Wednesday, March 19, 2008

why be mean?

Hey, I'm all for telling the truth in journalism and writing, but in terms of dance criticism, why must we point out silly flaws in particular people and announce it to the world in the very limited word space we have, in print OR even online?

This is twice now for Macaulay, just in the past few weeks:

"Neither in the arch of her feet nor in the line of her shoulders does she yet seem a prima ballerina..." What on EARTH is wrong with Sara Mearns' feet?!

"And her sleeveless attire...ungallantly draws attention to the muscular looseness under the upper arm that often becomes apparent after the age of 40 in even the most otherwise youthful female dancers..." Of all the things to say about Bolshoi ballerina Nina Ananiashvili, was that necessary?

I've had a few conversations lately about dance criticism, and I have to wonder if these kinds of personal attacks (for lack of a better word) serve a purpose? There are other ways to give a negative review besides making a dancer more uncomfortable than they already are forced to be about their body...

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

That comment about Nina's arms really bugged me. Completely unnecessary.