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Bad News Ballet

 Bad News Ballet
type
TVTItem
 Bad News Ballet
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Bad News Ballet
 Bad News Ballet
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BadNewsBallet
 Bad News Ballet
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Bad News Ballet is a series of middle grade books published first in 1989 and written by Jahnna N. Malcolm (the Pen Name of married couple writers Jahnna Beecham and Malcolm Hillgartner), focused on a set of five girls who are misfit dancers in their beginning professional Ballet lessons in the fictional town of Deerfield, Ohio.McGee (who goes by her last name), Zan Reed, Rocky Garcia, Mary Bubnik, and Gwen Hayes all have different reasons for not wanting to be in ballet at all. But their mothers, insisting ballet is good for them for one reason or another, enroll them together in the local Deerfield Academy of Dance. The five of them make fast friends, as outsiders to the more posh and skilled dancers who often bully them (and who the group derisively call the "Bunheads" for their trait of pulling their hair into tight dancer's buns for class), and get to know ballet and each other.Like many girl-focused book series of the era, it was Quietly Cancelled after only ten books and is mainly a fond memory of Gen X and Millennial girls who read Paperback Crush and went "Hey, I remember this series!" The series was published under the name Scrambled Legs in Britain, republished again in 2000 partially, and the first eight are also available as e-books.Compare the more well-known The Baby-Sitters Club, aimed at the same demographic (and sometimes advertised in the back pages); Sleepover Friends, which is centered on a group of girls who bond at slumber parties; The Saddle Club, a Pony Tale series; and The Gymnasts, which focuses on another sport heavily aimed at girls.Completely unrelated to The Bad News Bears.
 Bad News Ballet
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2024-01-25T06:45:38Z
 Bad News Ballet
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2024-01-25T06:45:39Z
 Bad News Ballet
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Dropped link to Dracula: Not a Feature - ITEM
 Bad News Ballet
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 Bad News Ballet
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DBTropes
 Bad News Ballet / int_13d2f42e
type
Solomon Divorce
 Bad News Ballet / int_13d2f42e
comment
Solomon Divorce: Mary Bubnik's parents are divorced and while she and her mother live in a suburb outside of Deerfield, her brother and father—and his new wife—still live back in Oklahoma.
 Bad News Ballet / int_13d2f42e
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 Bad News Ballet / int_13d2f42e
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Bad News Ballet / int_13d2f42e
 Bad News Ballet / int_1bdbbbae
type
The Klutz
 Bad News Ballet / int_1bdbbbae
comment
The Klutz: Mary Bubnik introduces herself by tripping over her feet in too-big dance shoes and falling across the floor. She's frequently described as the most klutzy student in their class—even by her friends—and didn't make it in gymnastics or cheerleading. She was last in the tryouts for cheer.
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Bad News Ballet / int_1bdbbbae
 Bad News Ballet / int_21e5b9c7
type
Failed a Spot Check
 Bad News Ballet / int_21e5b9c7
comment
Failed a Spot Check: The news reporter who makes a story of the five girls protesting the potential closing of the ballet school and chanting "save D.A.D." mishears it as "save dad" and reports that the gang are are a family with a dad in trouble. He clearly overlooked that Zan (who is African American) and Rocky (Hispanic) are among the five girls.
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Bad News Ballet / int_21e5b9c7
 Bad News Ballet / int_22a27b19
type
Alpha Bitch
 Bad News Ballet / int_22a27b19
comment
Alpha Bitch: Courtney Clay, a skilled dancer and most prominent of the Bunheads. She's snotty to all the other misfits and thinks she's better than them because she's a skilled dancer who's studied for years, is one of Miss Jo's best students, and her wealthy influential mother sits on the Board of Directors.
 Bad News Ballet / int_22a27b19
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Bad News Ballet / int_22a27b19
 Bad News Ballet / int_26764512
type
I Just Want to Have Friends
 Bad News Ballet / int_26764512
comment
I Just Want to Have Friends: Mary Bubnik, who has recently moved to Deerfield after her parents' divorce, is desperate to make new friends. This is in part because she's worried that if she doesn't find a way to fit in, she'll be sent back to Oklahoma to live with her dad, brother, and her dad's new wife.
 Bad News Ballet / int_26764512
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Bad News Ballet / int_26764512
 Bad News Ballet / int_2676e225
type
Girl Posse
 Bad News Ballet / int_2676e225
comment
Girl Posse: Courtney and the rest of the Bunheads—her best friend Page, fourth grader Alice Westcott, and several others—are the equivalent of this at the academy. They always wear their hair up in buns for class.
 Bad News Ballet / int_2676e225
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Bad News Ballet / int_2676e225
 Bad News Ballet / int_2af6bbeb
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Break the Haughty
 Bad News Ballet / int_2af6bbeb
comment
Break the Haughty: Zan and the others decide they need to make the Bunheads embarrass themselves in retaliation for them being embarrassed at practice. They decide to convince them to put detergent on their ballet shoes in place of rosin and to lace the ribbons up their calves. The Bunheads—who were cast as flowers—do so and end up ruining the floor of the dance studio by coating it in a layer of soap—and get lectured by Mr. Anton for it and the bad lacing.
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Bad News Ballet / int_2af6bbeb
 Bad News Ballet / int_2b3fa921
type
Down on the Farm
 Bad News Ballet / int_2b3fa921
comment
Down on the Farm: McGee's family lives on the edge of rural Fairview in what's called the farming community; she lives in a house surrounded by pasture. She hates it.
 Bad News Ballet / int_2b3fa921
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Bad News Ballet / int_2b3fa921
 Bad News Ballet / int_30d1e0df
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Full-Name Basis
 Bad News Ballet / int_30d1e0df
comment
Full-Name Basis: The book descriptions always call Mary Bubnik by her first and last name. Mary doesn't always call herself that, though.
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Bad News Ballet / int_30d1e0df
 Bad News Ballet / int_323cd680
type
Geek Physiques
 Bad News Ballet / int_323cd680
comment
Geek Physiques: Gwen is described as a straight A student since first grade, a piano player, and a model child—and is fat for her age.
 Bad News Ballet / int_323cd680
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 Bad News Ballet / int_323cd680
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Bad News Ballet / int_323cd680
 Bad News Ballet / int_38958f33
type
Black and Nerdy
 Bad News Ballet / int_38958f33
comment
Black and Nerdy: African-American Zan is described as preferring a book to ballet; she's read tons of books including the entire (fictional) Tiffany Truenote series, and at the audition is able to explain the plot of The Nutcracker excellently. She's this way in part because, as the tallest girl in fifth grade, she feels that books let her be "any height" she wants. She's also a skilled speller with a large vocabulary, and in Blubberina, wins the town's spelling bee.
 Bad News Ballet / int_38958f33
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Bad News Ballet / int_38958f33
 Bad News Ballet / int_3cc07613
type
Badbutt
 Bad News Ballet / int_3cc07613
comment
Badbutt: Rocky is implied to be the toughest, meanest girl in her entire sixth grade—but the most she does is be snarky (a trait she shares with Gwen), give the Bunheads their insulting nickname, and get in fights off-screen.
 Bad News Ballet / int_3cc07613
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Bad News Ballet / int_3cc07613
 Bad News Ballet / int_3d23c418
type
Closet Shuffle
 Bad News Ballet / int_3d23c418
comment
Closet Shuffle: McGee and Gwen try to take off from their audition and hide in a closet to not be found and get out of it entirely. They instead run into—and out—Rocky Garcia, and they're all three escorted back to the auditions.
 Bad News Ballet / int_3d23c418
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Bad News Ballet / int_3d23c418
 Bad News Ballet / int_41d50d81
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Big Brother Bully
 Bad News Ballet / int_41d50d81
comment
Rocky is rough and tumble and the toughest girl in her grade, but likes to try on her mother's formal gowns and dress up. (She's sure her bullying older brothers would make fun of her if they ever found out she likes pretty clothes.) One of her hopes—before they're cast as mice—is that maybe they'll get to wear nice costumes in their ballet roles.
 Bad News Ballet / int_41d50d81
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Bad News Ballet / int_41d50d81
 Bad News Ballet / int_4623b3bb
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Why Couldn't You Be Different?
 Bad News Ballet / int_4623b3bb
comment
Why Couldn't You Be Different?: McGee and Gwen both get this. McGee's mother wishes she was more feminine like her older sisters (and a model student like Gwen). Gwen's mother also wishes she was more feminine—but also slimmer and more "pretty" instead of a sarcastic nerd.
 Bad News Ballet / int_4623b3bb
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Bad News Ballet / int_4623b3bb
 Bad News Ballet / int_47bf7e16
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Local Hangout
 Bad News Ballet / int_47bf7e16
comment
Local Hangout: Hi Lo's Pizza and Chinese Food to Go, run by Hi Lo. The girls meet there—since it's across from the dance academy building—and start to greet Mr. Lo with "hi, Hi!" after the first few meetings.
 Bad News Ballet / int_47bf7e16
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Bad News Ballet / int_47bf7e16
 Bad News Ballet / int_47d35854
type
Intergenerational Friendship
 Bad News Ballet / int_47d35854
comment
Intergenerational Friendship: The fifth- and sixth-grade gang makes friends both with the elderly owner of Hi Lo's, Hi Lo, and with Miss Delacorte, the elderly Russian receptionist of the Deerfield Dance Academy.
 Bad News Ballet / int_47d35854
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Bad News Ballet / int_47d35854
 Bad News Ballet / int_48d9e12d
type
Funetik Aksent
 Bad News Ballet / int_48d9e12d
comment
Funetik Aksent: Miss Delacorte is said to have a Russian accent, which has her saying "lee-tle" for little and "-ink" for -ing at the ends of words
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Bad News Ballet / int_48d9e12d
 Bad News Ballet / int_4e0f7320
type
Misfit Mobilization Moment
 Bad News Ballet / int_4e0f7320
comment
Misfit Mobilization Moment: The gang get cast as mice in the school's ballet performance of The Nutcracker and at first are horrified and ashamed—but bond over their bad costumes and not only embrace their role, but decide they can't quit ballet afterwards.
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Bad News Ballet / int_4e0f7320
 Bad News Ballet / int_50ae8e55
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Little Miss Snarker
 Bad News Ballet / int_50ae8e55
comment
Little Miss Snarker: All of the girls except Mary Bubnik have snarky attitudes about them and mutter things under their breath—though McGee, Gwen, and Rocky are the three most sarcastic.
 Bad News Ballet / int_50ae8e55
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Bad News Ballet / int_50ae8e55
 Bad News Ballet / int_5312637f
type
Tomboy with a Girly Streak
 Bad News Ballet / int_5312637f
comment
Tomboy with a Girly Streak: McGee (who goes by her last name since she hates her first name of Kathryn) is a massive tomboy who starts the series off by stating she hates ballet and much prefers hockey. She's attending ballet because it's an agreement with her mother, who will leave her to it if she does ballet class formally at least once a week. By the end of the first book (having bonded with her fellow misfits) she's a bit more accepting, and—though she retains her tomboy ways—she remains part of the class through the full run. Rocky is rough and tumble and the toughest girl in her grade, but likes to try on her mother's formal gowns and dress up. (She's sure her bullying older brothers would make fun of her if they ever found out she likes pretty clothes.) One of her hopes—before they're cast as mice—is that maybe they'll get to wear nice costumes in their ballet roles.
 Bad News Ballet / int_5312637f
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Bad News Ballet / int_5312637f
 Bad News Ballet / int_56515a39
type
Artistic License – History
 Bad News Ballet / int_56515a39
comment
Artistic License – History: Miss Delacorte describes the deaths of the Romanov family as the Bolsheviks breaking into the royal palace and killing everyone in the family (except Anastasia, who had the bullet bounce off an amber stone Miss Delacorte now owns). The Romanovs were taken from the palace and initially imprisoned, but later murdered (along with several servants) at the Ipatiev House in Yekaterinburg by being shot and bayonetted—Anastasia included.
 Bad News Ballet / int_56515a39
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Bad News Ballet / int_56515a39
 Bad News Ballet / int_59b9f4df
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You Are Fat
 Bad News Ballet / int_59b9f4df
comment
You Are Fat: When Gwen isn't considered slim enough to start en pointe dancing with the rest of the class, the Bunheads nastily call her "Blubberina".
 Bad News Ballet / int_59b9f4df
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Bad News Ballet / int_59b9f4df
 Bad News Ballet / int_5d753b19
type
The Smurfette Principle
 Bad News Ballet / int_5d753b19
comment
The Smurfette Principle: In-Universe; McGee is the only girl on her junior ice hockey team, the Fairview Express.
 Bad News Ballet / int_5d753b19
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 Bad News Ballet / int_5d753b19
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Bad News Ballet / int_5d753b19
 Bad News Ballet / int_6425b5cc
type
Camp Wackyname
 Bad News Ballet / int_6425b5cc
comment
Camp Wackyname: Zigzagged in Camp Clodhopper. The gang attends summer dance camp at Camp Claude Harper, but the poor conditions of the camp and its reputation as being for bad dancers have the rival Bunheads calling it Camp Clodhopper. The gang retort by calling their camp (Camp Scotsvale) Camp Snotsvale. The real names for the camps are normal, but the insulting nicknames aren't.
 Bad News Ballet / int_6425b5cc
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Bad News Ballet / int_6425b5cc
 Bad News Ballet / int_71268450
type
Adaptation Title Change
 Bad News Ballet / int_71268450
comment
The Terrible Tryoutsnote also titled We Hate Ballet! in Britain and Drat, We're Rats! in the rerelease: The five girls meet, all skeptical of ballet—and hating it even more when they're cast as rats in the school's performance of The Nutcracker.
 Bad News Ballet / int_71268450
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 Bad News Ballet / int_71268450
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Bad News Ballet / int_71268450
 Bad News Ballet / int_7360806f
type
In-Series Nickname
 Bad News Ballet / int_7360806f
comment
In-Series Nickname: Rocky nicknames Courtney and the rest of her Girl Posse "Bunheads" for their trait of wearing their hair up in tight buns for class, which the rest of the gang adopts. This term is used not only in-book for them, but on the book blurbs—starting with the second book, Battle of the Bunheads.
 Bad News Ballet / int_7360806f
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Bad News Ballet / int_7360806f
 Bad News Ballet / int_737394ab
type
Iconic Item
 Bad News Ballet / int_737394ab
comment
Iconic Item: Unless she's performing somewhere—and on all the covers besides—Rocky is always pictured in her red satin jacket with Rocky written on the back and front.
 Bad News Ballet / int_737394ab
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Bad News Ballet / int_737394ab
 Bad News Ballet / int_76db0ef5
type
Slobs Versus Snobs
 Bad News Ballet / int_76db0ef5
comment
Slobs Versus Snobs: The gang stands out in major contrast to the more upper class and snooty Bunheads—every book is a conflict with them, especially against Alpha Bitch Courtney.
 Bad News Ballet / int_76db0ef5
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Bad News Ballet / int_76db0ef5
 Bad News Ballet / int_77d826c7
type
Stern Teacher
 Bad News Ballet / int_77d826c7
comment
Stern Teacher: Miss Jo, head of the academy, establishes herself as this at the audition when Rocky and McGee start fighting—she coolly informs them that they are not in a boxing club and need to behave if they wish to stay. She doesn't even have to yell to get them to simmer down. Mr. Anton, the other head of the academy, does not take playing around or shenanigans well. The Bunheads aren't immune to him either—when they coat their slippers in soap and end up wrecking the floor for practice, he gives them a stern talking to about it—and the fact they laced their slippers improperly up to the knee.
 Bad News Ballet / int_77d826c7
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Bad News Ballet / int_77d826c7
 Bad News Ballet / int_7fe8350d
type
Did Anastasia Survive?
 Bad News Ballet / int_7fe8350d
comment
Did Anastasia Survive?: Blubberina has the gang introduced to—and later obsessed with—Miss Delacorte's "magical" Amber Stone of Anastasia, which Miss Delacorte says saved Anastasia from dying because when the Bolsheviks broke into the royal palace and murdered the Romanovs, the bullet meant for her heart glanced off the amber stone and she was the only one who lived.note There's some truth in that the bullets initially glanced off the corsets of Tatiana, Anastasia, and Maria, who had sewn several pounds of diamonds into their clothing. But this was followed by being shot in the head and then bayonetted, so no one lived.
 Bad News Ballet / int_7fe8350d
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Bad News Ballet / int_7fe8350d
 Bad News Ballet / int_8107ca6a
type
School Forced Us Together
 Bad News Ballet / int_8107ca6a
comment
School Forced Us Together: Ballet auditions, but yes. The girls all meet each other after being taken to the auditions for the dance academy's performance of the Nutcracker, and all of them but Mary Bubnik have taken some form of informal ballet class ballet prior to the auditions. They remain together afterwards in the class, in part for each other and in part because they can't let their rivals the Bunheads think they're quitters.
 Bad News Ballet / int_8107ca6a
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Bad News Ballet / int_8107ca6a
 Bad News Ballet / int_829b958e
type
Embarrassing First Name
 Bad News Ballet / int_829b958e
comment
McGee (who goes by her last name since she hates her first name of Kathryn) is a massive tomboy who starts the series off by stating she hates ballet and much prefers hockey. She's attending ballet because it's an agreement with her mother, who will leave her to it if she does ballet class formally at least once a week. By the end of the first book (having bonded with her fellow misfits) she's a bit more accepting, and—though she retains her tomboy ways—she remains part of the class through the full run.
 Bad News Ballet / int_829b958e
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Bad News Ballet / int_829b958e
 Bad News Ballet / int_83918a88
type
Artistic License – Art
 Bad News Ballet / int_83918a88
comment
Artistic License – Art: Part of Mary's clumsiness in class initially is that her ballet slippers are too big for her feet, since her mother hopes she'll grow into them. However, she wouldn't be allowed to dance at all in oversized slippers—ballet slippers, even for beginners, must be snug to the foot and well-fitted both to avoid tripping and to make sure the foot is holding positions properly. She would be expected to get correctly sized shoes by the dance teachers.
 Bad News Ballet / int_83918a88
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Bad News Ballet / int_83918a88
 Bad News Ballet / int_8ad43dc9
type
Ragtag Bunch of Misfits
 Bad News Ballet / int_8ad43dc9
comment
Ragtag Bunch of Misfits: The five main girls—each for a different reason—do not mesh well with the snooty Bunheads or ballet initially. By the end of the first book they've bonded to the point they all want to remain in ballet class together—even if only for each other's sake.
 Bad News Ballet / int_8ad43dc9
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Bad News Ballet / int_8ad43dc9
 Bad News Ballet / int_8c6fff90
type
I Am Big Boned
 Bad News Ballet / int_8c6fff90
comment
I Am Big Boned: Mrs. McGee describes Gwen politely as "plump," but McGee (and Gwen) consider this a nice way of saying she's fat.
 Bad News Ballet / int_8c6fff90
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Bad News Ballet / int_8c6fff90
 Bad News Ballet / int_91df3195
type
Military Brat
 Bad News Ballet / int_91df3195
comment
Military Brat: Rocky lives on the fictional Curtiss-Dobbs Air Force Base with her military father, Sergeant Richard Garcia. He's a strict father who always barks his orders and runs the house like a miniature branch of the military. When any of her or her four older brothers get in trouble, they all get punished, and this can result in being "confined to quarters" (sent to your room) or "KP", which means washing dishes for a week.
 Bad News Ballet / int_91df3195
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Bad News Ballet / int_91df3195
 Bad News Ballet / int_a1605a7f
type
I Have Brothers
 Bad News Ballet / int_a1605a7f
comment
I Have Brothers: Rocky is the youngest and only daughter in her family, with four older brothers who are as tough as their military father. However, they all picked on her when she was small. She's considered the toughest girl in the sixth grade, and the reason she got sent to take ballet in the first place was because she got caught fighting a neighbor boy and her mom said it was that or being grounded for a month.
 Bad News Ballet / int_a1605a7f
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Bad News Ballet / int_a1605a7f
 Bad News Ballet / int_a7850fbf
type
Only Known by Their Nickname
 Bad News Ballet / int_a7850fbf
comment
Only Known by Their Nickname: Zan (Suzannah), Gwen (Gwendolyn), Rocky (Rochelle), and McGee (Kathryn). Mary's the only one who goes by her full first name.
 Bad News Ballet / int_a7850fbf
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Bad News Ballet / int_a7850fbf
 Bad News Ballet / int_aa9beb0c
type
Straight to the Pointe
 Bad News Ballet / int_aa9beb0c
comment
Straight to the Pointe: Averted. The girls are not into toe shoes until the fifth book of the series, and they have to practice hard to be allowed in them at all. However, they do seem to get into them very quickly, having only taken ballet full time since December and only taking one class a week (when working up to toe shoes require extensive training).
 Bad News Ballet / int_aa9beb0c
featureApplicability
-1.0
 Bad News Ballet / int_aa9beb0c
featureConfidence
1.0
 Bad News Ballet
hasFeature
Bad News Ballet / int_aa9beb0c
 Bad News Ballet / int_b5060b63
type
The Lad-ette
 Bad News Ballet / int_b5060b63
comment
The Lad-ette: Rocky, due to a mix of her military father and bullying big brothers, is tough and gets in fights often; her mother worries about her being rowdier than her brothers. Funny enough, she's the one of the group to get a boyfriend.
 Bad News Ballet / int_b5060b63
featureApplicability
1.0
 Bad News Ballet / int_b5060b63
featureConfidence
1.0
 Bad News Ballet
hasFeature
Bad News Ballet / int_b5060b63
 Bad News Ballet / int_b61b755f
type
Tomboy
 Bad News Ballet / int_b61b755f
comment
Tomboy McGee refuses to be called by her first name, Kathryn—even by her own mother.
 Bad News Ballet / int_b61b755f
featureApplicability
1.0
 Bad News Ballet / int_b61b755f
featureConfidence
1.0
 Bad News Ballet
hasFeature
Bad News Ballet / int_b61b755f
 Bad News Ballet / int_b95cd640
type
Huge Schoolgirl
 Bad News Ballet / int_b95cd640
comment
Huge Schoolgirl: Zan is the tallest girl in her entire fifth grade and the whole of her elementary school, and is shy and embarrassed because of it, constantly comparing herself to a lanky, awkward giraffe.
 Bad News Ballet / int_b95cd640
featureApplicability
1.0
 Bad News Ballet / int_b95cd640
featureConfidence
1.0
 Bad News Ballet
hasFeature
Bad News Ballet / int_b95cd640
 Bad News Ballet / int_b96ee227
type
Everyone Meets Everyone
 Bad News Ballet / int_b96ee227
comment
Everyone Meets Everyone: The girls are introduced one by one in the ballet audition tryouts, starting with McGee and her mother picking up Gwen and her mother to go there.
 Bad News Ballet / int_b96ee227
featureApplicability
1.0
 Bad News Ballet / int_b96ee227
featureConfidence
1.0
 Bad News Ballet
hasFeature
Bad News Ballet / int_b96ee227
 Bad News Ballet / int_c700e697
type
Feminine Mother, Tomboyish Daughter
 Bad News Ballet / int_c700e697
comment
Feminine Mother, Tomboyish Daughter: McGee and her mother. Mrs. McGee has hauled her youngest daughter to fashion shows and mother daughter teas, things McGee finds dull and uninteresting—she wants to play hockey. She initially only takes ballet because her mother will leave her to do what she wants outside of ballet class, and is being dragged to the audition because her mother finds the idea of her daughter being in The Nutcracker to be romantic. (It's implied her older sisters also took ballet and loved it.)
 Bad News Ballet / int_c700e697
featureApplicability
1.0
 Bad News Ballet / int_c700e697
featureConfidence
1.0
 Bad News Ballet
hasFeature
Bad News Ballet / int_c700e697
 Bad News Ballet / int_c8d6c37c
type
Secret Snack Stash
 Bad News Ballet / int_c8d6c37c
comment
Secret Snack Stash: Gwen doesn't actually change clothes for her original ballet class she'd been taking—her canvas tote her mother bought her for class has snacks inside it as well as a decoy set of tights and a leotard.
 Bad News Ballet / int_c8d6c37c
featureApplicability
1.0
 Bad News Ballet / int_c8d6c37c
featureConfidence
1.0
 Bad News Ballet
hasFeature
Bad News Ballet / int_c8d6c37c
 Bad News Ballet / int_ccde30d7
type
Arranged Friendship
 Bad News Ballet / int_ccde30d7
comment
Arranged Friendship: Gwen and McGee are this at first as they're only "friends" because their mothers are, and have been reluctantly dragged together to attend things like mother-daughter teas and fashion shows with their moms. They don't initially like each other, in part because they're constantly compared to one another by their mothers.
 Bad News Ballet / int_ccde30d7
featureApplicability
1.0
 Bad News Ballet / int_ccde30d7
featureConfidence
1.0
 Bad News Ballet
hasFeature
Bad News Ballet / int_ccde30d7
 Bad News Ballet / int_e28f88b8
type
Last-Name Basis
 Bad News Ballet / int_e28f88b8
comment
Last-Name Basis: McGee goes by her last name; she hates her first name, Kathryn. This results in the ballet teacher, Miss Jo, referring to her as "McGee McGee" at the audition, which she has to then clarify.
 Bad News Ballet / int_e28f88b8
featureApplicability
1.0
 Bad News Ballet / int_e28f88b8
featureConfidence
1.0
 Bad News Ballet
hasFeature
Bad News Ballet / int_e28f88b8
 Bad News Ballet / int_e7ecdeb0
type
Weight Woe
 Bad News Ballet / int_e7ecdeb0
comment
Weight Woe: Gwen constantly worries about being fat, drinks diet cokes, and frets that she looks stuffed and overweight in her ballet leotard and tights. She frequently sucks in her stomach to look smaller around any boys that are around, and insists on dieting, making a big deal of her size. Granted, so does almost everyone around her.
 Bad News Ballet / int_e7ecdeb0
featureApplicability
1.0
 Bad News Ballet / int_e7ecdeb0
featureConfidence
1.0
 Bad News Ballet
hasFeature
Bad News Ballet / int_e7ecdeb0
 Bad News Ballet / int_eb002293
type
Shrinking Violet
 Bad News Ballet / int_eb002293
comment
Shrinking Violet: Zan, who is tall and shy and hates being the center of attention. She doesn't speak much to the others until she warms up to them, preferring books to people. She's sent to ballet class in the first place because her mother thinks she needs fresh air and friends outside of books.
 Bad News Ballet / int_eb002293
featureApplicability
1.0
 Bad News Ballet / int_eb002293
featureConfidence
1.0
 Bad News Ballet
hasFeature
Bad News Ballet / int_eb002293
 Bad News Ballet / int_ebf3c9d1
type
Asian Store-Owner
 Bad News Ballet / int_ebf3c9d1
comment
Asian Store-Owner: Chinese Hi Lo, the owner of the gang's Local Hangout Hi Lo's Pizza and Chinese Food to Go (situated right across from the Deerfield Academy of Dance).
 Bad News Ballet / int_ebf3c9d1
featureApplicability
1.0
 Bad News Ballet / int_ebf3c9d1
featureConfidence
1.0
 Bad News Ballet
hasFeature
Bad News Ballet / int_ebf3c9d1
 Bad News Ballet / int_eda28956
type
Embarrassing Animal Suit
 Bad News Ballet / int_eda28956
comment
Embarrassing Animal Suit: The gang, as the Rat King's mice, wear old flannel mice costumes with padded bellies and tight hooded headgear with ears. The costumes are the only ones remaining from a production ten years ago (unlike the rest of the costumes, which are all brand new) and don't fit them well at all.
 Bad News Ballet / int_eda28956
featureApplicability
1.0
 Bad News Ballet / int_eda28956
featureConfidence
1.0
 Bad News Ballet
hasFeature
Bad News Ballet / int_eda28956
 Bad News Ballet / int_f24d830f
type
Redheads Are Uncool
 Bad News Ballet / int_f24d830f
comment
Redheads Are Uncool: Along with her Weight Woe, Gwen complains about her glasses and her thin, stringy red hair.
 Bad News Ballet / int_f24d830f
featureApplicability
1.0
 Bad News Ballet / int_f24d830f
featureConfidence
1.0
 Bad News Ballet
hasFeature
Bad News Ballet / int_f24d830f
 Bad News Ballet / int_f2be6700
type
Stepford Snarker
 Bad News Ballet / int_f2be6700
comment
Stepford Snarker: Gwen, along with being "plump", is a snarky-mouthed unfriendly girl to start. McGee initially hates the idea of spending more time with her as she thinks she's unfriendly (and they're mostly forced together because their mom's are friends) and she's constantly being compared to her, while Gwen thinks that McGee is pretty in looks and perfect compared to her red hair, glasses, and overall fatness and she's constantly being compared to her, and Gwen is unhappy about her constant Weight Woe. (They start to come around to each other along with making friends with the other three.)
 Bad News Ballet / int_f2be6700
featureApplicability
1.0
 Bad News Ballet / int_f2be6700
featureConfidence
1.0
 Bad News Ballet
hasFeature
Bad News Ballet / int_f2be6700
 Bad News Ballet / int_f5241839
type
Braids of Action
 Bad News Ballet / int_f5241839
comment
Braids of Action: McGee, who plays hockey, is almost always described as wearing her brown hair in two braids.
 Bad News Ballet / int_f5241839
featureApplicability
1.0
 Bad News Ballet / int_f5241839
featureConfidence
1.0
 Bad News Ballet
hasFeature
Bad News Ballet / int_f5241839
 Bad News Ballet / int_fabd6906
type
Everytown, America
 Bad News Ballet / int_fabd6906
comment
Everytown, America: The books are set in the town of Deerfield, Ohio which is near the Curtiss-Dobbs Air Force Base—both are fictional, though there are many places in Ohio called "Deerfield Township" and the real Wright-Patterson Air Force Base located there.
 Bad News Ballet / int_fabd6906
featureApplicability
1.0
 Bad News Ballet / int_fabd6906
featureConfidence
1.0
 Bad News Ballet
hasFeature
Bad News Ballet / int_fabd6906
 Bad News Ballet / int_ff7e9adf
type
Hair of Gold, Heart of Gold
 Bad News Ballet / int_ff7e9adf
comment
Hair of Gold, Heart of Gold: Mary Bubnik—the only one of the girls with blonde hair—is sweet, bubbly, and friendly to everyone, even if they don't truly deserve it.
 Bad News Ballet / int_ff7e9adf
featureApplicability
1.0
 Bad News Ballet / int_ff7e9adf
featureConfidence
1.0
 Bad News Ballet
hasFeature
Bad News Ballet / int_ff7e9adf
 Bad News Ballet / int_name
type
ItemName
 Bad News Ballet / int_name
comment
 Bad News Ballet / int_name
featureApplicability
1.0
 Bad News Ballet / int_name
featureConfidence
1.0
 Bad News Ballet
hasFeature
Bad News Ballet / int_name
 Bad News Ballet / int_name
itemName
Bad News Ballet

The following is a list of statements referring to the current page from other pages.

 Bad News Ballet
hasFeature
American Literature (# to D) / int_e3cb5899
 Bad News Ballet
hasFeature
Asian Store-Owner / int_e3cb5899
 Bad News Ballet
hasFeature
Black and Nerdy / int_e3cb5899
 Bad News Ballet
hasFeature
Braids of Action / int_e3cb5899
 Bad News Ballet
hasFeature
Camp Wackyname / int_e3cb5899
 Bad News Ballet
hasFeature
Coauthored Literature / int_e3cb5899
 Bad News Ballet
hasFeature
Did Anastasia Survive? / int_e3cb5899
 Bad News Ballet
hasFeature
Embarrassing Animal Suit / int_e3cb5899
 Bad News Ballet
hasFeature
Embarrassing First Name / int_e3cb5899
 Bad News Ballet
hasFeature
Everytown, America / int_e3cb5899
 Bad News Ballet
hasFeature
Full-Name Basis / int_e3cb5899
 Bad News Ballet
hasFeature
I Am Big Boned / int_e3cb5899
 Bad News Ballet
hasFeature
Iconic Item / int_e3cb5899
 Bad News Ballet
hasFeature
Local Hangout / int_e3cb5899
 Bad News Ballet
hasFeature
Pen Name / int_e3cb5899
 Bad News Ballet
hasFeature
Playing a Tree / int_e3cb5899
 Bad News Ballet
hasFeature
Quietly Cancelled / int_e3cb5899
 Redheads Are Uncool
processingUnknown
Bad News Ballet
 Bad News Ballet
hasFeature
School Forced Us Together / int_e3cb5899
 Bad News Ballet
hasFeature
Slobs Versus Snobs / int_e3cb5899
 Bad News Ballet
hasFeature
Straight to the Pointe / int_e3cb5899
 Bad News Ballet
hasFeature
Weight Woe / int_e3cb5899
 Bad News Ballet
hasFeature
You Are Fat / int_e3cb5899