EXCLUSIVEDark truth behind the dance company at the center of the Black Swan ballerina murder trial
Ballerinas who were deceived into joining a sketchy dance company established by a woman who went on to kill her husband have exclusively told DailyMail.
Ballerinas who were deceived into joining a sketchy dance company established by a woman who went on to kill her husband have exclusively told DailyMail.com how the entire failed operation that ended in murder felt wrong.
Before she shot him dead and was found guilty of manslaughter in what the media called her Black Swan murder trial, Ashley Benefield and her husband Doug set up the then-pioneering dance group, American National Ballet, in Charleston, South Carolina, in 2017.
Sophie Williams, who was 20 years old at the time, told the DailyMail.com she was suspicious of the venture early on, especially when it came to getting paid.
She recalled a time waiting outside a small hallway alongside other dancers at American National Ballet in alphabetical order for their names to be called.
Nobody was told why they had to gather there, just that there was a chance of finally receiving a paycheck.
In July of this year, Ashley Benefield, 32, was found guilty of shooting her husband Doug dead after moving their belongings to Maryland where they planned to reside after the fall-out of American National Ballet
Doug Benefield (pictured left) was the one funding behind the disastrous dance company - all with a goal to make Ashleys dreams of keeping her ballet background alive
When Williams, now 27, was called into the small office in Charleston, South Carolina, she found herself face-to-face with a strange sight.
Doug Benefield was sitting behind a briefcase stacked high with hundred-dollar bills.
She sat down at his command.
Williams said: He just started counting off wads of hundreds.
Doug told Williams that the money was for all the things the company had promised to the dancers but never delivered: health insurance, pointe shoes, the stipend for travel and her overall pay.
She walked out of the office almost $5,000 richer. But the exchange left her feeling even more uncomfortable about what was going on within the dance company.
Sophie Williams, now 27, was fired from American National Ballet on her 21st birthday. She is one of four ballerinas that still have the opportunity to dance after the collapse of the South Carolina dance company
Emma Hemsley, now 26, was one of the ballerinas who first arrived in Charleston. After multiple injuries and surgeries, she went back to school and is now applying for nursing school
Ive never held so much money in my life, especially in cash, she said. It just didnt feel right. Ive never been paid in that kind of manner before. None of us had. It felt really wrong.
The dancers took the cash to the closest bank. It was like a movie. Forty-eight ballerinas walked into a credit union, depositing stacks of $100 bills.
Williams said: You dont get paid like that in a legitimate ballet company.
Days later, the dancers were called to the studio. They were told something amazing was going to happen. But instead of being given information about the grand plan, they were given NDAs.
Three days later, the dancers received an email about a meeting on Monday morning.
Pictured: An email that was sent to the ballerinas by Ashley Benefield welcoming them to the ANB family. Her goal was to change the face of ballet with a diverse and inclusive company of dancers from all over the world
Pictured: The stacks of hundred-dollar bills the dancers receives after begging the Benefields to be paid
Williams said: It was strange - they never had meetings, let alone with the entire company. They had hoped the meeting would be an answer to lingering questions. It was mid-season, and they had no director, no performances scheduled and no ballet studio.
They arrived early Monday morning before Doug sat the dancers down.
As Im sure you all realize, this isnt working. As of now, you no longer have a job with American National Ballet.
It was direct. Their dance career with ANB ended as quickly as it started.
The husband-and-wife founded company had a goal - to create a diverse and inclusive ballet team that embraced different styles and body types.
Dancer Ashley Byers was 5ft, 9in and had dealt with obstacles relating to her height in her career.
She met Doug at Ben Carsons home in Palm Beach, Florida in August 2016, carrying a gun in her bra at the time, prosecutors would later claim. He had lost his wife nine months earlier, leaving him with their 15-year-old daughter, Eva. He was 54 and Ashley was 24. The pair married just 13 days later.
Ashley was a graduate of Maryland Youth Ballet. Doug was an entrepreneur who also worked with defense and private equity ventures supporting government missions.
It was Ashleys dream to change the face of ballet. And Doug was happy to help.
In 2017, the couple assembled a team of around 50 dancers to launch their company - American National Ballet. More than 2,000 people auditioned.
Pictured: A snippet of an email sent by Ashley Benefield persuading the ballerinas to live in a luxury apartment complex across the street from their studio called SKYGARDENS - except the studio never existed
After the death of Dougs former wife, he was left with only his daughter, Eva Benefield, (pictured with Doug) now 23. He had promised her that he would not get remarried - but married Ashley within 13 days of meeting her
The couple had met at a Republican political event in Florida when he was 54 years old and she was 24 years old
She sent the ballerinas an email welcoming them to the ANB family. She referred to the vision as a movement where the dancers could come together to pioneer the new world of ballet.
She noted in the email: All eyes are on us. As an ambassador of American National Ballet, the expectation is that you will serve as a positive role model for the next generation, creating a contagious and inspirational environment.
In September 2017, 48 dancers took off for Charleston. Some were seasoned ballerinas, others fresh out of dance school. They were promised 35-week contracts. Those recruited internationally were promised help getting American visas.
The ballerinas were encouraged to sign year-long leases at SKYGARDEN, a luxury apartment complex.
The email send to the dancers said: Great amenities including a rooftop pool (you can literally see the studios from the pool).
Pictured: An email sent by Sophie Williams to Doug on behalf of all of the dancers - a response to the company falling apart and the ballerinas being left with year-long leases that they couldnt afford
Williams at her audition for American National Ballet - she is number 105
Yet when the ballerinas arrived, there was no studio. A walk across the street turned into an Uber ride an hour outside the city.
Some dancers felt unnerved before arriving in Charleston. Questions regarding reps, directors and schedules went unanswered. They were fed small details on plans for the upcoming season, but none of it turned out to be true.
Williams said: There was a comfort in knowing if there were this many people, its got to work right? Theyre not just going to bring this many people in from all over the country and leave us hanging.
Emma Hemsley was 19 when she arrived in Charleston. She turned down a potential opportunity at Nashville Ballet to be a part of ANB, which she described as a great thing in theory.
Hemsley, now 26, said: Once I got there, I saw the studio was very dingy. The floors werent good. When we started in September, it was really hot. There wasnt any air. We all couldnt really fit in the studio. It wasnt the size you needed for 50-plus people to dance.
Williams got a call back from American National Ballet to become an apprentice for the company and was one of 48 ballerinas that packed their bags and moved to Charleston
Pictured: An email from Doug after the mass-firing in which he tried to defend his position within the company. Doug was said to be the most permanent person there since the dancers never saw Ashley again after their audition
It turned out that the promised studio was never going to exist.
Meanwhile, Ashley was nowhere to be seen.
Hemsley said: It was interesting how Doug and Ashley founded it, but Ashley was never there. I never saw her once. I never met her. She wasnt even there the first day. There was nothing to make you believe she was a real person, or that she was even a part of the company she created.
Unbeknown to the dancers, Ashley had made her way to Florida, leaving them to fend for themselves.
The ballerinas went through five directors in the first two weeks of the season. They had no performance dates. Doug told the dancers they would be performing at the White House because of his ties with Trump. That never happened.
Pictured: An email from Ashley after the mass-firings. The ballerinas initially thought they had to sign an NDA for exciting company changes, but Williams said the real reason they were given these forms was to ensure their silence
More than 2,000 people auditioned for American National Ballet - many were dancers from internationally and out-of-state. In 2017, Doug and Ashley assembled a team of around 50 dancers to start the enterprise
After three weeks with no pay, the red flags became something the dancers couldnt ignore.
When they finally got paid, the situation seemed even more sketchy. There were talks about a merger with other ballet companies, but some ballerinas decided the environment was not worth it and left.
The dancers had tried to warn others who had not yet arrived. A dancer from Korea had received no help in getting her visa but worked hard to get it on her own.
Williams told her: Its dangerous. It doesnt feel safe. Its definitely not an environment thats going to last long. There is no clarity, theres no repertoire, theres no rehearsal. We dont even have a director. Were not getting paid. Dont come.
She ended up getting there, and three days later, they were fired.
When Hemsley (second dancer from the left) arrived in Charleston, the remembers the temporary dance studio being dingy, too hot and too small - especially for 50 professional ballet dancers to rehearse everyday
Hemsley potentially turned down an opportunity at Nashville Ballet to be a part of a company with a new vision - which she described as a great thing in theory
I was fired on my 21st birthday, said Williams. It was really s****y.
Although the ballerinas thought the NDAs were for purposes relating to changes in the company, they quickly realized it was a way to keep them quiet.
Williams said: It was to silence our experience.
The company fell apart in less than two months. The dancers were stuck with no job, no studio and year-long leases at an apartment complex they couldnt afford.
Williams emailed Doug on behalf of all the dancers. She wrote him: The ethical thing for you to do is pay the lease termination for all the dancers, which is $3,387 per dancer.
In 2010, Natalie Portman was the star of the thriller/horror movie Black Swan - which many say is eerily similar to the Ashley Benefield case
Williams felt uneasy about American National Ballet right from the start. She claimed that the company had no repertoire - which she said is extremely odd for a legit ballet company
For the young adults who gave you their trust, gave up other contracts to move to your new company, and are now without income and without a contract, it is not a business loss. Your foray in the ballet world, however well intentioned, did not work. Why hold the dancers victim to this?
Luckily, they had a saving grace.
Hemsley said: There was some type of donor that was involved with ANB that ended up paying all of our leases in full so we could leave because he didnt agree with what the company did. Im so thankful to whoever that guy was.
Ashley soon took to Instagram in an attempt to distance herself from the disaster. Doug sent the dancers one more email, which said: I am no longer with ANB as I was only funding and supporting because of Ashley.
A few days later, Ashley emailed the ballerinas once more to remind them about the NDAs and make it clear that the agreements are still in effect and binding.
Just like that, their careers at National Ballet were over.
The ballerinas went on to figure out their own lives.
But Ashley went on to kill her husband.
She was found guilty of manslaughter in July of this year.
After investigators searched the home where the murder took place, they found two more loaded guns along with the murder weapon itself
A majority of the ballerinas recruited for the company traveled through state lines and even overseas to be a part of the new face of ballet
Doug was shot to death while helping her move belongings to Maryland where they were planning to reside. During the move, Ashley claimed she had killed her husband in self-defense.
She claimed that on the night of the murder, Doug had hit her and cornered her in a bedroom where she became scared to death. Thats when she said she grabbed a nearby .45 caliber gun that was on the top of a storage bin and pulled the trigger.
Investigators also found two more loaded guns in the house after the shooting.
The defense states that having these loaded guns was simply part of the fear she had as an abused woman trying to get away from her husband.
On the night of the murder, Ashley ran to a neighbors house in a panic claiming that Doug had attacked her. The court played the 911 call during her hearing where she started to sob.
She said that he had never hit her prior to this incident but had been aggressive and abusive before - claiming that he had punched their dog and fired a gun into their kitchen celling during an argument.
She attempted to paint Doug as a domestic abuser who she feared - but the court thought she was manipulative.
Hemsley now teaches ballet classes to children along with her schooling. After the collapse of ANB, the pandemic and multiple injuries, she ultimately decided that her professional ballet career had ended
Ashley was visibly sobbing during her court date in July of this year as the 911 call from her neighbor was played to the jury. She painted Doug out to be an abusive husband but the court thinks she is manipulative
After finding out she was pregnant, she had started fighting for sole custody. Prosecutors said she had exhausted all her legal avenues in Florida to keep him out of the childs life and was unwilling to lose the custody battle.
Her sentencing is set for October. She could face up to 30 years in prison.
Hemsley said: Now looking back, because obviously a lot of us were young and naïve, we didnt know the background of what goes into a company. It was just lies after lies after lies and weird, weird schemes.
I think it definitely shaped me into just being a more mindful person. And you know, if something sounds too good to be true, it maybe is.
Hemsley went on to dance with Oklahoma City Ballet before the pandemic hit. After suffering a broken foot and torn ligament, she went back to school. She will be applying for nursing school come spring. She also teaches some ballet classes.
Williams is a ballerina at Texas Ballet Theater and considers herself extremely lucky to be able to continue her dance career.
She said: Traumatic experiences kind of bring you together. Theyre definitely some of the best friends Ive ever made. We had to rely on each other. But I feel for most of them - most of them were never able to continue their careers. Its too hard financially to move again, to start all over and to keep yourself going and in shape when you dont even have the facility to do so.
Out of 48 ballet dancers, only three or four are still dancing.
As for their opinions on Ashley Benefields guilty verdict, both have removed themselves from that time in their life.
Hemsley said: I dont see him as being a victim necessarily of her. I see them both as equally corrupt. I think theyre similar types of people. Maybe thats why they were attracted to each other.
Im not necessarily surprised that she was capable of that, because theyre clearly capable of doing horrible things to tons of people they dont even know, she added.
Now that its over and she has a verdict, I feel like I can say something, Williams said. I want it to be represented, how the dancers were treated, and how it really was for us. I dont think I really knew Ashley; I dont think I really knew Doug. I think that they created a terrible situation that I was put in, along with 48 other dancers.
