Will Big Ballet Work?

Channel 4’s Big Ballet is based on an idea that the premise shouldn’t work. Women who are between the sizes of 12 and 26 shouldn’t be able to do the bends, poses and leaps required of dancers, and they certainly shouldn’t be able to do a version of Swan Lake, one of the most famous, most beloved ballets in history. Trying to get larger women to be as graceful as dancers should be the premise of a comedy, not an inspirational documentary show.

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It shouldn’t work, but everyone on the show is determined to do it anyway. From the comforting, sympathetic narration of Olivia Coleman, to the professionalism and high standards of prima ballerina Monica Loughman, to the dogged determination of the dancers, to the personal motivations of director Wayne Sleep (he was often told he was too short to be a dancer), everyone on the show believes this can work. And they are willing to do what it takes to make it work.

But it won’t be easy. The dancers all had to contend with various self esteem issues just to send in their audition tapes. Even Claire, who almost didn’t make the cut because she was too slim, is having to battle self esteem demons that were established during her childhood, when she felt she was a slightly too big daughter of a ballet examiner.

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As if confidence weren’t a big enough issue (since these people who have to perform on stage in tights), Wayne and Monica had to pick from men and women who (generally) had little to no training in ballet or any kind of dance.

Finally, Wayne and Monica will have to build confidence, train bodies and get performances down pat in just five months. It’s a timescale that could work easily for a straightforward production, featuring professional dancers who already understand the choreography, but to say this particular production is a race against the clock is a real understatement.

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It shouldn’t work. But something tells us, it totally will.

The first episode of Big Ballet is available on 4oD, and the rest of the series will be shown Thursdays at 9pm on Channel 4.

But what do you think? Will Big Ballet work? Share your thoughts in the comments below.