Reality TV does it yet again--another race to the finish line for dreck entertainment--as viewers watch trials and hardships to pair with their fried chicken and beer.
The invention of reality television has become a cornerstone in prime-time network programming. You know 'em, shows like Survivor, The Biggest Loser, The Real World and so on and so forth.
When reality TV gets juxtaposed with ignorant opinion, then comes the onslaught of viewers who engage in television habits like a gladiator's dual.
Big Ballet has a unique aim, though. To take ballerinas self-conscious with their label "over-weight" and throw them onto the screen for laughs. Thus, their mission may be completely unique and righteous, and yet the act of making it a piece of the entertainment conglomerate renders this thoroughly upsetting.
An ABC Family's Bun Heads, but for fatties. Ostensibly.
However, the dancers, particularly Hannah Baines in an interview with The Guardian, capture the true essence of the show. In perhaps one of the more chauvinistic, degrading and still artistically brilliant industries (check it out, even the reporter knows most of showbiz is out for your negative interests), Baines walks tall and proves to be a role model for all dancers insecure about their bodies.
Like Rubens' paintings of women who wouldn't conform to our 2014 standards of body beauty, these girls are actually in a league of their own as they break down the barriers of dance and movement. With high expectations, the world may have to accept these young dancers for exactly what they are: artists.
So, while Aerie Clothing Co., too, engages in a new promotional ad campaign that features un-retouched models, so these would-be ballerinas will follow suit. And, for Chrissake, that is just too damn wonderful to keep silent.
To wit, here is the preview for Channel 4's Big Ballet. Perhaps you can see here the real trouble...
