Monday, September 29, 2008
Back to black: Phoenix Dance resurrects the race issue
guardian.co.uk: "Leeds dance company Phoenix has sacked its Venezuelan director for not producing sufficiently 'black' work. That is not the solution to inequality in the dance world"
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2 comments:
This is completely absurd to me. I love dance, it is my favorite form of theatrical production, but to say that this company is not "black enough" is ridiculous. A company may have a history of something, based on choreography, history of a choreographer, or past messages, but the art is always evolving. You may want to get a certain message across, but it doesn't have to be so rooted in portrayals of race that you exclude members from that art form.
Encouraging black dancers is very important and should be addressed in a studio that is specifically having problems with this. The idea that a studio is not "black enough" is just rediculous. It is being favoritive in a way and chosing one kind of dancer not based on skill but on other criteria. The desire to represent a well mixed studio is legitimate and a good thing but it should not be over done to this point. Where it is harming its message, not helping it.
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