Book Review: The Ballerinas

Rachel Kapelke-Dale immerses the reader in the world of ballet and beyond, offering an insightful take on the exquisite art form and the toll it takes on the ballerinas underneath its glossy veneer. Exploring a complicated portrayal of friendship between three women united by their love and passion for ballet, The Ballerinas is centered around Delphine, the only daughter of a famous ballerina, who returns to Paris as a choreographer after spending more than a decade in St. Petersburg, only to realise that everything has changed around her and try as much to evade her past, it always has a way of catching up. As they say, when your past comes calling, there's no escape. An emotionally intense and character driven drama about the competitive backstage of professional ballet and the depiction of women through the male gaze, Rachel Kapelke-Dale — trained as a ballet dancer herself — successfully weaves together multiple storylines and sketches out a cast of players that are multifaceted, complex, and flawed, while steering the story to a coda that is chilling in its quietness. The Ballerinas isn't so much a murder mystery or a thriller as it's a slow-boil story of betrayals, secrets and jealousies that come to the fore when the pressure to strive for perfection comes at a cost. A captivating debut.