“Dance Moms: A New Era” is already off to a dramatic start.
Gloria “Miss Glo” Hampton – who is the new head coach and face of Hulu’s reboot centered around a group of young competition dancers and their moms – stopped by Page Six’s New York City studio on Monday, where she spilled on what it’s been like stepping into Abby Lee Miller’s shoes.
The dance instructor exclusively confessed to us that taking on the TV gig has negatively impacted her friendship with the OG coach.
“I met Abby through doing ‘Dance Moms’ with my daughter [Kaeli Ware] … and we did become good friends,” Hampton told Page Six studio host Astra, admitting that she did not receive any helpful tips about filming from Miller.
“I’m not sure she wanted to give me advice. She’s not speaking to me at the moment.”
Hampton went on to explain how everything seemed fine between her and Miller when she initially booked the role.
“She did reach out and congratulate me and I thought she was supporting the whole thing. And then when I did reach out to try to get together – because we were in Florida at the same time – she just wasn’t very receptive,” the award winning dancer shared.
“So I’m not sure where we stand right now, but I think that she feels a type of way. And I understand, but it’s a new show – it’s not her show.”
Hampton noted that, at least on her end, she doesn’t believe she did anything to intentionally “upset” Miller and hopes there will come a time when they can mend things.
“We’ve been good friends. I’ve been there for her through her illness and vacations and lots of things,” she continued, referencing when Miller was diagnosed with Burkitt lymphoma (a rare and aggressive form of non-Hodgkin lymphoma) in 2018.
“So it makes me sad. But, you know, hopefully she’ll come around.”
Miller starred on Lifetime’s original “Dance Moms” series from 2011 to 2019, along with spinoff shows like “Abby’s Ultimate Dance Competition,” “Dance Moms: Miami” and “Dance Moms: Abby’s Studio Rescue.”
She previously worked alongside Hampton when the choreographer and her daughter, Kaeli, briefly appeared on Seasons 3 and 4 of “Dance Moms.” Kaeli was selected to compete as part of the Abby Lee Dance Company (ALDC) “replacement team,” which Miller formed amid growing tensions brought on by a few of the other studio moms.
The contemporary dancer was eventually booted, however, after Hampton attempted to secure a solo for her daughter against Miller’s wishes. She then went on to compete as a representative from a rival studio – Hampton’s own Studio Bleu Dance Center.
Since then, Kaeli has starred on shows like “So You Think You Can Dance” and “World of Dance” and is a professional dancer with the Ballet West company in Salt Lake City, Utah. She also appears in the “Dance Moms” reboot, helping her mom coach some of the talented young girls.
“It was different. It was the first time we really worked together,” Hampton told Page Six. “She has done choreography and taught things in the past, but working together … I had to remind her who was in charge a couple of times.”
The original series featured standouts like JoJo Siwa, Maddie Ziegler, Chloe Lukasiak and more all training under Miller’s strict leadership. This time around, a whole new crew of mother-daughter duos from Hampton’s Studio Bleu will be followed by cameras as the youngsters compete nationally every week.
“I’m tough, I’m firm, but I teach from a place of love,” Hampton said of the teaching style she displays at her prestigious dance studio in Ashburn, Va. “I want the kids to know that they have a voice – but I do expect them to work hard.”
She continued, “All I ask is that they give their personal best. If we all are [doing that], then they need to as well. I do try to give positive reinforcement, but they know when I’m not happy with them, for sure.”
As for Miller, she recently reflected on her own time on “Dance Moms” in an interview that aired on ABC News back in May. She admitted at the time that she felt some regret over how “harsh” she was to some of the aspiring dancers in her studio that “didn’t have the talent” to compete on such a high level.
“[I] didn’t want to hurt anyone’s feelings,” she said, adding that she was just trying “to get them to be better” and to perform as “the best” that they could be, even if they had no chance of success in the highly competitive dance industry.
All episodes of “Dance Moms: A New Era” are exclusively streaming on Hulu.
