Ex-dancer settles with Royal Ballet School over ‘body-shaming’

The Royal Ballet School (RBS) has reached a financial settlement with a former student, who said the body-shaming she experienced while at the elite institution has left her with lifelong psychological damage.

Ellen Elphick, 31, had claimed the London-based school breached its duty of care when she attended between 2009 and 2012.

The school said it accepted no liability for the former dancer’s case and has not issued an apology.

“We are pleased that both parties were able to reach a mutually acceptable agreement in this way and we wish Ellen and her family well for the future,” said an RBS spokesperson – adding that the school “continues to take the welfare of its students very seriously”.

Last year, when Ellen spoke to the BBC she described how, as a 16-year-old, just two weeks into her training, a teacher publicly humiliated her by tracing a line around her body in front of a mirror.

“If I had a knife, this is what I would cut off,” Ellen says the teacher said.

The comment plunged Ellen into shame, she says, and exacerbated her struggles with disordered eating. She later received a diagnosis of atypical anorexia and body dysmorphia

She said there was a pattern of similar comments from multiple teachers at the school, that further eroded her confidence and intensified her eating disorder.

“This settlement highlights the abuse dancers have suffered and the need for change,” said Dino Nocivelli of Leigh Day solicitors – who has been representing Ellen.

“We continue to demand a government inquiry into body-shaming in ballet.”

Ellen was among more than 50 ex-dancers who told the BBC there was a long-running “toxic” culture of body-shaming and bullying within some of the UK’s leading ballet schools.

She said she had pursued legal action to bring attention to the harm caused by body-shaming in ballet. The financial terms of her settlement have not been publicly disclosed.

“It wasn’t about the money,” she said.

“It was about making people aware of what being a ballerina is really like and showing that what happened to me was unacceptable.”

Although she says she feels some validation from the settlement, Ellen expressed disappointment at the lack of an apology from RBS. “That they couldn’t even say ‘sorry’ shows there is so much more to do,” she said.

Now a mother, she said she wanted to shield her daughter from the ballet world and would “never” send her to ballet classes.

However, she hopes her case could lead to meaningful reform and that ballet schools will prioritise students’ mental health and train teachers to understand the impact of their words.

“RBS needs to lead the way and show that health and wellbeing matter more than just dancing,” she said.

“Children should be able to go into dance and not leave it feeling damaged.”

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