BEVERLY HILLS, Calif.,
Jan. 27, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- STARZ
announced today the greenlight of its next original drama series,
"Flesh and Bone," created by Emmy award-winning "Breaking Bad"
Writer and Executive Producer, Moira
Walley-Beckett. "Flesh and Bone" follows a young
ballet dancer, Claire, who has a distinctly troubled past, as she
joins a prestigious ballet company in New
York. The dark and gritty series will unflinchingly
explore the dysfunction and glamour of the ballet world.
(Logo:
http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20080522/LATH063LOGO-b)
Acclaimed dancer Sarah Hay
(Black Swan) has been cast in the lead role, joining an
already stellar cast of world-renowned dancers, including former
American Ballet Theatre principal dancer Irina Dvorovenko and
current soloist Sascha Radetsky,
along with Royal New Zealand Ballet artistic director and former
American Ballet Theatre principal dancer Ethan Stiefel attached as choreographer.
"From the beginning, we all agreed this project could not go
forward unless we found a world class dancer who had the ability to
convey the widest range of emotions that Moira has written," says
Chris Albrecht, CEO of Starz.
"This is one of the most challenging and dynamic characters I have
even seen and am thrilled to say we found our 'Claire' in Ms.
Hay."
Moira Walley-Beckett stated,
"Finding the perfect 'Claire' has been an almost impossible
task. It was truly like looking for a unicorn because the
demands of the role are so specific and challenging. I was
looking for a beautiful and transcendent ballerina who is not only
a brilliant dancer but also a gifted actress, and who also
possesses a fierce curiosity and enthusiasm about the brave demands
of the work. Sarah Hay embodies the
role of 'Claire' just as I dreamt her. I'm very, very
excited. Chris Albrecht and
the team at Starz have been incredibly supportive of 'Flesh and
Bone' since its inception. I can't wait to start filming!
NYC here we come!"
Hay will portray young ballerina Claire, a beautiful, soulful
and deeply emotionally wounded young woman who possesses an innate
innocence and fragility while at the same time harboring
self-destructive tendencies and a vaulting ambition. She is a
transcendent ballerina, capable of reaching the sublime, but her
inner torment and aspirations drive her in compelling,
unforeseeable ways.
The project will be written by Moira
Walley-Beckett and executive produced by Ms. Walley-Beckett
and Starz, with Executive Producers Lawrence Bender
(Oscar® nominated for Inglourious Basterds, Pulp
Fiction and Good Will
Hunting), Kevin Brown
("Roswell") and John Melfi ("Sex and
the City," "House of Cards," "Nurse Jackie," "Rome"). Bender, Brown and Walley-Beckett
all have connections to the world of ballet, which brought them
together with Starz on this project. Bender and
Walley-Beckett are former ballet dancers, and Brown's family is
made up entirely of former ballet dancers, and their story was the
basis for the Oscar-nominated film, The Turning Point.
Casting of "Flesh and Bone" by Telsey + Company.
Production is scheduled to begin in New York City in early 2014. "Flesh and
Bone" is expected to debut on STARZ on 2015
Starz will retain all domestic and international multiplatform
rights including television, home entertainment, and digital.
Moira Walley-Beckett
Bio
As a Co-Executive Producer on "Breaking Bad," Moira Walley-Beckett recently received a PGA
Award and a Golden Globe Award® and won a Primetime
Emmy® in 2013 for Outstanding Drama Series.
Previously, she was nominated for a 2013 Golden Globe
Award®, two PGA Awards, a Primetime Emmy for Outstanding
Drama Series in 2012, and for the WGA Award for Outstanding Drama
Series in 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013 (and currently) 2014, resulting in
wins in 2012 and 2013 for her work on "Breaking Bad." Ms.
Walley-Beckett was also nominated for a PEN LITERARY award in 2010
for her episode of "Breaking Bad" entitled "Over."
Sarah Hay Bio
Hay has a distinguished background in dance that makes her
uniquely qualified to star in the series. Her training began at the
School of American Ballet at the age of eight, and she later
attended the Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis School of Ballet at
American Ballet Theatre. She was awarded scholarships for
summer programs at Miami City Ballet, Chautauqua, and American Ballet Theatre.
Her most influential teachers include Susan
Jaffe, Cynthia Harvey, and
Nancy Bielski.
In 2010, Ms. Hay was invited by Artistic Director, Aaron Watkin to join the Dresden Semperoper
Ballett in Germany, and was
promoted to soloist in 2012. During her first year in the
company, she was chosen by Stijn
Celis to perform the title role in Cinderella. Other
principal and soloist roles with Semperoper Ballett have included
Swanilda in Balanchine's Coppelia, Marie in Aaron Watkin's Nutcracker, principal dancer
in Balanchine's Emeralds the pas de deux with Jiri Bubenicek in Ekman's Cacti, Forsythe's
Handel II and Enemy in the Figure, Watkin's Sleeping Beauty,
La Bayadere and Swan Lake.
Sarah danced as a member of the Corps De Ballet in the Academy
Award® winning Black Swan and is among the list of
Capezio Athletes.
About the Cast
Ms. Hay joins a cast that includes former American Ballet
Theatre principal dancer Irina Dvorovenko as Kira; current American
Ballet Theatre soloist Sascha
Radetsky as Ross; Ballet Arizona company dancer Raychel Diane Weiner as Daphne; and Emily Tyra ("Boardwalk Empire") as
Mia.
Ethan Stiefel, the artistic
director of the Royal New Zealand Ballet, the star of the movies
Center Stage and Center Stage: Turn It Up and
principal dancer with American Ballet Theatre from 1997 till
July 2012 is a consultant and
choreographer on the series.
About Starz
Starz (NASDAQ: STRZA, STRZB) is a leading integrated global
media and entertainment company with operating units that provide
premium subscription video programming on domestic U.S. pay
television channels (Starz Networks), global content distribution
(Starz Distribution) and animated television and movie production
(Starz Animation), www.starz.com.
Starz Networks is a leading provider of premium subscription
video programming through the flagship STARZ® and ENCORE® pay TV
networks which showcase premium original programming and movies to
U.S. multichannel video distributors, including cable operators,
satellite television providers, and telecommunications
companies. As of September 30,
2013, STARZ and ENCORE serve a combined 57.0 million
subscribers, including 22.0 million at STARZ, and 35.0 million at
ENCORE, making them the largest pair of premium flagship channels
in the U.S. STARZ® and ENCORE®, along with Starz Networks'
third network MOVIEPLEX®, air more than 1,000 movies monthly across
17 linear networks, complemented by On Demand and authenticated
online offerings through STARZ PLAY, ENCORE PLAY, and MOVIEPLEX
PLAY. Starz Distribution develops, produces and acquires
entertainment content, distributing it to consumers globally on
DVD, digital formats and traditional television. Starz
Distribution's home video, digital media and worldwide distribution
business units distribute original programming content produced by
Starz, as well as entertainment content for itself and third
parties. Starz Animation produces animated TV and movie
content for studios, networks, distributors and audiences
worldwide.
Contact:
Theano Apostolou
Starz
(720) 852-4065
theano@starz.com
SOURCE Starz