Variation

Hudson is a first-person point-of-view character in the novel and the second protagonist, along with Allie. He is a rescue diver for the US Coast Guard, stationed in Cape Cod where he works to save swimmers and boats that are stuck in the ocean. He is one year older than Allie and meets her for the first time when he is 17 and training to become a rescue swimmer. Even at that early age, Hudson is passionate and committed to his future career, characteristics that will help him to understand Allie better.

Hudson is a kind and compassionate character, helping his sister, Caroline, raise his niece, June, after Caroline’s husband passes away. Despite his dream to move to Sitka, Alaska, to work as a diver, he instead chooses to be stationed in Cape Cod so he can be there for his sister and niece. Hudson is supportive, but he doesn’t seek to control those he loves; he is the only character in the novel who truly understands Allie and her struggles, always choosing to support whatever decision she makes and not putting pressure on her to continue her ballet career.

Hudson’s actions in the novel illustrate The Power of Love to Heal and Transform, as his unconditional support of Allie is what allows her to finally step away from the Company. Throughout the novel, he repeatedly asks her what she wants out of life, forcing her to focus on her own well-being instead of Sophie’s desires, Allie’s guilt over Lina’s death, or the pressure from the ballet world. He serves as the unconditional support that she needs, reflecting his caring nature and his understanding that she needs to make her own decisions about her life.

In addition to helping Allie change, Hudson is a dynamic character who also makes his own change in the novel. Just like Allie, Hudson battles to find The Balance Between Personal and Professional Dreams. He has always wanted to be a Coast Guard diver and to be stationed in Sitka, Alaska, escaping Cape Cod and pursuing his dreams to see the world. However, he also feels obligated to help Caroline after her husband dies, choosing to stay in Cape Cod and care for June. He struggles throughout the novel to balance these two desires but ultimately changes when he decides to request a relocation to Sitka. Like Allie, Hudson finds balance in his life, as he is finally able to leave Cape Cod, be with Allie, and pursue his professional dreams—all while still maintaining a relationship with Caroline and June.

Sophie is the primary antagonist in the novel. She is the mother of Allie, Anne, Eva, and Lina Rousseau. She was a world-famous ballet dancer when she was younger but retired to start a family and raise her children. Sophie is a flat character who does not change throughout the text, and her primary characteristic is her emotional and physical abuse of her daughters. After Lina dies, Sophie becomes fixated on Allie’s ballet career, using verbal abuse and manipulation to convince Allie that she needs to dedicate her life to ballet in memory of her sister. 

Sophie’s disappointment is a primary source of motivation for Allie, encouraging her to push her body beyond the point of pain and ultimately cause her injury during Giselle. She is demanding and dismissive of all three of her daughters, with their interactions often turning to Sophie yelling at them. Each time Allie in particular tries to speak to her, Sophie refuses to have a conversation, instead yelling out different ballet positions and forcing Allie to get into them throughout their interaction.

It is revealed at the end of the novel that in the present timeline, Sophie has dementia and aphasia. This fact is obscured throughout the novel, with general references to the “institution” where Sophie is and the “teaching” that she does, implying that she is still working as a ballet teacher in a prestigious dance institute. The withholding and eventual reveal of this information complicates Sophie’s character. She is portrayed as heartless and bitter, but many of her actions in the present timeline can be attributed to her diagnoses. However, the novel makes the point that her present diagnosis doesn’t excuse past behavior. She lacks empathy for Allie’s injury or her struggles with the pressures of her career, refusing to give sympathy to any of her daughters. Many of Sophie’s actions in the present are rooted in her past behavior; when she throws her paint cup at Allie, for example, it doesn’t shock Allie because Sophie has been throwing things at her all her life.

Anne is Allie’s older sister. Unlike her other siblings, she did not pursue ballet, instead choosing to stop dancing when she was a teenager. Despite this decision, she is still deeply rooted in the world of ballet and the Company, as she acts as the Company’s events coordinator. Because she isn’t a dancer but understands the culture, Anne can sympathize with Allie in a way that the rest of the people in Allie’s life are not. She acts as a positive influence in Allie’s life at a difficult time; she stays with Allie at their vacation home, giving her space to heal and encouraging her relationship with Hudson. In this way, Anne is a key component of Allie’s development throughout the text. She helps her find balance in her life, giving Allie the opportunity to engage with her personal feelings and make a decision about her future.

Even though Anne is a relatively minor character, she is also dynamic, as she changes throughout the novel. At the beginning of the text, Anne is entrenched in the Company and has dedicated her career to building the Classic and other Company events. However, after she meets her niece, June, she realizes that there is more to her life than professional ballet. Her decision to remain in Cape Cod—instead of going back to New York—reflects her change, as she is now prepared to step away, start her own law firm, and help Caroline raise June.

June is Caroline’s adopted daughter and Allie’s niece. She was adopted at birth and has been raised by Caroline her entire life. When her father passed away, Hudson and his brother, Gavin, stepped in to serve as father figures and help Caroline raise her. She is portrayed as extremely intelligent. As a 10-year-old, she manages to figure out that she is related to the Rousseau family, then orders a DNA test to prove it.

June is a largely flat character, primarily serving to incite the action of the novel. She forces a reconciliation between Hudson and Allie in order to further her plan to dance. She is also the catalyst for a real connection between the Rousseaus and Hudson’s family, introducing herself to Allie’s sisters and openly stating their connection. The revelations that June incites resonate through both families, upsetting the status quo and revealing uncomfortable truths about Line. However, although June’s ballet lessons are a primary catalyst for the events of the novel, she then largely becomes absent as the novel plays out.