“Every person deserves to feel included doing something they love.”
Ballet dancers have been forced to fight the deep-rooted white dominance for hundreds of years now, questioning principles and traditions. Being scrutinised as a dancer is something that naturally comes with the profession, yet the colour of someone’s skin should never prevent individuals from opportunity.
Classical ballet was first introduced in 15th century Europe meaning all the dancers were white, it has proven resistant to evolving beyond its traditional roots throughout the years, with discrimination still being very vivid in the profession. Directors in the earlier years of ballet deemed dancers that didn’t follow a specific look as ‘unworthy’ and ‘unsuited to the lines of classical technique’. Although change has been seen since then, many still face injustice within the industry daily.
Famously, in 1955 Raven Wilkinson joined the Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo. Wilkinson broke the colour barrier in 1955 however under the surface, she was still faced with animosity. Ballet Russe told Miss Wilkinson and her family that they were not to let the public know that this light-skinned young woman was actually black. Onstage, she was told to “whiten up,” covering herself in pale pancake makeup which hid her true colour.
Prejudice has many surfaces. This also includes the lack of diversity in the uniform which is still not suitable for all dancers. Just because pointe shoes (as an example) in other shades ‘exist’ is simply not enough. All companies (especially industry-leading global ones) should have attire for every dancer. Not just because all pointe shoe brands fit differently but because everyone deserves to be equal.
Since the 15th century, little thought has been given to the tradition of the ‘uniform’, but it is safe to say that the sole reason ballet tights and shoes are pink is because at the time the tradition started, all of the dancers were white. Hundreds of dancers around the world are still forced to “pancake” their ballet shoes in cheap foundations and dye clothing such as tights and undergarments in coffee to match their skin after buying them in the universal ‘skin tone’ shade.
Many companies name their clothing items suitable for white dancers only ‘skin tone’ or ‘flesh’ meaning these names are only associated with white dancers with POC having to ask for clothing ‘not in skin tone’.
Professional ballet dancer, Gabe Stone Shayer says: “a woman who had watched me perform a variation from Coppélia for a competition asked me if I would consider dancing Ali instead (the slave variation from Le Corsaire), insinuating that it would be a better fit”. He continued to say “People couldn't see past my skin color enough for them to consider me a classical ballet dancer or a prince.” The article where he says this was posted in 2020. This shows that the set look specific dancers ‘should have’ is still extremely raw and a huge issue to this day. Like Mr Shayer, many other current dancers are still being consumed by this prejudgment in doing what they love.
The artistic director of Dance Theatre of Harlem, Virginia Johnson says: “People still have not embraced the notion of diversity within this art form because it's always been seen as an exclusive art form.” Johnson says: “This isn’t about shoes, this is about who belongs in ballet and who doesn’t.” Much change is needed within the industry before all dancers can truly feel like equals.
photo credit: An Rong Xu, NYtimes
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