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From Zoe Henrot: "Three Words: Long. Lean. Beautiful. Growing up in a ballet school, these were the three words I used to describe the physique of a professional ballerina. While standing at the barre in ballet class everyday I would make a checklist for myself as I observed my own body in the mirror: make thighs smaller, waist thinner, and legs longer. I thought that if these changes were made in my own body, then I would maybe have a chance at becoming a professional ballerina like the ones I saw in all of the movies and magazines. As I grew into my body and my dance career, I came to realize that my checklist was quite unattainable within my anatomy. At first I pushed away this realization, insisting that if I just changed this or that in my exercise routine that my body would become long, lean, and beautiful. I then began to understand that the ways in which my body deviated from the qualities I had prescribed to 'the ballerina' in fact made my dancing unique. My strong legs made my jumps powerful and my ability to move swiftly fluid. Furthermore, I began to notice different qualities in every ballerina. These differences are what make watching and performing dance infinitely interesting. If you asked me today what three words describe a ballerina, I would only be able to tell you one: beautiful."
Courtesy Caroline Yang
The St. Paul City Ballet has partnered with The Emily Project for National Eating Disorder Awareness Week with a social media and photography project, "Take Back the Tutu."
With each photo, the dancer writes about their own struggle with how they feel about their body.
They describe the project on Facebook this way: "To 'Take Back the Tutu' is to be empowered to take ownership of our art and throw away the idea that we have to look a certain way to wear the tutu. Our journeys are different and what we each chose to share is as unique as we are. Please enjoy our reflections; we hope they inspire you to take back your own tutu!"
Gallery
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The St. Paul City Ballet has partnered with The Emily Project for National Eating Disorder Awareness Week with a project called "Take Back the Tutu." They describe it on Facebook this way: "To 'Take Back the Tutu' is to be empowered to take ownership of our art and throw away the idea that we have to look a certain way to wear the tutu. Our journeys are different and what we each chose to share is as unique as we are. Please enjoy our reflections; we hope they inspire you to take back your own tutu!"
Courtesy Caroline Yang
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From Zoe Henrot: "Three Words: Long. Lean. Beautiful. Growing up in a ballet school, these were the three words I used to describe the physique of a professional ballerina. While standing at the barre in ballet class everyday I would make a checklist for myself as I observed my own body in the mirror: make thighs smaller, waist thinner, and legs longer. I thought that if these changes were made in my own body, then I would maybe have a chance at becoming a professional ballerina like the ones I saw in all of the movies and magazines. As I grew into my body and my dance career, I came to realize that my checklist was quite unattainable within my anatomy. At first I pushed away this realization, insisting that if I just changed this or that in my exercise routine that my body would become long, lean, and beautiful. I then began to understand that the ways in which my body deviated from the qualities I had prescribed to 'the ballerina' in fact made my dancing unique. My strong legs made my jumps powerful and my ability to move swiftly fluid. Furthermore, I began to notice different qualities in every ballerina. These differences are what make watching and performing dance infinitely interesting. If you asked me today what three words describe a ballerina, I would only be able to tell you one: beautiful."
Courtesy Caroline Yang
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From Amber Genetzky: "'Jolie laide' is a French term that translates to 'oddly beauty.' In her book, On Becoming Fearless...in Love, Work, and life, Arrianna Huffington explains the concept as, 'They (women who embody jolie laide) radiate a kind of magnetism that goes beyond their specific features.' And, 'A hint of imperfection enhances a woman's appearance and makes her more interesting to look at...in the end, she is more alluring, more captivating, than conventional beauty.' Realizing this truth has helped set me free and has given me peace. It is my soul radiating through that makes me beautiful and nothing else. I can exercise endlessly, eat in an unsatisfying manner, and be as physically 'perfect' as society wants me to be in an attempt to be accepted, but this is just a lie, a trick, to keep me from being the amazing being I'm meant to be. The power each of us possess scares that which suppresses us, so it tries everything it can to keep us from realizing it, but once we accept our inner beauty and worth we are free to be ourselves and allow passion to rule our lives instead of fear. That's where magic happens."
Courtesy Caroline Yang
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