Do you remember that disturbing viral video that went around showing a dance troupe of young girls, like 7-years-old young, grinding provocatively to Beyoncé’s “Single Ladies?” Well Lifetime television is giving its viewers a full understanding of just how something like that could happen in the form of their reality show Dance Moms.
Abby Lee Miller runs a renowned dance studio and she’s head strong and determined to do what it takes to win. Imagine Toddlers and Tiaras but just a little bit older. Abby’s actions can be shocking enough but the parents who come along for the ride with their daughters in tow are perhaps even more provocative.
On Wednesday night’s episode (which I have in full below) Miller concludes that for her 8 and 9-year-old students to compete successfully they needed to up the sexy factor. I’m not kidding you, this is real and apparently not so rare in the world of youth competitive dance. Abby tells one of her students that:
“You have to be really hot. Sexy. Make it like you’re 17 years old.”
Before I go any further, here is the following full 2nd episode of Dance Moms:
If you don’t have time to watch the full clip, some of the parents actually had a problem with the routine and seeing their children spreading legs and spanking their own backsides. The real kicker is how Abby defended the routine:
“Go ask your 9-year-old if she likes what she’s wearing.” She goes on to explain that, “When a parent opens their mouth they are ruining their child and that’s what they need to think about.”
That’s right, her defense is that the young girls who aren’t mature enough to know any different really like the costumes and that when their parents speak in defense of them they just hurt their chances at becoming a great dancer. Here is the dance in question, which I think Lifetime even felt like it needed to censor, that the girls ended up performing:
I’m interested to hear from some readers who are involved in youth dance and how you feel about Abby’s aggressive approach?
Do you have a link we could watch it on youtube? Hulu doesn’t work here in Canada!
NVm I think I found it. Just type in Single Ladies Seven year olds on youtube for those wondering!
Just wow if that was my kid I will take her out of the dance class but I blame the parents because people want to be famous at any cost. That they are willing to sell out their kids innocent and if she want the kids to be sexy at act like their 17 year old why is she teaching 8 and 9 year . Why can she teach 17 year old to dance ?
Abby lee miller ,behavior is vile,disgusting ,and should be seen as border line mental abuse .. For her to dress children as Vegas “hooker” show girls is ridiculous …
Why is there NOT a dress code for competitions ???
A pedophile’s dream, little girls bumping and grinding on TV.
I actually live in penn hills pa where the show is filmed and everyone in this town knows she a piece of garbage. Years ago i heard her telling girls to lose weight who were under a 100 pounds. I dont understand why she is still up and running. Its not professional to speak to young girls in this manner.
Im 20 years old and I teach youth dance during the summer, and quite a bit of this choreography are things I teach to my 10 year olds. Not the dirty stuff of course, but a lot of those turns and leaps are things they will learn in any class. Dancers typically wear tight fitting, spandex like pants and shirts because it lets the judges see the lines of their bodies, to ensure theyre performing the moves correctly. But if I saw anyone in the studio I work in teaching a routine this risque to girls this young, I would have her fired.
As an ex dancer, those routines are out of line! Where’s the innocense?
My daughter competitively dances and has since she was 5 years old. I thank my lucky stars for our studio owner. She’s nothing like Abby Lee Mller, and if she was I would remove my daughter from her studio (and give her a piece of my mind!) Our studio owner knows we do not allow midriff-baring costumes on our daughter, or fishnets, or anything else like that. Abby Lee Miller doesn’t even have kids! She has no idea what she’s talking about regarding appropriateness. If most of it is staged for the show, why watch it?
That was my initial question – does this woman have children? Apparently she does not, and if she got in my face the way she does with the concerned mothers – I would rip her apart. She has no business countering these mothers – a parent overrules a dance teacher any day of the week.
That she think it’s ok to dress these little girls this way, and to have them perform a dance this risque, not to mention the way she talks to these girls and plays favourites – she needs to be put out of business. Why do people keep their children at this school? It amazes me that despite this kind of behaviour, the parents keep their kids enrolled.
Hi all. I am a dance educator for ages 3-18 and this dance routine appalled me. It would be upsetting if it was 17 year olds dancing it. Age appropriateness is a necessary category for judging. I am more frustrated with the parents for allowing their children to continue at her studio. Aside from the rude way she speaks to students, I can almost look past that, the lack of respect she has for the parents would make me walk right out. It’s a shame that shows like this may now give a bad name to dance teachers. I’m tough on my students, but never abusive and am always thinking about the appropriateness of the choreography. As well, I believe, every dance teacher should be.
First of all, how can a humongous woman like that teach anyone how to dance?! That show is a black comedy at the expense of those children. As appalling as Abby Lee’s behavior is, the parents are the real villains here. What kind of mother/father would submit his child to such humiliation? With parents like those, you don’t need enemies!
just a thought: if the teacher “loves” these little girls so much, and is concerned about their images and her reputation, wouldn’t it make sense for her to lose about 100lbs and be a good role model for her dancers? She is morbidly overweight and much more vulgar to look at than those flashy vegas outfits! Seriously?
I won’t even touch the “pyramid” program………..
I think someone should call child services on her dance studio. Seriously. The way she treats the children is abuse, and the way she treats the parents is harrassment. There is no excuse. She should be arrested, or at the very least, fined. Then maybe someone would get through to her. I hope she reads this.
And the funny part is after she did the aforementioned routine, the judges apparently agreed with the disgruntled moms, and the girls did not win. I doubt the witch of a dance teacher even noticed that the way she had those girls dressed had something to do with it.
One of the moms even made the comment that Abby never takes the blame for anything, and it was well proven in this episode!
This woman is a pyscho, pure and simple. Anyone who sends their child to her school is an idiot. Fat, f–ing cow.
I find myself watching the show just hoping that Abby will have woken up on the right side of her XXL King size bed, pull her head out of her rear, and stopped screaming long enough to have a voice, but I am always dissapointed and find myself more shocked than ever. She treats these girls like dogs, Holly was right, she barks at them. Be sexy? Be like Maddie? What is this Amazonian woman thinking? The girls should be allowed to be themselves, they should be having fun rather than being in drill class. The mom’s should remove their children, but many are failed dancers themselves and would like to live he experience through their daughters, understandable, but still wrong. These girls need rescuing, from Abby, and their mothers. Good luck girls.
This woman is beyond VILE! She truly is a disgusting human being with no redeeming value whatsoever. Most felons have better moral character. She is abusive and trains little girls how to prostitute themselves while making money off of it. She makes my skin crawl! Moreover, if she had any concern for her students, she would LOSE WEIGHT, as she is morbidly obese! Of course, she would never suffer a morbidly obese 8 year old girl to dance on one of her teams! This show is borderline kiddie p0rn. What on earth are these mom’s thinkig?