  She can not her strongest handle more complicated routines.  Maddie however doesn't seem to improve.  I think she's peaked.  Or at least she's reached her capacity at ALDC.  I don't know if Melissa will ever leave ALDC though.  Maddie gets to be Queen of the studio there.  If she moved to another studio, she'd risk being #2...or lower.  There are plenty of young dancers who can beat her in real, unscripted competitions.

I guess anyone with a YouTube account and access to an auto-tune device can be a "pop star" these days.  Mack is a cute kid but maybe she should look into acting vs. singing?  Her voice is not her strongest asset.

They probably can't due to their contracts w/ ALDC & Lifetime, but when they expire I wonder if any of these girls will get offers for videos, commercials etc. Some of them might be able to stay in the entertainment world if they can escape Abby's tentacles..

[wanderwoman]

I hate to criticize children, because I truly believe Mackenzie is only doin what the adults in her life tell her, but she isn't talented enough to be a pop star.  I suspect that the production company had a deal with an up-and-coming music label and with Brooke being out of the show, they "needed another Timmy" (obscure reference to an old show).  Since Melissa is Abby's go to mom, there was no question about who would get the gig.

Chloe and Christie need to find someone who will help Chloe progress. She's a better dancer than Maddie, in terms of technique and skills.  Maddie wins because she has perfected, let's say, 25 moves and Abby puts all of her strongest moves in every dance and none of her dances build on skills.  Her growth as a dancer has stopped.  Tap is the only form she has progressed in.  

 

Nia is the whipping girl and Holly should take her to a studio that will help her correct her technique and teach Nia to feel good about her dancing.

Also, the Larkin team looked, on average, to be 15/16 years old.  How were they competing on the same ticket?

[leighroda]

Something that has always bothered me about Abby's choreography for the group dances is that it kinda seems like several solos strung together. I grew up in and around dance, and to me the first thing is says when only 1 or 2 girls do a move is that the other girls can't do that particular move. It was painfully obvious especially when compared to the Larkin girls who did a majority of the dance in unison. In abbys dances, rarely do all of the girls do the same move, it's always featured parts where one girl has a mini solo or contagions (that's what it's called when one girl does a move and then the next girl, and the next... And so on). I'm not saying they all have to dance the same the whole time, but there is something to be said for the difficulty level of all the girls performing a harder move, I would prefer all the girls do a simpler move than one girl being singled out with a more difficult turn combination.

[Absolom]

It's easier to hide the mistakes and that they can't all stay in unison if they don't even try. :) Last night's show had 1.751 M viewers and a .6 rating. The Duggars seem to be stealing viewers.

[WimminWinning]

All Nia needs is some confidence and a teacher willing to teach rather than just scream at the girl. I see the potential in Nia, she just doesn't respond to screaming. She's the type of child to shut down and get flustered when screamed at. Gia is even worse than Abby when it comes to putting Nia on the back burner. Gia put absolutely zero effort into choreographing Nia's last solo despite the fact that Nia has made the most progress of all the girls in technique. I hate to say it, but I think Cathy would do something great with Nia if Holly switched to Candy Apples.

[Rhondinella]

Anyone else think Pittsburgh 911 just needs to start ignoring these people's calls?

[Absolom]

Nia needs to have concrete instruction.  Either it needs to be demonstrated at the time or someone needs to help her put her body in the correct position.  Someone screaming over and over from across the room isn't going to do it. That's only going to fluster her.  If Nia "felt" being out of position, she'd correct it because that's the kind of person she is.  She learns dance like one of my daughters and it needs a different approach. 

[wanderwoman]

I'm sure the police roll their eyes anytime the ALDC and ALDC family is involved.  These women seem to think every disagreement, squabble, and insult they are party too requires civic intervention.   

Gia confuses me.  It's clear that she wants to be the substitute Abby.  However, as a former dancer, you would think she would be a more hands-on teacher.  I hope she is and they just edit it out.  But, she clearly thinks maddie poops rainbows, too.  

Nia and Chloe seem more well-rounded children than the Zeig-bots.  I can't help but wonder what their dad thinks about them being "homeschooled"?