Dance Moms Recap: The Sophia Show

Recaps

By SnoopK8 | Friday, January 18, 2013 | 3:56 pm | 22 Comments
Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , ,
Posted in: Dance Moms, Recaps

Jabby can supposedly hear the moms cackling from downstairs so she tells Gia to go up and make sure that Jackie is watching Sophia rehearse. Jabby interviews that she thinks Sophia was sent to her by the dance gods (i.e. Lifetime producers) and the moms had better not run her off like they’ve run off other students.

Upstairs, we learn that Sophia is homeschooled and spends the rest of her time practicing dance. Holly the former principal says they are killing her with that. Melissa interviews that Sophia may be a better dancer than Maddie, but at least Maddie goes to school full-time. Whatever makes you feel better, Melissa.

Jabby bellows at the moms from downstairs because they were supposed to have counted photos as one of their suck-up jobs. Christi says she didn’t do it because, again, they pay Jabby and she has employees to do that. Jabby says she’s sorry that Christi can’t count that high and Christi says she can’t because she went to public school. She says it’s a good thing she wasn’t homeschooled or she’d be even dumber. Kelly interviews that Christi is not letting up on Jackie and she thinks it’s because she doesn’t want Sophia on the team. Duh?

Jabby is rehearsing Chloe’s solo and apparently she’s changing the choreography as they go along. Christi complains that they are leaving for the competition in 30 minutes and Jabby’s setting Chloe up to fail and Chloe looks defeated. Downstairs, Chloe takes a break and tells Christi that Jabby was yelling at her because Christi didn’t count the pictures.

Christi apologizes to Chloe and the other girls. Back in the studio, Jabby yells at the girls for talking too much in the dressing room, or “den” as she calls it.

Jabby then calls the moms down during the group rehearsal. She says there are too many kids in the number and one of them has to go. She tells the moms that they have to pick which kid goes. She says they need to be objective and then takes a minute to stereotype Nia again. Hi Nia! I feel like we never see you anymore.

The girls do the number and Jabby screams at Christi for allegedly refusing to even look at Sophia. Jabby says it’s foolish for Christi not to learn from people who are better.

Another day in paradise

This whole scene is a joke (obviously) because Jabby says that she doesn’t trust the moms to be objective so she’s cutting Brooke from the number. Kelly halfheartedly complains that Mackenzie should have been cut, but I agree with the theory that this must have been set up ahead of time.

At the front desk, Jabby lectures the moms that everyone is out to beat them this weekend. Holly says pointing fingers and constantly belittling the girls isn’t an effective strategy for winning. Jabby says she doesn’t need to belittle the girls because the girls do it to themselves. This strikes a nerve with Christi, who screeches “SHUT YOUR MOUTH!” Jackie, ever the peacemaker,  says “let’s just go and try to be a team this weekend.” Good advice, Jackie. Let’s see how that works out.

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SnoopK8
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Snoop K8 lives in NYC and loves baseball, red wine and Judge Judy (not necessarily in that order).

22 Comments

  1. 1
    April
    Posted January 18, 2013 at 4:53 pm

    I wish Sophia would be a permanent member. I like her and her mom. Oh wells. She is in a league of her own.

    I side with Abby sometimes. Like with the stretching at home thing. If I only stretched at dance class I would have never got to where I was flexibility wise. I had dance probably 4 days a week or so. But we only had time to stretch for 10 minutes or so then we had to start working on the dance or technique. You cannot get super flexible on 10 minutes of stretching. I did not get super flexible till about 9th grade.

    I started stretching at home on the weekends on off days and while watching tv at night. Then before I knew it I was doing perfect splits and kicking up and touching my head and doing all kinds of cool flexilibity tricks I could never do before. You do have to work at home. I also worked at home on jumps, turns and going over my numbers and endurance. To be the best, you have to work all the time. Just the facts. I really begged my mother to build me a dance studio in our house so I could practice with mirrors and a bar and a dance floor but it never happened. I did it in the yard or my room.

  2. 2
    DM
    Posted January 18, 2013 at 5:25 pm

    Did anyone else notice that both Sophia and Mia did solos called Superstar when they were acting as celebrity guests on Dance Moms?

  3. 3
    TurtleGirl93 TurtleGirl93
    Posted January 19, 2013 at 11:41 am

    O. M. G.
    When Abby made that Lion King/Nia comment, I literally felt my blood pressure rise. I thought that was tasteless and tacky. I saw a traveling company’s production of The Lion King and I honestly couldn’t tell you the race of any of the performers. I wasn’t focused on skin color; just their dancing skills.
    I’m not as wowed by Sophia as everyone else. Technically she’s very precise but I just don’t see the passion. I guess I need to find her YouTube videos…
    Maddie is great at portraying emotion and I think that is what makes her performances. I hope Maddie makes it Broadway someday. Chloe, however, is my favorite. She is graceful and elegant and I hope, hope, hope she moves into the ballet world. (And I love the genuine affection between Christi and her.)
    Anyone know the scoop on Sophia’s mom? I actually like her.

  4. 4
    Kylie
    Posted January 19, 2013 at 2:18 pm

    Hoo boy, I cringed so much during this episode.
    First off, I sincerely think that Jackie’s just trying to be nice and have her child enjoy dancing. She’s going really, really good at keeping her cool. I find it incredibly stupid how the rest of the moms are just trying to egg her on because they’re bored.
    Christi has gone NUTS. Every single think she says makes me either face palm or want to slap her. It used to be Kelly that bothered me, but I think she’s gotten a lot smarter this season.
    Oh well, welcome to the tv world, drama.

  5. 5
    TurtleGirl93 TurtleGirl93
    Posted January 19, 2013 at 8:39 pm

    Okay, I’ve watched some of Sophia’s numbers and she’s crazy flexible and very good but I still think there’s something missing.
    I’ve worked my way thru most of Season 1 online at Lifetime as a refresher. Christi may be nuts but I think she genuinely enjoys being a mother. I love it when she and Chloe ‘pinky swear’.

  6. 6
    Sunny
    Posted January 19, 2013 at 10:31 pm

    [youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n3KCL0kX1QE&w=420&h=315
    This is my favorite of her videos by far! Whoever choreographed this, thank you for putting this into the world!

    Speaking of choreography, I have an opinion on the common debate for this show (Maddie getting better choreo than Chloe). Am I the only one who *doesn’t* think Maddie’s choreography is better? Maddie is a very technical dancer and so her routines are full of technique to the point that the dance sometimes gets lost in the details. Chloe is an expressive dancer. I’m not a dancer so I can’t always pinpoint technical errors, but I’ve often noticed things that look wrong (wobbling, bad lines after jumps or turn sequences, etc) in her dances. So Chloe gets concepts, stories, characters, dances that allow her to use her expressiveness to tell the story and shine. I think both are highlighting their areas of expertise and neither is inherently better than the other; sort of like power gymnastics vs. artistic gymnastics. Power is cool because it looks really difficult but artistic is more fun to watch.

  7. 7
    LadyStardust
    Posted January 19, 2013 at 11:43 pm

    Isn’t it the parent’s job to tell their kids no when they want to do something that is harmful or unhealthy? I’m so annoyed with these moms whining that Jabby/ALDC is horrible and treats their kids like crap — yet they KEEP COMING BACK. Why? Because their kid misses it.

    So I’m assuming when/if one of them turns into a drug addict in high school, their mom won’t mind letting them go back on drugs once they express how much they miss it? If ALDC is such an unhealthy environment for their kid, then why the hell can’t they just be a parent and say no?

    I do like Sophie’s dancing, but I wish we could have seen her tap. I wish they’d show more tap in general on this show. I think Maddie also does tap?

  8. 8
    April
    Posted January 20, 2013 at 5:56 am

    Lady Stardust-Yes Maddie is a very good tapper. So is Sophia. They have only showed Maddie tap once in a solo. I wish they would do a group tap number or more tap solos. But I don’t think the other girls are great tappers so that is why they don’t. Which is a shame. All dancers should take tap.

  9. 9
    April
    Posted January 20, 2013 at 6:00 am

    Sunny: That Pulse number is total perfection. I mean if I was judging it, I would literally have not one critique. Amazing.

  10. 10
    smarlo
    Posted January 20, 2013 at 7:54 am

    I was just wondering if they could loosen up poor Sophia’s hair! It’s so tightly skinned back it looks painful. I bet she starts losing it at the hairline.

  11. 11
    bec
    Posted January 20, 2013 at 3:09 pm

    SPOILER ALERT

    Here is a video of paige and chloe’s upcoming duet [video]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W_5NN7qRGKY&feature=g-subs-a&list=PLE8619E15E51A769B

  12. 12
    WerkItSmoochy
    Posted January 20, 2013 at 4:54 pm

    Coming from someone who was severely damaged due to mental/verbal abuse from a coach from childhood through adolescence…GET CHLOE OUT OF THERE ASAP. I am telling you, that kid is going to end up needing years of therapy because of the abuse of that disgusting Abby woman. Has anyone else noticed that whenever Abby talks to her she completely shrinks away? The mental abuse that that horrid woman is inflicting on that little girl is horrendous, and is going to leave her with emotional scars that may never heal. I would like to say that I have never in my life seen a coach treat a talented athlete that way, but that would be a lie. Some people should not work with children.
    Christi, if you come on here, please for the love of god get Chloe out of there and into a different studio. Her spirit is being crushed, and she looks more and more downtrodden in every episode. The long term effects on her self-esteem are not worth the money from the show. She is a beautiful dancer, and in my opinion, the most talented in the group, and the one who my eyes always go to in the dances. She seems to have a very sweet disposition and work very hard, despite what her disgusting coach says. She would probably flourish even more under the instruction of a caring, nurturing teacher who wanted her to succeed.

  13. 13
    Jazzy
    Posted January 20, 2013 at 7:53 pm

    @WerkIt – absolutely. Christi and Kelly both need to get their kids out of there. Abby is an abusive teacher to all three of them. I’m sure there are other dance studios they could go to where they would be treated with respect. I fear for all these girls, but especially for those that are constantly being criticized on tv. Very scary to think of how they might end up.

    @LadyStardust – excellent analogy with the drugs. It’s true – kids are not good decision makers and it’s up to the parents to make the right decisions, especially when it involves the child’s well being.

  14. 14
    April
    Posted January 21, 2013 at 2:33 pm

    At this point even Melissa might need to get her kids out of there. Maddie is slowly not being the favorite anymore.

  15. 15
    chaosbutterfly
    Posted January 21, 2013 at 11:29 pm

    ^ Yes…and the way she’s been the Golden Child for all this time, I feel like she’ll have a legitimate breakdown when Abby seriously moves on to someone new.

    Sophia is a fabulous, amazing dancer and I never get tired of watching her pirouettes.
    But I feel like when the dance is meant to convey an emotion other than fierceness, she can’t quite deliver. Like she goes out there and nails every step, turn and trick perfectly, but there’s no real connection to the music or to her emotions.
    It’s odd to be watching something that beautiful and yet to feel so little.
    Also, I can’t quite place what animal she looks like.

    If Christi seriously doesn’t work with Chloe at home, she needs to start or she should find someone else to do it, because there’s no way Chloe will reach her full potential by only dancing in the studio. Especially if Abby pays as little attention to her as Christi claims that she does. And already, you can see Chloe kind of starting to backslide…this season, she’s been wobbling and falling out of turns all over the place.
    My little sister is a cheerleader and she never got very good until she started stretching and practicing her stunts at home. It was annoying because she would always be bothering me to come hold her leg or pull her arm or press her back down, but it really made a big difference in her routines.

  16. 16
    WerkItSmoochy
    Posted January 22, 2013 at 3:09 pm

    Blatant favoritism is not healthy for young children in a competitive atmosphere. A good coach or instructor will make sure that all of the children are getting attention and praise. Sure, it is easy to “favor” the strongest athlete on a team, but making that very clear to all of the children is not right. All of the children will suffer-some more than others. Maddie is bound to have a breakdown when she isn’t favored in other areas of life, or when she moves on to other teachers who don’t put her on a pedestal above all of the rest. Maddie is an excellent dancer, she has beautiful and passionate facial expressions, and it is obvious that she loves dancing, but when the time comes that she is no longer the star or champion all of the time, it will be a harsh reality for her. In comparison, Chloe (I am using her as an example, but the same goes for Paige and the others) is bound to have low self-esteem and possibly even self-hatred; her coaches treat her like garbage because they don’t like her mother, but at that young of an age, she probably does not understand that. She will eventually internalize it to the point where she believes she will never be good enough if she stays with that coach and keeps being constantly verbally abused and put down. Believe me, it is a downward spiral, and Abby Lee is setting her up to fail, psyching her out backstage before events, telling her she is stupid, lazy, sneaky, etc.
    If Christi really wants to keep her there, she needs to back off a little. I like Christi, she reminds me a lot of my own mother. My mom had to learn to back off too, and when she finally did, things were better for me. Unfortunately by that point, I was older and had already internalized what I had been hearing from my coach for years. Children who are serious about what they are doing really take those things to heart.
    I agree that Chloe should be working at home to improve, or getting extra lessons. I am sure there is another instructor in that studio that would be willing to give her private lessons if Abby doesn’t want to, and maybe another instructor would be more helpful to her! Like I stated previously, I think Chloe has the most talent and natural ability of all the girls, and by far the best body for dance (along with Paige). I think she needs to work on flexibility, because she is a little behind the others in that way, but in other areas, she really excels. Getting into more ballet and working at home, I think she will eventually surpass all of the other girls. It would help her confidence too.

  17. 17
    April
    Posted January 22, 2013 at 6:15 pm

    Haha the captcha is “Candy Apple”

    I took my son to his first dance class today. He loved it. My other son did not want to do it. The moms were all very nice. This is at a competition studio. I did overhear some moms talking about Sophia Lucia and her 54 turns.

  18. 18
    sagittariuskim sagittariuskim
    Posted January 22, 2013 at 10:45 pm

    I finally saw this episode.

    I thought Sophia solo was good but a little too mature for her.

    @Chaos: Sophia kinda looks like a deer or squirrel to me.

  19. 19
    Anna
    Posted January 22, 2013 at 11:38 pm

    @April, sure, maybe Chloe needs to stretch more (I can;t tell, she seems sublime to me). But as Christi said, Abby never told her that before. Christi doesn’t have a dance background. Students and their parents should not be expected to read the instructor’s mind.
    @WerkItSmoochy, I agree with most of what you have said, especially about getting Chloe out of that studio. But the thing is, it is clear that Abby has a mental issue -she seems like people I know with borderline personality disorder – and thus, logic and reasoning will not work with her. Neither will backing off. She’s crazy. And she’s going to continue to emotionally abuse these kids no matter what.
    I think the parents keep their kids on this show because they want them to be famous and they want to be famous. I don’t think the money is the big issue. And apparently, they are all willing to allow their children to be abused for notoriety from a crummy reality show. That’s so sad to me. Really, they are pimping their kids, in a sense.
    Finally, I have heard them excuse their involvement saying they signed contracts with TLC. I am an attorney and I can tell you that no contract, not one with a huge entertainment company nor one with a lunatic like Abby, forces a person to stay in an abusive environment. No work contract would be upheld if it forced people to work through abuse. That’s nonsense. These women could easily get their kids out of that studio based on what has been shown on tv. If they wanted to, that is.

  20. 20
    Bluedog
    Posted January 23, 2013 at 12:37 am

    I watched Sophia tap at age 5 on utube. Wings at 5 !! I didn’t learn them until I was at a higher level.

    I am wondering as it had on the utube video what dance studio she was at – what does her former teacher think of her being now with Abby? This other teacher has trained her from the age of 2 or 3 and now Abby is taking is taking all the credit. Where is her mother’s loyalty to her former teacher? She has moved over to Abby just so she can be on a reality TV show.

  21. 21
    Bluedog
    Posted January 23, 2013 at 12:40 am

    ” is taking is taking” whoops should have proof read it before I clicked on post comment.

  22. 22
    Anna
    Posted January 23, 2013 at 6:41 pm

    Hey Bluedog. I think Sophia is just doing the show, not actually moving to a new studio. In other words, she will have bit parts” on Dancemoms but continue to live and train in California for most of the time.

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