To say Robyn was mad at Christi was an understatement. The woman was enraged. She was enraged at her outburst last weekend, enraged at how she spoke about her daughter, and enraged at how she brought Melissa's daughter into it as well.
This week, Robyn agreed to herself that she wasn't going to involve herself with Christi. If she had the choice, she would've just dropped her girls off and went back home to her husband, but that wasn't an option. The mother and her daughters both made their way into the studio and greeted Abby who was at the front desk.
"Robyn, I am so sorry about what happened last weekend. It's unbelievable how immature Christi acted that day." Robyn shook her head. "Honestly Ab, I'm not worrying about it today. I have other things to worry about." Abby nods. "You know, I spoke to her today. She wanted to see me earlier, but I gave her a new contract and we settled it. If she brings this back up again after we had that conversation, she's gone." Abby stated. "I'm not dealing with this again." Robyn nodded in agreement. "Neither am I."
~
Nini Layla
"Girls get in here! Let's go!" Abby called out the girls who were warming up in the dancers den. Nini sat between Chloe and Maddie as usual while Layla sat between Nia and Vivianne.
"I am very disappointed. Every single one of you could done better on your solo." Abby started. "Moving on, I want to forget about last weekend, because...what's happening this weekend?" The woman asks the girls. "The aldc showcase!" Paige answered in excitement.
"Thank you, yes!" Abby flips the chalkboard over.
Nini
Layla Maddie Brooke Nia
Chloe Paige Vivi Mackenzie
~
Abby: The annual Abby Lee Dance Company Showcase is an event that we do to showcase all of our competition numbers. This is when their family, friends, and all the people that don't really understand what they do, get to come and see the end result. This is how I decide what numbers go to regionals and nationals.
~
"We have a new number called 'Sugar Daddies' to do at the showcase." Abby then points to Nini's picture at the top of the chalkboard. "Nini, you won overall high score at the competition, boom." She points to Layla's photo. "Layla you got first in the petite devision, boom." She then turns to Nia. "Nia, you forgot the solo, kept dancing, made it up, went on, and finished with the music." Holly smiled.
Abby got to Chloe. "Chloe, you did a great job. There was some other situations that went on. You're here, I want to see that attitude improve." Christi rolled her eyes.
After giving out her critiques to the girls, she went on about the showcase. "So, I have a surprise. I don't want to pressure you, but in the audience...there will be an agent coming to seek new talent and looking for new clients to sign. One of you, could very well end this week with an acting job!" The girls all cheer and applause.
~
Nini: This week is a really big deal! I have to do amazing and impress the scout because...this could be my big chance to maybe end up on Broadway!
~
"Layla, you will be performing a new solo." Abby announced. "It's called "Like To Fuss" and it's going to be difficult." Layla smiled. She only ever did two solos, so she was really glad that Abby gave her a new one to showcase to the casting agent.
Abby doesn't stop there. "Moms...you will be performing in the show as well." The moms all give a look in disbelief as the girls cheer. "Oh and Cathy and Robyn will be the choreographers!" Robyn's smile drops as Cathy laughs. "Oh you guys are in for trouble." The rest of the moms all give sour looks.
~
Christi: I think Abby lays in bed at night and thinks if this stuff. We're going to be on stage like the hippos from Fantasia.
Robyn: It's been along time since I performed on stage, but pretty excited about this performance. I just wish that I didn't have to work with Cathy.
~
After giving out the assignments, Abby dismissed the moms and pulled Robyn aside to talk in the dancers den without the cameras present. Unfortunately, their mics were still on, so producers could hear every word of their conversation.
"I wanted to talk to you in here because the cameras are out there." Abby slightly whispered. "This is a huge week for Nini. You have to make sure she's on her A game!" Abby commanded. Robyn agreed. "I'll make sure she's at her best!" "Good! This is very important for her career as well as Layla's." "Don't worry Abby, the girls will do fine." "They better." Abby responded. "It will be humiliating for me if anyone but my top student gets noticed. I'm really counting on Nini this week. She has to make me look good."
"I get it Abby. She'll make you proud!" "Good, because she's going to have a special musical theater duet with Maddie." Robyn goes wide eyed. "No. Absolutely not." Abby looks at her in confusion. "Why not? It's just one extra dance." "Because..." Abby rolls her eyes. "Because what? Are you worried about Christi?" Robyn sighs. "No...it's not that. It's just...I'm not trying to have a part two of last weekend." "There won't be. Christi signed a contract, so she now knows that she has to keep her mouth shut."
"I know but I just don't feel like having more drama on top of this." "There won't be any drama. I won't allow it. You can't put your friendships above your child. You need to do this for Nini's sake." Abby says convincingly. "Alright fine. She'll do it." Robyn agrees."
~
The girls began rehearsing their new number with their prop sticks. It was nerve wracking to say the least. "C'mon girls! Do something with your face!" Abby instructed.
~
Abby: Sugar Daddies is a pop/jazz routine and they use props. They're rectangular in shape and they're big. It's just kind of a nightmare.
Nini: I'm really excited to learn our new routine, but the props are kind of hard to work with. We're practically waving around these giant sticks and it's scary because they're kind of dangerous.
~
"Girls! Can I see some emotional execution!" Abby says in annoyance.
~
It was silent in the viewing room. It was so quiet, you could hear a pin drop. It was very awkward and very uncomfortable. Christi was the first to speak up.
"Melissa, Robyn, I had some time to reflect and I'd like to apologize for last weekend. I'd also like to apologize to you guys, and everyone else. It wasn't my finest moment as an adult, person, or parent. I hope that we could all move past this."
~
Kelly: As far as the fight goes between Abby and Christi, I'm neutral. I see things I agree with on Christi's side and same with Abby.
~
"I just wanted to apologize-" "Me too." Melissa interrupts. "It was just awful. I don't want to talk about it. We can just put it behind us." Robyn nods. "I agree...but I don't know Christi...Nini blames herself for what happened."
~
Christi: The thing with Melissa is...she doesn't like confrontation, so when you finally confront her, it's "oh no, everything's fine, let's move on." So you know what, we'll put on the nice front and move on.
Robyn: I'm glad Christi apologized, but I'm not sure how I feel at the moment. I think that the girls are the ones who are owed an apology. She screamed and carried on in front of them and made them feel guilty. Nini felt horrible after the competition because she blamed herself for what happened.
~
"I understand that Robyn, which is why I'm giving you an apology." Robyn nods. "I get that, but I think that the girls also deserve an apology."
~
Robyn: Abby chose me and Cathy to choreograph a mom dance together. She knows I can't stand that woman, but I'm willing to work with her just this once. I'm doing this for my daughters.
~
It was the next morning and Robyn was dreading this day. She had to co-choreograph the mom dance with Cathy. She couldn't stand her. The two decided to meet up before the moms arrived to plan the choreography.
"Morning..." Robyn gave a polite greeting as she strolled into the studio as Cathy danced in front of the mirror. "Good morning!" The older woman said gleefully. The younger woman slid off her sunglasses and put them in her purse which she sat the chair next to the laptop that plays the music. She then went to stand with Cathy.
"So, I already have a few ideas for the choreography." Cathy speaks up. "I see..." Robyn watches distastefully. The dance looked like it was made for old ladies, but it was simple enough for the moms to pick up. Thankfully, Robyn came up with her own moves and both moms agreed come up with choreography on their own and work together to incorporate their dance styles together.
"So, we have to make this work for the sake of our daughters. Abby will hate us if we put something embarrassing on her stage." "Agreed, which is why we're doing the choreography I came up with." Cathy says. "We have to come up with something together." Robyn rolls her eyes.
"Well...I'm trying to do simple choreography that is going to make them look good, because I'm sure they all have two left feet."
Robyn angrily puts both hands on her hips. "Cathy, that is so fucking rude." "It's the truth!" The older woman responded. "It's not, they can all dance...decently."
Before Cathy respond, the other moms walk in.
The arguing pair immediately put on a smile and greeted them. "Good morning ladies!" Robyn said as she put on a cheerful facade.
"Hello!" They all smiled and greeted back. "You girls ready?" Cathy asks. "I don't think we'll ever be ready." Kelly says jokingly.
~
Kelly: I was one of Abby's students years ago, so it's weird for me to be in the studio again as a dancer and not as a dance mom.
~
The girls giggle and watch their moms as Cathy teaches a part that she came up with. "That is so embarrassing!" Paige laughs. As Robyn taught the part she came up with, Holly slipped in. "Hi Holly." Cathy calls her out. "You look like you're ready to dance." Robyn looks around and notices that a certain blonde was missing. "Christi's not here." She sighs. "Obviously." Cathy rolls her eyes and goes back to teaching her own parts.
~
Robyn: I don't know where Christi is, but if we have to be here doing this, she needs to be here too. Seems like there's always something with Christi nowadays.
~
"Step ball change!" Robyn instructs. "Actually Robyn, I think we should change that. I think it would be great if we made that a turn and then a step back." Cathy suggests. Robyn stops and glares at the older woman. "It's just a suggestion." Cathy brushes it off. "I don't care. You're not changing my choreography." "But don't you want it to be good?" Robyn wanted to punch her right then and there, but she had to remember that she was on camera. What would she look like putting hands on old ladies on national tv. The woman gritted her teeth. "I said what I said. I'm not changing anything."
Cathy rolls her eyes. "Why are you so mad? I just gave a suggestion." Robyn raised her brows. "Why am I mad? You just insulted my choreography and-"
The door swung open and Christi ran in with an amused expression on her face as she joined the line of moms. "You're late Christi." Cathy scolded. "It was nice for you to finally grace us with your presence."
Robyn nodded in a agreement. "I normally wouldn't agree with Cathy, but you should've called if you were going to be late. You missed a lot."
Christi could clearly care less about the dance and Robyn saw that.
~
Robyn: Christi was late and clearly doesn't care, but we have to do this for the girls' sake. If this doesn't go right, Abby would never let us live it down, and she'd target our daughters for it.
~
Cathy faces the mirror once again. "Christi, just try to follow along and we'll teach you what we did before you got here later." Christi nodded and got into position.
"You're going to do it one at a time." Cathy said after they practiced for a little while. Christi gives a look of disbelief. "Cathy, this isn't funny to me. This is humiliating." "We like to be a group." Kelly added. "I know, but it's very important that we show that we could go out and do something on our own."
"Cathy this is stupid. They don't need to do it one at a time." Robyn crosses her arms. "They're doing just fine as a group." "No, Robyn they need this. How about you go first. Show them!" Robyn sighs. "Fine." Cathy starts the music and Robyn demonstrates the side, step move.
The girls gather as they continue to watch from the viewing room. "Wow, Nini your mom is really good!" Chloe praises. Nini smiles. "Thanks! That's where I get all my talent from!" The girl sassily flips her hair as her friends giggle.
Kelly follows after Robyn and the girls continue to laugh. "Oh my god, my said she used to be a good dancer." Paige says making the girls laugh harder. "Things have changed." "Oh come on Paigey! Mrs. Kelly isn't that bad!" Nini chuckles. The girls found it amusing to watch their moms dance.
Melissa goes next but laughs when she messes up.
The moms cheer as Holly dances after her. "Okay, Miss Holly! I see you!" Robyn hyped her up. "Oh my god Holly, you were amazing!" Cathy praises her.
She and Cathy do the dance once more together.
"Wow look at Mrs. Holly go!" Nini cheers. "That's where Nia gets her talents from!" Nia giggles as the girl reaches over and taps her shoulder.
Lastly, it was Christi's turn and she was not into this. "Oh my gosh, if you stop worrying about it, maybe you'll have fun." "I don't want to have fun. I like being backstage." Christi said. "No one wants to see a fatass old mother dancing on stage."
"Oh my god Christi. Have some confidence!" Robyn says in annoyance. "I get it, I haven't been on stage since I was twenty years old, but we just have to let lose and have fun. The faster you learn this dance, the faster we can be done with this whole thing."
Christi still wasn't into it, but they all moved and finished the dance, but not without more of Cathy's sarcastic comments towards Robyn. It was a very long night for the dance mom.
~
The next day arrived. There was three more days until the showcase and Abby called all the girls and mothers into the studio.
"I have a big announcement to make." The dance teacher starts. "We have a casting associate from Telsey+Company coming right here to my studio to look at all of you. They are casting the new production of Annie on Broadway." Nini squealed and clapped with joy.
~
Nini: Telsey+Company is a big casting agency. They not only cast people big Broadway shows, but they also cast for tv and movies as well! It's my dream to be on Broadway someday because I'm a huge theater nerd and I love to perform! This is huge and can lead to all of us having our big break!
~
"Cesar is the representative that will be in town and he wants you to have a résumé and a picture ready." Abby looks to the mothers. "Apparently Cathy and Holly have something better to do, so please make sure they know what's going on. I don't want their kids to be left out because they weren't here." She dismisses the moms and begins to practice the 'Sugar Daddies' dance with the girls.
~
Another day passed and the girls began getting their headshots taken at the studio. It was exciting! Nini and Layla both loved photo shoots! It always made them feel like glamorous models!
After Robyn got their hair and makeup done, she got them dressed in the outfits that Abby requested that they wore. Layla wore a jersey dress while Nini wore a teal snake skin two-piece costume from a previous solo.
~
Layla: I love taking pictures because feel really pretty and like a model!
~
Their Headshots
~
After the photoshoot, the girls changed back into their regular dancewear and went into rehearsal for the new group dance routine. The rehearsal was going smoothly with Abby's usual yelling. "They're really heavy." Paige said after the girls got into their ending pose. "They're really heavy?" Abby says, not liking the comment. The girls and Gianna all agree that they are heavy on their wrists. "If any of you ever work professionally, a comment like that is going to get you fired." Abby lectures.
Nini gives a confused look. She has worked professionally before and this wasn't the case. At least it wasn't the case for the movies and photoshoots she worked on, but she wasn't going to talk back.
"Let's go, from the top."
~
Paige: The Sugar Daddy props were bigger than I was, so they were hard to work with.
Nini: Dancing with props is really hard, especially when the props are attached to a long stick. I'm really scared that someone is going to get poked in the eye at some point.
~
"Left leg higher on the straddle!" Abby instructed.
As Brooke did her leap, she landed in front of Paige. Suddenly, cries of pain could be heard. The entire team stops as Abby walks up to a tearful Brooke. "What happened?" Abby asked. Paige explained that her back hit Brooke's prop which caused the older girl to get hit in the mouth.
Layla practically latches herself on to Brooke as Kelly came out the viewing room to see if she was okay. "The show must go on." Abby says Kelly tells Brooke to keep dancing. After the commotion ended, the girls went right back to practice.
~
Brooke: If I were a cheerleader, I would never get hit in the face with a pompom.
~
While the girls were dancing, Abby sent Christi and Kelly to send out flyers. While they did that, Robyn posted ads on her Facebook and Twitter. Although she knew that Abby was technically punishing the two moms by making them go out to hand out flyers, Robyn was kind of jealous. She wished she could be out of the studio for a bit instead of stuck behind a computer.
She loved seeing the duo get to have fun. She always felt like Abby was trying to separate her from the other moms. Throughout the day, she would constantly bring up Christi in attempts to make Robyn stay mad at her. It was like Abby was enjoying the fact that Robyn would separate herself from them to avoid her.
The mom began to feel guilty. Christi was her friend and all though she was awful last week, she felt like she should fully patch things up. Christi did apologize earlier that week, but she and Melissa only accepted the apology to move on. After that talk, Robyn hadn't said a single word to Christi all week. It wasn't hard considering she spent a lot of time working with the other students to rehearse for the recital.
Although it was hard to avoid Christi, Robyn was sick of doing it. Drama exhausted her. She made it a point to reconcile with the other mom after the recital was over. Little did she know, the drama that would ensue from a tiny duet.
~
The next morning arrived. The recital was in one day and Abby was more than excited to rehearse Layla's solo along with Maddie and Nini's duet. She had the three girls in the studio as the others waited in the den to rehearse the group dance.
She gave the girls their costumes to try on as they danced. Maddie and Nini wore glittery black unitard outfits with bow ties while Layla wore a pink zebra print two piece.
The dance teacher, happy with the costumes, begins rehearsal.
"Alright girls, Layla you will run your solo first and then the duet will be next." "Okay!" Layla said as she quickly put on her jazz shoes.
Nini and Maddie go to stretch in the back while they wait for their turn.
"Do you remember what I said about the tap solo?" Abby asks the five year old. "You told me that I have to not only do my dance, but I have to perform!" Layla answers. "That is correct!" Abby high fives her. "Your mother told me you were practicing this at home." "Yep! I practiced for a long time!" Layla said with confidence. "Alright let's see it." Abby motioned for Layla to begin dancing. Gianna turned on the music and the girl began.
Layla started her solo off strong with perfect facial expressions. However, the girl being only five, didn't have perfect balance and she continuously kept falling out of turns and wasn't landing her leaps. Abby was highly disappointed. After her correcting her over and over again, the dance teacher told her to stop.
She motioned for the child to come over to her. "You really practiced at home?" She asked. Layla simply nodded. "It doesn't look like it." Abby said bluntly. "That looked like you just learned it five minutes ago."
The girl's lip began to quiver as she attempted to hold back tears that were threatening to spill out. The girl's eyes darted between her sister and Abby. The older girl mouthed "don't cry" and motioned for her to breathe. Layla did what she was told, blinking back her tears and sucking in her breath.
"It's really hard." She told her teacher. Abby looked at her as if she spoke in simlish. "I told you it was going to be hard. I'm not going to water down my choreography because it's hard for you. You have to shape up and learn it and do it as it was taught to you. You're not a baby anymore."
Layla nodded and fidgeted with the hem of her skirt her teacher spoke.
"If you were working as a backup dancer and you tell the choreographer that their choreography was too hard...they're going to fire you on the spot and hire someone else." Abby gestures for her to leave. "Go. Get some water, wash your face, and collect yourself. We'll go back over it in a bit."
After Layla left to get her water, Abby gestured the older duo over to practice their duet. The girls grab wooden boxes and come over to the mirror. "Let's see the duet. Jazz Babies from the top." Gianna once again plays the music.
The two girls execute the choreography perfectly, however the two were completely out of sync. "Stop, stop, stop." Abby called out. The girls stopped in their tracks. "You both where out of sync. Fix it." The duo acknowledge's their teacher's critiques and attempted to fix it. However that resulted in them trying to watch what the other was doing. "Stop watching each other!" Abby raises her voice.
"You can't try to watch what the other is doing. You need to already know what you're doing. Start again!" The girls start a third time. This time, getting it right. The girls look at Abby for input and she gives the "meh" hand gesture.
"It was better, but I need to see more energy. Do it again."
After running it a few more times, Abby stopped them. "Girls listen," Abby starts. "This dance is extremely important. If you want to be noticed by the Broadway scout, you have to nail this number. If you want a future in Broadway, this is important. This is a musical theater number, so you need to preform." The girls nod obediently. "Yes Miss Abby." "Yes ma'am."
~
Two hours has passed and the other moms were getting frustrated. They sat in the dancer's den for ages waiting on Abby assuming she was only doing Layla's private lesson. "We have a group dance to rehearse and she's in there doing a two hour private." Christi scoffs. "It's a Downey kid. Are you surprised?" Kelly responds. "No, I'm not." Christi said. Kelly sighed. "I don't understand...why is she taking two hours to practice a solo she's been working on the whole week." "Because Robyn's girls gets special treatment." Christi says.
As they were talking, Robyn walked in. "Hey ladies!" The two moms greeted back as she placed down her purse and sat down. "The girls aren't out yet?" "Girls? As in plural?" Kelly asked. "Yeah they're-" "Mommy!" Layla exits the studio and runs into her mom's arms with Maddie and Nini trialing behind her. "Hi my love!" Robyn kisses her daughter's head and pulls her oldest closer. "Lemme see these costumes!" Robyn admired the girls' glittering outfits.
"All of you were doing a private?" Christi asked, both her and Kelly eyeing Maddie and Nini's costumes. They knew Layla had a solo, but they were confused on duet. It looked like a brand new costume which meant they had a brand new duet.
"Nini and I were rehearsing a duet!" Maddie said gleefully. "Ohhh a new duet nice!" Kelly smiled. "Yeah, very nice." Christi said giving a look to Robyn. Once again she was doing something sneaky. Robyn looked at Christi and then back at the kids. "Girls, you should go change for the group dance rehearsal. Layla honey you go too. Take off this costume so it doesn't get messed up.
"Okay!" The girls all grab their dance bags and leave. Gianna calls the other girls into class as well, leaving the moms in the den alone.
~
Christi: I can't believe this. Last week, Abby gave Maddie and Nini two solos each and now...they're doing a brand new secret duet. Probably to impress the talent scout. Of course she would and of course Melissa and Robyn would allow it.
~
Before Nini walked into rehearsal, Abby pulled her aside to talk alone in studio B. "Let's have a conversation because I need to make sure you understand how much of a big deal this is." The teacher said. "I understand how major this! It's my dream to be on Broadway!" Nini responded. "Good, so you know, I'm expecting you to be the one he picks. Right?" "Right!" The girl nodded. Abby put a hand on her shoulder and looked her dead in the eyes. "I'm counting on you to represent our studio. You're my number one girl, so you need to act like it in front of the scout. Your singing, dancing, and acting need to be on par. Understand?"
The child nods as she takes a deep, shallow breath. Her body tensed as Abby spoke about her making the studio look good. She had a huge responsibility tomorrow and she didn't have room to fail. Abby was counting on her. She couldn't blow it. "Yes, Miss Abby I understand! I'll make you proud!" The girl said as she painted on a smile.
~
After the conversation, the pair walked in as the other's rehearsed. She spotted Chloe with her hair down and asked her to put it up. Gianna states that she told her multiple times to put it up which resulted in Abby having the girl do push ups.
After she was done, Chloe was sent out the room after attempting to turn without putting her hair up. The blonde left the room in tears with Nini following her.
Nini wiped her tears as they fell. "Don't cry Chloe." She hugged her friend, trying her hardest to make her feel better. She helped her tie her hair in a low ponytail, gave her a peck on the cheek, and went back to class before Abby came out.
~
Back in the dancer's den, Christi waited for the girls to leave before talking. "So...a brand new duet?" "Yes Christi." Robyn rolls her eyes. "Is there a problem?" The blonde crosses her arms. "Yeah there is and I hope you know that I heard what Abby said earlier this week."
"What Abby said about what?" Robyn asked in confusion. "Oh please, don't act so clueless. I heard what Abby said about making sure Nini gets seen. As quote: "It will be humiliating for me if anyone but my top student gets noticed." Does that sound familiar?"
"Oh...how did you...when did you?" Robyn asks as the guilt creeps up inside of her.
"I heard everything when you were talking to Abby and just as I predicted, you did nothing to stand up for the other kids!" Christi pointed a finger at her.
"I did Christi! I don't know if you heard, but I told her that the duet was a bad idea!"
Christi scoffs. "And yet, you still allowed them to do it!"
"Yes, because I refuse to hurt my daughter!" Robyn exclaimed.
Christi crossed her arms. "It wouldn't have hurt Nini to not do one duet. She has tons of solos entered in the showcase. She's going to be seen either way."
"It's not about her being seen. It's about making sure Abby doesn't get mad at her for me not letting her do the duet. I'm not putting a target on my daughter's back."
Christi found to hard to believe that Abby could ever put a target on Nini's back. "Either way, when Abby told you that it would be humiliating if anyone else got noticed by the scout, you should've said "Hey Abby, I think the girls all deserve the chance of being noticed." Don't you think?"
"What difference do you think it would have made?" Robyn asked. "You know Abby just like I do. So, what makes you think that saying that would change anything."
"The point is that you didn't try to advocate for the other girls!" Christi yelled. "That's my point! My point is that you allow the special treatment to happen. You see it and you say NOTHING!"
Out of the blue, Gianna pops in through the door.
"Ladies, we can hear you in here. Please keep it down."
Robyn apologizes and turns back to Christi. "This is embarrassing." She pokes the inside of her cheek with her tongue.
"What's embarrassing is that you keep pulling things like this." Christi responds. "From secret privates, to extra solos, and now a secret duet? What's next? Going to secret competitions? How many times will you keep doing this?"
"Stooping low? This is nothing. I don't even understand what you're mad about. You're just starting drama for the hell of it now and I'm done! You've been at my throat over the smallest things and I'm over it!" Robyn whisper yells.
"Absolutely over it! Goodbye Christi, I'm done with this conversation!"
~
That same night, Robyn sat with Nini in the family's dance room. She planned to run the girls' dances, but Layla dozed off on the sofa as soon as she got home and Robyn didn't have the heart to wake up her up to dance.
Since Nini was awake, she decided to focus on her duet.
Nini sat in a straddle stretch pose with her stomach to the floor as Robyn pressed on her back to help her warm up. "Mom..." Nini spoke. "Yes baby?" Robyn answered. "I'm scared..." the girl said with a shaky voice. "Miss Abby said she is counting on me to be amazing and represent the ALDC tomorrow. What if I do badly and she hates me?" Robyn frowns. She hated hearing her daughter think like that and she hated the pressure Abby always put her through.
The mother strokes her daughter's back and lightly taps it to signal for her to sit up. She turns her daughter to face her and cups her cheek. "Forget what Miss Abby says. Don't think about her words. You're going to do amazing and I'm sure she's going to be proud of you no matter what."
"That's not true..." Nini sighed. Abby was not that type of person and Robyn knew that inside. "Well...yeah..." Robyn said softly. "She does have a tendency to hold mistakes against you, but as long as you show that you're passionate about this audition and you're working hard to impress the talent scout, she'll still be pleased. You just need to focus on you."
The girl smiles as she throws herself into her mother. The woman hugs her tightly presses a kiss on top of her head and strokes her hair. "I don't want you to feel like you have to "represent" the studio in any way. You are not the ALDC's mascot. You are a regular dancer just like the everyone else, so don't you get hung up on that."
After a few more minutes of warm-up, Robyn began running the sugar daddy number with Nini with the newly finished prop that Abby had the moms take home. Robyn watched Nini dance from a bench. Everything was going well and Nini was doing perfectly until the prop suddenly snapped in half. The girl froze. This couldn't be happening. The prop was the most important thing in this number and it broke. "No! No. No. No. No." the girl panicked.
Robyn quickly ran over from the bench. "Nini it's okay honey." "No! No it's not!" The child cried. "I broke it! I broke the prop!" Robyn quickly took the two broken pieces from Nini and directed her to the bench.
"I'll talk to Abby about how to fix this. You don't worry about this. This is a flimsy piece of shit anyways. Excuse me."
"S-She's going to be so m-mad mom!" Nini hiccups.
Robyn sits and strokes her back. "Calm down my love, she's not going to be mad. We'll figure this out."
"But I broke my prop...she gets so mad when the other girls even drop their props. She's going hate me! She's going to scream at me!" Nini breath hitches.
"Baby, she's not going to hate you." Robyn brings her into her arms once again. "You have to take a deep breath. We'll figure out the prop when we get to the studio tomorrow."
~
The day everyone was waiting for has arrived. Cesar the talent scout was visiting the ALDC and the girls were going to do auditions for him. The entire studio was in a frenzy, especially Abby. "Girls, come on let's go! We're going to be here all night." Abby yelled. Her booming voice could be heard all across Pittsburgh. All the students and teachers all gathered to help tidy the studio.
~
Abby: A major Broadway casting agent is coming all the way from New York City to come to MY studio. This is unheard of.
Robyn: The Broadway agent is coming today and Abby is very clearly on edge. I'm sure all of Pennsylvania can hear her yelling.
~
"You won't leave me alone! I'm trying to clean my desk." Abby frantically said to Melissa. "God look at the floor!"
Nini and Layla helped their teacher sweep the main floor as Robyn and Melissa helped Abby pick up trash.
"All I want is five minutes for everyone to leave me alone." The teacher yelled. Robyn took that as her cue to get all the students out of that area.
After the studio was spotless or as clean as it could get, Abby gathered all her students, including the elite team into studio A. "I need you guys to impress him. I need him to want to come back for one of you years from now. Be perfect." The dance teacher says as she makes eye contact with Nini. "This could be your big break." Abby had high expectations for the girl. She wanted, no, expected that she'd be noticed by Cesar. The dance teacher always had high expectations for the young dancer and this was nothing different.
As Abby was talking, Melissa greeted Cesar as he came through the door.
Melissa directed him to studio A. All the moms and girls greeted him as he walked in. "Hi everyone, how are you! As you all know, I am from Telsey+Company. We cast shows Wicked like In the Heights, and we're always looking for young talent."
~
Paige: Cesar is very interesting looking. He had a big Mohawk that went straight up and everyone thought it was really cool!
Robyn: When Cesar said that the company casts Wicked, Nini's eyes just lit up! Wicked is one of her favorite musicals of all time.
~
"And for you guys..." Cesar continues. "We just casted a Disney movie with kids..." the girls gasped in excited as he mentioned the casting. "...so you never know where we're going to find the next star."
After Cesar went over how the auditions were gonna go, the mothers and daughters went straight into the dancers den to prepare. Each mom was helping their daughters get ready with pep talks, running lines, and practicing their dancing. Abby was on edge as well. She even yelled at Nia about her headshot not being a specific measurement.
"My legs won't stop shaking." Chloe says as her knee bounces around. "Mine too!" Nini says as she bounces in her own chair. As Melissa helped Maddie, Nini sat with Chloe and Christi as her own mother was busy preparing Layla. She knew Layla had the tendency to get overwhelmed and emotional, so she understood why her mom decided to focus on keeping her sister calm. Also, Robyn was avoiding Christi, but both women were too busy with their daughters to care.
"We should practice our lines together." Chloe suggested. "Let's do it!" Nini scooted closer to her on the bench. The pair leaned against each other, linking arms, as they practiced reading off their lines.
After a few minutes, the moment was interrupted as Abby called Chloe in to audition first. It was clear that the girl was not ready and her nerves were getting to her. Nini noticed her friend was in distress and went over to Abby. "Excuse me Miss Abby." "Yes, What do you need?" The dance teacher answered, slightly agitated that Chloe had yet to go in. "Do you think I could go first? I'm more used to auditioning and I would like to do my audition first." The girl nervously fidgeted with her script as she awaited her teacher's answer.
"No." The teacher said bluntly. "I want Chloe to go first. You have experience, she doesn't. She needs to learn to be ready." The child nodded sadly and went back to her friend who was on the verge of tears. "I'm sorry, Chlo. I tried to go first, but Miss Abby said she wanted you to go first." "It's okay Nini." The girl said softly. Nini hugged and cheered her on.
~
Christi: Of course Abby made Chloe go first. She wanted her to be her little guinea pig, so she can come back and give the other kids notes.
~
"Chloe it's okay, go! Don't cry!" Christi tells her as she walks through the door. Although it wasn't too long. It felt like she was in there for ages. Soon, she was done and it was Nia's turn. After Nia, it was Brooke and Paige.
Both Robyn and Nini could see by Abby's reactions that the girls weren't exceeding her expectations.
Nini had to kill it in her audition or Abby was going to flip.
After Brooke and Paige came out, Abby gathered the girls together. "Listen to me. This is not Abby Lee Miller's problem, this is your school teacher's problem. You didn't read the sentence. Don't you do reading comprehension at school? This is way beyond the realm of dance teacher."
Christi and Kelly rolled their eyes as Robyn rubbed her temple and Melissa gives a look of annoyance.
~
Melissa: Abby got mad at the girls for their reading comprehension, but she always says that dance needs to come before school.
Robyn: Abby was telling the girls that they need to pay attention in school. Read at school and do this and do that, but our girls don't even go to school. They miss school all the time to be here because dance has to be their number one priority.
~
Up next it was time for the littles to go on and Robyn was in shambles. She was so nervous that Layla would burst in to tears. As she did her hair, she watched and shook her head as Melissa argued with Mackenzie about singing. "Get the keys and go in the car." She told the six year old. "But I don't wanna go in the car." Kenzie whined. "That's why we're here to sing. I spend all this money for you to sing." "Melissa, she doesn't wanna sing." Robyn says as she put bobby pins in to secure Layla's bun.
"But Robyn, I spend all this money on her voice lessons. If she doesn't sing, Abby will flip out."
"Abby will survive." Robyn shrugs.
As Robyn talked to Melissa, Abby called Vivianne, Layla, and Mackenzie over to her. "No matter what they ask you, the answer is yes. Put the "s" on."
Robyn scratches her head in concern. Telling children to say yes to whatever a grown man tells them to do is a terrible message.
"Hey ladies!" Cesar smiled as the girls walked in along with Abby. "This is Mackenzie, Layla, and Vivianne." The girls gave their headshots to Cesar. "Have fun okay?" The girls nodded and went to the floor. Vivianne and Mackenzie did a duet that Abby did with them while Layla was told to improv since Abby thought she would be good enough to do so.
Robyn, Cathy, and Melissa sat in the viewing room to see them. Layla watched Kenzie and Vivi as they danced. When they were done, Cesar asked Mackenzie if she would sing. Melissa looked irritated as Mackenzie shook her head "no." Abby could be heard telling Mackenzie in the background to sing.
Cesar looked Mackenzie in the eye. "You don't have to sing if you don't want to." An angry Abby walked in and interrupted. "Didn't we have a little chat about saying yes when he asks you anything? The money your mother spends on voice lessons..." Abby makes a chopping motion across her neck. "Abby, I appreciate you helping them in, but I want to ask if you can step out. They tend to get nervous." Cesar tells Abby. He then looks over at Mackenzie. "Next time I see you, you're going to sing for me right?" Mackenzie nods and smiles, relieved that she won't have to sing.
Melissa met Mackenzie back in the dancers den along with Cathy as Robyn stayed to watch Layla do her audition. Abby thought it would be easier on her if she auditioned alone, so Robyn went along with it.
"Hi, Layla!" Cesar smiles. "Hello!" The child says shyly, trying to avoid looking at her mom who was watching. "Are you ready to show me what you have?" "Yes I am!" The girl smiled and went to the middle of the floor. "Whenever you're ready." Cesar said.
The music plays and Layla begins dancing.
She did her best to show off the all skills she learned so far. She even managed to nail her turns and leaps! Robyn was super proud of her and so was Abby. After her dancing, it was time for her to say her lines. She stuttered and messed up a few times, but overall she did fine. The thing Robyn was most worried about was the acting portion, so she was glad that she did well and didn't burst into tears.
Lastly, it was time for her to sing. Like Mackenzie and Maddie, Layla and Nini were also in singing lessons. Robyn was worried that Layla would refuse to sing, but fortunately she more than ready to show off her vocal skills.
(The song starts at 0:15)
Out of her entire audition, Cesar was most impressed with Layla's singing. He just HAD to give her a standing ovation. "That was wonderful!" He clapped. When he sat back down, he told her to come forward. "You are a fantastic little singer. Your voice is really mature for your age." "Thank you!" The child giggled. "I am so serious. I think you'd have a bright future." "Thank you mister!" "You are very welcome!" Cesar smiled.
Layla confidently walked out to greet her mom. "Mommy I did so good!" Robyn lifted her into her arms and showered her with kisses. "I saw! Mommy's so proud of you!"
After Layla, Maddie was next. "You ready?" Nini asked. Maddie simply shook her head. "I'm scared." "Me too." The girls held hands as they walked together towards the door. Maddie was Abby's other favorite, so she also had to do just as well as Nini. Once she was done, she and Nini shared a quick hug. "It's your turn." Nini gulped. This was it. She was the last to audition, so she had to do the best. Like Abby said, she had to represent the studio. She had to be the one he came back for.
After Robyn came from the viewing room, she met Nini at the door. "Yeah ready my love?" Nini gave a nervous smile. "Little bit." Abby came up and patted her back. "Remember what I said?" "I remember." The girl gave a thumbs up and went inside. Despite the fact that she's done many auditions before, this may have been the most stressful audition she's ever done.
"Hi, sir!" She smiled politely. "You don't have to be so formal, you can just call me Cesar." "Okay," the girl said. She stood as tall as she could with her hands behind her back. Cesar could tell she has done this before. Despite her nerves, she appeared calm and collected. She handed him her résumé and headshot. "You can start whenever you're ready," Cesar gestured to the floor.
The girl walked towards the middle of the floor. The music started and she began her improv.
(Her dance starts at 0:35)
As usual, she nailed the dance portion of her audition. There was no doubt that she would do great. It was singing and acting she was nervous about. She had acting experience before, but this time, Abby was here and she had no room to mess up. She took a deep breath and began reading from her script, getting her lines perfectly. You couldn't tell from her voice, but Cesar could see how nervous she was by her hand shaking as she read.
"Do you mind stopping for a second?" He asked. Nini holds her breath as he stopped her. She could feel her heartbeat racing. Did she fail? Was she really doing this badly? Why did he make her stop? Her brain thought of Abby. If she failed, she'd be very angry with her. She'd hate her and she wouldn't be her number one girl anymore.
She was pulled out of her thoughts by Cesar's voice. "Nini it's okay. Take a deep breath." "I'm sorry sir, I can do better." She says shakily. Cesar gives her a warm smile. "You're doing amazing Nini. I just need you to breathe and be calm. I can see your hand shaking." The girl takes a deep breath. "Go ahead and keep going."
Nini holds her chin up high and continues on. This time, she read with more confidence. She beamed when she finished perfectly. She was proud of herself.
Cesar claps for her. "Very good! You're a great actress Nini! I just think that you get anxious, but that's very normal. Everyone gets anxious from time to time. Especially during auditions." "Thank you so much!" Nini grinned. "Just work on breathing and staying calm. Just know, whenever someone stops you in an audition, it doesn't automatically mean you're doing badly and I think that's what you thought. I think you got nervous because I stopped you and assumed you were doing a bad job."
"I did. It scared me because wanted to do a perfect job. I was so worried that you were stopping me for that reason." Nini responded. "Well, you did do a perfect job, so there's need to worry okay?" "Okay!"
Last up, it was time for her to sing. She wasn't as nervous as she was with her acting. She knew she was a pretty good singer.
Cesar couldn't help but smile as he nodded along. "Your voice is very beautiful!" "Thank you!" Nini gave another grin. "It's really soft and sweet and I enjoy hearing you. Your vocal coach should be very proud!" The child sighed in relief hearing all the positive feedback. "Very amazing job!" Cesar shook her hand.
"Thank you! Thank you so much for your time!" Nini bowed and left.
~
As soon as she made it out the door, she bolted into her mother's arms with tears streaming down her face.
"Oh baby...what's the matter?" "I'm just so relieved..." with those words, Robyn's worried expression turned into happiness. "He said I did amazing mom!" "I'm glad!" Robyn kissed her head. "I saw how you did." Abby came over with a pleased look on her face. "You didn't let the nerves get to you and you calmed yourself down without breaking down into tears. You danced amazing as usual, your acting was good, and your singing was great. Good work! I'm proud of you!" "Thank you Miss Abby!" The two shared hug.
Not long after, Cesar left, saying he'd see everyone at the showcase the next evening.
Abby wasn't happy with most of the auditions and ninety present of the girls were in distress by the end of the night.
~
Abby: I was not pleased with my girls' auditions. Even Nini messed up a little bit, but at least she was able to continue on and nail the rest. Layla was good was well, but she definitely wasn't perfect. These girls need to step it up and bring their A game on stage when Cesar comes to see them tomorrow.
~
The next morning, Melissa went shopping with Cathy to look at accessories they could use for the mother dance. While they were doing that, Robyn ran her girls' dances at home before leaving to go to the recital venue. Nini had to practice without a prop until Robyn figured what to do with her broken lollipop. She would've asked Abby yesterday, but with all the audition chaos, there wasn't a good time to bring it up. Especially with Abby being on edge the way she was.
The dress rehearsal was six hours before the showcase and the entire studio had to meet at the venue. Robyn made sure to bring the broken prop with her to show Abby.
~
Christi: It's our annual dance company showcase. It's every mother's nightmare. The dress rehearsal and the showcase is insane. We're running down the hallway, bobby pins are flying, kids are out of breath, and people are frustrated and upset. It's absolute madness.
Robyn: Showcase days aren't usually my favorite. They will always be one hundred times more chaotic than competition days.
~
In the middle of the rehearsal, Abby met the girls and moms backstage in the green room. "Come on girls. I am behind schedule already. You need to be on stage ready to go. That's what a call time is. You need to be ready to dance with hair and make up on." She then looks at Nia. "Where's your mother?" "At work." Nia answered.
"Abby. She's been at work all weekend and she's not dancing today in the mom's dance." Cathy snitched. "She's not?" Abby asked in annoyance. "She's not." "Cathy I know you're upset but-" "I am," Cathy interrupted. "I'm a little upset because we had to repaginate and I'm not sure if we're totally comfortable with it. I have a brilliant idea...would you please do the honor-" Cathy said, insinuating that she wanted Abby to be in the dance. Abby getting the hint, immediately rejects the idea.
Robyn snorts. "I honestly cant believe that you even thought for a minute that Abby would agree to that." Cathy simply just gives her a glare.
"Girls," Abby said. "Remember there is an agent in the audience." She reminded everyone. "If you thought you were fabulous, then...be fabulous again. If you weren't fabulous, let em see what you can do."
~
Abby commanded all the students from a shadow box, giving them their cues to get on and off stage. The girls rehearsed all the dances they were set to perform while the moms got to rehearse the mom dance. During rehearsal, Melissa and Robyn were stressed about the lollipop props. They were super flimsy and Nini's stick already broke in half.
As Maddie started the dance, Nini followed. Before the other girls could come out, Abby stopped them. Looking furiously at the unfinished candy props.
As the girls were on stage, Cathy and Melissa rushed to add the red fabric to the props.
After the scolding the moms about the undone lollipops, Robyn met with Abby backstage. She mentioned that Nini's lollipop broke and surprisingly, the teacher wasn't too angry with her. Of course she was a little annoyed, but she took this as an opportunity for Nini to stand out more.
She had Nini rehearse without a prop, making slight positioning changes in order to make sure the dance didn't look off. Nini and Maddie had to mirror each other, so the dance was already off without her prop. After getting Nini to try the dance as normal, she had the two girls pass around Maddie's prop. That was too complicated, but Abby decided to keep the change for now. It was going to have to do.
~
The evening arrived and it was finally time for the event everyone was waiting for. The night of the showcase. Robert sat in the audience with Robyn's mother and sisters. He was excited to see his girls dance in person for the first time in a while.
Robyn on the other hand, was stressed out of her mind. She had to run around getting her girls ready, while also getting ready for the mom dance. Layla and Nini were also really nervous. Little Layla had many dances she had to remember, while Nini was most stressed out about the prop situation.
It wasn't long before it was time for the showcase to start. The girls had to perform numbers not only aired in the show, but numbers with other dancers that weren't featured on Dance Moms. In between acts, Gianna and other staff members directed back stage as Abby called out all the numbers.
Layla's new solo was coming up and she was very excited. The five year old, dressed in her costume, bounced around in her seat as her mom attempted to do her hair. "Sit still my love. We have to get his done quickly." Layla realized how much she was moving and began to sit still. Well, as still as a child could sit. "Sorry mommy, I'm just too excited! Robyn chuckles. "I can see that!"
The Mom finishes her hair, tying it into two big puffs adding pink bows to them.
The child stands in the wings awaiting her turn. The crowd cheers as Layla struts out on stage with Robert being the loudest. The father whips out his camcorder and begins recording as she got in her starting pose.
The music began and Layla started her performance as Abby's corrections echoed in her head.
The audience clapped as she ended with cute little match off the stage. "Mommy I did it!" She immediately ran to her mother who was watching in the wings! "I saw!" They share a hug. "I nailed all my turns!" "I'm so proud of you!" Robyn pats and rubs her back.
The girl then ran to her teacher who was sitting at a table not far from the stage. "Miss Abby did you see? I nailed my solo!" The woman smiled and gave her a big hug from her seat. "I saw! I'm so proud of you! You did it without any tears and complaining." She pats her back.
Next to go on was Maddie and Nini's duet. "We have to nail this." Nini whispered to her friend with trembling hands. "Miss Abby would have our heads on a platter if messed up in front of the Broadway scout." "I agree. We have to be perfect." Maddie whispered back as she held her friend's shaky hand. Nini was never usually anxious before a performance, but this was different. This was in front of a talent scout and Abby was counting on her getting noticed.
The girls broke apart with Maddie finding her way to opposite side of the stage. Some staff put out the now spray painted wooden boxes and the audience clapped as the girls got in position and came out.
Robert once again whipped out his camcorder.
(Nini starts on the left and Maddie starts on the right.)
Christi gave a disapproving look to Robyn as they danced. She couldn't believe she allowed them to do the duet even after their discussion.
As usual, the duo perfectly executed their routine down to their facial expectations. Just like she did for Layla, Robyn met Nini on the side of the wings and pulled both her and Maddie into her arms for a quick hug. Afterwards, the two girls met up with Abby.
The teacher quickly pulled the girls into an embrace.
"It was great! I'm pleased with your performance. I hope Cesar was pleased was well. Hopefully he'll pick either one of you."
She praises the girls' performance one last time before sending off to change into their Sugar Daddies costume.
~
To Robyn's dismay, the mom dance was up next. Dressed in black and white costumes picked out by Cathy, the moms all gathered backstage. The mothers walked out as elegantly as possible, perfectly executing the choreography. Robert watched fondly as his beautiful wife danced on stage. "I haven't seen my daughter on stage in years." Robyn's mom said, remembering when she used go to Robyn's recitals as a kid. In the middle of the dance, Cathy began doing new choreography, basically performing her own solo.
The mother's all plastered on a smile and attempted to laugh it off as the older woman took the spotlight. Robyn felt like a fool. All she and the other moms could do was awkwardly stand and smile until they were able to dance their way off stage.
"God, this was so embarrassing." Robyn grumbled to Abby. "I can't believe this. We looked like fools." Abby laughed. "She's over here trying to upstage everybody."
~
Kelly: Cathy knew there was a Broadway scout in the audience and she made us all look like fools out there.
Robyn: I felt embarrassed. I haven't been on stage in what? Ten years? I don't like to made a fool of, especially when it comes to dance. Cathy was truly working my last never, but all I could do was shake it off and be glad it was over. I had kids I needed to focus on.
~
After the mom dance, Robyn wasted no time getting to the green room. She did Nini's hair and makeup and the girl rushed to put on her costume. After getting ready, the girls were told to get back stage as Gianna would be bringing them their lollipops.
As Robyn was helping Melissa get the candy props together, frantic Gianna came in as she talked to Abby through an earpiece. "Abby said that Maddie won't be having a prop. Nini doesn't have one and they have to match each other." The mothers nod. Thanks for letting us know Gia. Robyn said as she handed her the props.
Robyn began worrying for the girls. They spent the previous night, practicing passing off a prop and now both of the girls had to go on without one.
Gia met up with Brooke and passed the lollipops off to her, telling her that Maddie wasn't going to have a stick either.
After Brooke told Maddie she wouldn't have one, the younger girl looks to Nini in worry. Nini felt scared and unprepared, but it's what had to be done. "In show business, you have to do things like this sometimes. You'll have to change things last minute." The girl said with a positive attitude. Maddie's worried expression turns into a smile. "You're right. This is what Miss Abby prepares us for!"
~
After another minute, Maddie and Nini walked on stage and got into their starting pose. They gave each other a grin and the music started.
Abby smiled with approval as the girls managed to do well despite the sudden change. However, Kelly, and Christi weren't happy about Maddie and Nini not having props.
~
Christi: Apparently Nini's lollipop broke, so Abby decided to take only Maddie's prop since they're both in the center. Of course the special ones that don't have to dance with a giant stick are those two. Since they have no props, your eyes naturally go to them. Thats how things go.
Robyn: I honestly think that Maddie not having a prop made the dance look cleaner. They were even and she and Nini didn't have to worry about passing around a giant lollipop the entire dance.
~
The rest of the night went by smoothly. The girls finished performing the rest of their solos and the showcase finished without a hitch. At the end, all of the dancers, including the moms, came out in their fanciest outfits for the last bow. Abby came out last as she thanked the audience for coming.
~
"There my girls are!" Robert beamed as he met the girls backstage holding two bouquets with the rest of the family following. "Daddy!" Robyn chuckles as their daughters squeal run into his arms. "You did beautifully!" He kisses both of them on the heads. He leans over and kisses Robyn as he hands her one of the bouquets, plucking two roses from it and handing them to his girls. The girls also greet their grandmother and aunts with hugs and kisses.
After the mini family reunion, Robert greeted Abby, handing her the second bouquet. "Great show as usual Abby." "Wow thank you Robert what a surprise! I appreciate this! I'm glad you liked it!" The teacher smiles. "None of the other dads do this for me." Abby says excitedly. The other mom's roll their eyes as Abby shades their husbands. Robert gives an awkward laugh. "Glad you like them!"
"I really do!" The teacher smiles. "It would be nice if you came by the studio more often since you're back home!" Robert agreed. "I'd love to do so. I want to be more present for my daughters." Abby grins in admiration. "That's really nice. I'm sure the girls would love that."
As Robert talks to Abby, Cesar came to greet the girls. "Hi girls, good job! You all were so good!" The girls all thanked him as he gave all of them a quick hug. He asks to speak with Maddie, Layla, and Nini. "Come with me girls." The other teammates look in disappointment as the three girls and their moms follow Cesar.
~
Cesar: Coming from New York, Maddie, Nini, and Layla are stars. All the girls were really good, but these three stood out more to me. I really enjoyed their auditions and performances tonight.
~
Cesar brought the group over to a small sitting area. He told them. "You girls are stars." He looks over at Robyn. "Layla is so good for her age. She's five and she sings very well. Both she and Nicole are very talented vocalists. If they continue with their vocal training, they would be forces to be reckoned with." Robyn gives a prideful look.
"Maddie, you are a talented performer. Your facial expressions are amazing and I can 100% see you on stage. All three of you are very entertaining performers and excellent dancers. If you guys are ever in New York, let me know. I'd love to chat. Like I said, we're doing a lot of things with kids now. Let's keep in touch." He hands both of the moms his business cards and goes to talk to Abby. Robyn and Melissa share a look of satisfaction.
~
"I can't believe this!" Nini squeals. "We got noticed! Miss Abby's going to be thrilled!" She high fives Maddie and her sister. Robyn notices the other disappointed girls across the room and gestures for Nini to tone it down a little bit.
~
Nini, Layla, and Maddie take sips of the punch from the snack table that was left for the event. "I'm so excited." Nini whispers to Maddie. "Me too!" Her friend giggles. The girls wanted to scream for joy, but they'd don't want their friends to feel bad.
After chatting with Cesar, Abby came over to the girls, engulfing them in a big embrace. "Congratulations girls!" The teacher gushed. "Tonight was a success! Yeah?" "Yeah!" The girls giggle as Abby gives them high fives. "Great work!" She told Nini in her ear. "You really made me proud. Cesar couldn't stop gushing about you three! Especially you Nini! He was very impressed with your professionalism." "Thank you!" Nini grinned from ear to ear.
Christi couldn't help but glare at Abby. She, Melissa, and Robyn got what they wanted. It always had to be about Nini and Maddie. She was sick of it. Robyn and Robert on the other hand were beaming with Joy. Their daughters got extremely high praise from a Broadway scout! Hopefully this meant big things for their careers.
~
A/N: YA'LL I'M SO SORRY! It's been so long since I updated this story. I promise I'd don't mean to ghost ya'll. I hope you guys like this chapter! I promised it was gonna be dramatic, so I'm sorry if it wasn't that drama filled. Tbh I feel like this chapter is so lackluster, but I hope you guys like it nonetheless.
What did you guys think?
This chapter is unedited.