The Still Point

Accomplished teenage ballet students Bea, Olive, and Savvy (and their ambitious mothers) vie for the attention of renowned French dancer Étienne Bernay, who arrives from Paris to direct their dance academy’s production of The Nutcracker. Bernay, who brings a film crew along to make a documentary about the process, promises to give a full scholarship for the academy of the Ballet de Paris to the school’s most promising student. Each young woman dreams of being chosen for the scholarship. When Étienne appears to favor Bea over the others, however, Savvy stoops to dirty tricks to get the scholarship for herself. In addition to their ambitions for their daughters, the mothers contend with their own problems with money, men, and relationships. Their dreams for their children often result in woefully bad decisions. Greenwood (Such a Pretty Girl) creates a story of struggle, ambition, and friendship while underlining the darker side of the world of ballet. Vanessa Johansson narrates, believably capturing the emotional volatility of life for both teens and adults.