Chloe and Christi Lukasiak – Dance Moms

By starrymag | October 29, 2014

Q) Talk a little bit of the evolution of the relationships between the moms and the relationships between the girls since start of “Dance Moms.”

Christi: I think most interesting thing that has kind of developed between the moms was that we had a relationship before “Dance Moms.” We all knew each other and our kids really did dance together before the show. So, we had a backstory and a history with each other. I think the whole evolution of the show is the moms more or less trying to figure out the whole success of the show, but trying to maintain our friendships and who we were in the face of all of this attention, the girls growing up and being in the spotlight. It’s about how you find a balance.

Q) The show definitely shows a struggle between the friendships, which has brought some closer and torn some apart.

Christi: I agree. I do agree with that.

Q) What do you think has been the biggest challenge getting past that?

Christi: It’s probably the fact that when we signed up to do a reality show we originally thought it would be six episodes. It was supposed to be six weeks long. I think the biggest struggle is that we are expected to voice our opinions and say out loud what we normally wouldn’t say because that is how you drive storylines for a reality show. And I think that it is very challenging because some of the moms sometimes sit by and act like, “Oh, I’m just the nice mom. I would never say that.” And they do that because they don’t want to come across as the bad guy. I think the other moms get upset because you signed up for the same thing we did. Why do you get to pretend you would never do those things, but as soon as the cameras stop rolling you are a totally different person? I think that is one of the biggest challenges the moms face.

Q) Chloe, what has been the biggest struggle that you have had through the seasons? Is it becoming a more mature dancer or is it with girls coming and going? Dealing with the pressure?

Chloe: I think it has been pretty difficult with people coming and going. The girls that have always been there and the girls that are still there have remained close friends. That sort of makes it easier when people move on at some point. And probably one of the biggest challenges for me is maintaining school and dance and remembering all the dances. It’s also kind of growing up on the show with my mom. I’m getting older and becoming a teenager. My mom and I get into arguments more than we used to. So, it’s kind of hard to grow up on the show and have people watch you go through being a teenager.

Q) How do the two of you balance your relationship with being on the show and being mother and daughter?

Christi: I think we just have to give each other a little bit of leeway. Would you agree with that Chloe?

Chloe: Yes!

Christi: I’m not perfect. She’s not perfect. It’s hard to figure out how to be a mom to a teenager and let her go and make choices. She is going to make mistakes. It’s also hard to not only have just your mother, but five mothers always watching everything you do.

Chloe: It’s like having five different opinions about everything!

Q) What is it like for you to watch the episodes, being able to see what transpired in a different way than from your perspective while filming?

Christi: Personally, I don’t watch the show very often. I only watch it if I know something big is going to happen.

Chloe: I watch the show, but I normally only watch the dances. I kind of fast forward through all of the talking.

Christi: We live it so we kind of don’t want to watch it. Some of it is not fun to go through so I don’t think we want to watch it again.

Q) The two of you travel together as well. Why is it important for the two of you to participate in meet-and-greets?

Christi: For me, one of the main reasons for us to get out there is because Chloe doesn’t always have the best experience or support from other cast members on the show (specially the teacher). I think one of the reasons we started making appearances was because I felt she needed to go out there and see the kids that she inspires. That has become the motivating factor for Chloe.

Chloe: It’s amazing to hear people say that I am their role model because I’m just a kid from a small town who loves to dance. To have people say I’m their role model is truly amazing.

Christi: I think it helps her get through the hard times because I say, “There are kids out there that have real hardships in life. Maybe they are getting bullied in school or maybe they don’t have the easiest time at home.” They look at Chloe and her ability to persevere and even if it is not so much inspirational; even if it gives them something they can relate to it is amazing to hear the stories. I think she takes that sometimes and uses that as her motivation. I say to her all the time, “It doesn’t necessarily matter if the judges watching you today think you were the best dancer. The people who are watching the show want to see you go out there and do your best.”

Chloe: My mom tends to say a lot, “Dance for yourself. Don’t dance for me. Don’t dance for the teacher. Just dance for the people out there.”

Q) As a dancer, who are some of your role models?

Chloe:  Jennifer Lawrence! I love her. Also, my mom and my dad inspire me a lot.

Christi: Aw! I like that. I’ll take it!

Q) You do spend so much time together. What is it like always being so close?

Chloe: Even though my mom and I might fight a lot, I always know she is there for me.

Christi: I don’t think we fight a lot, considering you are thirteen years old. I really don’t. As soon as you figure out that I am always right, we’ll be fine! I also need to respect the fact that Chloe needs to learn some things on her own and I need to be reminded of that. So, I try to remember to do that. That’s the only way to learn, through experience. You always want to protect your kids and make sure they are fine. Sometimes they need to learn how to stumble and fall so they pick themselves up without you.

Q) We talked about the negativity that comes with being a part of the show and as a dancer. How do you stay strong and pick yourself up?

Chloe: Not necessarily for social media, but for other things on the show my parents just let me vent. For the social media, I honestly don’t normally read that stuff a lot or I just ignore it.

Q) You are a part of the Nobody is You campaign. Why was that important for you to get involved in?

Chloe: I just wanted to sort of tell kids and teenagers that you don’t need the makeup, the hair, the costumes and the sparks. You can just be you by doing what you love to do and I love to dance.

Christi: And you don’t have to be an imitation of someone else.

Chloe: Just show yourself throughout the dance.

Christi: You don’t even need to be a dancer. I think the whole point of it was that Chloe was always compared on the show to another dancer. Always. It was, “You’re not her. You’re not her.” No, she’s not her. But no one is Chloe and she is special. She’s great for the reasons she is. I think that so often everyone wants to be a copy of someone else and the whole Nobody Is You campaign is that no one is you and you’re special. Take what makes you special and really be proud of that.

Q) Where can people go to get involved with the campaign?

A) They can go to http://www.justforkix.com/nobodyisyou!