Aahana Swrup
In ‘Étoile,’ there’s plenty of drama to be found in the halls of New York’s Metropolitan Ballet Theater following executive director Jack McMillan’s decision to collaborate with the Paris Ballet company in an exchange program. As the two companies swap out their top talents, the devastatingly gifted ballerina Cheyenne Toussaint is brought to the institution in Brooklyn. Thus, the woman’s brazen personality, sorely lacking people skills, and tendency to creatively hijack her shows result in one unexpected complication after another for Jack. The most prominent of these complications arises when the dancer decides to recruit Gael Rodriguez as her perpetual dance partner at the company. Gael has a bitter past with the organization, particularly stemming from the head’s animosity toward him. This awkward rivalry seems to extend to Quinn McMillan, a conductor who re-joins MBT during the festive season, inevitably running into the dancer and unearthing their apparent shared past. SPOILERS AHEAD!
Quinn McMillan is Jack’s Sister With an Unfortunate Dating History
Quinn McMillan is a later entry to the story, with episode 7 marking her first appearance. The woman quite literally runs into Gael during their respective morning runs. Their brief interaction reveals that Quinn, a conductor, has recently arrived in town and will be returning to work at the Metropolitan Ballet Theater. However, that’s not all that unravels during this short and unexpected meeting. From the apparent awkward air between the duo, it’s obvious something transpired between them. As a result, it’s hardly a surprise once it’s revealed that Quinn and Gael had a brief affair in the past.
Back when Quinn lived in New York, working with her brother at the MBT, she crossed paths with Gael. At the time, her marriage to a man named Peter was undergoing a particularly prominent rough patch. As Jack puts it, she was growing increasingly bored with her husband. As a result, she started up an affair with Gael, which inevitably spelled out the end of her marriage. However, more than the divorce itself, Peter’s pursuit of the family’s assets in the separation left a sour taste in everyone’s mouths. Eventually, the situation grew so dire that Jack, who seems to be the family’s de facto crisis management guy, relocated her out of New York for a new start.
The exact details of what happened to Quinn and Gael’s romantic relationship during this time are ambiguous. Still, the general understanding emerges that their affair fizzled out likely around the same time that Gael decided to drop Ballet to pursue his other interests. Therefore, now that the two exes are back in each other’s orbits, trouble inevitably looms on the horizon. Gael is currently in a mercurial relationship with Cheyenne, his dance partner, who has a controlling streak and sees no issue in disappearing on her boyfriend for days on end. As this overlaps with the dancer’s reconnection to an old flame, who seems to still hold a candle for him, it ultimately compels him to end things with Cheyenne to get back together with Quinn. As such, should the show be picked up for another season, Quinn will continue to be a big part of the MBT, adding to its free-flowing scope for drama.
Nina Arianda Brings Quinn McMillan to Life in Étoile
The Tony-award-winning actress Nina Arianda plays the role of Quinn, bringing a pleasantly dysfunctional dynamic to the McMillian clan as Jack’s sister. Her easy charm and ability to tap into an underlying sense of chaos make her the perfect fit in the family, forming natural chemistry with actors Luke Kirby (Jack) and Kelly Bishop (the matriarch, Clara McMillan). The fact that Arianda shares an almost startling physical resemblance to the latter only serves as the cherry on top, accentuating the on-screen mother-daughter duo’s relationship. Thus, her addition to the show remains a particular highlight. Arianda has blazed a rather impressive path so far in her ever-expanding career, both on-screen and on the stage.
With roles like Carol in the 2011 Oscar-winning film ‘Midnight in Paris,’ Shelly in ‘Win Win,’ and Alexis in ‘The Disappearance of Eleanor Rigby: Him,’ the actress has many impressive titles under her belt. Furthermore, as she takes on the role of Quinn in ‘Étoile,’ it makes for a professional reunion for her and creator Amy Sherman-Palladino. The two artists previously worked together on the beloved Emmy-winning comedy-drama show ‘The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel,’ with Arianda joining the cast as the recurring character Herdy. As for future projects, fans of the actress can look forward to catching her in 109 Billion Followers, a comedy-drama film starring J.K. Simmons as the Grim Reaper. On the other hand, she’s also set to feature as a voice actor on the animated show ‘The Adventures of Drunky.’
