Paris
The Paris Opera boarding school for ballet students is a Dickensian throwback of “psychological horror and medical neglect,” a French government inquiry found this week. The elite school forces children ages 8 to 18 to practice for hours every day; students regularly perform until midnight, only to rise again before 7 a.m. They are encouraged to dance through the pain of stress fractures and sprained ankles, and are threatened with expulsion if they gain more than a quarter of a pound. Whistle-blower Camille Fallen said the school was run like a cult. “Everything hangs on the terror of being rejected,” she said. “Talking to the outside world is heresy. Obedience is the be-all and end-all.” The school, founded by Rudolf Nureyev, has been ordered to reform its disciplinary policies.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
