Lifetime's Hit Docuseries DANCE MOMS to Return Jan. 1, 2013

Take a spin on the dance floor this New Year's Day with Abby Lee Miller when Lifetime premieres the third season of Dance Moms. The hit docuseries is back and Pittsburgh's world-class students and their mothers are ready for another season of heated competition in their never-ending quest to bring home National Dance titles. Get ready for more drama and of course more dancing as the docusoap returns with several new faces all vying for the chance to become Abby's new favorite in the 90-minute season premiere on Tuesday, January 1, 2013, at 9:00pm PT/ET.

As an exciting inside look into the hit-series, prior to Dance Moms' return, Lifetime will air the Dance Moms Special: The Smoke Before the Fire at 8:00 pm PT/ET. During the special, Abby and the moms will take the stage together, giving a unique window into what's to come in America's favorite dancing docuseries while the ladies dish and their daughters perform never-before-seen choreography created exclusively for the Dance Moms Special: The Smoke Before the Fire.

Nominated for a Teen Choice 2012 Award, Dance Moms follows children's early steps on the road to stardom and their doting mothers who are there for every rehearsal, performance and bow... all under Miller's discerning eyes. Presenting a powerful cast of characters that has inspired water-cooler talk across the country, the show immerses itself in the highs and lows surrounding dance competition season, delivering a captivating and dramatic look at the cast's intense pursuit of National Dance titles. Centered on the devoTed Miller, who runs her school and instructs her young, talented students while also dealing with impassioned mothers who go to great lengths to help their children's dreams come true, Dance Moms poses the tough questions many people have been asking since the show's launch about what really goes on behind-the-scenes in the fast-growing and controversial sport of competitive dance.

Since the launch of Lifetime's hit series Dance Moms in summer 2011, Abby and the Pittsburgh moms and girls have become household names and an international celebrities in their own right. Abby has become even more of a world-renowned dance persona, making guest appearances at prestigious dance events across the country, including the Capezio 125th Anniversary Awards. Earlier in 2012, Abby was also nominated for a Logo "NewNowNext" award and Dance Moms was nominated for a "Fan Favorite" Teen Choice Award and for a "Best Candid Reality Show" Tubey Award from TelevisionWithoutPity.com. This year, Abby also made her acting debut in a guest appearance on Lifetime's critically acclaimed hit series Drop Dead Diva.

Dance Moms' second season, wrapped this September and was the number one unscripted cable series in its Tuesday 9:00pm time period among Women 18-49 and Women 2+. Additionally, season two over-delivered season one by wide margins among the key demographics, including +69% with Adults 18-49, +72% in Women 18-49, +64% among Adults 25-54 and +66% with Women 25-54. Dance Moms is Lifetime's youngest skewing current series with a season two median age of 32 years old, five years younger than season one. Abby is also currently headlining Lifetime's all-new dance competition program Abby's Ultimate Dance Competition, which premiered October.

The program is produced by Collins Avenue, with Jeff Collins (Dance Moms, Abby's Ultimate Dance Competition, Fly Girls), Michael Hammond (Dance Moms, Hell's Kitchen), Mike Aho (Dance Moms, The Bachelorette) and Bryan Stinson (Dance Moms, High Society) executive producing, and Robert Caplain (Big Brother, Fame) and Sara Quick (Dance Moms, LA Ink) co-executive producing, along with Rob Sharenow, Gena McCarthy, Kimberly Chessler and Stephen Schwartz of Lifetime. A+E Networks handles global sales for Dance Moms.