Somehow, Mackenzie Ziegler (who has apparently rebranded to just Kenzie) went her entire life without watching a single episode of Dance Moms. Recently, she decided to subject herself to a couple of episodes and quickly realized why she never watched it. The experience wasn’t fun for her, so she doesn’t want to relive it. Imagine that.
There’s been a renewed interest in the Lifetime series thanks to clips of Abby Lee Miller constantly going viral. The show still has so much steam that Hulu just announced a reboot with an all-new cast. Meanwhile, the original cast members like Kenzie are still trying to recover from their experiences.
Reliving the trauma of Dance Moms
Kenzie recently opened up about her Dance Moms experience during an interview with Cosmopolitan. These days, she’s focused on building a music career, but she hasn’t forgotten her days at Abby Lee’s dance studio.
“I don’t remember a lot from it because I started when I was 6 years old,” Kenzie explained. “That was my childhood. I never went to middle or high school or did any normal kid things. So, looking back at it, I feel sad for myself because I never got to experience real life.”
According to Kenzie, she feels “mentally” 45 because she’s lived so many lives. She had to grow up quickly, which is exactly why she chose to skip the recent Dance Moms reunion. Why reopen that wound?
“I obviously watched it. I saw a lot of comments like, ‘Why didn’t they do this for the fans? Why didn’t they go?’ Personally, I just dealt with a lot of trauma from that show, and I have the worst anxiety from it,” Kenzie admitted.
Of course, Kenzie said she would have “loved” to see the girls and there’s no bad blood. She just didn’t want to retraumatize herself. Plus, she feels like her career has evolved far enough past Dance Moms that she doesn’t need to keep talking about it.
“I’m sorry to the fans. I know they wanted all of us there, but I didn’t feel comfortable,” Kenzie continued. “People think Maddie and I are unappreciative about where we came from. I don’t feel the need to talk about it because I’m an adult and I was a child at the time.”
Although Kenzie and the rest of the original Dance Moms cast have made it clear that their time on the show was damaging, Hulu just announced a reboot of the series. The trailer shows an aggressive new dance coach, high-stakes dance competitions, and two moms getting into a physical altercation over all of the drama. The cycle continues.
TELL US – WHAT IS YOUR REACTION TO KENZIE SHARING HER DANCE MOMS EXPERIENCE? ARE YOU SURPRISED THAT THE SHOW IS BEING REBOOTED CONSIDERING WHAT THE ORIGINAL GIRLS HAVE SHARED?
