Jill Vertes

**Jill Vertes** is a former reality television personality known for *Dance Moms* and the mother of Ryleigh McClure, Charlotte, and Kendall Vertes.

## About

She first appeared in the second season premiere, arriving from a different studio, with Kendall winning in auditions for an open spot at the ALDC.

Early in her time at Abby's, she befriended Melissa, but fought with the other moms, particularly Holly and Kelly. She also repeatedly expressed her discontent that Abby paid insufficient respect to Kendall as a dancer.

After Kendall was put on probation for the second time, Jill abandoned the ALDC to join Cathy and Candy Apple's Dance Center; only to grow unhappy with Cathy, and returned to Abby's. Jill eventually befriends Kira. Towards the end of the second season, Jill's personality seemed to change, and began to become more accepted by the other members of the ALDC.

Although Kendall originally served as a replacement for Paige when she first returned, due to Paige being sidelined with a broken foot, she was reinstated as a permanent member of the team before nationals.

She and Kendall remained members of the elite team until Season 7, when they left to form The Irreplaceables. In her role on the show, Jill has been known for giving bribes to Abby and Gianna (as well as her own daughter Kendall); her bold fashion statements; her ability to put her foot in her mouth; her kooky sense of humor, and her eagerness to dance in public.

## Other Information

* Her zodiac sign is a Leo.
* Jill was very involved in dance and gymnastics as a young girl and decided to go into competitive cheerleading in high school and went on to cheer for the University of Pittsburgh, where she received a Bachelor of Arts.
* Jill performed for *Dancing with the Celebrities of Pittsburgh* in May 2013, taking first place in the competition.
* She and Kendall are left-handed.
* With Christi, Jill says they are encouraged by production to provoke situations and say things they normally never would do.
* According to Barbara Schrade, Erika Schrade's mother, Jill, and Kendall never left the Abby Lee Dance Company to go to Candy Apple's Dance Center; it was just a ploy by the producers to create more drama for the show.
* After her first year with the show, Jill said she was surprised over how little control she had on the program; this included being dismissive when asked about actually buying a bench and masseurs for Abby and Gianna.
* Jill's best friends are Melissa Ziegler and Kira Girard.
* Her greatest regret is not having another baby when she had the chance.
* In high school, she was very social, captian of the varsity cheerleading squad, and on the student council.
* She participated in her senior class play "Oklahoma".
* According to Kendall, Jill speaks Ubbi Dubbi, which is similar in concept to Pig Latin.
* Indulging in a good book and forgetting about her worries, venting to her husband, chewing gum, and taking walks are her ways to blow off steam.
* Her favorite store to shop at is Nordstrom.
* Spaghetti with my meat sauce, chicken and rice, grilled pork chops, blackberry and strawberry fruit smoothies, and Buffalo chicken dip are her favorite family recipes.
* At age eight, Jill says she dreamed big. She loved to dress up, put on makeup and sing and dance privately in her bedroom. She loved to ride horses, and loved all animals. She also loved to play house with her friends.
* After college, Jill worked for ten years as a pharmaceutical sales representative.
* When she first came for the audition, her hair was her natural brown color. She dyed it blonde before leaving Candy Apples, and by the middle of the third season, she dyed it back to shade a little darker than her natural color.
* Jill moved to the ALDC from Studio 19 around the same time as Cindy Rohm and her daughter Elizabeth (who performed in the senior dance in *Boy Crazy, Mom Crazy*); it can be seen from competition results that Elizabeth Rohm was performing for the ALDC by the time of the early *Season 1* episode *Stealing the Show*.
* Jill comes from an Italian-American family.
* Jill abandoned the ALDC to join Candy Apples and then became very unhappy with Cathy.
* In 2020, Jill alongside Melissa Ziegler, Holly Hatcher-Frazier, and Kelly Hyland launched a podcast entitled Because Moms Said So.
* Jill is the only mom out of the original 5 moms from Dance Moms who occasionally talks to Abby Lee Miller.