From Harming to Healing: Multifaceted Perspectives on Ballet

Abstract

(Re:)Claiming Ballet, an anthology edited by Adesola Akinleye, an assistant professor at Texas Women’s University, offers seventeen chapters divided into four sections—Histories, Knowledges, Resiliences, and Consciousnesses— plus two forwards, one by Katy Pyle and the other by Virginia Johnson. The moments of overlap and conversation between authors make this collection a terrific resource. The anthology demonstrates the vital work being done to dismantle inequities in ballet while implicitly pointing to ongoing issues that need reform. Ballet, as a technique and art form, has privileged illusions of effortless grace that can mask tremendous pain, strain, and oppression, empowering an entitled few to make decisions that deleteriously impact the many. The need for greater transparency and recognition of biases exists in studios, programming, funding, cultural policy, historical research, and criticism. This collection explores all of these topics, and Akinleye’s curation enables readers to draw their own conclusions about what constitute “progressive,” “traumatic,” and “somatic” approaches to ballet. The variety in writing styles contributes to the book’s aspiration of amplifying different views. Methodologies range from autoethnography— used in the fantastic chapter by dancer and teacher Theara J. Ward—to archival research—seen in a terrific chapter by scholar Sandie Bourne that examines (mis)representation of communities of color in ballet productions. The volume’s authors range from educators and consultants to school directors and administrators; nine are white, eleven are Black. All identify as female, except one. I include these demographics because I think they reflect where the labor and investment to “reclaim” ballet is situated. A compelling chapter by Akinleye and scholar/practitioner Tia-Monique Uzor illuminates the perspectives of Black British ballet dancers. Interviewees describe “the particular trauma that has been felt in being able to see the whole dance field but not necessarily being able to be seen within it” (p. 267). Dancer Christopher Hurley poignantly reflects on the