Busting Stereotypes (and Moves) With #BoysDanceToo
After a GMA host caused controversy when she mocked Prince George's ballet classes, hundreds of dancers showed up to support the community. Dancer Alex Wong spoke to Brut about breaking stereotypes about boys and dance. đź•ş
Male dancers rally around Prince George
Alex Wong was one of the 300 dancers who met for a ballet class in Times Square after a host made a snide comment about Prince George taking ballet. Lara Spencer outlined Prince George's curriculum on Good Morning America. “Religious studies, computer programming, poetry, and ballet, among other things. Prince William says George absolutely loves ballet. I have news for you Prince William, we’ll see how long that lasts.” Prince William has previously spoken of his son George's 'love' for dance, which he has found since enrolling in lessons, which evidently has touched him given his mother Princess Diana's love for dance, too.
To show how inaccurate that statement is, dancers, including the cast of Cher the broadway musical, assembled outside GMA's studios in New York City's Times Square that Monday for a live morning ballet recital. One of the many male dancers to join the demonstration, Alex Wong, posted a clip of the routine on Instagram, claiming 300 dancers had shown up.
Celebs and dancers weighed in to call out the remarks and share their message of support for #BoysDanceToo. Spencer did later apologize, saying she “screwed up.”
Wong, who studied ballet since 10-years-old, became a contestant on “So You Think You Can Dance?” and principal soloist with the Miami City Ballet. Wong shared what he would have told his younger self. “There's an entire dance world out, there there's an entire art world out there that appreciates dance and appreciates what you do and it's just like train hard and like get out of there and just like live your life it's going to be amazing.” A clip of the anchor in conversation with high-profile male dancers then aired, showing Spencer listening as they each shared prejudice and negative stereotyping they had encountered growing up dancing. 'It has been a true education for me,' Spencer said.
Brut.
Male dancers rally around Prince George
Alex Wong was one of the 300 dancers who met for a ballet class in Times Square after a host made a snide comment about Prince George taking ballet. Lara Spencer outlined Prince George's curriculum on Good Morning America. “Religious studies, computer programming, poetry, and ballet, among other things. Prince William says George absolutely loves ballet. I have news for you Prince William, we’ll see how long that lasts.” Prince William has previously spoken of his son George's 'love' for dance, which he has found since enrolling in lessons, which evidently has touched him given his mother Princess Diana's love for dance, too.
To show how inaccurate that statement is, dancers, including the cast of Cher the broadway musical, assembled outside GMA's studios in New York City's Times Square that Monday for a live morning ballet recital. One of the many male dancers to join the demonstration, Alex Wong, posted a clip of the routine on Instagram, claiming 300 dancers had shown up.
Celebs and dancers weighed in to call out the remarks and share their message of support for #BoysDanceToo. Spencer did later apologize, saying she “screwed up.”
Wong, who studied ballet since 10-years-old, became a contestant on “So You Think You Can Dance?” and principal soloist with the Miami City Ballet. Wong shared what he would have told his younger self. “There's an entire dance world out, there there's an entire art world out there that appreciates dance and appreciates what you do and it's just like train hard and like get out of there and just like live your life it's going to be amazing.” A clip of the anchor in conversation with high-profile male dancers then aired, showing Spencer listening as they each shared prejudice and negative stereotyping they had encountered growing up dancing. 'It has been a true education for me,' Spencer said.
Brut.