Interviews (engl.)

"It's definitely going to be a gritty look at what I consider to be my normal day-to-day. (...)

With the show, you will see a lot of that reality . . . what's going on behind the dressing room doors."

Raychel Diane Weiner im Interview mit Becky Bartkowski: *Ballet Arizona's Raychel Diane Weiner Cast in Starz Dance Drama Flesh and Bone,* Phoenix New Times ,12. Februar 2014

"Even in a world as rarified as ballet, the people (...) are not merely ethereal visions on a stage. Yes, ballet is beautiful, the music is beautiful and above all the dancers are beautiful, but the reality is that the interpersonal relationships are complicated, the work is consuming, and the mental and physical toll of aspiration is high. Ballet is the ultimate optical illusion. It’s like a magic trick: what you see is almost prestidigitation. A performance is designed to disguise (...)

The series is unabashedly brutal and rigorous in (...) themes of power, femininity, sexuality, dominance, love and moral ambiguity."

*Flesh and Bone* examines the part of the magic trick that isn’t meant to be witnessed."

Moira Walley-Beckett im Interview mit Chelsea Thomas, Dance Informa

" (...) the writer and producers really want the dance sequences and repertoire to reflect material that would be presented by a professional company, within the context of a television drama. I believe that offers TV audiences an engaging piece of entertainment, whilst also offering the more knowledgeable dance followers some interesting classroom exercises and performance choreography."

Ethan Stiefel im Interview mit Chelsea Thomas, Dance Informa

I’ve been excited about the show ever since I read the script (...) The script was incredible and it was one of the most amazing pieces of television I have read. (...) It is a pretty special piece of television to be a part of. It’s going to be something pretty different than anyone has seen before. (...)

(...) My character, Romeo, is a homeless man who lives on the roof of and underneath the stoop of that particular building. He has schizophrenia and has been living on the streets for about eight years. He’s kind of adopted that building as a cause and kind of as his calling. He sees himself very much as the steward of that building and is there to serve. When he meets Claire, he develops a strong connection with her (certainly from his perspective, but probably not so much of hers). It develops from there…What starts out as a seemingly innocent friendship turns into something a lot bigger. It’s an extraordinary journey they go on together.

(...) When you read the script, it has so many elements. I think what appealed to me was that there are a lot of shows with great plots and there area lot of shows with a lot of great characters, but it is not often you have those two combined. This show has so much story and so much stuff to keep you glued to it while having incredibly well defined characters that you get to know. (...)

I didn’t know very much about schizophrenia at all other than what anybody knows, the limited amount that most people know. So, I did have to do some reading and watched a lot of video material as well. I wanted to really make sure that I was doing justice to the character and to anybody who watches who either suffers from schizophrenia themselves or has family or friends that do. So, I wanted it to be as accurate a portrayal as possible. I definitely read a whole bunch and watched a whole bunch. I spoke to Moira as well because there are so many degrees and different ways that it is manifests itself. So, it was the matter of finding that right balance. There is no way to go into a role like this without doing  a bunch of research. It’s a very specific condition and I wanted to treat it respectfully.

Damon Herriman im Interview mit Lisa Steinberg, Starrymag, 08. November 2015

"It's not a departure. This is a dark, f---ed up character drama set against the backdrop of a New York City ballet company. But at its essence, it's a strange, labyrinthian character journey per my style and per the style of Breaking Bad. (...)

(...) Romeo is somebody from my life. Schizophrenia is a broad spectrum illness and it manifests in a myriad of ways. This is someone who, in order to compress the parts of himself that scare him, that he can't control, has made a decision to always be a person who does the right thing and someone who is in service. (...)

Moira Walley-Beckett im Interview mit Adam Bryant, TV Guide, 07. November 2015

"I was excited to see a ballet show finally cast real dancers and not glamourize the whole thing. My personal experience in the ballet world left me with a lot of complexities and I was excited about the idea of contributing to this kind of authentic drama. I wanted it to be done right, just like our creative team, the network and the rest of the cast. I was also up for the challenge of getting back into 'ballet' shape. I hadn't danced in a company or taken regular ballet classes for about 6 years. It scared me, so I knew I needed to do it. It was hard! But so worth it." (...)

The cast operated on a schedule almost like a real ballet company. We would train together in the mornings when we weren't shooting ballet scenes. Next, we'd take class and warm up together and then have various rehearsal throughout the day. The dancers in the final performance worked with our choreographer, Ethan Stiefel, almost every day as he created the original piece for the show. Long hours on set and off. Some of the shoot days in the studio set were 15 or 16 hour days (...)

**What do you love about playing Mia?**

She's no nonsense. Blunt. Honest. Sexy. Manipulative. But deeply insecure. I love her darkness. Some would call her a mean girl. (...) It is hard to understand why people behave that way until you figure out their vulnerability. Mia's arc was a slow burn. She started out as this one thing and became something else as the story unfolded. Also, she had some pretty good one-liners. (...) "

Emily Tyra im Interview mit Athleisure

" (...) I shot a recurring TV role on the upcoming Starz show Flesh and Bone as a slightly fey, snotty assistant to the artistic director at a ballet company (...) "

Clifton Duncan im Interview mit Michael Poandl: *Meet the Cast of Shakespeare Theatre Company's 'The Tempest: Part 2: Clifton Duncan*, DC Metro Theater Arts, 23. Dezember 2014

1. ↑ https://www.phoenixnewtimes.com/arts/ballet-arizonas-raychel-diane-weiner-cast-in-starz-dance-drama-flesh-and-bone-6557953
2. ↑ 2,0 2,1 http://www.danceinforma.com/2014/01/07/starzs-newly-announced-gritty-ballet-drama-flesh-bone/
3. ↑ http://starrymag.com/damon-herriman-flesh-and-bone/
4. ↑ https://www.tvguide.com/news/flesh-and-bone-moira-walley-beckett-interview/
5. ↑ http://www.athleisuremag.com/feb-2016/
6. ↑ https://dcmetrotheaterarts.com/2014/12/23/stc-tempest-interviews-clifton-duncan/