Bittersweet | Dance Moms

LOVE ON THE DANCE FLOOR (s1 ep8)

The girls were in Orlando, Florida, for this week's competition. Virella loved Florida; it was a tradition for her to visit after booty camp every summer, and she was always excited to return.

Virella wore a light blue flower-print sundress with her hair up in a neat ponytail, finished off with a matching flower bow that made her look effortlessly cute.

"Girls, let's go! Come on!" Abby called out as they entered the studio she had rented for the week. She was already on edge, eager to start the day and get everything in order.

The pyramid this week was unusual, as it wasn't just a typical shape on the board; it was an actual pyramid on the mirror. The girls stood in front of Abby instead of sitting like usual, their reflections making them feel like they were under even more scrutiny. The headshots were covered with red paper, so the girls couldn't see where they stood in the rankings until Abby revealed them.

Virella, feeling both excited and nervous, took off her sundress to reveal a matching dance set. She stood tall, ready to see where she would be placed this time.

"Where's Cathy? Where's Vivianne?" Abby asked, glancing around the room.

"Don't know." Melissa replied nonchalantly.

"Right now, I am at the end of my rope with Cathy," Abby muttered under her breath, clearly frustrated. She then moved to the pyramid and started to uncover the headshots one by one, revealing the standings.

"Mackenzie, now you and Vivi-anne were supposed to have a duet. But no Vivi. So you might be doing 'Summer' by yourself," Abby said as she uncovered Vivi-anne's headshot. The room fell quiet for a moment, everyone knowing the potential shift in plans that this caused.

"Chloe. You're gonna take a week off. I'm not gonna do a new solo for you. I think you need to work on your technique," Abby said, as she uncovered Chloe's headshot. The tension in the room increased. Chloe frowned, and even though she had been prepared for something like this, it still stung.

"I was happy with fourth place, your mother was not," Abby added, her words striking at Chloe. "And I don't think you were either."

Chloe felt the sting of Abby's words. It wasn't easy to hear, but she kept quiet, taking in the criticism with a quiet resolve. She had dealt with Abby's tough love before, and this wasn't the first time she'd felt the sting of disappointment.

"Nia," Abby uncovered Nia's headshot. "I was happy with you, your mother was not happy with the choreography."

Nia swallowed hard, trying to keep her composure. Her mom wasn't exactly thrilled about how the last performance had gone, but Nia was proud of her own effort. She could already feel the weight of another critique from Abby, which made her feel tense and uncertain.

"So we're gonna work on that. Mom, I don't want any altercations like Connecticut," Abby added sharply, with a pointed look at Holly.

"It was a conversation," Holly replied, trying to defend herself, though Abby didn't seem to care much for her answer.

"I don't want anymore conversations like Connecticut," Abby corrected sarcastically. The room went quiet as the tension built, everyone shifting awkwardly in place.

Abby then quietly took off Paige and Brooke's headshots, deciding they didn't really have much to say for themselves this week since their performances didn't stand out.

"Maddie, you won your age group, and that's a great accomplishment," Abby began, her tone flat but with a flicker of praise. "But Virella set a high bar for you. Since you were in the lower age category, I expected you to be more aggressive with your performance. You've won twice this year, but that's when you're not against Virella. You've got the technique, but you need to bring the energy and the fierceness every single time. I want to see Maddie giving it everything she's got, no holding back. You can do better, I know it."