Scarlett and Keira arrived at ALDC LA more excited than ever. Meghan Trainor's management team had contacted the production of Dance Moms to feature the girls in her newest music video, Me Too. It was their first commercial dance job, both girls being relatively inexperienced because of their age, and they just couldn't wait to dance.
"I'm gonna be famous!" Keira declared as Josephine chuckled while pulling up in front of the building. Her niece's energy was contagious and it certainly gave Josephine more motivation to get through another drama-filled day with the moms.
Scarlett set foot in Studio A holding her sister's hand. If the studio didn't already have cameras everywhere to capture every single fight, it certainly did now. There was a large crew of cameramen, directors, and other people who Scarlett wasn't sure what they did but were probably there to film the MV.
"Head into Studio C and go get changed," Abby ushered the girls as Scarlett and Keira followed everyone else to the studio where their outfit had already been picked.
Keira skipped delightedly out of the changing area, wearing a muted purple blouse and black leggings. Scarlett sported a denim jacket and white t-shirt, matched with khaki trousers. Both girls had matching sneakers, something Josephine had planned. The girls always loved to match.
A guy with a baseball cap who introduced himself as Danny gathered the girls in Studio A. After a quick role-call to check who is who, choreography for the music video began.
Scarlett and Keira were well-trained in modern, jazz and hip-hop, having been in training programs at their old studio, so the choreography was not the hardest for them. They took this as an opportunity to let loose and have fun, especially since Abby didn't allow lip-sync in their sassy jazz groups. Scarlett and Keira could lip-sync without a care in the world today.
"Everyone stop. Go stand at the side," the director instructed. "I want you to see the difference. Jojo, Scarlett come on up. I'll play the music and the parts you aren't in just improvise for this demonstration." Keira obediently went over to the side while wishing her sister good luck.
Scarlett stood in the middle with Jojo, who smiled kindly at her, "Let's do this, okay?" Scarlett nodded determinedly and waited for the music.
What the director meant was now clear to see: Scarlett and Jojo had the attack in their dancing, and they were very entertaining to watch. Scarlett, being a big fan of Meghan and knowing all the lyrics, lip-synced to her heart's desire.
The director paused the music. "Do you see it? The energy, the power, the attack," he explained, "I want to see more of that." He then went to discuss something with the other directors.
As the rehearsals went on, the door suddenly creaked open. "Surprise!" Immediately, the girls all screamed and ran over to hug Meghan.
"Hi! I'm a big fan," Scarlett confessed, "I have danced to ALL your songs in my bedroom."
"Aww thank you!" Meghan smiled at the energetic redhead. Scarlett felt she was about to faint, THE Meghan Trainor just talked to her.
The director from earlier came back in and made an announcement, "I decided I'm going to have a special part with just Scarlett, Jojo and Meghan. It will be a short, separate part of choreography."
Filming went smooth and Scarlett was overjoyed to have danced with Meghan, who praised her of her dancing skills. She even got a little part to show off her Russian switch leap. Keira was incredibly supportive and she cheered her sister on in her heart every part she wasn't in. She had originally cheered out loud, but the sound technicians asked her to keep it in for a while to save themselves the hassle of editing an excited Keira out of the audio.
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"Alright, you had a fun weekend filming the music video. Now we're going to get back to work. Minis you do not have a pyramid because you didn't compete last week. Well, except for Keira. First place and I expected nothing less. Good job," Keira beamed as Abby gave her a nod of approval.
"And congratulations juniors you won last week. Does that mean you're incredible dancers or are you just good at playing games? Unfortunately there is always good news and bad news. The good news is the group won. The bad news is the solos didn't fare as well."
Jojo pursed her lips, knowing Abby would give everyone a hard time now that none of her juniors placed.
"I picked three kids to do solos, and I didn't have a winner. I had three shots to get that first place, so don't count on any more solos. Alright, let's get to the pyramid. At the bottom of the pyramid, Jojo. You're not here because of your performance. I don't think anyone's gonna argue your performance value. That's not the problem. When you look in the mirror and you see your leg out there you think that leg is just swell or good enough. And I don't want a dancer to think they're ever good enough. That is keeping you from fixing your mistakes."
Josephine raised an eyebrow. That was not something she would teach her kids. If anyone ever dared to tell her nieces they weren't good enough, she would rip them apart.
"Next, we have Kendall. So, somebody coming in seventh. That's not keeping up with the Abby Lee Dance Company. You know I don't name names, but I could usually count on somebody winning not all the time, but a lot of the time."
"Next, we have Kalani, you were fourth. You did On The Edge of My Seat. I was enraptured in your performance. I thought it was beautiful and what I liked about your dancing is that you make it look easy. I wanted to jump up there and do the dance myself because she made it look so easy."
Josephine couldn't resist to smirk as Scarlett and Keira held back fits of giggles imagining Abby in Kalani's 'costume'— a red lace bra and black booty shorts— dancing a solo on stage. The sisters and Kalani shared a look, knowing they were thinking of the same thing.
"Next we have Nia. I thought you were outstanding in the group dance. You entertain me and I watched you and you looked great in my opinion."
"And on the top of the pyramid we have our game winner Brynn. I think maybe Brynn was the best game player of the week.
"We're travelling to Calabasas and we're attending Fierce Competition. We have two duets. The duets will be going up against each other. Our first duet is going to Brynn and Nia. The name of the routine is War and Peace. It depicts a soldier from our United States military and a 60s anti-war flower child. This dance is all about the protest people were rallying against the war that this is not our war why are they fighting this war all these different things. And that's what we're gonna put on stage."
"Our next duet on the other end of the pyramid here it's Jojo and Kendall. So the two of you, you are doing a ballet routine. It will be in the ballet category."
"We never do ballet routines. Ever," Jill's voice was heard.
"We will now," Abby replied with a mischievous grin. "It's entitled Push and Pull."
"Now our mini group is a jazz routine named Invincible. I want you all to show me you deserve to be here." Keira nodded, she was determined to do great.
"We also have a mini solo," Abby paused, adding to the tension. "I received a call from Meghan Trainor's management team and they want Scarlett to do a solo to the song Me Too. They have an outside choreographer. We will offer you the studio space and you will compete under the Abby Lee Dance Company."
Scarlett flushed a light shade of pink as everyone clapped. "Congratulations," Nia smiled giving Scarlett a thumbs-up.
"Now the elite group routine it is a very mature subject. The name of the routine is Suicide Hotline." Immediately after the announcement there was silence and a few dropped jaws. No one expected the group routine to be a heavy topic.
"Is it awareness?" Jill questioned.
"It's awareness," Abby confirmed, "It's a story. It's how the hotlines work. It's how the phones are answered. It's what takes place during a phone call. It's about keeping someone on the line. Everyone has to give it their all."
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Scarlett was unfortunately not in the group this week. She would've loved to. However she was busy doing great things this week. Jonathan had driven the both of them to Yorba Linda, CA for her "Me Too" solo choreography. The dance would be posted on Meghan Trainor's YouTube channel, so Meghan's management team had booked Scarlett solo choreography from the one and only Molly Long, who choreographed a few viral jazz pieces. Scarlett couldn't wait to learn from Molly. She had always viewed Molly as a celebrity.
Keira played the role of the drummer in the group dance, mirroring her best friend Peyton. Elliana and Lilliana were both guitarists, though each girl using same instruments had a different coloured prop. Areana was the singer, holding a microphone bedazzled with rhinestones, and also the lead.
Their group dance was choreographed by Chris Downey. Keira met him a few times in the studio, and he had also helped her run her solo Fame when Abby and Gianna were busy with the junior elites. Keira thought he was a very good teacher, and much different from Abby.
"Alright, what is this routine about?"
"Invincible!" the kids yelled. It was their first group dance after being benched, so they wanted to win to prove to Abby that they should be dancing every single week.
"Correct," Chris replied, nodding in approval of the mini's energy. If they were confident and happy, they would have a much greater chance at winning. "This dance is about invincible strength. It's all about being strong."
Meanwhile outside, Josephine was sitting with the mini moms.
"How do you feel about the group?" Yolanda piped up.
"The group dance is about punk rock, women being empowered, being strong," Stacey began, "We've got props: we have guitars, we have keyboards, drumsticks, we have a lead singer. There's a lot going on in this dance. We have to even decorate the props. It should be fun."
"I think this week it's huge that we pull off a win it's just after being benched last week right? They need a big win," Tiffanie pointed out.
"It's in Calabasas and you never know who's gonna show up for Southern California," Sari replied, worried that they would have fierce competition during the weekend.
Back in the studio, Chris was counting the beats as each mini did a leg hold at a separate count. Elliana went first, then Areana, then Keira, then Lilliana, then Peyton, and lastly Alexus. This was to make sure the kids who have good control do the leg hold first because they're able to hold it for longer.
Elliana then did a lift with Keira, but it was a little messy.
"Okay you guys gotta wait for the person," Chris corrected, "Don't go. Don't be like just do it and then they're not ready. Do it again."
Elliana and Keira did the lift again, this time nailing it perfectly.
Rehearsal continued on as Chris corrected them, but never raised his voice, "We got to get a better musicality. Counts, right? Let's drill it."
The minis rehearsed their group. "Five, six, seven, eight..."
"Peyton you got to control that little slow leg extension going down, one more time."
"Big arms, boom!"
At this, Keira made sure her movements were big, that the audience could clearly see what she was doing.
"Our timing's a little off," Chris commented, "Let's do it again."
Keira counted in her heart, hitting all the moves on the right counts. However, she could also see in the mirror that not everyone was keeping up. She hoped Abby wouldn't yell at them later, because the group dance was pretty messy.
Speak of the devil, Abby soon walked in, along with Josephine and the moms. Josephine beamed and gave her niece a big thumbs up, noticing how Keira had little strands of hair that fell out of her bun during rehearsal. She honestly thought it was cute, especially because it showed how hard Keira was practicing.
"Let's see it with the music from the top," Abby instructed as Keira got into her position. Ten seconds into the dance, Abby let out a weird yell, which reminded Keira of the kind of yell a fox would make. "What was that?!"
Chris sighed, these kids were going to be on the receiving end of Abby's wrath today.
"It's how clean, how precise your timing and musicality. Getting out there and working together as a cohesive unit and that's what you're lacking," Abby critiqued. "I don't want to see six soloists. If I want to see six solos I will do six solos. I want to see six kids that are able to work together."
Keira nodded, getting back to rehearsing again. Abby barked corrections at the team every few seconds, so it looks like they won't be getting home soon.
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Things were less tense in Yorba Linda as Scarlett was learning the second half of her 'Me Too' solo. Molly choreography was definitely challenging, and required a great attention to detail. In hopes of doing justice to such amazing choreography and music, Scarlett practiced non-stop at home yesterday night.
"Alright let's pick up where we left off yesterday," Molly instructed as Scarlett got up from stretching. She was wearing what she called her "Cinderella leotard", which was a baby blue leotard with small poof sleeves and a mesh neckline. Over the leotard was a royal blue ballet skirt. Scarlett was so happy to work with Molly. She truly felt like it was her secret fairy godmother that granted her this wish.
"Now do a leg hold...and relevé," Molly instructed. This was a very signature Molly solo move.
Scarlett followed along, making sure her arch looked great and her relevé was high.
"Now do a jazz walk over here and pose, pose, pose, pose, then do a standing front aerial."
Scarlett did the most sassy jazz walk she had ever done in her life, then posed for four counts of music. She subtly fixed her posture in the last pose. Then she landed a clean front aerial.
Molly then taught more dance steps. "Okay, now do a tilt jump and immediately afterwards a twist handstand. Then do a scorpion kick."
Scarlett had a decent height in her leap and the twist handstand was of course not a challenge to her. She then did her scorpion kick with so much force that the back of her calf hit her forehead.
Molly continued teaching the rest of the solo. It was clear that Scarlett was a quick learner and also someone who applies corrections quickly, key traits to make it far in the industry.
When they were done, Molly filmed a small excerpt of the dance without the music and posted it to her Instagram account. She then invited Jonathan to come in and watch.
"Dad, come dance with me!" Scarlett invited. Jonathan chuckled nervously, but didn't object.
And so, there was another video, equally as popular, that made its way to the Molly along Instagram feed, of another excerpt of Scarlett's solo, and Jonathan trying to keep up. And much to Molly's surprise, he wasn't half bad. It was captioned "Now I know where @scarlett.quinn.dancer gets her dance moves from 🤩"
Jonathan and Scarlett had a fun two days learning the solo, and Scarlett couldn't wait to compete it at the weekend.
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Scarlett practically lived in her costume ever since she received it the day before competition. She was competing it today and she couldn't wait to step on stage. She was also equally thrilled to see her sister and friends do their group.
First up was Brynn and Nia's duet War and Peace.
Keira loved the concept of the duo and thought it had great performance value.
Next up was Kalani and Kendall performing Push and Pull. Originally the duet was meant for Jojo and Kendall. Although the producers tried to make it look like Jojo chickened out because ballet was too hard, the fact was Jojo had better things to do. She signed a contract with Nickelodeon hence why she didn't perform.
Scarlett loved how the choreography looked on them, especially Kalani. It was clear Kalani was very well-trained in ballet and she definitely helped the duet.
Then the elites performed their group Suicide Hotline.
Josephine had tears in her eyes while watching. She had once lost a friend to suicide and the dance brought back so many happy memories she had with her friend.
Then it was the minis' turn. They did their jazz group Invincible.
Keira enjoyed being a punk rock star. She was completely in sync with Peyton during their tumbling sequence and she felt she nailed it.
After that, it was Scarlett's turn to perform. She fixed her costume one last time as Keira gave her a hug and whispered "good luck".
"Please welcome Entry 63 this is a mini jazz solo Miss Scarlett with Me Too."
It was the best time Scarlett performed her solo. She had the sass, she had the technique, but what set her apart was the star quality in her that nobody in the room could deny. She enjoyed every second of being on that stage.
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"Now, we have come to the teen duo/trio awards! In third place, we have Entry number 80, War and Peace!"
Scarlett and Keira sat next to each other on the stage as they listened to the awards being announced. Brynn and Nia got up accompanied by a round of applause.
"In second place, we have To Build A Home!"
"And in first place, congratulations goes to Push and Pull!"
Kalani and Kendall beam as they receive their first place trophy.
Awards continued with the teen and mini group each placing first in their respective categories. Invincible took home 3rd overall while Suicide Hotline won 1st overall, which was so deserved.
"Now let's move on to the top three highest scoring mini solos of the day. In third place, we have New Beginnings!"
"In second place, we have California Girls!"
"In first place, with a score of 294.5, Entry number 63 Me Too!"
The dance moms erupted in cheers as Scarlett graciously accepted her award. She truly deserved it. The future is bright for the Tisdall sisters, and this is only their first step to stardom .
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A/N: we have a new cover :D