| Genre: | Documentary |
| Director: | Kirsty Cunningham Anna Llewellyn |
| Narrated: | Olivia Colman |
| Composer: | Mat Davidson |
| Country: | United Kingdom |
| Language: | English |
| Num Series: | 1 |
| Num Episodes: | 3 |
| Executive Producer: | Peter Dale Emma Loach |
| Editor: | Steven Barclay |
| Runtime: | 60 mins |
| Company: | Rare Day |
| Channel: | Channel 4 |
Big Ballet is a 2014 British documentary program that follows Wayne Sleep and prima ballerina Monica Loughman[1] [2] as they help a troupe of amateur plus-size dancers realize their dream of dancing Swan Lake.[3] The three-episode series, produced by Rare Day[4] and broadcast on Channel 4, premiered on February 6, 2014.
The dancers, referred to in the show as "fat" or "real women", range from UK size 12 to 24 – significantly larger than the norm in classical ballet. Eighteen dancers were selected from a pool of more than 500 applicants to participate in the series.[5]
Big Ballet features Matthew Bourne, Derek Deane, Patricia Doyle, David Plumpton, Tamara Rojo, David Nixon and the English National Ballet.
It was predominantly filmed at the Northern Ballet;[6] its final performance was staged at St George's Hall, Bradford[7] in front of 1,500 people.[8]
| No. | Title | Original airdate | Viewers (in millions) from BARB |
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In 2021, an American series based on Big Ballet premiered on Fox called The Big Leap, which ran for one season. The show adapted the premise of Big Ballet into a fictional comedy-drama.[9]