# Flesh and Bone (2015)

> A troubled young dancer joins a New York City ballet company and is drawn into its cutthroat rivalries and the dark side of its glamour.

Canonical page: https://ember.film/tv/55573

## Facts

- Seasons: 1
- Episodes: 8
- Episode runtime: 60 min
- Status: Ended
- Genres: drama
- Created by: Moira Walley-Beckett
- Network: STARZ
- Cast: Sarah Hay, Irina Dvorovenko, Raychel Diane Weiner, Emily Tyra, Ben Daniels, Damon Herriman, Tina Benko, Clifton Duncan
- TMDB rating: 7.8/10
- IMDb: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt3507484/

## Ember's analysis

- Pacing: measured
- Intensity: strong
- Complexity: accessible
- Violence: moderate
- Tone: gritty, bleak, intense, unflinching, melancholic

## What critics say

Audiences rate the miniseries positively for its unflinching portrait of the ballet world, though its dark, gritty tone divides viewers.

## Synopsis

Flesh and Bone (2015) is an American prestige drama miniseries created by Moira Walley-Beckett for STARZ. Across eight hour-long episodes, emotionally fragile dancer Claire Robbins (Sarah Hay) joins a New York City ballet company and must fight for a place among ruthless peers and demanding directors. Irina Dvorovenko plays Kiira, a figure whose presence shapes the company's pressures, while Ben Daniels plays Paul and Damon Herriman plays Romeo, adding further friction to Claire's climb. The engine of the story is Claire's struggle to hold herself together while competing for roles, navigating jealousy and favoritism, and confronting the damage carried over from her past. Each episode tracks the grinding daily routines of rehearsals, performances and backstage politics, so the drama builds steadily as one continuous arc. Its tone is dark, gritty and unflinching, examining the dysfunction hidden beneath the glamour of professional ballet. Fans of Black Swan and Smash will find resonance in its portrait of obsession, rivalry and the high cost of artistic ambition, rendered in a raw, grounded register that refuses easy consolation.

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