Straight to the Pointe
I must confess… I’m a ballet school dropout. It’s hard for me to admit, but it’s my truth, and you all deserve nothing less. If Netflix’s new teen drama, Tiny Pretty Things, taught me anything, it’s to be grateful I got out of the world of ballet alive.
The premise of Tiny Pretty Things is reminiscent of Marlene King’s Pretty Little Liars. I’m sure Netflix was hoping to recreate the phenomenon of PLL with this teen drama, but just because you place ‘Pretty’ in the title and use a synonym for ‘little’ does not make the show an automatic hit. In this case, Tiny Pretty Things missed the murder mystery mark. The drama attempts to showcase ballet’s beauty and the beast that is the ballet industry under the guise of a classic “whodunit?”
Audiences attempt to uncover the truth behind Cassie, the lead ballerina at a prestigious ballet academy, and her unfortunate fall from grace (literally). New girl Neveah arrives to make a splash and claim the top spot, but she faces hostility from her competition. Cassie’s accident looms over every dancer at the academy including, Bette and June, Cassie’s inner circle.
The story unfolds and shows Bette’s willingness to sacrifice family, friends, and morals to become the top ballerina. While June is a ballerina who goes unnoticed and has to fight for her spot amidst threats from her mother; she must secure a lead role or lose her place at the ballet school altogether.
Next up is Oren, a talented ballet dancer who struggles with bulimia. Although in a relationship with Bette, Oren finds himself in an entanglement (if you know what I mean) with his roommate Shane. One cannot forget Nabil, Cassie’s devoted boyfriend who moved from Paris to be with her. Nabil is a practicing Muslim and confronts his roommate Caleb’s prejudice. We learn more about Caleb and his relationship with his father, his relationship with an older woman, and what fuels his bias towards Nabil later in the series. The show may be about teenage ballerinas, but the adults specifically, Monique Dupont, head of the school, Ramon, visiting choreographer, and Isabel, lead officer on the investigation, are an intricate part of the show as well.
The storyline sounds interesting, right? There is so much potential in this story, but somehow the execution leaves the audience wondering, “How did we get here?” For one, there is not a likable character. They are all flawed. But that is not the problem; the problem is there is no one to truly root for in Tiny Pretty Things. Most of the characters lacked depth and a developed arc that would allow the audience to relate or understand their actions and behaviors. June was probably the only character who received a natural character development, which is something I’d hope to see consistently throughout the cast.
My biggest issue with Tiny Pretty Things is the lack of cohesion. There were a variety of storylines condensed into one, ten-episode season. In retrospect, multiple narratives and plots are valuable to a show with a murder mystery premise. Still, in this case, the writing was choppy, the relationships were random, and the show just seemed chaotic. There was no flow to Tiny Pretty Things. Maybe it would’ve been helpful to listen to some Elton John (cue Tiny Dancer) so that the show could at least have some rhythm. The audience needed to see distinct turning points in the story, and they needed to witness the care and development required to arrive at each turning point. It was as if we started in first position and then jumped to dancing en pointe. Tiny Pretty Things focused too much on the shock factor when it needed to fill in the blanks. A viewer needs to savor the buildup and relish in the reveal.
The show’s promotion focused on Neveah, but in truth, each character was vital to the story’s unravelling. One of the things I think the show could have done was to focus each episode on a character, so we can properly see how each person and their relationships developed through their perspective. They could have also used the “How to Get Away with Murder” episode style, starting in present day and flashback to how the events of the episode unfold.
For all the questionable moments, there are moments of redemption spread throughout the episodes. I commend the show’s ability to keep its audience guessing. The reveal of the events that occurred on the roof of the ballet academy was lackluster, but Tiny Pretty Things was able to surprise us with the identity of Cassie’s attempted murderer. But one thing is for sure, this show knows how to give you some stunning dance performances. They are downright poetic.
Although my biggest critique was the lack of cohesiveness; the television show brought some important topics to the screen. The show tackled the exploitation of ballerinas, predatory actions of those in power, addiction, body image/body dysmorphia, etc. If given a season two, there are so many plotlines I hope the show considers to properly explore.
Ballet is a beautiful art form, but the show also depicts how the performing arts industry can exploit and sexualize those involved. We see students become victims of sexual assault, people in positions of power take advantage of the youth, and quid pro quo exchanges.
With the many issues tackled, I thought it was poignant to have a charge led by Neveah. This was appropriate in this climate where we see that these students are much “More than an Athlete.” She was supposed to be the token black girl to garner positive publicity after the Cassie incident, but she saw injustices occurring and leveraged the opportunity to right the wrongs within her situation.
Tiny Pretty Things: I can’t say I hated it because I kept watching. I was intrigued, but would I watch another season? The jury’s still out on that. If you’re looking for mystery, drama, and dance numbers, I say watch it, but know you may be a little confused and very frustrated along the way.
