Season 6 of Dance Moms has featured countless issues for Abby Lee Miller and her students, including the announcement of Abby’s legal issues, a bitter division between the Junior Elites and the Minis, and the team losing longtime competitors Maddie and Mackenzie. However, yet another problem is set to rock the ALDC in this episode, “Jojo is a No Show.”
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A Tragedy Rocks the Studio
Before beginning the pyramid, Kira reveals some devastating news to the other moms. She and Kalani had to go home to Arizona recently because a young teen dancer from their hometown committed suicide. The moms are beyond saddened to hear this, and they are unsure just how much it will affect their girls.
Inside the studio, Abby reveals the positions of the Junior Elite Team’s pyramid. She doesn’t have a pyramid for the Mini Team since they did not take part in the competition.
Jojo and Kendall are both on the bottom of the pyramid because they had the two lowest scoring solos out of the three performed at the competition. Kalani and Nia are in the middle, while Brynn is on top for doing the best in the group piece.
For the upcoming competition in Calabasas, California, Abby says she will pit two duets against one another. The first is “War and Peace,” which will be performed by Brynn and Nia. This number features a United States soldier dancing alongside an anti-war flower child.
Jojo and Kendall will be dancing in the second duet, which is a ballet number called “Push and Pull.” This piece shocks the entire team because the girls never perform ballet. Since Abby frequently yells at Jojo for not pointing her legs and feet enough, she knows the pressure is on her. “I really have to nail it,” Jojo says.
After recently benching them, Abby will allow the Minis to compete. They will be working with ALDC choreographer Chris on a female empowerment number. Abby and Chris tell these young girls that they will need to become women and warriors to perform this piece well.
The Junior Elites, on the other hand, will dance in one of the darkest pieces ever performed by the ALDC. Their number is called “Suicide Hotline,” and Abby has chosen this dance in honor the young dancer who committed suicide.
Holly and the rest of the moms are worried if Abby will truly give this number her all, especially since she has been absent from the studio over the past few weeks. Abby promises to be completely focused because she knows this is a topic that needs to be discussed. “Maybe, just maybe, we are going to save a kid’s life,” Abby hopes.
Is Jojo Gone for Good?
As the rehearsals begin, Abby works with Jojo and Kendall on their ballet duet. Abby says she has paired them up with one another because their duets did the worst in the recent competition. She knows that this piece will whip them into shape. “It’s high time these girls realize how important their training is,” Abby says.
Despite Abby thinking ballet is a great idea for the duet, Jojo thinks otherwise. Kendall immediately notices that Jojo is not into this dance and is worried that this will be a rough week for them. “I can just tell by the look on Jojo’s face that Jojo doesn’t really like this dance,” Kendall explains.
Outside the rehearsal studio, Jessalynn is furious with Abby for giving Jojo a ballet number. She knows it will make Jojo look bad, and she considers this to be a joke. If Jojo does poorly in the competition, Jessalynn is worried that Jojo’s brand could be ruined.
Jojo quickly breaks down and refuses to perform this number. Abby is furious that Jojo is crying over this, but Jessalynn says there is nothing Abby can do to force Jojo to perform. While watching this go down, Ashlee cannot believe what Jessalynn is doing. She believes that Jessalynn is the one standing in the way of Jojo improving her dance skills.
The next day, Kendall continues to rehearse the duet, but neither Jessalynn nor Jojo have shown up. Nobody has heard from either of them, which infuriates Abby. She knows that she deserves more from Jessalynn and Jojo.
Now the question becomes, who will replace Jojo in this duet? Sari volunteers Areana to replace Jojo, which Abby hilariously wants no part of. “Well, thank you. I appreciate you shoving your daughter down my throat every five seconds,” Abby responds, before confirming that Kalani will actually be the one to dance with Kendall in the ballet duet.
As Kalani and Kendall continue to work on the ballet number, the other moms reveal some shocking information about Jessalynn and Jojo. They first call Jessalynn a hypocrite for not showing up since she is the first one to call out any other team member who doesn’t show their loyalty to the ALDC. They also say that Jessalynn feels as though Jojo is being sabotaged week after week by Abby.
With all of the focus being placed on the ballet number, Ashlee and Holly are worried that their daughters’ duet has been put on the back burner and will suffer. Holly knows that Abby wants to focus on the ballet duet to make it great and prove Jessalynn and Jojo wrong, and she criticizes Abby’s big ego for getting in the way of helping Brynn and Nia with their number.
It’s time for Abby to forget about Jessalynn and Jojo (and even the Minis) because more is on the line with the group number. She not only hopes “Suicide Hotline” is as memorable as “The Last Text” and “Where Have All the Children Gone,” but she also wants the girls to truly understand the magnitude of the meaning behind this piece. She brings in two women to discuss their experiences with the hotline, which is sure to give the girls all the motivation they need to put their hearts into the number.
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The Competition
The entire ALDC may have been upset with Jessalynn and Jojo for not showing up to rehearsals, but now they are actually thrilled they are gone. Ashlee, specifically, thinks that the team has a new energy. “I felt like a huge weight was lifted off of me. There’s a huge negative part of this team that’s gone,” Ashlee explains, which Abby seems to completely agree with.
The first piece to go on in the competition is Kendall and Kalani’s “Push and Pull.” Of course, everyone is fearful that Kalani did not have enough time to learn Jojo’s part of the duet. But the girls are absolutely breathtaking, as they are completely in sync with one another and put on a captivating performance. The moms may have been wrong to doubt this as being an award-winning duet.
The team is worried about Brynn and Nia’s duet as well. Just before hitting the stage, the girls rehearse the number one final time. They end up completely botching a major lift they do in the piece, creating even more doubts about how they will do.
When Brynn and Nia hit the stage with “War and Peace,” they seem to just do all right. It doesn’t really stand out, especially when being compared to “Push and Pull.” Maybe if Abby had focused more on this duet, it could’ve been a thousand times better.
The Minis then take the stage with “Invincible.” The pressure is on for them to prove to Abby that they can truly dance as a team. However, it seems to be the Areana show because the other four girls look like her background dancers. Based on Abby’s initial disappointing reaction, she does not seem too thrilled with how they did.
“Suicide Hotline” is the final number to go on. The piece is incredibly moving, gripping and emotional. Each girl shines, and they prove that even when down one member, they can still deliver an unforgettable performance.
Awards
The duets are the first awards to be given out. Brynn and Nia take home third place. Since their duet was barely given any attention, everyone is happy with this result. Kendall and Kalani end up winning first prize, proving that Abby was right to enter a ballet number into the competition.
When it is the Mini Team’s turn for awards, they somehow take first. Abby is, of course, happy with this result, but she still sees the Minis performing as five soloists rather than as a team. Will this cause Abby to bench them in yet another competition?
It all comes down to the Junior Elite’s group number. The entire ALDC knows that “Suicide Hotline” is worthy of first place, but will the judges agree? They clearly do because they award the girls with the grand prize. Abby is not shocked because she believes this piece was nothing short of perfection.
If anyone thought the drama with Jessalynn and Jojo was over, they were completely wrong. Tiffany reveals that Jojo spent the competition day relaxing at the pool. Everyone is floored to hear this, but Abby could care less because she is done with Jojo. “I don’t know what the future holds for the ALDC. I just know it doesn’t involve Jojo,” Abby reveals.
What did you think of this episode? Was Jessalynn justified in removing Jojo from the duet or should she have made Jojo perform it? Should Jessalynn and Jojo have informed Abby that they would not be showing up? Did “Suicide Hotline” live up to the greatness of “The Last Text” and “Where Have All the Children Gone”? Will you miss Jessalynn and Jojo if they are truly done with the team? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section and in the poll below.
Dance Moms season 6 airs Tuesdays at 9/8c on Lifetime. Want more news? Like our Facebook page.
(Image courtesy of Lifetime)
Contributing Writer, BuddyTV
