The Paris Opera could formally ban blackface in its performances after almost a quarter of its staff signed an open letter against racism.
The manifesto, backed by about 400 staff members, also called for a ban on the N-word in operas and ballets. It also said dancers’ pointe shoes and tights should match their skin colour – a practice that is already common in ballet companies elsewhere. Staff also called for an end to “the silence that surrounds” racism.
In response the Opera’s new director, Alexander Neef, has asked outside experts to examine these and other race-related issues at the ballet company. The report, by ombudswoman Constance Rivière and historian Pap Ndiaye, will be delivered in December. Neef praised the “courage” of staff for speaking out, and for their “very thoughtful” criticisms. He told AFP news agency that he was thinking about examining race at the company “even before they approached me”. “We want to create a culture internally so that people come forward to talk about serious issues, so they know they will be heard and taken seriously,” he said.
‘Insidious racism’
Inequality and discrimination at the ballet have been in the spotlight since choreographer Benjamin Millepied, known for his work on the film Black Swan, was briefly director.
After joining the company in 2015, Millepied denounced “insidious racism” at the ballet, and said he was told that “one does not put a person of colour in the corps de ballet because they would be a distraction”. He pledged to “get rid of this racist idea”, and while in charge he made changes to some traditional performances.
For example he renamed “la danse des negrillons” – which means “the dance of the little negroes” – in the orientalist ballet La Bayadère to “the dance of the children”, and forbade dancers from blacking up when performing it. However, he resigned after just a year in the role.
Blackface has been abandoned by most major ballet companies. However, it is still used by the Bolshoi and Mariinsky ballets in Russia. Misty Copeland, a black American dancer, criticised the Bolshoi’s use of blackface last year. In response, the company called her complaint “absurd”.
bbc.com
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