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Dance Moms premiered on Lifetime in 2011 and aired until 2019. The show started at Pittsburgh-based choreographer Abby Lee Miller's institution, Abby Lee Dance Company, which shaped the careers of several young and enthusiastic dancers. She was renowned for the "pyramid," a rigorous coaching technique that ranked the dancers in a lengthy process.
Despite the stress, her endeavors launched the careers of multiple students, helping them find their footing in the entertainment industry. Some of the more popular names known to the public are JoJo Siwa, Maddie Ziegler, and Chloe Lukasiak. The cast members gathered for a two-hour reunion special in May 2024, however, Maddie and sister Kenzie Ziegler, and Abby were notably absent from the event.
A reboot of the show called Dance Moms: A New Era premiered on August 7, 2024, on Hulu. Besides a new set of dancers, the show also featured a new coach. Gloria "Glo" Hampton took over Abby's role in the reboot of the hit reality show.
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In light of the reboot, fans have been curious about the whereabouts of the past cast members. After the cameras stopped rolling, the stars ventured into new career avenues. While some made their names in the film and music industries, others focused on their personal lives.
What have the Dance Moms cast members been up to?
1) Abby Lee Miller
Abby was often in the limelight for her controversial statements and unconventional ways of coaching young talents. Amid the show's success, the Dance Moms choreographer faced legal troubles. In October 2015, she was charged with bankruptcy fraud for falsely claiming her earnings and concealing more than $755,000.
Abby pled guilty in November 2015 and was sentenced to 366 days in prison. After eight months behind bars, she was released and transferred to a halfway house in March 2018. She was later diagnosed with Burkitt lymphoma. Following an emergency surgery and months of treatment, she revealed she was cancer-free in 2019.
She sold her Pittsburgh-based Dance Moms studio in 2023 for $300,000. It was reported that Abby was not invited to the reunion since some contestants specifically requested her absence. In an interview with ET, published on August 6, 2024, Coach Glo revealed she invited Abby to do a cameo on the reboot, but the latter declined.
However, she continues to train dancers at the Abby Lee Dance Company in Los Angeles and dabbles in creating content and selling merchandise.
2) Maddie Ziegler
Maddie was featured on Dance Moms at the age of 7. She quickly became the talk of the show for being one of Abby's favorites. Her career boomed after she appeared in singer Sia's Chandelier music video in 2014. She was also featured in some of her other videos like Elastic Hearts, Cheap Thrills, and Big Girls Don't Cry.
Maddie created a noteworthy position in the film industry after appearing in films like The Fallout, The Book of Henry, Music, and Steven Spielberg's West Side Story. Some of her recent projects included movies like Fitting In (2023) and My Old Ass (2024). The Dance Moms star is working on an indie action feature called Ballerina Overdrive alongside Avantika and Uma Thurman.
Maddie continues to explore her modeling career with multiple collaborations with luxury brands like Givenchy, Kate Spade, and Fendi.
3) Kenzie Ziegler
Maddie Ziegler's younger sister, Kenzie, followed Maddie's footsteps and delved into the film industry. She starred in a web series called Total Eclipse and played the role of Ivy in the 2021 movie Let Us In. Besides her acting career, she released her popular single 100 degrees in 2022, followed by her highly anticipated album, biting my tongue in July 2024.
As for her reality TV career, she appeared on Dancing with the Stars: Juniors and finished in third place on the first season of The Masked Dancer. Kenzie maintains a large social media presence on Instagram TikTok, and YouTube.
4) JoJo Siwa
JoJo Siwa appeared on seasons 5 and 6 of Dance Moms. After leaving the show, she released her first single, Boomerang, in 2016 which garnered over 21 million views in a month. She then signed a contract with Nickelodeon, who featured JoJo in the 2018 movie Blurt! The Dance Moms cast member also co-hosted Lip Sync Battle Shorties with Nick Cannon.
Since coming out in January 2021 as a member of the LGBTQ+ community, she had multiple public relationships including former partners Avery Cyrus and Lylie Prew. Later that year, she participated in Dancing with the Stars and then became a judge on So You Think You Can Dance.
In 2024, JoJo ventured into various career routes. She starred in a horror film called All My Friends Are Dead, then released her debut single, Karma, in April 2024, portraying her take on adulthood. In July 2024, she released her fourth EP, Guilty Pleasure, and hoped to continue sharing her new side with fans.
5) Chloe Lukasiak
Chloe left Dance Moms after season 4 due to the ongoing feud between her mother and Abby. She later went on her official YouTube channel in 2019 to reveal that she left the show partly because she and her mother refused to sign a contract that included conditions about her limited time on screen.
After leaving Dance Moms, Chloe starred in films like Loophole and The Message. She published her memoir, Girl on Pointe: Chloe's Guide to Taking on the World in 2018, where she reflected on her journey in the Lifetime show.
Most recently, she co-founded her company Elevé Dance Competition. Nonetheless, she continues to share fashion and beauty content on her social media with her fans.
6) Nia Sioux
After leaving Dance Moms, Nia debuted in the off-Broadway show Trip of Love, starred in the film I Am Mortal, and played Emma Barber on The Bold and the Beautiful. She also made a cameo in Mean Girls in 2024.
Nia released multiple songs, including Star in Your Own Life, Slay, and most recently IMMA CATCH, a collaboration with Jake Clarke. Nia even choreographed the music video for the latest song.
She is currently pursuing a degree in American literature and culture at UCLA. With over 5.9 million followers on Instagram, the star has collaborated with renowned companies including Marc Jacobs Fragrances, Maybelline, Warner Brothers, and more.
7) Brooke Hyland
Brooke left Dance Moms in the middle of season 4. Since leaving the show, she obtained her degree in marketing, management information systems, and business analytics from Ohio University in 2019. Since then, she has become a social media influencer, having garnered over 4 million followers on Instagram. She has also worked with brands such as Victoria's Secret Pink and Fortnite.
In May 2024, the star got engaged to her longtime boyfriend Brian Thalman when he proposed to her in a park in her hometown Pittsburgh. She runs a food blog on Instagram called @pgh_bitesized_foodie, where she frequently shares food-related content.
8) Paige Hyland
After leaving her Dance Moms career behind, Paige graduated from West Virginia University in 2023 with a degree in business administration. With nearly 4 million followers on Instagram, Paige has collaborated with multiple companies such as imPRESS and ColourPop Cosmetics.
She also shares updates about her long-term relationship with former college football player Jayvon Thrift through her Instagram.
9) Kendall Vertes
Kendall transitioned into acting and singing after her time on Dance Moms. She starred in the 2019 films Rapunzel: A Princess Frozen in Time and Santa in Training. She released her first single, Wear 'Em Out, under the name Kendall K in 2015, and most recently, an EP, K-Mas, in 2017.
In 2021, she pursued academics at James Madison University, where she joined their Dukettes dance team. In 2024, they won a national championship. Besides her professional life, she is in a relationship with baseball player, Andrew Ciufo. She updates her fans about her relationship and everyday life through her Instagram handle which has over 11 million followers.
10) Kalani Hilliker
Kalani appeared on shows like Shake It Up, Bunheads, and America's Got Talent, after leaving Dance Moms in season 7. She currently coaches dance enthusiasts aged 6 to 15.
Like the other cast members, Kalani experienced extreme physical and mental conditions on the Lifetime show. Inspired by the turbulence she went through, she launched her own wellness and skincare line called Kare by Kalani. On August 17, 2024, she took to her official Instagram handle to announce her engagement to Nathan Goldman.
Outside of dance, Kalani maintains a notable social media presence with over 7 million followers on Instagram. She uses the platform to document her everyday life.
11) Vivi-Anne Stein
Vivi-Anne made her first appearance in season 1 of Dance Moms. She quickly became popular among fans due to her disinterest in dance and her expressionless dialogue delivery. During the show, she confessed she did not like dancing, but participated because her mother promised to buy her tacos.
However, after leaving the series, she developed a liking for dance. She was a cheerleader in high school and joined the cheer team at Cleveland State University in 2023.
Dance Moms: A New Era is available to stream on Hulu.
