Pique Arabesque

Like it or not, it's just a matter of time that we read about Misty's promo to Principal. There will be movie deals, further book deals , etc. I happen to admire her talents in tailor-made ballets or modern works like the Tharp or Ratmansky's rep. How she tackles leading roles in Petipa classics will be telling.

Frankly, I feel like most casual balletgoers in America - regardless of race - don't know the difference between the "soloists" and "principals." Also, soloists dance principal roles, and corps members dance soloist and even principal roles (depending on the company), so the lines are blurred even further. Misty's buzz has transcended the ballet world, which is why people who wouldn't know "Swan Lake" from "Agon" know who she is. I also hope that her SLs with the Washington Ballet go well.

Thanks for the updates. I really hope that rumors, etc. are true.

I'm curious if any ballerina would/could ever substitute Tiler Peck as Young Marie? Marie is tailor-made for Tiler, so I wouldn't really want to see anyone else. Does Misty Copeland sing and act, for example?

I know Misty has taken some acting classes, but I don't think she sings.

I think that Rosamund Pike's dress would have looked okay if her back was covered. The straps are the most unflattering part of the dress.

I thought that "Boyhood" was a great movie, but I felt that Linklater could have told an even more interesting story about parenthood. I would have preferred to see "Selma" win Best Picture.

I thought that Misty expressed herself in a clear, insightful, and honest way throughout the interview - the entire piece is an interesting window into the development, thought process, and work ethic of an artist. Also, it was published in 2009, so she has been working on Tchai Pas for several years. I found that she danced with clarity and authority on the broadcast - and several other informed BA posters + McBride enjoyed it as well. It is interesting how people can have such divergent views of the same performance.

This is an interesting excerpt from Misty on learning Tchai Pas:

Is this the first time you’re dancing Balanchine’s Tchaikovsky Pas de Deux?

I’ve never done it. When I first starting learning it, I was working with Kevin McKenzie and Clinton Luckett just to get the basics and to learn the steps, but I actually was coached by Merrill Ashley. Recently, we worked together because of this Annenberg Fellowship that I’ve been given. It’s so amazing. I was going to work with her on Tchaikovsky Pas de Deux and on Theme and Variations—just to do them—before I was cast. It’s been sort of a wake-up call because I feel like a lot of the Balanchine ballets are hard for me. That’s one reason why I wanted to work with Merrill; I know that is a weakness of mine—moving fast and never having trained in Balanchine. It was exciting to work with her and it was very different from what I thought Balanchine was. You think you want to distort things, but it is very classical; it’s all about being up on your legs. I have so far to go, but I’m aware. [Laughs] She’s just someone I admire and who has taught me so much in the short time that we worked together.

The entire article is here. I enjoyed her performance at the KennCen Honors, and I thought it was perfectly fine on an evening when Patty McBride was the center of attention.

Really I look at this video and wonder why this girl is even a soloist. But maybe that's just me.

If Misty wasn't talented, her dance career would have ended at the Boys and Girls Club in California (and Damian Woetzel wouldn't have invited her to his festival). The professional dance world is extremely competitive - especially for women - and everyone is there for a reason. I also don't think that dancers need to have sky high extensions to be interesting.

I particularly enjoy this ballroom-contemporary ballet fusion from one of the YAGP galas. I think she is particularly strong in contemporary work.

In order to turn down the heat on this board:

Misty will be speaking at Princeton University's Lewis Center for the Arts on February 16. (Damian Woetzel will also be giving a master class tomorrow!).

Link here.

You must not own a television Pique Arabesque. Misty has been on The PBS NewsHour and NY1 talking about her problems as a black ballerina all summer, fall and winter. She always makes a point in these interviews of saying how hard it was for because she was black and that now she wants to be a principal "ABT's first black principal". I found it refreshing when the NewsHour interviewed Patty McBride,who said those sorts of comments dumbfounded her. She said in her day "people just wanted to dance"; I'm sure they also wanted roles. But the aggressiveness of saying you want to be a principal and that if you're not made one it's because the AD, the board or someone else is racist ridiculously OTP.

I do own a television, and I am very familiar with Misty's media appearances. Though I have heard her talk about struggling with weight and wanting to be "seen" earlier in her career, she has also frequently discussed being in a really great place at this point in her life. Misty is also not the first dancer to express her desire to be a principal. If I recall correctly, Ashley Bouder said in one of the city.ballet episodes that she knew from a young age that she wanted to move to New York be a principal at City Ballet. There is nothing wrong with being ambitious and setting goals for oneself, and Misty has never accused ABT of not promoting her to the principal rank because of racism.

Misty also made an Under Armour commercial where the voiceover explicitly states her intention to become ABT's first black principal. Nothing whatsoever to do with the athletic wear she is selling.

I have not seen that commercial. I saw a different commercial, in which Misty does chaine turns while a voiceover reads a rejection letter (which was not an actual rejection letter received by Misty).

According to an interview she gave to The Dance Enthusiast, Mearns is learning La Valse.

Wonderful to learn this--she certainly can dance as if "on the edge of a volcano" ...

Indeed! Mearns is a thrilling artist. Her love for ballet, music, the theatre --art in general-- informs all her performances. In the same interview she explains how Makarova (her role model) in a 1975 performance of Swan Lake "wanted everyone in the audience to go into the story." Mearns wants everyone in the audience to go into every ballet she dances in.

Mearns is not the best technician in City Ballet's cadre of top principal women, but she brings a rich, dramatic quality to every role that she performs.

Anyhow, re the twerking: I recall reading an interview with Debbie Allen when she referred to twerking as "African isolations," and I thought that was interesting. Maybe some are reading vulgarity into the Scarlett choreography because it is not situated within the European classical/neoclassical tradition that we expect from ballet. As aurora mentioned, the real vulgarities are things that are actually triggering, like a rape scene or gratuitous violence.

And I don't agree with some of what she has said. I have minority children and I would not want them to use their minority status in the way she has.

Also, I don't think that Misty as really "using her minority status" to get anything. She is continuing a relevant conversation that other great dancers like Raven Wilkinson and Lauren Anderson began.

I do agree that this tangent probably needs to be relocated to a different thread, though.

[Edited by Admin] There are numerous threads where this is being discussed, including the Misty Copeland thread in the Dancers forum: http://balletalert.invisionzone.com/index.php?/topic/39465-misty-copeland/]

In any event, I think it's neither fair nor particularly useful to make judgements about a dancer's character or to attempt to divine their moral compass based on the steps they have been given to do.

This is what I have basically been trying to say.

Anyhow, twerking is a form of movement, even if most people in this community think it is in bad taste. I am not personally offended by it, but I'm also under 30. Scarlett is just following in the tradition of the many other contemporary choreographers (Petit, Van Manen, Preljocaj, etc) who have pushed boundaries and buttons.

This is thread I was talking about. No Fairchild comparison, but choriamb, cobweb, and FauxPas all enjoyed Duo Concertant. vipa is more reserved.

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Misty is clearly not your cup of tea, which is fine, but I know that other BA commenters enjoyed her Coppelia and Duo Concertant (I think one person even said that they enjoyed her interpretation of the latter piece more than Megan Fairchild's at City Ballet). I didn't see her perform these pieces, so I can't offer my own opinion. I'm sure any contemporary ballet company in the country would love to work with her.

Though people on here seem to think that Copeland is McKenzie's "golden goose," she is very clearly determined to be a principal, and I don't think she wants to linger at the soloist rank for much longer a la Abrera. If she is not promoted within the next year or two, I could see her going to a place like SFB or Houston (where she could join the company as a principal).

As for Kochetkova, I think that New York is still regarded as the center of the dance world in America. As superficial as this sounds, being an ABT principal - despite whatever one may think about its current state - does carry more prestige than being an SFB principal.

I agree that Tiler was amazing. I've seen Lauren Lovette in much better light in NY. Misty? She's a favorite in DC so her inclusion made sense.

The preceding segment of blues songs for Al Green went on and on. Were all of those audience members asked to 'bop' for the cameras? It looked ridiculous, IMO. Non-stop bopping. At least McBride did not constantly bop up and down; she clapped and graciously smiled.

I actually felt that the Al Green tribute was shorter than the Sting tribute, and definitely shorter than the Hanks tribute. Loved the inclusion of Mavis Staples at the end. Also, the crowd was full of square politicians, which is why the 'bopping' probably seemed awkward.

For those who don't know, Patty McBride was one of the honorees of the Kennedy Center, shown tonight on CBS. The show is worth well watching, both to see old clips of Patty and for Tiler Peck's outstanding performance in excerpts from Who Cares (old costumes, yay!) and Dances At a Gathering. Tiler is so remarkable, such an artist, it is always such a great pleasure to watch her. Unfortunately, they also chose to have Jeffrey Cirio (Boston Ballet) and Lauren Lovette do a few minutes from Rubies and Misty do a few minutes from Tchai Pas. This is the 2nd time I've seen Lauren do Rubies (the other time at YAGP with Herman Cornejo) and both times made me cringe. I also did not like her Sugarplum in Nutcracker this season. I'm not sure what's going on with her but she is not ready for prime time, IMO. I think she's being pushed too fast. And Misty in Tchai Pas? She looked leaden. Why not Ashley Bouder? Patty was a NYCB ballerina after all. For that matter, why not spritely Sarah Lane (if you're going to use an ABT dancer)? Anyway, the show was a loving attribute to Patty and well worth watching.

I believe that Ashley Bouder has been injured this fall (someone please correct me if this information is inaccurate). I am not sure about Sarah Lane's situation, but she could have declined their offer. Patty appeared to enjoy all four excerpts, and America got to see several leading dancers in some Balanchine classics. I'd say it's a win on all fronts.

Pique Arabesque, Ashley was not injured in the fall (I saw her in several performances) and I just saw her last Saturday night as Sugarplum. I think she may have had a minor injury the first few weeks of Nutcracker after the debut night when she danced Dewdrop. I saw tweets from her from Rome,Italy about 1 week ago so it may be she wasn't available when the Honors actually happened.

Thanks for the clarification!

I thought Tiler was glorious and I loved Tom Hanks face after her performance. Such a genuine, awe-induced reaction. A good tribute. I thought Lily Tomlin's was weird to say the least.

Lily Tomlin is weird (in a great way), so I thought it was totally appropriate!

For those who don't know, Patty McBride was one of the honorees of the Kennedy Center, shown tonight on CBS. The show is worth well watching, both to see old clips of Patty and for Tiler Peck's outstanding performance in excerpts from Who Cares (old costumes, yay!) and Dances At a Gathering. Tiler is so remarkable, such an artist, it is always such a great pleasure to watch her. Unfortunately, they also chose to have Jeffrey Cirio (Boston Ballet) and Lauren Lovette do a few minutes from Rubies and Misty do a few minutes from Tchai Pas. This is the 2nd time I've seen Lauren do Rubies (the other time at YAGP with Herman Cornejo) and both times made me cringe. I also did not like her Sugarplum in Nutcracker this season. I'm not sure what's going on with her but she is not ready for prime time, IMO. I think she's being pushed too fast. And Misty in Tchai Pas? She looked leaden. Why not Ashley Bouder? Patty was a NYCB ballerina after all. For that matter, why not spritely Sarah Lane (if you're going to use an ABT dancer)? Anyway, the show was a loving attribute to Patty and well worth watching.

I believe that Ashley Bouder has been injured this fall (someone please correct me if this information is inaccurate). I am not sure about Sarah Lane's situation, but she could have declined their offer. Patty appeared to enjoy all four excerpts, and America got to see several leading dancers in some Balanchine classics. I'd say it's a win on all fronts.

You're not kidding, Abatt. I have never seen the like of Misty's claque. Whenever she is performing, there are big groups of black girls and women cheering and whooping and yelling for her, and they gather together at intermissions all atwitter about their heroine/role model/spokesperson. One wonders if they even know what they're watching onstage, just as long as it's... HER. Very strange.

God forbid a group of black women go the ballet and enjoy a performance! Quelle horreur!

Belle: Import

Boylston: 2005/2006/2007 -> 2011 -> 2014

Cornejo: 1999 -> 2000 -> 2003

Gomes: 1997 -> 2000 -> 2002

Hallberg: 2000/2001 -> 2004 -> 2006

Herrera: 1991 -> 1993 -> 1995

Kent: 1986 -> 1990 -> 1993

Murphy: 1996 -> 1999 -> 2002

Part: Import (soloist), 2002 -> 2009

Reyes: Import (soloist), 2001 -> 2003

Semionova: Import

Seo: 2004/2005/2006 -> 2010 -> 2012

Simkin: Import (soloist), 2008 -> 2012

Stearns: 2004/2005/2006 -> 2009 -> 2011

Vishneva: Import

Whiteside: Import (soloist), 2012 -> 2013

Aside from the imported guest dancers who are hired to do the plum roles, 3/16 Principals are imports; 4/16 Principals were imported as Soloists and promoted to Principal. Of the 9/16 who’ve come through the ranks, one joined ABT in the ‘80’s, four in the ‘90’s – all promoted through the ranks over a decade ago -- leaving only 25% having been promoted to Principal from the ranks on the last decade: Hallberg in 2006, Stearns in 2011, Seo in 2012, and Boylston in 2014. All four came through the Studio Company and all but Hallberg did apprenticeships between Studio and Corps – did they exist then? – as did all but two current soloists, with the other two hired as apprentices. Whether they continue to be bypassed for guest artists, like Radetsky, or there is some movement up the ranks, like Seo, Boylston, and Stearns, is TBD.

Helene, you are a gem.

Marina Harss' NY Times gala preview focuses on Troy Schumacher and features a link to the music he's choreographed to, Judd Greenstein's Clearing, Dawn, Dance - to my taste, a pretty exciting piece!

I really enjoy Harss' criticism. I think she should have a higher profile in the dance world.

IMO, if Misty were white , did not have wealthy sponsors, and was not a relentless self promoter, she'd still be in the corps.

I don't think that someone can simply market their way to the top - McKenzie obviously saw something in her dancing that earned her the promotion. Also, the media attention surrounding Misty is fairly recent (in the last 2-3 years). If I'm not mistaken, she was promoted to soloist back in 2007. The media attention followed her promotion, not the other way around.

This is not the only online source which has raised issues regarding Copeland. Since it is the policy here not to mention other blogs or boards, I will not make a specific ID. The discussion here on Ballet Alert has been extremely civilized and respectful compared to elsewhere.

I have read passing criticism of her in other places, but most of the discussion about her in the mainstream press is very positive - and even glowing.

I don’t assume no black dancers ever face racism. But I’m intrigued by the logical assumption on which the “black female dancers are held back by racism” argument turns: that in the ballet world we find a phenomenon unobserved anywhere else, people who are racist towards one gender but not another. That’s a logical inference from the argument that black female dancers are being held back by racism. I think the indefensibility of the presumption demonstrates the faulty and over-simplistic logic nature of the argument.

In any case, Copeland's Facebook page now has a video with excerpts of an Australian interview, and of her Swan Lake. I must say, she does have a lovely manner. As critical as I am of her in one respect, her face shows real character.

Ballet has very strict gender roles - especially the really classical ballets (princes and princesses, etc). Men are expected to be powerful, strong, charismatic, and generous partners. It's not surprising that a number of black men who have ascended to the principal ranks of elite companies are/were known as great partners (Albert Evans, Carlos Acosta, Arthur Mitchell). The man's role in ballet dovetails with the "strong/powerful/hyper-masculine black man" stereotype (think Shakespeare's Othello). Women, on the other hand, are expected to be light and feminine, and white women are seen as most feminine and desirable women in society. These may not be your personal views, but many people have been socialized to think this way over the past four centuries. Balanchine explores this dynamic pretty explicitly in the Agon PDD.

My core argument - and this argument transcends Misty's particular situation - is that these notions of femininity and desirability affect who gets singled out/championed and who doesn't. There are a ton of female dancers vying for a few slots, and directors likely make decisions based on instinct.

Project Plie is shrewd in the sense that even if it doesn't produce the first black female ABT principal, it will probably produce a black lawyer/doctor/arts administrator who will become an ABT subscriber. I don't think it's a PR concoction/cynical attempt to silence Misty.

P.S. Tapfan, I didn't mean to criticize you! I agree with everything that you (plus aurora, Drew, Plisskin, and dirac) have said in this thread.

Pique Arabesque, Aesha Ash may have felt that Peter Martins was not interested in developing her, but that's a complaint from many dancers. I wouldn't attribute it to race. In ABT Simone Messemer went to SFB for that reason.

Also, I'm sure anyone who has misspelled Misty Copeland's name meant no disrespect. I think I might have misspelled Simone Messemer's name.

I agree that many dancers complain about a lack of coaching/development, etc. At ABT, in particular, it is an institutional problem that transcends race. However, black women in ballet have to deal with these "typical dancer" concerns + centuries of stereotypes that depict them as unfeminine, etc. While I'm sure that Martins had no conscious animus for Ash, he may have underestimated her potential. That's unfortunate for everyone.

Martins has also developed Taylor Stanley and Craig Hall, both of whom are soloists at NYCB. Martins also promoted the now-retired Albert Evans to principal, and I believe Albert is now a ballet master at NYCB. It's a little disingenuous to leave these details out while mentioning that Peter favors Chase Finlay because Chase looks like Peter.

I don't think anyone is saying Misty is outright lying. I think it's more a question of embellishment in pursuit of an objective.

Black men have actually have had quite a bit of success in the ballet world - I agree with you in that sense. Black women are the ones who still face barriers.

I used Finlay as an example because his fast (and controversial) ascent to the principal ranks was largely based on potential. And he and Martins are essentially cut from the same danseur noble cloth.

Saying that Misty "embellished" her memoir still suggests that she is not being completely honest/is being hyper-sensitive about her experiences. I feel no reason to doubt her story unless some other compelling evidence emerges.

In Misty's case, I think there's also the issue of two different matters being perceived as somewhat related, even though they might not be and this is not even intended. Though I believe that at least Misty should be aware of the possibility of it happening.

1) A lot of people seem to think she doesn't meet the demands for dancing prinicpal roles in classical pieces, technically speaking. According to what they themselves have witnessed regarding her dancing.

2) Misty claims she has been denied opportunities due to racism.

-> Rightfully so or not rightfully so, to some it may seem like she's ignoring "real" reasons for not being cast in certain roles and instead assuming there's racism, even if her claims were speaking of a different place and time. I think it would at least partly be perceived differently if people had a different view of her dancing. Doesn't mean that her claims are untrue, just that it's an unfortunate combination.

I think it's worth noting that most of Misty's claims are related to the beginning of her career with ABT. Here, she talks about being overlooked as a young dancer in the corps:

"Certain people, they’d come in and cast ballets and wouldn’t even give me the time of day or the chance to see if I was talented enough to portray certain roles. They think the corps de ballet should be [racially] uniform and that’s the thing."

Full link - http://nymag.com/thecut/2014/03/misty-copeland-on-ballet-race-and-her-new-book.html

She seems very content with her current position in the company.