Keep in mind that I've been overweight much of my life and have managed to lose all but the last vanity pounds that are not dangerous, just annoying. I've never had anorexia, although after successfully becoming quite lean in 2006-7 by eating lots of egg whites, salads and carrying chicken breasts in my purse, my dear sweet mother in heaven might disagree with that statement. Nevertheless, I couldn't help but be somewhat shocked by the critic's comment.
In this article, New York Times critic Alistair McCaulay says that ballerina Jenifer Ringer, as the Sugar Plum Fairy, looked as if she’d eaten one sugar plum too many.' Despite the "brouhaha" on the internet, he has since stood by his statement: " If you want to make your appearance irrelevant to criticism, do not choose ballet as a career."
SAY WHAT?! I have three things to say about this:
- Jenifer is an amazing dancer
- Jenifer is not in any way overweight
- Jenifer has been open about her history of eating disorders including anorexia. She appears to be the poster child for recovery.
Of course men can and do suffer from body image problems, yet it seems that females either outnumber men in the realm of eating disorders and body image issues, or speak out about it more.
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| Ballet dancer Jenifer Ringer: Does this woman look fat to you? |
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| Al talks of Jenifer's 'arms flapping.' Huh? |
Image: Exploredance.com
If you have 7 minutes, check out her interview on NBC from this morning. Jenifer is one classy woman.
Derek and I do not have kids about which to worry regarding the development of body image problems (or anything else for that matter) but I have friends who do. Allie of Pimp my Protein Shake wrote one of the most poignant posts about it. And Charlotte writes brilliant posts about body image issues all the time.
The upside to all this is is that I had fun while googling "photo hippo in a tutu".
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| Does Al look at Jenifer and see this? Perhaps he needs is prescription checked. |
Photo Source Gamespot
I also got a great idea for next year's Halloween costume for our Samantha and Ellie:
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Don't worry, you can still get in on the fun if you have dogs:
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I also found other fun stuff:
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And for my next birthday? Here's the cake I want:
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Q: What's your take on this 'fat' ballerina topic? Do people have the right to be upset? Or is it a 'storm-in-a-teacup?'
Edited to Add: Jenn over at Girl Heroes posted on the same topic- for further discussion on the topic, click here.
Don't worry, you can still get in on the fun if you have dogs:
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| Does my butt look big in this? |
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I also found other fun stuff:
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| Could this be Al? I doubt it, but I'll pretend that it is. |
And for my next birthday? Here's the cake I want:
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| Happy Birthday, but you had better not eat too much cake or you may start to look like one of those fat ballerinas |
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Q: What's your take on this 'fat' ballerina topic? Do people have the right to be upset? Or is it a 'storm-in-a-teacup?'
Edited to Add: Jenn over at Girl Heroes posted on the same topic- for further discussion on the topic, click here.
35 comments:
That's pretty messed up. I'm just gonna say that Mr. Al here is just bitter because very few people actually care about his opinion, especially since here he is clearly wrong--the woman might be bigger than the average ballet dancer (which isn't saying much), but she's clearly fit and in good shape for dancing. Saying she's 'plump' even would be an EXTREME overstatement at best, but in truth is just entirely false.
Also, yes, it is more offensive to call a female 'fat' than to call a man fat, but this is really a societal issue because while 'fat' is usually put as the opposite of 'skinny AND beautiful', there isn't really a 'beauty' related qualifier to describe 'fat' or 'skinny' men. (How is he not surprised by this? Has he never interacted with women before?)
Also I want that cake.
I'm so glad you posted this! I really like the dancer's comment that the show is about seeing talented dancers with the beautiful music, not about watching people try to reach some unreachable state of perfection. Bravo! :)
She is such a classy women!! And beautiful and in insanely good shape!! I loved how she feels the ballet should be a celebration of all women and the beauty of everyone's own figure. Life is about being yourself and claiming your own beauty!! It would be so boring if we were all the same!
LOVED the pictures ... gave me such a good laugh.
Jennifer is gorgeous and I would never imagine the words fat and her name in the sentence! That being said, I think that Al kind of has a point about men being called "fat" more freely than women. But really, one could make an argument like that about anything!
I'm sure Al knows he stuck his foot in his mouth and with a name like Alistair I don't think that apologizing comes too easily for him, hence his half-ass excuse.
I have no idea how I'm going to approach this whole subject with Maya. Luckily I've never suffered from an eating disorder and all I can do is raise her the way I was raised and hope that she is safe from it as well.
Rosa- yes, I guess that Al has met a woman or two in his life. Perhaps he just doesn't care about societal issues between men, women and perceived beauty. And your cake comment made me LOL
Carrie and Debbie B- thank you for commenting! I believe you've de-lurked?
Ameena- I know...without sounding ageist (which I'm totally NOT) Alistair sounds like a 104-year old British man. You'll do great with Maya :-)
How appalling!
Jenifer is obviously talented and extremely fit.
Perhaps, Al isn't a fan of ballet?
I am amazed that her incredible dancing skill(and the rest of the cast) wasn't enough to take his mind off of something as absurd as to whether she had eaten too many "sugar plums".
I wonder if Al finds any joy in movies....or if he find them frustrating to watch due to his inability to shift his focus from actresses saggy arms back to the plot?
geeze, what are they defining as overweight for ballerinas? More than 100lbs? She looks dang good to me. Critics are cowders sometimes.
On another note, I love the tutu look for the cat. Maybe you can make it a christmas theme?! hehe.
LC
Tart (I can call you Tart, can't I?) THank you for your insightful comment- another new 'face'! If Jenifer has saggy arms, then I am a Pterodactyl. Nuff said.
Lindsay: A Christmas tutu- I like it!
CLEARLY Al has his damn head in the sand. I'd like to see what he looks like in a tutu..come to think of it i probably wouldn't want to see that...
Methinks Al is trying to deflect the anger being (rightfully) hurled in his direction with his comments about the male dancer and the "unfairness" of the reaction to his review.
Sorry Al; dance isn't about how fat/skinny the performers are. It is a form of human expression. If you REALLY don't get that, then, boy are YOU in the wrong career!
This is so infuriating. My theory (and I have excellent examples) is that sexism runs much deeper than all other bigotry put together. Makes racism look like a blip.
What an ignorant fool.
But I love that you can start with a controversy and end with a dog in a hippo costume.
As if ballet dancers don't have enough pressure to be thin! I think even 90-pound ballet dancers consider themselves fat. I don't think they need a NYT writer to fuel the fire. To top all of that off, she's a skinny minny!
I didnt watch the videos (sleeping kid, dont wanna turn sound on) but the bottom line is that our society expects certain professions, i.e. models, ballerinas, and others, to look a certain way. The minute they deviate from this very narrow standard, there is name calling.
Now, this isn't right, but it is just the way it is.
She looks great, but of course, no matter what we, i.e. the peanut gallery, have to say, falls on deaf ears. Sigh.
Julie. Al in a tutu. Wonder if his arms will flap?
Azusa "It is a form of human expression." love that.
Tracey- I know- that's my beef. There's no truth to it. Thank GOODNESS that she's not anorexic anymore- she's normal. Even slim-normal.
Averie- if you get the time, check out the video (only one). I agree that it is a societal issue- Al is just the messenger. And an unsympathetic one at that.
I thought her segment on the Today show was so inspiring and classy! It seems like she really has a good sense of self now which is good considering there are trolls even in the art world apparently. (Or especially in the art world?)
How funny...not Al's comments...but I wrote about the same topic this evening and then scrolling through reader came across this! Great minds think alike even if I took a bit of different approach. Yeah...his comments were pretty insensitive and I thought it was interesting that the one directed at the male didn't cause half the fuss.
Love the funny pictures!
WoW!! I loved this post. Are perception of what is healthy and normal is really messed up!!
Charlotte- you are right.
Jenn- I linked ya- :-)
Hungry- thanks. And yes, messed up is a good term for it :-)
AMAZING POST! and jennifer is lovely. and that critic is a dUMBASS
and she is lovely and beautiful and far from fat. in fact i would be happy if i looked like that! gosh. her arms are not flabby! <3 thanks deb this is great!
Hmmm...I have lots of thoughts on this so apologies for blathering!
I read the article in question and I am not sure if Al was referring to Ringer's dancing or her actual body. Did she look like she was dancing heavily?
His lack of comments regarding the actual dancing and performance leaves me a little leery of how much he knows about dancing.
As a former professional ballet dancer I find reviews that discuss body shapes to be an insult to the amazing talent, hard work, athleticism and artistry that goes into a quality performance.
I doubt that Ringer would be a NYCB member let alone a principal if she didn't have all of the above.
Why didn't Al say anything about the actually dancing or performance or artistry or athleticism? Would he have commented about her if she looked emaciated? What does her body type have to do with her dancing anyway?
I danced with all sizes and shapes in a reputable company and each and every dancer was amazing in his/her own way. That's how we were cast in roles...certain dancers fit the part better than others...just like actors, athletes, etc.
I find this whole uproar offensive and it does such a disservice to the amazing world of dance. Don't even get me started on the cliches in "The Black Swan" movie.
Dancers are incredible athletes, artists, musicians and actors all rolled into one. I have never seen Ringer perform but no dancer can get to the level that she has achieved without being a "kick butt" dancer.
Okay enough with this....I'm off giggle at the hippo costumes and enjoy a Franken food-filled smoothie (:
Maybe it's the journalist in me, but the New York Times should take some flack for this too. By no means should they be censoring their columnists, but I really hope someone on the editorial asked Al if he thought he was maybe crossing the line. Some of these arts/sports feel like they are so antiquated by ignoring the problems within them. The weight obsession in ballet is the perfect example, and unfortunately not the only one. Sounds like an old man who is horribly out of touch to me.
that's horrifying! This woman is lovely, and her comments were so wonderful- I'm sure I would've reacted MUCH differently!
Sigrid- I thought of you as a ballerina so much when I saw this. Glad you liked the post.
McIntosh- thank you soo much for your fabulous perspective, especially as a former professional ballet dancer yourself! I, too asked all of those questions you did. I'm dying to see Black Swan but I know that it will definitely be causing more uproars.
Susan- The times printed the original piece and then his rebuttal. That pesky freedom of speech. He's a veteran theater critic, but I have no idea if his specialty is dance- somehow I doubt it.
Allie- How classy was she really? Didn't even want an apology. So gracious. More than I would be as well. OR if I was gracious, it would be hard, hard work!
I commented on Jenn's post and I heard about this on NPR too. Of course it sucks. I think this goes the same for the modeling industry. I used to be an intern in a fashion house and some of the models were like six feet tall and thirteen! thirteen! and then older women see them on the runway and think they need to look like those prepubescent girls. They should just start doing the "calorie free-nut cracker", you know to cut the BS.
That is so frustrating. Jennifer is in beautiful shape and she dances wonderfully! And as a person who took ballet almost the whole time (a year break in there somewhere) since I was 11 years old to 20, I really hate that so much focus can be put on your body SIZE rather than what your amazing body can DO!
I was extremely lucky to have an absolutely wonderful ballet teacher in high school whose focus was on DANCING rather than size, even made it a point to not put focus on that. I'm sad to say that one of the reasons I stopped was because I felt the body size focus was creating too much stress for me during an already hard time of appreciating my body, and started taking a toll on my LOVE of dancing. =( However, even now I'll hear some classical piece of music come on and I just start spontaneously dancing my heart out in the living room or kitchen and I feel this overwhelming sense of joy as I feel my body express the beautiful music. =)
So for any of you thinking of taking ballet or letting your children take it, just make sure you find the right teacher who knows what matters, they make a world of difference. If I could go back to my old teacher, I would in a heartbeat and grand jete.
Eden- ha calorie-free nutcracker. They'd just faint all over the place.
Happy- I love your comment and so valid about finding the right teacher. Sad that you had to give up something you loved because of the pressure. Love the visual of you spontaneously breaking into dance b/c it's what you love.
This guy needs a slap in the head. If the dancer did her job well (as in, dancing!), then why that unnecessary remark? Was that REALLY necessary? As a journalist myself, I know how tight each article can be, and that was many words wasted right there. I get that he's a critic, but he should be critiquing the performance, not the poor woman's weight for god's sake. Also, what makes it worse is that she has a history of ED...which makes this seriously insensitive and cruel. Plus, she's not even remotely fat!
Way to go, Al, you just proved yourself to be a big asshole.
p.s. Sorry, clearly, I'm one of the people who are really upset.
Thanks for sharing this story, Deb! Wow, what a classy girl, and truly beautiful. Can't wait to see Black Swan. I can't believe little Natalie Portman lost 20 lbs for the movie! Did they cut off a limb?! C'mon!
Sophia- I love your comment! You did not mince your words!
Lara- I've now heard more things about Black Swan and I'm kinda afraid to see it!
Ballet critics and the whole ballet scene is horrendous on the female body image. Having grown up in the SF Opera House (which also is home to the Ballet), I know that what he said is nothing new, sadly.
Ballet is like runway modeling, although a gazillion times harder since not only do they live on cigarettes and dieting, they're expected to perform daily marathons with bleeding toes. Gay male critics are harsh on the the female figure. Go figure...
OMG that pisses me off. She is NOT fat and I for one am glad to see a ballet dancer who looks healthy!
As a former ballerina I need to put in a good word for the ballet world. It is an amazing art form and discipline encompassing the athleticism, musicality, visual arts,acting and more. During my ballet company days I was at my healthiest, strongest and happiest. I had to "retire" early and because of the loss I lapsed into anorexia and depression.
I may have been lucky but in all my years of training and performing with a full-fledged company I was surrounded by extraordinarily talented, healthy and in-shape dancers as well as supportive teachers and directors.
There were dancers that had different body types but we all had one thing in common...the strength and stamina to excel or even to just execute the technique properly. I am naturally small and lithe but I also was determined to excel and be promoted within the company. We were also only given yearly contracts so we had to be able to perform and endure if we wanted it to be renewed. Trust me....TRUE professional ballet dancers do eat plenty and very well but we need it to fuel our daily rigorous schedule. It's a classic 'supply and demand' example. Post-performance and post-rehearsal meals were always spectacular and much anticipated (:
Yes, aesthetically a certain body type is preferred not only for the "look" but also for proper execution and partnering ease but dancer's who were too weak to partner, execute the steps or lacked the stamina to rehearse for hours would not get the parts, lose contracts and often advised to get nutritional/medical help.
Ultimately, dancers learn quickly that if they love their profession or hobby or whatever level they desire and want to progress they MUST stay strong and healthy.
Yes, there are still teachers, companies, schools out there that promote unhealthy extremes but people are more aware now and word quickly spreads about which schools/companies/etc to avoid.
Al's comments were completely inappropriate and reflect his inadequacy as a critic but look how quickly word spread about his ridiculous, incorrect, unprofessional review.
It is a true injustice to the amazing world of ballet to focus only on body type but this is clearly changing and the true professionals, athletes and artists have always known and respected what REALLY counts.
Again, sorry for the blathering...Deb you just picked a topic that is close to my heart!!!
Love, love, love your blog (: By the way, I am pretty good about keeping things light too so I hope to comment on future topics!
Ugh...just wrote a practical thesis defending ballet and trying to uproot some of the stereotypes and it was lost in cyberspace when I tried to post. Apparently, too large....go figure!
Anyway, in a nutshell, TRUE ballet dancers know that in order to perform and progress strength and health are what is respected and admired and promoted over body type/shape. Yes, a certain aesthetic look completes the package but throughout my ballet career in order for me to be the athlete AND artist I was expected/promoted/praised/rewarded for my technique and ability much more than my body.
I was lucky to naturally have the lithe body type but much of that was through the daily training and proper conditioning. Weak and unhealthy dancers can only get so far and don't last long in the ballet world.
In fact due to having to "retire" early I lapsed into anorexia and depression feeling no need to stay strong and healthy anymore. I am better these days but I still feel that I was at my healthiest and happiest during my dancing days.
People are more aware these days (look how quickly Al was denounced for his really inane review) and word spreads quickly about which schools/companies to avoid.
Okay...done blathering...Deb, I LOVE your blog and I promise to show my "lighter" side in comments on future blogs (: This one just hits close to my heart!
McIntosh- Sorry for the Blogger blunder of not publishing-then-publishing your great comment. And guess what, you got the joy of doing it all over again! I am SOOo happy to hear that you had a great experience while dancing and that many instructors/schools/companies promote a healthy approach to fueling those bodies that work so dang hard. I'm sorry that you lapsed into an ED after you had to retire, but I'm glad that you're better now. THank you so much for your thoughtful insight!
Erika- I agree- she is NOT fat and she definitely looks healthy.
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