Dance Magazine: “Nonbinary” is a vast container of a term. Defined by what it is not, it holds anyone whose gender identity is not validated by the binary of either male or female, whether aligned by birth (cisgender) or by transition (transgender). In between these two poles is a sprawling array of labels for individuals whose sense of gender is inherently opposed to labeling. As dancer Maxfield Haynes puts it, “People think being nonbinary is like this third gender, but it’s anything but. My nonbinary identity is an outright rejection of the concept of gender as a whole.”
4 comments:
This article was such an important read and also very personal to me. The casting of queer, trans and nonbinary performers is something that people just still don’t get. Marketability is such an intense part of acting and dance. If you don’t look a certain way or fit a certain category then you simply won’t get cast in anything. There is a designated “look” and queer people don’t fit into those standards.The problem is that non-binary people don’t often fit into what cis- people think is presentable and digestible for an audience. Growing up being trained in classic ballet I intrinsically understand this pressure to be and look a certain way. The institution of dance and ballet specifically, is inherently built on fatphobia, transphobia and sexism. It has become so inseparable from the art of ballet and is extremely frustrating. I think what these dancers are doing is such important work, to see non-binary people pulling from their roots in dance to make it more inclusive.
Gender is a social construct. A very pathetic consutrct if you ask me. The idea of classifying people based on an arbitral binary is pointless. Especially when concepts relating to identity are unarguably a spectrum. Reading about nonbinary dancers forging their own paths through the industry is enlighting. It makes me think of the newest Fate on Hadestown Broadway. Just the other day (March 13th, 2022) Tomás Matos debuted in this critically acclaimed big apple production. In an interview, they spoke about their process of getting cast and breaking into the industry. Just like the dancers in the article, they struggled with institutional ties to gender. As castings, fitting rooms, etc, are often organized in male/female their identity was constantly questioned– if not by others by themselves. I don’t know. It’s comforting to hear there is still a light at the end of the road and nonbinary cast members are carving a way into the industry.
It was really illuminating to learn different philosophies/styles of dance and how nonbinary dancers are forging new paths within existing disciplines as well as creating entirely new styles. Especially in dance I’ve noticed unnecessary gendering; for example, men not going on pointe in ballet. Nonbinary dancers operate within an undefined framework, so they are a great position to usher in a revolution where dancers are not limited by their gender in their craft. I loved Andreas’s quote about the physicality of rock stars and how it influences their drag persona; it reminded me of some of my favorite choreography, Rum Tum Tugger’s in Cats (the filmed version). It’s universally sexy, androgynous, a little scary but exciting. I would love to see a production of Cats where all the cats are portrayed by nonbinary dancers, I think it could add a new layer of meaning and alter the audience’s perception of the storyline.
The dance world has never been something I’ve entered or been involved with much, but just enough to know the grasp that sexism, transphobia, and strong binary gender roles has on the art. This article was inspiring to me: reading about person after person who has been working on their art and breaking from the rigid and very gender binary structure of dance. The entire construct and concept of gender has been something I’ve needed to explore now more and more, including looking at my own gender identity. I have begun to think about it in the context of physical art forms, but not to the depths this article goes to. Hopefully, I can find some local dance performances and performers to see and support, I could love to see more nonbinary dancer’s work. The beauty in this article, the space that each individual has worked so hard to make outside of the binary gender construct, is all so, so inspiring to me.
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