Michelle Li, 2/26 Week 12 - Topless Showgirls
Promotional poster for Season 2 of Dance Moms. Source: Dance Moms Wiki
In all eight drama-filled seasons of Dance Moms, only one episode has been deleted. Season 2, episode 9: “Topless Showgirls.” For those unaware of the trashy masterpiece that Dance Moms is, the show revolves around competitive dancers from the Abby Lee Dance Company and follows them (and their mothers’ clashes with creative director and head choreographer Abby Lee Miller) as they prepare for the national competition. In season 2, most of the girls’ ages ranged from seven to thirteen years old. The oldest dancer hadn’t even reached high school; what business did S2E9 have for topless showgirls?
As it turns out, Miller had choreographed a routine for the girls to act as Las Vegas showgirls, giving them flesh-colored tops as costumes. Obviously, the episode was soon taken down, but the damage had already been done. There are still images and even videos of the routine circulating online, some with camera quality so poor that the girls truly do look topless.
Over ten years later, it seems the dance industry still hasn’t learned anything from the backlash that ensued after “Topless Showgirls” aired. Choreographer Molly Long has received widespread acclaim and even went viral on multiple occasions for her intricate group dances. Lauded for how the routines don’t rely on tricks but instead demonstrate control and artistry, Long’s success and impact on the industry is undeniable.
But that’s the problem. Long has put her teen groups (usually high schoolers) in revealing costumes, included sexual movements in routines, and paired the dances with songs that have suggestive lyrics. And if you weren’t already weirded out, Long has gotten too comfortable with treating her mini dancers the same way. Minis average around five to seven years old, and yet are eerily mirroring the same movements of dancers ten years their senior—who are also far too young to be executing those positions.
I’ve seen this issue debated on Reddit several times, and a common argument in defense of Long is that dance is an art, and everyone is free to express themselves in this art form no matter their age. I can’t claim to be an expert on dance and definitely won’t police someone else’s dance moves; however, it’s extremely concerning that these pieces are being performed on national stages and broadcast all over social media. Through making these “self-expressions” publicly available, Long is exploiting her dancers.
Her successes aren’t helping either. Dance studios across the country watch nationals with a close eye, analyzing and pinpointing what routines judges like. If a Molly Long choreography wins, instructors will assume that sexualizing their students is the key to reaching national-level competitions.
Speak out against her blatant disregard for her dancers’ well-being. We have to protect the next generation of performers, ensuring that dance is a safe place for artistic expression.
Hi Michelle, your blog was so informative and interesting! I think that while dance is an art and everyone should be able to freely express themselves, a line is drawn when it results in normalizing the sexualization of minors and feeding into potential pedophilic audiences. No art is truly ‘free’, because there's always limitations in place for a reason, for instance art competitions commonly restrict violence related art work. From what I understand through this blog, what Long did was baffling especially when considering those dancers were around five to seven years old. Although I am not knowledgeable in the competitive dance scene, I think there should be restrictions on what dancers can do and can't, especially when it comes to dance competitions that involve minors.
ReplyDeleteHi Michelle,
ReplyDeleteThe picture and title you used caught my attention, as somebody who’s watched dance moms again and again I was excited to read your blog! Your blog was really interesting to read, I had no idea about the episode that was taken down. I looked into Long’s history after your mention of her in this article and wow! Her reputation is full of scandals. However, I agree, Long should be much more careful about how she presents her dancers. Art should be limitless but if Long wants to execute such mature pieces she should do them herself rather than making underage children perform mature dances. In this scenario I agree with you on the exploitation that is taking place as well. Art should be limitless if the creator is the one performing it which makes what Long is doing plain wrong.
Hello Michelle I really enjoyed reading your blog, it was really professional and well informed. It really puzzles me what may be the root cause of all thai child endangerment. A potential solution is just the dark nature of capitalism, and how it commercializes basic human desires and reallocates human work into a system without any *discernible* human moral code. It also reveals a fundamental misunderstanding of the true nature of the right to expression. People believe that their belief can overrule others, as if they are somewhat in a position of power that can negate the powers of others. It also express the question that what are the limits of art and how it useful to question the limits of society yet limits also exist for a reason.
ReplyDeleteHi Michelle! I’ll admit that I have a personal connection with your blog. I’ve been a dancer as part of multiple pre-professional companies for almost four years now, and I’ve been learning and practicing dance for even longer. I know that you’re also a ballet dancer (...right?), so you also know how messed up dance teachers and the inner workings of a dance company can truly be. I’ve also watched Dance Moms, so I’m very familiar with the way the show works, as well as the controversial episode you highlighted in your blog.
ReplyDeleteThe only word I can use to summarize both Dance Moms and the worst parts of dance culture is exploitation; I’m not saying that I’ve been in a situation where I’ve felt as oversexualized as the girls on Dance Moms or dancers for Molly Long have, but I do unfortunately have some slight familiarity with the feeling. Teachers often say that we have to become “comfortable with our bodies” as young women. Although sensual themes as a form of self-expression and even feminism do have a place in dance, there’s a fine line between expression and exploitation for shock value. It’s important to consider that reality shows such as Dance Moms are fully dependent on said shock value; many of the young girls on the show have been scarred for life regarding both their perceptions of themselves and dance due to the “entertainment factor” of Abby Lee Miller’s teaching methods.
This is why I believe that dance should be taken seriously as an art form rather than a form of entertainment—exploitation and abuse have no place in safe places of artistic expression.