History Characters / DanceMoms

** After the 2024 Dance Moms reunion, she can ''definitely'' be seen as this to the '''entire''' former dancers AND their moms, blaming the former kids themselves for not "facing her" and their moms for coming back. Jojo Siwa souring on her recently as well in May 2024 has only solidified her TookALevelInJerkass stance towards everyone, saying that [[LaserGuidedKarma the show and the moms ruined and destroyed her business]].

[[/folder]]

[[folder:The Moms]]

* AlmightyMom: They won't hesitate to go on Abby if she does something very wrong to their daughters.

* BlueAndOrangeMorality: The Season 8 moms have this problem, with their unity lasting only moments before something happens and they suddenly take sides. Even the moms who try to stay out of it aren't immune.

* CoattailRidingRelative: Accompany their girls over to Abby's and her sessions.
* DotingParent: They always make sure their daughters are fine and go along with their whims where appropriate.
* HelicopterParents: The moms frequently argue with Abby about their daughters' progress. The dancers hate it because they'd suffer the consequence, but some never learn.
* MyBelovedSmother: They could act like this at times, but Abby thinks they act like this ''all the time''.

* WouldntHurtAChild: They have ''each other'' to take it out on.

[[folder:The Dancers]]

* AgeInappropriateDress: Appears to have been toned down a little, but elements of it are still there.

[[folder:Dance Studios]]

!Abby Lee Dance Company

!!Abby Lee Miller
[[quoteright:236:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/abby-lee-miller_1916.jpg]]

Owner of the Abby Lee Dance Company studio in Pittsburgh, Pennslyvania.

* AlphaBitch: While Cathy may seem to be one to her, she proved herself to be the bigger one.
* ApatheticTeacher: Essentially in season 6 all the way up to her departure. Despite literally living in the studio, there have been multiple times when she has refused to teach the girls, once literally locking them out of the studio and has said on more than one occasion that she doesn't want to be there. It continued until 6.5's end to where the elites came back.
* ArchEnemy: Served as this to Kelly after she was kicked out of the ALDC. The lawsuit she was involved in due to her didn't help. She also served as this to Christi and Chloe due to the former's friendship with Kelly AND the latter taking TrainingFromHell by her and invoking a permanent AlwaysSecondBest due to her favoritism for Maddie, which bit her back in the ass with Maddie souring on her over the years after becoming Sia's dancer for her videos. Fortunately Chloe did get better, as proven in Seasons 7A and 7B.
** After the 2024 Dance Moms reunion, she can ''definitely'' be seen as this to the '''entire''' former dancers AND their moms, blaming the former kids themselves for not "facing her" and their moms for coming back. Jojo Siwa souring on her recently as well in May 2024 has only solidified her TookALevelInJerkass stance towards everyone, saying that [[LaserGuidedKarma the show and the moms ruined and destroyed her business]].
* AssholeVictim: [[WoundedGazelleGambit She perceives herself this way]] due to the producers, so much so that it's officially become ScrewThisImOuttaHere and publicly resigning from the show. She's even named one of them Satan.
* BerserkButton: Many of them.
** Questioning and arguing with her about her teaching. (Jill learned this the hard way.)
** Thinking that any mom is trying to take over the studio.
** ''Crying''. In her own words "Save your tears for the pillow" should give you a hint.
** Being told what to do by the producers.
** Swearing. It's a ''big'' one for her. More specifically, the "f" word.
** ''Don't'' rip on one of her students. Especially while they're dancing on stage.
* BigBad: Any signs of BigGood faded away after season 4, as she favored and continued to talk about Maddie even after she left. Unfortunately it came to bite her back in the ass with Maddie's book.
* DeadpanSnarker: Although she's not the prime source of snark on the show, not even close...
* {{Determinator}}: Her mission is to push her dancers to be the best and win as many competitions as possible, no matter what the cost.
* EvilSoundsRaspy: The "evil" part is debatable due to AlternativeCharacterInterpretation, but her voice is ''very much raspy'' after years of straining it.
* FatBastard: Most of the moms in Candy Apples and some other disenchanted ones see her this way.
* HeelFaceRevolvingDoor: She was stuck on "heel" before her departure.
* HeroicRROD: Although the "heroic" part isn't the most accurate, season 5 in its entirety was one for Abby. In the episodes we've seen so far, she experiences emotional, mental and sometimes physical breakdowns.
* HotBlooded: Combined with HairTriggerTemper at times.
* HypocriticalHeartwarming: During auditions in season 4, one of the mothers of a girl who was auditioning criticized Paige's turns. Abby immediately jumped to Paige's defense, and kicked the girl who was auditioning and her mother out of the audition.
* ItsAllAboutMe: Full stop.
* JerkassHasAPoint: In "Brooke's Turning Point". She ''does'' have a point where Brooke should've told her about cheerleading tryouts instead of just being a no-show for rehearsal. She obviously doesn't go about it in the best possible way.
* KarmaHoudini: Mostly due to ManipulativeEditing, as because of it she got away with a lot of things.
* LargeHam: The largest within the entire series.
* ManipulativeBitch: Very much so.
* MeanBoss: Threatened to fire Gianna in season 3 if she choreographed a solo for Brooke.
* ProfanityPolice: She ''despises'' any form of swearing. Especially the "f word". She isn't afraid to pull dances and or kick any of the mom's out for swearing.
* ReasonableAuthorityFigure: At times.
* SadistTeacher: Her morality towards the team is becoming more foggy and more twisted by the episode, it seems.
* SanitySlippage: Bizarrely due to the way she felt the producers forced her to do things she didn't want to do throughout seasons 5 through 7.
* ScrewThisImOuttaHere: Very publicly resigned from the show as of March 26, 2017.
* SternTeacher: It didn't start out that way though...
* UsedToBeASweetKid: Like everyone else that passed through her doors, she did start out sugar sweet.
* VillainProtagonist: First it was speculative, now it's almost certain throughout the whole fanbase.
* WeirdnessMagnet: She did attract some cuckoos throughout the seasons.
-->"What is it about me? Why do I attract all the crazy ones?"

!!Gianna Martello

Abby's assistant choreographer who started as one of her students, winning titles and awards, before discovering at the age of 16 that she also had a passion for teaching dance when she taught alongside Abby as well as by herself.

* BrainyBrunette: Abby relied on Gianna to choreograph the dance numbers, so whenever an "Abby original" comes up, it's mostly due to Gianna.
%%* GirlFriday ZCE
* NotSoAboveItAll: In the later seasons, she is just as rude to the girls and mothers as Abby.
* SexyMentor: A head-turning dance choreographer who tries to help the students... if they're not getting yelled at.
* ThoseTwoGirls: With Abby, to some extent.
* TookALevelInJerkass: It's starting to prove that it's not entirely a facade by being around her former teacher, as whenever she is with her it's on aberrant display, as was the case in parts of seasons 4 and 5 up to 5.5's end. It did prove that she too was NotSoAboveItAll.

[[folder:Former Dance Moms]]

!!As A Whole
* ActionMom: They can all be.
* AlmightyMom: The core of the insanity
* BadassCrew: The moms, they do have their moments.
* BlueAndOrangeMorality: The first four seasons, the moms all relatively share the same thoughts and feelings on certain events. Come season five, divides in perspective become jarringly apparent.
** Examples including that Jill, Melissa, and Kira tried justifying their daughters' rude remarks and impersonation of Jojo were harmless, some mothers often ridicule Brynn for reacting negatively to their crude remarks and often go off on how she can't act, but find it unacceptable when Ashlee makes any remarks about any of the girls, and the treatment of Nia's musical success in season five was largely unwelcomed by the moms and often said Holly was bragging about it and judge her as soon as a new project started.
* CatFight: ''Oh damn.....''
* DotingParent: Abby tends to think they [[MyBelovedSmother are too overprotective and are holding back their kids.]]
* '''StageMom''': [[PunctuatedForEmphasis Every. Freaking. One of them!]]
* SoProudOfYou: After a competition.
* WithFriendsLikeThese: With all the drama that happens between them, they don't need enemies.
* WouldntHurtAChild: They have ''each other'' to take it out on. Though, on ''some'' cases they took it out on the kids.

!!Melissa Ziegler-Gisoni
[[quoteright:270:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/rsz_melissa2013_8120.png]]
[[caption-width-right:270:''[[ExtremeDoormat "I'm a doormat."]]'']]

Melissa is the mother of Maddie and Mackenzie Ziegler. Her girls are favored by Abby, much to the other moms' dismay, and maintains the best relationship with Abby because of this. She and her kids left at the end of season 6.

* BerserkButton: She doesn't like it when she's caught in a lie.
* BewareTheNiceOnes: She's all nice and sweet when things are going her way.
* BetaBitch: Was this to Abby and Jill.
* BitchInSheepsClothing: What the moms think of her.
* ButtMonkey: Not so much by Abby, but more by the other mothers.
* CovertPervert: Or not so covert according to Christi, who referes to her as the "dirty one in the group". She even bought Kelly edible lingerie for her 40th birthday back in season 1. She's also known to talk about her sex life with the other mothers.
* ExtremeDoormat: She'll do anything to stay on Abby's good side.
* GoodParents: Or "Good ''Mum''" in this case. She can be a genuinely nice person and many non-show ALDC dancers say she is like the studio's second mom.
* GoldDigger: Is often accused of being this.
* HairOfGoldHeartOfGold: Inverted. She tries to come off as this, but most of the moms can see right through her.
%%zce* NiceGirl: Most of the time.
* [[ParentalFavoritism Teacher Favoritism]]: Even though she can not stand them, Abby seems to treat her better than the other moms.
* TheUnfavorite: To the moms, due to Maddie being eternally at the top of the pyramid.

!!Kelly Hyland
[[quoteright:255:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/7a8b4d9514f443f428219c9b9e6a409c.png]]

The mother of Brooke and Paige Hyland.

* ArchEnemy: She's Abby's most bitter one off-show, along with Christi.
* BetaBitch: Was this to Christi.
* DeadpanSnarker: Alongside Christi, it's one of her qualities.
* EvilFormerFriend: Ironically, Kelly used to be one of Abby's students, but has grown to be one of her most bitter rivals.
* [[DyingMomentOfAwesome Expelling Moment of Awesome]]: When Abby goes after her and tries to bite her with her teeth, Kelly's last stand and blaze of glory against her in bitter response is an awesome hard slap to Abby's face.
* FlippingTheBird: Sometimes. With a blurred hand, of course.
* INeedAFreakingDrink: ''Constantly''.
* MamaWolf: She is extremely protective of her children, and frequently stands up to Abby when she was mistreating Brooke and Paige.
* RageQuit: On more than one occasion, she has ditched the team, but she always comes back, except for when she really leaves for good in season 4.
* ThoseTwoGirls: With Christi.
* TheUnfavorite: Out of all the moms, Abby dislikes her the most. The feeling is mutual, however.

!!Jessalynn Siwa
[[quoteright:255:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/97bcd2d1332ed486c8f9dd88557f7926.jpg]]

The mother of [=JoJo=] Siwa. Much like Kira seen above, the Siwas got on the team as a result of being on the second ''AUDC'' season.
* HeelFaceTurn: She starts showing a nicer, moralistic side after allying herself with Holly in Season 5B, due to the fact that Abby excluded their children from some of the events the ALDC did in Australia. Before she left in 6B, she started allying herself with the other mothers, such as Jill, Kira and Melissa.
* {{Jerkass}}: Will do a lot of cruel and inhumane things to get [=JoJo=] ahead.
** Stealing Kalani's script and then lying to Kira's face when confronted about it.
** One shot in particular saw Jess ''smiling'' while Kendall had a panic attack. Then again, [[ManipulativeEditing the editors of this show aren't the most trustworthy figures on Earth]].
* JumpedAtTheCall: She and her daughter basically accepted Abby's offer on the spot.
* KnightTemplar: Occasionally showcases shades of this in her strategy to ensure that Jojo has the upper hand.
* ScrewThisImOuttaHere: Leaves along with [=JoJo=] in the season 6 episode "[=JoJo=] Is A No-Show", because she wasn't happy when [=JoJo=] had to do a ballet duet with Kendall, which she wasn't comfortable with.
* ThoseTwoGirls: With Holly, especially during Season 5B.

!!Ashlee Allen

The mother of Brynn Rumfallo. Started appearing with the ALDC in season 6.

* AlliterativeName: '''A'''shlee '''A'''llen
* AlphaBitch: Combined with a huge dose of {{Jerkass}}. In the first half of season 6, she would brutalize mom and kid alike; her usual targets being Kira and Kendall.
** Some choice moments where she's particularly nasty are stating in front of Kendall that Brynn has been performing better and overall a better dancer than her, accusing Kira of "sitting on her ass and not caring" due to her absence to take care of her newborn son, and saying Kalani is not a good a dancer as she once was.
** For a short while she got better, keeping her negative comments to a minimum come the Ziegler's departure, and in addition, much of what she said was unintentionally hurtful and in retaliation to negative comments towards Brynn. Eventually the trope is enforced once more within the rest of season 7 to the point where she and Brynn leave ALDC after Abby goes to prison.
* BrutallyHonest: To the degree that much of what she says is actually hurtful remarks, much of these comments even being targeted towards the girls.
** It got to the point where Kendall called her out on it.
* {{Hypocrite}} / ManipulativeBitch: Several mothers see her as this in the recent season after she left ALDC with them, only to return a short while later. One major example was when she and Brynn attacked the girls and their mothers on social media for an "adult" oriented performance they did, then play victim when they suddenly turned it around on her. Even the producers called her out on this in the same episode.
* MamaBear: Very protective of her daughter.
* ScrewThisImOuttaHere: Leaves along with Brynn near the late end of season 7 due to Abby going to prison.

!!Jill Vertes
[[quoteright:255:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/9a72d26fdbe8a213997a9b61df59df9b.jpg]]

The mother of Kendall Vertes.

* AlphaBitch: Became this in season 5 when Christi left.
* CharacterDevelopment: Towards the end of season 2, she sort of had a persona change into someone who didn't always fight with the other mothers.
* ItsAllAboutMe: Has a tendency to only think about herself and her daughter. When Payton was first kicked off of the team, Jill was only focused on how Kendall could serve as a replacement; when Kelly decided to cancel Brooke's solo due to back pain, Jill was upset that ''she didn't cancel earlier'' so Kendall could've gotten a solo.
* MotorMouth: Tends to talk fast when she's meaner or scared.
* SmokyVoice: The moms love to make fun of her "NineHundredNumber" voice.
* TookALevelInBadass: She has cussed out some moms in later episodes.
* WelcomeBackTraitor: After abandoning ship on the team in season two, she made a very unexpected return several episodes later (during Pyramid, no less), much to everyone's shock. Understandably, Abby wasn't too happy.

!!Holly Hatcher-Frazier
[[quoteright:255:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/d47eb78861ce77039a43580eed7dcd5d.png]]
[[caption-width-right:255:''"You're entitled to your wrong opinion, that's fine."'']]

The mother of Nia Sioux Frazier.

* BadassBookworm: Speaks like a scholar and is often seen with a book. However, she eventually grows to become someone who dares to stand her ground against Abby when the latter gets too hot tempered.
* BadassPacifist: She used to be the calmest mom by a landslide, never losing her temper even against Abby, but then [[DarkestHour season five came]].
* BecomingTheMask: Most of the moms think this has happened with her starting around season 5 onwards. Especially Jill.
* BewareTheQuietOnes: Especially so in season five, where she starts taking a stand against Abby a lot more.
* CharacterDevelopment: Went from the OnlySaneWoman to the one standing her own the most against Abby.
* DeadpanSnarker: Not the prime source of snark, but she has her moments.
* EducationMama: To Nia--she is a school principal, after all.
* GoodParents: She'd rather train her daughter to be a good person than a good dancer.
* NotSoAboveItAll: Despite her best efforts to appear as the OnlySaneWoman, around season 5 she starts BecomingTheMask and becomes much more of a stage mom than in the earlier seasons.
%%zce* OnlySaneWoman
* ReasonableAuthorityFigure: She doesn't want her daughter to go on dance training sessions too strenuous or tiring, because she wants to raise her up to become a good person.
* SpockSpeak: Her main method of speech.

!!Christi Lukasiak
[[quoteright:250:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/250px-cristi2013_8038.png]]
[[caption-width-right:250:''[[INeedAFreakingDrink "How do I get to the nearest bar?"]]'']]

Christi is the mother of Chloe Lukasiak. She had a very rocky relationship with Abby during her time at the ALDC, especially since she thought Abby was deliberately belittling and bullying her daughter. She eventually left at the end of season 4.

* AbusiveParents: Christi didn't get along with her mother as a child, and although this trope wasn't explicitly stated, it could very well be implied.
* AlphaBitch: Was this among the Mom's, until she left. She regained, or at least tried to regain her status in 7B, but it was more or less a JerkassFacade.
* AcquiredSituationalNarcissism: Her behavior in 7B may seem like this. She seemed really full of herself, rude to the other Moms, ''and'' made Kendall cry in her first fight back on the show. Then there's her whole HolierThanThou attitude on being an OG and went so far as to give Chloe and Nia team jackets with "OG" on them and gleefully reminded Kendall that she wasn't one.
* ArchEnemy: She's this to Abby off-show, due to [[KickTheDog the way her daughter was treated]].
* BerserkButton: If anyone insults her daughter Chloe.
* BewareTheNiceOnes: Sure, she's far from being a good person but she still know how to be nice. Also, if you hurt her daughter, she'll let you have it for sure.
* CantTakeCriticism: She can't handle any of the Mom's calling her out on her questionable behavior.
* DeadpanSnarker: It's one of her defining qualities.
* DoubleStandard: She felt entitled to say quite nasty things about the kids, despite calling out any other mom who did the exact same thing.
* EveryoneHasStandards: She's even stated that while she and Abby clearly don't get along, she would never wish for the death of Abby's dog, Broadway Baby (which happened in season 3), or the death of Mrs. Miller in season 4.
** She also chastised Kira when she said that Sarah Reasons (who was part of the Select Ensemble in season 4) wouldn't win anywhere.
* KnightInSourArmor: Especially with staying on the team for Chloe's sake despite not being on the best terms with Abby.
* GenreSavvy: As a result of her snark. [[Administrivia/TropesAreTools She's even referenced a handful of tropes.]]
%%zce* GoodParents: Very much so, especially with her daughter.
* HolierThanThou: Her attitude on being an original member of the Junior Elite team is this. So much so she couldn't help herself but to gleefully remind Kendall that she wasn't one.
* {{Hypocrite}}: Oh boy:
** She seems to be able to freely talk about Maddie and can't understand why Melissa would be upset, but when someone even mentions Chloe she [[BerserkButton freaks out.]]
** She has no problem when Chloe has the advantage like in "Chloe Vs Kendall: Round 2", but couldn't understand why Jill was upset. Though she had been in Jill's position ''many'' times before.
** In 7B she started acting a lot like Melissa, where she would brag about Chloe's accomplishments (more so than what a normal parent would), and shoved it in the other Mom's faces.
* INeedAFreakingDrink: She has a penchant to do this.
* {{Jerkass}}: Let's see:
** She's the most confrontational of the mothers, as she started several fights for the sake of it.
** She would be incredibly rude to any new mother who would be a guest for that week. Especially if their child would be Chloe's direct competition.
** She made snide remarks about several people's appearances (mainly their weight).
** She projected a lot of her animosity towards Melissa onto Maddie. As she tried to get her in trouble for allegedly telling Chloe she wasn't a good dancer (we have no proof this ever happened other than Christi's hear say). She also called Maddie a "liar" several times after the "Two Sapphires" debacle, when she didn't have proof.
** She even yelled at Maddie, Kenzie, Paige, and Kendall (on separate occasions), making each of them cry.
* MamaBear: Protective of her daughter and is thoroughly furious at Abby for wracking her emotionally.
* ManipulativeBitch: Of sorts. She's good at causing drama for new-comers when she suggests they go talk to Abby during rehearsals.
* MommyIssues: Reportedly had a very bad relationship with her mother growing up as a child, so much so that Christi once called her mother "a fucking psychopath". She's never delved into why her mother was so bad, which only makes it [[FridgeHorror all the]] [[NothingIsScarier more scary]] [[AbusiveParents to think about]].
* NeverMyFault: She tends to have this attitude when she's called out on her confrontational behavior. She has ''thousands'' of excuses for losing control and starting fights.
* NiceGirl: She had her moments and off show, still does.
* OddFriendship: Off-show, ''Cathy Nesbitt-Stein''! It slightly borders IntergenerationalFriendship, if anything.
* OneLiner: Almost every non-arguing word that comes out of her mouth.
* PlayingTheVictimCard: While she ''did'' have some good points about how Abby treated the girls (namely Chloe), she often [[WoundedGazelleGambit dramatized every situation she was in so she would be seen as the victim.]] She often used this as an excuse to be especially rude towards others. Kelly even calls her out on this at one point.
* PluckyComicRelief: While she is certainly snarky, her humor is sometimes just plain mean. Especially when she takes jabs at peoples' appearances, and Maddie.
* SourOutsideSadInside: Taken to another level entirely when Kelly left.
* ThoseTwoGirls: With Kelly.
* TrueCompanions: With Holly and Jill, but moreso woth Holly. When she returns in the season 7 mid-finale they don't miss a beat and reconnect with her and Chloe.
* YouAreWhatYouHate: She despises anyone who dare bring the kids into fights between the moms, namely Abby. Yet, she's said some pretty awful things about Maddie, Kendall, and even [[MoralityPet Paige.]]

!!Kira Girard
[[quoteright:224:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/3b0d649d51b02616bd3f6c32a5cecccd.png]]

The mother of Kalani Hilliker. Started appearing with the ALDC in season four but didn't really join until season five.

* CanonImmigrant: From the second season of ''Abby's Ultimate Dance Competition''.
* HiddenDepths: According to allegations from Tracey Reasons, Kira has a criminal history for doing stuff like credit card fraud.
* MamaBear: Do ''not'' say that Kalani is a bad dancer, or will lose a competition. She ''will'' take it out on you.
* MsFanservice: She even had a mole that was on her face removed in order for her to be on the show.
* TheQuietOne: Most of the time (especially during her early ALDC days), Kira doesn't usually say anything whilst the other mothers had their own drama to deal with.
* SixthRanger: Applies to both her and Kalani, as they are the newest additions to the ALDC.
* TookALevelInBadass: Starts in Season 5B. She starts thinking of the girls more often and helps call in a guest choreographer, who was shunned by Abby. Kira then called Abby out when Abby refused to accept Kalani's hug, which turned into a screaming match between the two. From that moment onwards, Kira then started to speak her mind more often and regularly defended the girls than she did with Kalani.

[[folder:Former Main Dancers]]

!!As a whole
* AgeInappropriateDress: As mentioned in an episode where the girls received ''no'' awards for their 'barely-there' costumes.
** Arguably the outfits the girls wear to practice in as well - most of the time, they wear crop-tops and booty shorts. In the spin-off series, the girl who wears the shortest top is the oldest girl, Jessie, even though she's technically the only one of the group (except maybe Sammi) who actually needs to wear a shirt.
** The infamous "topless showgirls" dance. The costumes were picked out to give the effect that they were naked. Unsurprisingly, the episode is unavailable online and has never been rebroadcast. However, it is easily accessible on other internet sites than the one of the show.
* BrainyBrunette: Most of the girls, as all of the girls get good grades and are quite talented dancers.
* BrattyTeenageDaughter: All of the girls have had their bratty moments.
* DeadpanSnarker: They have their moments.
* DumbBlonde: Subverted. They all get good grades and quite talented dancers.
* HeroicBSOD: Whenever a girl forgets her solo.
* WackyParentSeriousChild: They are focused dancers, while their moms are bickering.

!!Creator/MaddieZiegler
[[quoteright:255:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/04b837920da99c4cec70ac90724a1fe2.png]]

Maddie is the eldest daughter of Melissa and the older sister of Mackenzie, and is essentially the show's [[BreakoutCharacter breakout dancer]]. She's (in)famous for being Abby's favorite and has gained worldwide recognition outside of the show, primarily through a trilogy of Music/{{Sia}} music videos that she starred in. Left mid-season 6 to pursue other projects.

* TheAce: Definitely, much to the other moms' jealousy. If anyone out of the ALDC team could be considered the most popular, it's her.
%%* AloofBigSister: Definitely showcases this when compared to Mackenzie.
* AlwaysSomeoneBetter: For starters, she's almost ''always'' at the top of the pyramid.
-->'''Jill:''' It's just not a surprise anymore.\\
'''Abby:''' Isn't that sad?
* TheBGrade: A variation. She gets upset if she doesn't win first place, but [[GracefulLoser she's still courteous to whoever does win]]. [[SoreLoser Most of the time.]]
* BrainyBrunette: She's a brunette and she's the one who know how to excel in Abby's dance school.
* BreakoutCharacter: Well, she was already getting the most opportunities out of the team (cameoing on Lifetime's own ''Series/DropDeadDiva'', for example) before she starred in Music/{{Sia}}'s "Chandelier" video, which became one of (if not, ''the'') most popular music videos of 2014 and racked up over ''half a billion [=YouTube=] views'' as well as ''2.1 million likes''. The video's extreme success skyrocketed her to performing on ''Series/JimmyKimmelLive'', ''Series/SaturdayNightLive'', ''The Ellen Show'', and at '''the Grammys'''. Not only that, but she did another collab with Sia by co-starring in the "Elastic Heart" video alongside ''Creator/ShiaLaBeouf'', garnering another 125 million views. [[RuleOfThree And then]] she starred in a third Sia video for her song "Big Girls Cry", racking up an additional 20 million+ views. Not only that, but she's had a cameo acting role on ''Series/AustinAndAlly''. So yeah, you can call her a breakout character.
* ButtMonkey: Usually was the brunt of jabs from Christi and Kelly.
* CoolBigSis: To Mackenzie. She's often seen helping Mackenzie with her hair and makeup in the dressing room. She sometimes did congratulate Mackenzie after doing an amazing solo performance and when Mackenzie and Nia were up against Vivi-Anne and Justice in season 1, Maddie said that Mackenzie will take down those apples.
* DeadpanSnarker: Occasionally, most often with her sister and mother.
* DespairEventHorizon: In "Abbygeddon" when she forgot her dance mid-performance and ended up breaking down in tears.
* GoGetterGirl: Compared to the other girls, Maddie's drive in dance is on another level entirely.
* HomeschooledKids: As of Season 4 she and Mackenzie are being homeschooled.
* HumbleHero: She's rarely not at the top of the pyramid, she's won crowns and trophies alike, but she consists of staying modest and not letting her success get to her head. However, this is averted, whenever she does not win first in a solo, especially if a teammate places above her.
* JerkassBall: Can go through this at times.
** [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1LGNzM5S3Jk This moment]], where she roughly pulled Kenzie off her and shoved her away after she hugged her after her solo due to Mackenzie sarcastically said "nice turns" when her turns were not very nice.
** [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8SVS78a_P9U This moment]], where she refused to take her loss to Mackenzie with stride, explicitly stating that she deserved to win.
** In the first season, she was especially conceited about how often she won, to the point where she said ''she didn't know how it felt to lose''.
* ParentalFavoritism: Or "''Teacher'' Favoritism" in this case. No matter how much Abby tries to deny it. She is TheAce, after all.
* TheRival: Her rivalry with Chloe is a major subplot, as is her rivalry with Kalani.
* RunningGag: She's been on top of the pyramid so much that it's rarely a surprise anymore, and no one really gets overworked about it.
* SoreLoser: Subverted. She's a GracefulLoser due to her training and rarely displays this... and when it did come into play, it's a short case of JerkassBall.
* WiseBeyondTheirYears: After the Sia videos, Maddie became a huge phenomenon in a short period of time. As such, she had to mature quickly and has become very graceful in the past year.

!!Mackenzie Ziegler-Gisoni
[[quoteright:255:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/df45ea1887ae16c541ed1a2a532ebae7.png]]

Mackenzie is the youngest daughter of Melissa and the younger sister of Maddie. Released a commercially successful pop album called ''Mack Z'' in 2014. Left mid-season 6.

* AlwaysSomeoneBetter: The inevitable comparisons of her and Maddie, such as calling her Maddie's sister and not her own independent self, seem to follow her like a plague. She even dedicated her song "Shine" to the topic, stating that she still loves Maddie and only wishes to shine like her one day.
* AnnoyingYoungerSibling: Towards Maddie sometimes; worsened by the fact that the girls spend most of their time together and so rarely have the chance to take a breather from each other.
* BadassAdorable: Mackenzie's style of dance in particular is punctuated by flips, tricks, and quick shots. The power of her motion can be surprising considering her size.
* CharacterDevelopment: Of all dancers, Mackenzie seems to have matured the most. And considering she's the youngest of the bunch, that's saying something.
* CheerfulChild
* ChildPopstar: She released an album during season four that made it to the top 5 chart on iTunes. Critical reception was favorable, but much like Brooke, her use of {{autotune}} was excessive.
* TheCutie: Obviously, since it sort of ''comes'' with being the youngest.
* GirlishPigtails: She'll be 11 in June and is still relegated to pigtails for nearly every routine.
* HomeschooledKids: As of season four she and Maddie are being homeschooled.
* LargeHam: She's known for chewing the scenery when she performs. As Abby put it one time she "Did more facial expressions than anyone else during the dance (that one being "Riches to Rags")".
* LittleMissSnarker: Is known for making humorous and often snarky remarks in the {{confession cam}}s.
* MoralityPet: Could be seen as this to Abby in the earlier seasons. Holly even commented that Abby had a soft spot for her.
* OneLiner: "I just wanna stay at home and eat chips," anyone?
* OutOfFocus: Especially during the first season. She wasn't in many of the group routines (because she would have brought the age group down) and only one solo. She mainly did duets with Vivi-Anne, and one with Nia.
%%* PluckyComicRelief more context needed.
* TheRival: To Asia.
* ShesAllGrownUp: [[YoungerThanTheyLook A common complaint of her social media presence is that she's trying to come across as more mature than she is.]]
* SmarterThanYouLook: According to Melissa, Mackenzie excels in school more than Maddie.

!!Brooke Hyland
[[quoteright:180:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/brooke-pyramid_5465.jpg]]

The eldest daughter of Kelly. Formerly the oldest elite team member; was known for being the most flexible member of the team. Prior to the show, she was stated as being one of Abby's favorites, but she progressively lost interest in dance as she grew older to the point that she briefly left the ALDC to pursue cheerleading. Released a single in 2012 called "Summer Love Song", and subsequently released a full self-titled album the following year. Left the show during season 4.

* BrokenTears: In the now infamous episode, after her mother and Abby had their physical fight, Brooke is reduced to uncontrollable sobs and crying.
* ChildPopstar: During summer 2012 she released her hit debut single, "Summer Love Song". A year later, she releases an entire [[SelfTitledAlbum album]]. Mixed opinions have been tossed around concerning Brooke's music career, with a large amount of criticism given to Brooke's heavy Autotune use.
** OneHitWonder: "Summer Love Song". Admit it.
* {{Contortionist}}: Accredited as being the strongest acro dancer of the original team, with contortion especially being her forte.
* CoolBigSis: To all the girls, and her sister, Paige. She is the oldest one on the team, after all.
* GameBreakingInjury: Ultimately, her back problems prevents her from trying to pursue her childhood dream of performing in Cirque du Soleil.
* IJustWantToBeNormal: Brooke of all the girls showed the least interest in the attention that come of the show. Of the girls who left, she's the only without a [=YouTube=] channel (Chloe and Paige).
* MajorInjuryUnderreaction: Brooke is constantly seen suffering from chronic back and hip pain throughout her appearances over the series, caused by performing excessive amounts of acro and contortion at the age where most people stop doing it, she's often encouraged to dance through the pain.
** In Season One, while learning her solo "Metamorphosis," she thought her shoulder kept popping out and couldn't apply pressure to her hands during her tricks; Gianna told her to pop it back in and keep dancing.
* OlderThanTheyLook: For the first couple seasons, she was around the same height as the other girls who are two to four years ''younger'' than her. This is one of the main reasons why as a teen, she was on junior team.
* OrdinaryHighSchoolStudent: More recently she's been trying trying to be this.
* PerpetualFrowner: The producers try and portray her as one. One point she tried smiling every time they were filming, and they ''still'' only showed footage of her frowning.
* TechnicianVersusPerformer: On a less discussed note, but Brooke and Paige, despite both being strong acro-specialized dancers, fall into this dynamic. Paige tends to get Acro/Jazz numbers with focus on tumbling, while Brooke more often gets Acro/Lyrical numbers with focus on contortion. Brooke is said to have some of the best technique of the original team, while Paige, according to Abby, was never much of a dancer.
* TheStoic: Abby has called her "Brooding Brooke" on a few occasions, and is known for not showing much emotion; Kelly saying that Brooke isn't really one to cry when upset or hurt.
** Brooke has explained in an [[http://www.twistmagazine.com/posts/twist-exclusive-twist-chats-with-brooke-hyland-9191 interview]] that this is due to ExecutiveMeddling, as her role on the show was to be a teenager.

!!Paige Hyland
[[quoteright:170:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/paige-pyramid-small_4083.jpg]]

The youngest daughter of Kelly. Was known as one of the team's weakest dancers on the show. Left during season 4.

* AffectionateNickname: Paigey Mack (the "Mack" comes from her middle name "Mackenzie").
* BreakTheCutie: Since she's left the show, she apparently suffers from an anxiety disorder brought upon her by Abby.
* DeadpanSnarker: She has her moments.
%%* EveryoneLovesBlondes needs context. Please help. ZCE so far.
* HairOfGoldHeartOfGold: Is a blonde and is one of the nicest, most sensitive people around.
* LittleBigSister: She's significantly taller than her ''older'' sister, Brooke. She stands at 5'9" while Brooke stands at 5'1".
* MoralityPet: Was this to Christi (most of the time), and seemed to be this for Melissa.
* OutOfCharacterMoment: Paige is a very sensitive person, often crying during emotional moments, however, after her mother's physical fight with Abby, she is stuck in a shell-shocked, stoic demeanor; almost in disbelief.
* TechnicianVersusPerformer: The Performer to her sister's Technician, Paige's technique is not at the same level as her sister's and while also a strong acro dancer, Paige is better suited to tumbling than contortion.
* TheShrink: What she wants to be when she grows up if she doesn't do dance in the future.
* StatuesqueStunner: Suddenly goes through a massive growth spurt between Season 2 and 3 soon after Chloe, and now stands at 5'9''.
* ThoseTwoGirls: With Chloe; the two of them together known as the "twinnies".

!![=JoJo=] Siwa
[[quoteright:255:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/edbdd1ef58d076c98e9ff8df67caad55.png]]

The daughter of Jessalynn Siwa. Joined the team in season 5 as Chloe's replacement after being in season 2 of ''AUDC'' and placing 5th. Remained a permanent team member until season 6.5, where she left after signing a consumer deal with Nickelodeon. She now has her own Website/YouTube channel and has starred in quite a few Nickelodeon shows.

* AllOfTheOtherReindeer: Because of her speech impediment, some of the girls, especially Kendall and Maddie, can be quite cruel to her, especially in season 5, where the only girl who is consistently nice to her is Nia.
* BrattyHalfPint: Considering she's the second youngest and sassiest on the team, and she [[ButtMonkey really gets the short end of the stick from Abby a lot]], this trope was bound to come in play.
* BreakoutCharacter: Has become one upon joining ''Nickelodeon'' at some point and even with ''Dancing with the Stars''.
* ButtMonkey: Has turned into Abby's newest one as of late, considering how much she gets it from her.
* CanonImmigrant: Just like Kalani after being on ''AUDC'' (in the same season, no less).
* ChildPopstar: She has released a lot of singles, starting with "I Can Make You Dance" and "Boomerang".
* CuteButCacophonic: She may be adorable, but her voice is extremely loud and raspy. Not to mention she has a tendency to scream at the top of her lungs when excited.
* DitzyGenius: While not particularly tactful, Jojo stands up for herself and is an impressive performer. The other girls have also admitted she has many skills they haven't quite mastered. According to the wikia, she is also a grade ahead for her age (is home-schooled) and learns another language in her spare time, so she's clearly very smart for her age.
* GenkiGirl: Described as very energetic in her dancing.
* JumpedAtTheCall: She was quick to accept Abby's invitation to get into her school after Chloe left.
* IGotBigger: As of 2020, she now stands at 5'9".
* LargeHam: Probably the hammiest of the girls, which sometimes puts her at odds with the others (sans Nia who was consistantly nice to her), who are more soft-spoken.
* MotorMouth: She talks quite fast to the point where you can't understand what she's saying.
* MouthyKid: Has gotten into some pretty hot water as a result.
* NiceGirl: Ultimately she is nothing but courteous to everyone, full stop.
* NoIndoorVoice: [=JoJo=] is often rather loud when she speaks.
* ScrewThisImOuttaHere: Leaves as of the season 6 episode "[=JoJo=] Is A No-Show".
* SpoiledBrat: She's shown to have some shades of this from time to time.

!!Brynn Rumfallo

The daughter of Ashlee. She joins the team in season 6, first as a fill-in for Maddie, who was off filming, and then earns a permanent spot on the team.

* BrutallyHonest: Not to the degree of her mother, but Brynn isn't afraid to honestly say her feelings on situations. It may have came to a complete falling out, however, as she may or may not have become TheFriendNobodyLikes to the original dancers, which was immediately reciprocated by [[PetTheDog her attachment towards the minis]].
** Examples include saying Jill is "rude" for ridiculing her and her mother comforting each other after a fight and immediately after saying "I wish I could scream in her face and tell her how rude she is, but I won't because I'm not a brat," this being a jab at Kendall, who finally lashed out at Ashlee for her constant bullying of her.
* ButtMonkey: The moms are none too kind in regards to the comments they make about her; some moms have shamed Brynn for crying.
* ScrewThisImOuttaHere: Other than a brief reunion with a few friends of hers within ALDC, she leaves along with her mother at the end of season 7 due to Abby going to prison.
* TheStoic: An odd example, she's an emote girl, but her constant critique is that she can't act and fails to incorporate emotion into her dances.

!!Chloe Lukasiak
[[quoteright:319:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/854ea14580e527611820fc6d7437708a.jpg]]

The daughter of Christi Lukasiak.

* AlwaysSecondBest: And Christi is ''sick'' of it. And even when Chloe ''does'' win, she gets the rug pulled out from under her (when she beat Maddie with a nigh-identical solo, only to lose her victory when it's realized that the scores were faulty).
* AmbiguouslyBi: While not having given a label on her sexuality, Chloe has formerly dated Ricky Garcia and as of 2021, is dating Brooklinn Khoury.
* BreakTheCutie: Happens disturbingly often on the show, and then it got so bad that she left.
* ButtMonkey: A sadder and more serious example, considering how much she gets it from Abby. Her attempts to become more of an IronButtMonkey only led to her getting it more, to the point where she and her mother left the ALDC at the end of season 4.
** Throughout the series, Christi has commented that Abby is setting the girls that aren't Maddie or Mackenzie, particularly Chloe, up to fail; there is some evidence under SacrificialLamb below.
* HairOfGoldHeartOfGold: Chloe is a very sweet young lady. Especially when she had to compete against Maddie, she always was happy for her.
* HeroicBSOD: She suffers one after the nationals in season 4 due to hearing Abby [[KickTheDog telling her to "fix her lazy eye"]]. Fortunately, she's since recovered far better for the wear.
* HumbleHero: Chloe does not react to getting the Joffrey scholarship, not wanting to upset the other girls. Also, her first reaction upon re-entering the dressing room after her solo is to check on Maddie, to see if she was okay.
* MoralityPet: She was this to Christi, who wouldn't let anyone say anything badly about her.
* SacrificialLamb: Christi has mentioned this by actual name numerous times; Chloe was often relegated to competing against Maddie with "sub-par" choreography. She once went up against her with a hip-hop solo versus Maddie's tap; Maddie is a specialized tapper and the studio doesn't even offer hip-hop classes, having only done two hip-hop dances prior (neither of which were up to the usual standard). Also, when the select team would compete, Chloe had to face to go up against one of them the most.
* StatuesqueStunner: Went through a growth spurt between Seasons 2 and 3 and now stands at 5'8''.
* TheRival: Her rivalry with Maddie actually became a major subplot.
** She becomes one to Kendall in season 4, because Abby wanted to see who could be her #2 girl when Maddie was away for professional jobs.
* ThoseTwoGirls: With Paige, forming the "twinnies".
* TookALevelInBadass: It's subtle, but recently Chloe has caught up and is surpassing Maddie in skill.
* TrueCompanions: Like her mother with Holly and Jill, she is very close to Nia and Kendall, due to the fact that those three were on the original ALDC elite team. Even when Jill and Christi had issues in early 7B, Chloe and Kendall disregarded that and still wanted to be friends.

!!Kendall Vertes
[[quoteright:255:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/d3fe8e32eae7ecf714fc8246ac5e122f.jpg]]

The daughter of Jill. Joined the ALDC in season 2 as Vivi-Anne's replacement. Left early in the season due to Jill's outrage over Kendall being put on probation again, briefly joined the Candy Apples team, and returned to the ALDC later in the season.

* AlliterativeName: When under her "Kendall K." stage name.
* AlwaysSecondBest: Abby often refers to Kendall as her "number two girl", emphasizing that she feels Kendall will never be as good as Maddie.
* BrattyTeenageDaughter: Occasionally showcased when frustrated, [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=loyjLwRk0ys like in the dressing room]].
** Breaks down in Episode 13 of Season 6 and screams at Ashlee for her constant (albeit somewhat unintentional) bullying of her; Brynn lampshades this by calling Kendall a brat.
* ButtMonkey: Even though she is talented, she is especially this in her first few appearances and in season three.
** Is constantly on the receiving end of Ashlee's rather rude remarks in Season 6, culminating in Kendall actually screaming in Ashlee's face "why are you so mean?" and leaving the studio with Jill for the day.
** In 7B she was treated like this by Christi especially when she was ''constantly'' reminded that she wasn't an "OG", as she came on the show in season 2.
* ChildPopstar: Recently released a new single called "Wear It Out" under the name "Kendall K".
* DeadpanSnarker: In recent seasons, she's developed something of a wry sense of humor.
* TheFashionista: Kendall is very into clothes and makeup.
* HiddenDepths: In an October 2014 interview, Kendall said that she planned on taking acting classes.
* MysteriousMiddleInitial: Kendall's middle name is literally just "K", in homage to her cousins Kiley and Kara.
* RavenHairIvorySkin: Kendall is of this complexion, and Abby often treats her as "the pretty one".
* TheRival: Becomes one to Chloe in season 4, due to Abby wanting to see who could be her #2 girl, if Maddie is away for professional work.
* SixthRanger: Deconstructed. As the first new dancer added to the group, she was put on probation until she proved herself. As a result, there was drama between Abby and Jill regarding why she was treated differently than the other girls, so much so that Jill and Kendall temporarily switched to Candy Apples.

!!Nia Hatcher-Frazier
[[quoteright:255:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/bfd668e5ec9c6245dca3bae93eadf263.png]]

The daughter of Holly Hatcher-Frazier. The only remaining elite team member as of season 6.5.

* BigSisterInstinct: Nia has taken a protective role over Jojo and Brynn, as shown by comforting Jojo and not finding it acceptable when seeing the other girls had made fun of her, and hugging a crying Brynn and walking her to her mom in episode 13 of season 6.
* BilingualBonus: Goes two ways: "purpose" in Swahili, or "champion" in Welsh.
%%* BlackAndNerdy ZCE
* ChildPopstar: Has released several singles under the performing name Nia Sioux.
* EmbarrassingMiddleName: {{Inverted|Trope}}; her middle name, Sioux, is pretty awesome.
* LastOfHerKind: Nia was the last original member of the team left prior to Abby leaving for prison.
* OutOfFocus: In seasons 2 and 3, apart from the Rosa Park tribute and her duet with Paige. So much so that Abby that [[LampshadeHanging called attention to it]].
* TokenMinority: Not only is she the only African-American ALDC junior elite team member (at least, the only African-American ''original'' member; there was Nicaya), but Abby has had her play several different ethnicities in dance performances, much to Holly's chagrin.
* TookALevelInBadass: In between seasons 4 and 5, Nia's dancing really took a steep upturn.
* WiseBeyondTheirYears: Nia has her petulant moments, but she's become incredibly articulate in the past few seasons.

!!Kalani Hilliker
[[quoteright:255:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/73a35c1f7e071c8e590287912cd6c01b.png]]

The daughter of Kira. Contestant on season 2 of ''AUDC'' (where she placed 4th). Joined the team early in season 4 only to leave when she and her mother decided to return to Arizona, but eventually rejoined in season 5 after the departure of the Lukasiaks.

* AllThereInTheManual: If you didn't watch Abby's Ultimate Dance Competition you probably won't know who she is or what her relationship is to Abby when she shows up.
* CanonImmigrant: From Abby's Ultimate Dance Competition
* CoolBigSis: She's the oldest of girls on the team and is very encouraging towards them.
* HomeschooledKids: She homeschools so she can spend more time taking classes and traveling for dance.
* SixthRanger: She shows up in season 4 and becomes a permanent member of the team.
* [[ParentalFavoritism Teacher Favoritism]]: She was Abby's favorite when she competed on Abby's Ultimate Dance Competition.
[[/folder]]

!!Candy Apple's Dance Center

[[folder:Cathy Nesbitt-Stein]]
!!Cathy Nesbitt-Stein
[[quoteright:236:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/f0304264b81f51f9e13dbff32ae0a6c1.jpg]]

The mother of Vivi-Anne Stein and the owner of the Candy Apples Dance Studio in Canton, OH. Was formerly a member for the ALDC back when the series began, but eventually disbanded after episode nine. Seen as the de-facto "villain" of the show (as far as reality shows go); however, when it comes to her being a bad person in real life, there are conflicting sources of evidence that point to this being [[{{Jerkass}} true]] and [[NotEvilJustMisunderstood false]].
----
* AlphaBitch: Show only.
* ArchEnemy: To Abby, both on show and off. She's surprisingly capable of [[DeadpanSnarker snarking]] to Abby on social media when the occasion calls for it.
* BewareTheNiceOnes: From first glance, "bad guy" probably won't immediately come to mind.
* BigBad: Out of everyone on the show, she's as close to being this as you can get (besides Abby).
* BlackComedy: Her statement that she'd rather slit her wrists than let Vivi play softball over dance.
* TheDragon: Patsy, which is somewhat of a callback to season 3 and who finally did her own TheBusCameBack, at the beginning of season 7, becomes her backup. It's shown that Patsy and her daughter Nicaya have had some bad blood with Jill from that time period onward and immediately picks on Kendall's dance routines during the first two episodes, which continues all throughout the season until near the mid-season 7 finale.
* ItsAllAboutMe: During the moms' infamous group dance, Cathy suddenly started doing an improvised solo to try and upstage the other moms. Apparently, it worked.
* {{Jerkass}}: On-show, she's stuck up and haughty, but otherwise without cameras or strife, she's all smiles.
* OddFriendship: Off-show, Holly and ''Christi''. It's not too odd considering it borders on IntergenerationalFriendship, after all.
* OverlyNarrowSuperlative: Her studio boasts for being the county's "ONLY #1 dance studio". No, really.
* PetTheDog: She has some sympathy (both on and off-show) for some of Abby's dance kids as to why they don't get enough dances at one point.
* PinkMeansFeminine: Does have a particular liking for the color.
* TokenEvilTeammate [=/=] EvilFormerFriend: Used to be on Abby's team with her daughter Vivi-Anne, but eventually disbanded and became Abby's worst enemy when she went back to her own dance studio.
** WordOfGod states that Cathy and Abby actually knew each other through the competitive dance world and, while not close, had been friendly for years prior to the show and their "meeting" in Season 1 was staged. However, she and Abby have maintained publicly that their current dislike of one another following Season 2 is very real.
* TookALevelInJerkass: Upon her return in Season 7, she's beginning to prove she can push Abby's buttons with a vengeance, so much so that she's immediately got her own [[TheDragon dragon]] in Patsy.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Vivi-Anne Stein]]
!!Vivi-Anne Stein
[[quoteright:246:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/d0956ae7f55ce4088f6d7abc53b79fe3.jpeg]]

The adopted daughter of Cathy, originally from Guatemala. She was originally on the show at its inception, but left shortly afterwards to train at her mom's dance center in Ohio.

* IJustWantToBeNormal: Bemoans how she wants to stay at home but has to frequently travel to do competitions.
* JokeCharacter: Something of a real-life example, since she has contributed with some of the funniest lines of season 1 (most iconically the "I cut my finger, [[EpicFail I hope I can still dance]]" one) as well as [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gBVLSl5Xk1g some of the cringiest solos]].
* OneLiner: Has two famous lines from the show:
** "I cut my finger on my mom's ring. I hope I can still dance,"
** "I'm only here because my mom said she'd buy me tacos,"
* OutOfFocus: Since near the end of Season 5, with Cathy wanting to keep her off the show as much as possible.
* PinkMeansFeminine: [[SubvertedTrope Subverted]]. Vivi says that she prefers blue and when Cathy voices that she thinks pink "is a way of life", they cut to a deadpan Vivi saying she "doesn't like pink".
* {{Tomboy}}: Something her mother is begrudging to accept, while Vivi likes dance, she isn't particularly fond of it either and would rather play softball.
[[/folder]]

** After the 2024 Dance Moms reunion, she can ''definitely'' be seen as this to the '''entire''' former dancers AND their moms, blaming the former kids themselves for not "facing her" and their moms for coming back. Jojo Siwa souring on her recently as well in May 2024 has only solidified her TookALevelInJerkass stance towards everyone, saying that [[LaserGuidedKarma the show and the '''moms''' ruined and ''destroyed'' her business]].

** After the 2024 Dance Moms reunion, she can ''definitely'' be seen as this to the '''entire''' former dancers AND their moms, blaming the former kids themselves for not "facing her" and their moms for coming back. Jojo Siwa souring on her recently as well in May 2024 has only solidified her TookALevelInJerkass stance towards everyone.

* ArchEnemy: Served as this to Kelly after she was kicked out of the ALDC. The lawsuit she was involved in due to her didn't help.
** Also served as this to Christi and Chloe, the latter due to what amounts to TrainingFromHell and invoking AlwaysSecondBest because of her favoritism for Maddie... which became a HeroicBSOD at the end of Season 4. Fortunately, Chloe gets better to where she returns to competing as of the mid-Season 7 finale.

* BoobsOfSteel: Nia is physically the strongest of the girls, she saying herself that she's used to doing the lifting and not being lifted when performing a trio with two boys, she's additionally the most endowed of the girls.

* TeensAreShort: Brooke in the first two seasons was the tallest among the girls at 4'11," however, by Season 3, both Chloe and Paige are taller than her; with most of the girls catching up in height. As of 2021, she's about 5'1,'' but this makes her now the shortest among the original girls.

* ButNotTooBlack: Black Patsy accuses her of being this.

* BareYourMidriff: Most of their costumes and practice outfits.

* BareYourMidriff: Most of their costumes and practice outfits exposes the girls' midriffs.

* DotingParent: They always make sure their daughters are fine and go along with their whims where appropiate.
* MeddlingParents: The dancers hate it [[WagTheDirector when their moms argue with Abby]], because they know they will suffer the consequences, but [[AesopAmnesia some people never learn]].

* BrainyBrunette

* [[ParentalFavoritism Teacher Favoritism]]: No matter how much Abby tries to deny it. She is TheAce, after all.

* AlwaysSecondBest: And Christi is ''sick'' of it.
** And even when Chloe ''does'' win, she gets the rug pulled out from under her (when she beat Maddie with a nigh-identical solo, only to lose her victory when it's realized that the scores were faulty).

* TrueCompanions: Like her mother with Holly and Jill, she is this with Nia and Kendall, due to the fact that those three were on the original ALDC elite team. Even when Jill and Christi had issues in early 7B, Chloe and Kendall disregarded that and still wanted to be friends.

* BlackAndNerdy

* AlmightyMom: The core of the insanity

* DotingParent

* [[spoiler:FakeBoobs]]: The season 8 reunion special revealed this.
* GlamorousSingleMother

* GirlFriday

* BerserkButton: When she's caught in a lie.

* [[GoodParents Good Mom]]: She can be a genuinely nice person and many non-show ALDC dancers say she is like the studio's second mom.

* {{Jerkass}}: Will do a lot of cruel and inhumane things to get Jojo ahead.

* {{Hypocrite}} / ManipulativeBitch: Several mothers see her as this in the recent season after she left ALDC with them, only to return a short while later. One major example was when she and Brynn attacked the girls and their mothers on social media for an "adult" oriented performance they did, then play victim when they suddenly turned it around on her.
** Even the producers called her out on this in the same episode.

* BewareTheNiceOnes[=/=]BewareTheSillyOnes

* BareYourMidriff: Most of their costumes and practice outfits.

* AlliterativeName

* BadassBookworm

* ReasonableAuthorityFigure

* AgeInappropriateDress: As mentioned in an episode where the girls received NO awards for their 'barely-there' costumes.

* PluckyComicRelief

* EveryoneLovesBlondes
* HairOfGoldHeartOfGold

* GenkiGirl
* JumpedAtTheCall

* NiceGirl: Ultimately she is this, full stop.

* {{Jerkass}}: On-show, but otherwise without cameras or strife, she's all smiles.

* ArchEnemy: She's Abby's most bitter one, along with Christi.

* AlphaBitch: Was this among the Mom's, until she left. She regained, or at least tried to regain her status in 7B.

* PetTheDog: She has some sympathy for some of Abby's dance kids as to why they don't get enough dances at one point. Probably the same off-show, since without Abby in the picture she did like the kids and most of the moms.

* IllGirl: Mackenzie apparently has extra bones in one of her feet, making it painful for her to dance, though how painful it is seems to be up for debate.

* IllGirl: Ultimately subverted as she had silent sinus syndrome, but it has since been fixed.

* IllGirl: She might be an example, as she has a medical condition affecting the bones in her feet. In the Mother's Day special, it was revealed that she was actually in the hospital for some time over the summer, and was in a wheelchair for a while afterward.

* TheAce: In terms of technique, he easily ranks among the top ALDC dancers in the show's history, up there with Sophia. Off-show, he's won prestigious competitions like The Dance Awards and the Youth America Grand Prix (the latter is one of the most important classical ballet competitions in the world).

* CoattailRidingRelative

* ShrinkingViolet

* TheWoobie: As the victim of her mother's constant bickering with Abby, it's fair to describe her as the new Chloe.

* SexyMentor

* JumpedAtTheCall

* MotorMouth

* MamaBear

* [[ThoseTwoGuys Those Two Girls]]: The dancers think Elliana and [=GiaNina=] are this, to the exclusion of others.

* [[NiceGirl Nice Lady]]: Most of the time.

* [[ThoseTwoGuys Those Two Girls]]: With Christi.

* [[GoodParents Good Mom]]: She'd rather train her daughter to be a good person than a good dancer.

* [[OnlySaneMan Only Sane Woman]]

* [[GoodParents Good Mom]]: Very much so, especially with her daughter.

* [[NiceGirl Nice Lady]]: She had her moments and off show, still does.

* [[AloofBigBrother Aloof Big Sister]]: Definitely showcases this when compared to Mackenzie.

* [[RubberMan Rubber Girl]]: To an extent. She specializes in acrobatic dance.

* BigLittleBrother: She's significantly taller than her ''older'' sister, Brooke. She stands at 5'9" while Brooke stands at 5'1".

* [[BigBrotherInstinct Big Sister Instinct]]: Nia has taken a protective role over Jojo and Brynn, as shown by comforting Jojo and not finding it acceptable when seeing the other girls had made fun of her, and hugging a crying Brynn and walking her to her mom in episode 13 of season 6.

* PlayingTheVictimCard: While she ''did'' have some good points about how Abby treated the girls (namely Chloe), she often [[WoundedGazelleGambit dramatized every situation she was in so she would be seen as the victim.]] Kelly even calls her out on this at one point.

* PlayingTheVictimCard: While she ''did'' have some good points about how Abby treated the girls (namely Chloe), she often [[WondedGazelleGambit dramatized every situation she was in so she would be seen as the victim.]] Kelly even calls her out on this at one point.

* PluckyComicRelief: Of sorts, due to her snark.

* AbsenteeActor: Kira misses quite a lot of episodes during the first half of Season 6, due to her pregnancy.

!!Maddie Ziegler