･:*:･ f o r e w o r d ･:*:･

Hi! Thank you so much for deciding to give Creature a read! Before we get into the story, I have a few disclaimers about the content of the story, and a ballet cheat sheet for you (just in case you're interested or don't know much about ballet already).

. ｡༶・° D I S C L A I M E R °・༶ ｡.

Creature is rated mature and the plot is not intended for a young audience. It contains mature themes, swearing, sexual content and drug abuse. Furthermore, I implore you, if you struggle with any body dysmorphic or eating disorder and feel literature could be triggering or damaging, please read with caution.

Secondly, Creature is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, events, locales, and incidents are either the products of my imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental. Certain long-standing institutions (like the Royal Opera House and Bolshoi Ballet) are mentioned, but the characters involved are completely imaginary.

. ｡༶・° T E R M I N O L O G Y °・༶ ｡.

I know that many of you don't know a plié from a penché, which is why I have made a short cheat sheet with some insights on the ballet world. It's by no means compulsory, but it will definitely help you understand the story better if you don't know much about ballet already.

・.・R A N K S ・.・

① PRINCIPAL DANCER

These are the rockstar, pop-icon Olympians of the ballet world. These dancers get main parts, think Odette in Swan Lake or Aurora in Sleeping Beauty. This is a highly coveted position, and only dancers with exceptional talent and drive make it to the rank of principal. They normally earn more money, have their own dressing rooms and perform the best roles, but they have to live up to their titles, and this puts an insane amount of pressure on them to deliver only the best ballet has to offer. Furthermore, it's very rare for dancers to make principal under the age of 25-30.

② SOLOIST

Soloist is the middle ground between the Corps and Principal. Soloists perform the solo roles in a ballet, which is usually the supporting characters (think Mercutio in Romeo and Juliet or Mercedes in Don Quixote). Some companies give their soloists principal roles on occasion to see how they perform, but mostly they will be understudies and only step in if a principal dancer gets injured.

③ CORPS DE BALLET

These dancers form the 'body of the ballet' and act as a backdrop for the principals. They make up the majority of a company, and some dancers spend their whole career in the corps de ballet. Make no mistake, these dancers work very hard, sometimes portraying up to three characters in a single show.

④ APPRENTICE

Apprentices are usually unpaid dancers who are testing out a company before they get hired (kind of like an internship). A lot of ballet students do this in their final year of schooling.

･ Many companies have additional ranks like coryphee , first artists or demi-soloists. This is just a general structure and inevitably it will vary from company to company.

･ Prima Ballerinas: the term prima ballerina has gone out of fashion in recent years, but used to refer to the top principal ballerina(s) in a company.

・.・L E A D E R S H I P・.・

Ballet companies are usually companies, meaning they exist for profit and have a board and 'CEO', which would be called the Artistic Director. Furthermore, ballet companies employ full-time teachers and coaches that are called ballet masters and mistresses.

① COMPANY DIRECTOR / ARTISTIC DIRECTOR

Quite literally the 'head' of a ballet company, this person is normally a decently famous retired dancer or choreographer. This is a very sought after position, and there's usually a lot of politics involved with this specific job, having to balance training dancers, staging productions, choreographing original pieces, handling promotions and managing the business side of things.

② BALLET MASTERS / BALLET MISTRESSES

Ballet masters and mistresses are employed by a ballet company to uphold standards and professionalism amongst the dancers, as well as passing on traditions and their knowledge. They often teach the day to day classes and run rehearsals.

③ FURTHERMORE

There are plenty of other roles within a ballet company like physiotherapists, some companies have psychologists, wardrobe staff and orchestra members.

・.・C A R E E R・.・

-: TRAINING :-

Most dancers start training at a very young age, with some children starting as early as 3. Usually, by 10 or 11 they would have decided to go professional. This is an incredibly tender age to make such adult decisions, but it is what is expected of children who dream of a career in ballet. On top of training full-time, dancers will still get an academic education as well.

-: LIFE :-

After training in vocational ballet schools, most dancers will enter the audition process to try and get into a company. As I mentioned before, many dancers spend their entire career in the corps de ballet. For those trying to climb the hierarchy, some will make soloist (usually around age 25) and the very exceptional ones principal (very rarely under the age of 25). Ballet is a short career given how taxing it is on the body, and most dancers will retire from the stage in their mid-thirties and become choreographers or teachers.

-: INJURIES :-

Unfortunately, most dancers will have at least one major injury somewhere in their career. This can range from overuse injuries, torn ligaments, stress fractures and even broken bones. In extreme cases, they can end a dancer's career.

・.・D A Y・.・

11-12 pm || Classical Ballet Lesson or Company Class (This is to keep everyone's technique sharp and warm-up for the day ahead. At this point many dancers have already been in the gym.)

12-2 pm || Rehearsal or Stage Rehearsal (Here dancers rehearse repertoire for upcoming performances, often more than one ballet in an afternoon, and up to six weeks in advance.)

2-4 pm || Solo Rehearsals (for dancers that have them, or just normal rehearsals for the corps)

4-5 pm || Break

5-6 pm || Preparation for performance (this includes makeup, hair, costumes and warming up)

7-10 pm || Performances

11 pm || Most dancers only leave the theatre around 11 or 12.

Dancers normally work six days a week, and 12-hour days are not uncommon. This makes it very hard to have a normal family life or even have relationships outside the company in general.

・.・E X T R A S ・.・

① FAMOUS BALLET COMPANIES

Paris Opera Ballet (France)

Bolshoi Ballet (Russia)

Mariinsky Ballet (Russia)

American Ballet Theatre (USA)

New York City Ballet (USA)

Royal Ballet (UK)

All of them have social media pages if you'd like to check them out!

② BALLETS

The classics:

Swan Lake

Sleeping Beauty

Don Quixote

Giselle

Nutcracker

Le Corsaire

La Bayadere

Then the more neo-classical ones:

Serenade

Romeo and Juliet

Jewels

Suite en Blanc

･ If you're really intrigued, most of these ballets are on YouTube and they make for some gorgeous binge-watching (trust me).

・.・L A S T L Y・.・

Creature's realism is incredibly important to me, but sadly, with such a complex industry, I simply could not include everything. I have tried my best not to misrepresent or glamourize anything, but for the sake of the story some things have been fictionalised or dramatized.

. ｡༶・° E N J O Y °・༶ ｡.