Kristen Bell in Dance of the Mirlitons

Writer-director Evan Greenberg seems to finally be getting a shot at the big time. His script for Dance of the Mirlitons has been going through what one might refer to as Development Hell for a while now. Meanwhile, 2005 Blacklist contemporaries such as Juno, A Killing on Carnival Row, and Lars and the Real Girl have gone on to critical and audience praise. For a while, he even lost the rights to the script, but has recently come back into possession, and even packaged the deal with Kristen Bell attached.

Now, according to THR, all they need is an unknown in the 10-12-year old range to play opposite Bell’s overbearing mother for a story that is both Mean Girls- and Little Miss Sunshine-esque, following “an ambitious and slightly overweight” child, who dreams of becoming a ballerina star. Dance of the Mirlitons is being described as an “indie black comedy.” More of those are always welcome, but what about Bell? Does she have the right combination of nurture, menace, and experience, to play the role?