Dancer Misty Copeland turns the sportswear company's new empowerment campaign into a huge viral hit

[Liberal_in_LA]

http://time.com/3083114/misty-copeland-under-armour-i-will-what-i-want/
Misty Copeland turns the sportswear company's new empowerment campaign into a huge viral hit

Warning - muscular legs

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[calimary]

1. DAYUM!

That woman is a work of art!

[Liberal_in_LA]

11. agreed

[tooeyeten]

2. Indomitable spirit

This is what happens when you don't allow your own inner voice to be drowned out by the spirit killers.

[AngryAmish]

3. Has anyone ever seen ballerinas' feet?

Those are some jacked up and abused appenges.

I met this woman once who went en pointe or on pointe or whatever before her bones hardened. She had a permanent bend in her feet about an inch above her tarsals. And she could hinge it.

[Katashi_itto]

4. Good lord shes awesome!

She is really beautiful!

[valerief]

5. Yecch. Dancing on point reminds of foot binding. If men won't do it, it can't be

good for you.

[Tree-Hugger]

12. Men do it

Ballet Trocodaro is a good example.

[Ms. Toad]

16. Done properly,

with proper training, continual practice, and properly fitting footwear, it is no worse for you than any other intense sport. Each sport has its characteristic injuries - bad instructors/coaches who don't ensure you are practicing in the way most likely to minimize injuries. Ballet is no exception. (I danced en pointe for about a year.)

[Tree-Hugger]

20. Pointe for many, many years here

I do not have the stereotypical dancer feet. Mine are quite lovely. They are not gnarly, broken, bunioned, disjointed, or deformed. I took extreme care of my feet. I had good instruction. I had well-fitting shoes (which were almost always just the very basic Capezio Contempora). I don't go up on pointe much anymore because ballet is no longer prominent in my life as a dancer. I still dance and 99% barefoot.

There is a big problem with girls starting too young with ill-fitting shoes and uneducated teachers. This is unfortunate as it increases the chances for foot injuries.

[JustAnotherGen]

31. Mine are fugly

I can't do it at all anymore do to an auto immune disease eating my spine - but I've danced on a lot of broken. When you get paid to do it - it's tape it and dance.

[Ms. Toad]

32. Yup.

My instructor was one of the less educated/responsible ones. I lucked out because I started dancing later than most, so by the time I was skilled enough for my first shoes, I was already the appropriate age from a bone formation perspective. And I was a very skilled dancer. My daughter - less skilled even with several more years of training than I had - had an instructor (a professional dancer for years before she started her own school) who was one of the best. There were girls/families who left her studio because she was so scrupulous about doing things right, because they were jealous of their friends from other studios dancing en pointe at younger ages.

There is a fair amount of pressure to start earlier and earlier - and too many teachers who either don't know better, or cave to the pressure. And, of course, that adds to the reputation of dancing, itself, rather than irresponsible instruction as being horrible on the feet.

[Lochloosa]

6. Memories. I dated a ballerina for a few years. The wear on their bodies is astounding

But there is something about a women that is that flexible. I was sooooo stupid.

[Liberal_in_LA]

10. every former dancer i know gets hip replacements in middle age

[Owl]

7. She's incredible!

[abelenkpe]

8. Whoever turned her away was a fool

How many have a similar story? Where they were told the were not fit to pursue their dream but did anyway?

[Tree-Hugger]

14. Ballet is peppered with these stories

There was a British show in recent years called "Big Ballet" in which overweight folks where given the chance to train for a show.

[Liberal_in_LA]

15. thx for the heads up. found an episode on youtube

Attended a performance by non traditional body ballet dancers years ago.

[SleeplessinSoCal]

9. Those calves don't look like those of a ballerina

"Willing" a career doesn't always work. It takes a lot more than that.

This is what the typical ballerina has been at 13/14. Sylvie Guillem at 14, in class:

[Tree-Hugger]

13. That's the point

They told her that her body didn't look "right" for ballet and they turned her away. She rose up anyway. She is a ballerina and those are the calves of a ballerina.

Our current ballerina ideal comes from the ideas and .... Some claim....the perversions of George Balanchine. We have that, partly, to thank for the high rate of eating disorders among dancers.

[SleeplessinSoCal]

17. I think she's wonderful, but

Her body type - being so muscular - would't fit in the chorus. I posted the video to show how important looking exactly alike they begin at 13. Sylvie Guillem is the greatest prima ballerina of the past 25 years, her claim to fame is being independent, adventurous, versatile and has long legs that are flexible beyond belief.

Plus any excuse to share her work . . .


[link

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[Tree-Hugger]

18. I adore Sylvie

Last edited Sun Aug 31, 2014, 03:33 AM - Edit history (1)

I think we need to challenge what fits into the chorus or any other aspect of ballet. Sylvie is one type. Misty is another.

Misty, for the record, does not need to worry about fitting into the corps. She is a soloist for the American Ballet Theater. She is the second/third black soloist in the history of ABT. She's moved through racism, critique over her body, and her late start to lead in such a revered ballet company.

I applaud Misty and admire her....just as I have admired Sylvie....and hope she contains to break ground, paving the way for other ballerinas with athletic bodies, bulky calves, and late beginnings to achieve their artistic dreams. Dance evolves.

[SleeplessinSoCal]

25. I believe though when Misty first danced for those who said she wouldn't be a dancer

they were thinking chorus as well as soloist. There's virtually no way to know who will be a soloist at the age of 13. Sylvie may be the exception. I've been looking at all sorts of videos since first posting in this thread. I also found that Sylvie announced she is retiring at the end of 2015 at age 50. Pretty amazing. She'll finish in Japan, where she has danced to help raise money for Tsunami victims. She's also a strong environmentalist. That video I posted has a part two.

I also think there's been a tremendous change in the world of ballet over the past 20 years. It's become more of a hybrid (like opera) and not so classical. I'm very sad about that. I think we need the classics. And then if a dancer can also dance modern, do it; like Renee Fleming with pop music. I put Sylvie and Renee at the top of the fields of ballet & opera for the past 25 years.

I'll be watching for Misty. I hope she can stay healthy and continue to grow.

[betsuni]

21. This is her at 15

She has a great ballet body. Someone correct me if I'm wrong, but she had full scholarships from all major companies except NYCB as a teen. It was only later that she went through puberty and became "womanly" and had a problem. Same thing happened to me. I studied ballet and then had a growth spurt at 16 that left me tall and with boobs and no more Giselle.

[Tree-Hugger]

23. Correct

NYCB did not want her.

Very interesting life story. Inspiring . She's a stunning dancer.
http://nypost.com/2013/06/02/dancer-misty-copeland-has-broken-barriers-to-bring-ballet-center-stage/

[betsuni]

28. NYCB doesn't want outsiders -- it's a country club, isn't it?

So cold and snobby. On the other hand, beautiful dancers and tall isn't a problem like it is for almost every other non-Balanchine connected company. Being tall, I had no choice (except going to Europe) but try to get a job with a Balanchine company. The technique is so difficult on your body if you haven't been trained that way since youth, though. Like when Baryshnikov left ABT for NYCB and ruined his knees, after less than a year I could hardly walk because of tendinitis in the hips and Achilles tendons; I'd never had knee problems before but then did. And the politics of the company! I was used to a ballet company being a family. Anyway, I have a grudge against Balanchine companies but I do appreciate how strong and fast the dancers are.

[SleeplessinSoCal]

26. Very nice.

Thanks for posting.

[betsuni]

22. Interesting that both Sylvie and Misty started ballet at a late age.

I think Sylvie at 11 and Misty at around 13. And both of them so incredibly strong and fantastic dancers.

[ancianita]

19. Works for me. Great campaign theme. Now put her on top of the Wall St. bull...

[betsuni]

24. Has anyone else seen the documentary "Ballet, sweat and tears"?

Like a ballet horror movie. I happened to have watched it about half an hour before seeing Misty's commercial for the first time. Americans have better legs, but the Russians, hands down, win when it comes to the upper body and arms.

[SleeplessinSoCal]

27. The enemy!! Russian Television RT - Putin TV

[betsuni]

29. Yeah, I know ... but... um... culture?

The documentary is so critical I wonder if Pooty Poot does not care for dancing.

[SleeplessinSoCal]

30. It's propaganda machine. I cut him no slack.

He seems to hate women generally. Can't see him as a ballet fan.