London ballerinas feature as the dance doubles and stunt women for Hollywood actresses in Prime Video’s new action thriller Pretty Lethal.
The freelancer dancers from across the city were cast for their ballet technique and likeness to their actor counterparts, who include Maddie Ziegler (Dance Moms) and Lana Condor (To All The Boys I’ve Loved Before).
The film follows an ensemble which ends up embroiled in a gory escape from a gang, proving the mental and physical strength required for their art by fighting for their lives – truly “badass ballerinas” as described by Xolisweh Ana Richards, who doubled for Avantika Vandanapu.
Richards said: “It’s a good way to allow people who wouldn’t typically watch ballet see it in a form where it looks pretty badass.
“It does show we are driven and hardcore – and we do put up with a lot of pain.”
The dancers are proud to be part of the film and hope it will help with the perception of their athletic artform, something which has been part of a public discussion after Timothée Chalamet suggested “no one cares about this anymore” in an interview with fellow actor Matthew McConaughey.
Tia Hockey, from Willesden Junction, said: “I appreciate the essence that the writers were trying to bring across which is that ballerinas are tough.”
While ballet has been featured in movies such as Black Swan, it is much less common to see it in an action thriller genre, and it was a once in a lifetime opportunity for the cast.
Maidie Widmer, Aimee Casey, Sarah Kundi and Leila Wright, all from London, also took part in the filming in Budapest and developmental rehearsals with acclaimed English choreographer William Tuckett in the UK.
The movie cuts between them and the actresses seamlessly, with face mapping used to overlay the faces of the acting cast onto the ballerinas bodies with specialised headsets.
The group helped to decipher which movements from classical ballet could integrate within the traditional fight scenes which were fundamental to the movie alongside the stunt team.
Hockey said: “At first, from a superficial perspective, the two feel like polar opposites, but actually they are both art forms.”
Ballet training focuses on making everything look easy and effortless, but the women had to do the opposite in the action sequences, even learning boxing and how to be grounded in the stunts.
Widmer explained creating the grit needed for the film “came out in the form of screaming a lot”, whereas ballet is traditionally a silent art form.
She added: “There was something really empowering to it, for sure.”
This merging of worlds was St John’s Wood resident Richards’ first film experience and she was inspired by the wire work by some of the dancers and stunt people on set.
She has since taken a professional training course in and started doing wire work, after performing in the production of Ballet Shoes at the National Theatre.
The dancers are used to long days of rehearsal and shows and adapted to even longer shoot days, sometimes with 30-40 takes including renownedly difficult fouetté turns.
Casey said: “It was an experience little me would be proud of and forever inspired by the people that I worked with. It’s a job to beat.”
Sarah Kundi, a Royal Ballet School teacher, came out of performance retirement for the movie and described it as “the most unique work experience I’ve ever done.”
The performers can be seen across the capital in Ballet Nights and New English Ballet Theatre, along with other stage and film productions.
Pretty Lethal is now streaming on Prime Video.
Photo credit Maidie Widmer
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