It doesn't explain why you NEVER see students at these things. I used to get student tickets for dirt cheap (and to my knowledge, student tickets are still a thing). Meanwhile people don't mind shelling out hundreds to see Taylor Swift or major sports games and even travel to do so. I don't think it's just a money thing. |
| Doesn’t matter. He already won “White Boy of the year award” which is the highest honor. Look up his acceptance speech |
She was not a former ballerina at NYCB. Yes, she danced there, but as a child, and probably as a soldier or rat in their annual Nutcracker performance. |
That was the point he was trying to make. Opera and ballet are dying art forms because young people aren’t all that interested in going. He doesn’t want movies to end up that way which is why he tries to bring young audiences to movie theaters. |
Sure but then people say "oh, it's just too expensive." Like, please. People want to be somewhere on their phones. |
It was his grandmother Enid who danced with NYCB. His mom and sister studied at SAB and yes performed as children at NYCB. His mom also performed elsewhere in NY as a dancer and became a ballet instructor. |
The exact quote: "I don't want to be working in ballet, or opera, or things where it's like, 'Hey, keep this thing alive, even though like no one cares about this any more.'" I think people mainly responded to "even though like no one cares about this any more" because it implies HE doesn't care about them. People in the ballet and opera worlds did in fact take that personally, in part because Chalamet has close ties to the ballet community in NY, so this felt like a dismissal or put down whether he meant it that way or not. I think if he didn't have this background and connection to the ballet/opera worlds, people would not have gotten as mad. The point is that people generally see the Chalamet family as an ally to these art forms which, yes, of course struggle to continue to find an audience. It's a comment you expect from someone totally ignorant of those art forms, not someone who grew up with close connections to those communities. |
I agree with all of this. I’d add that I had more of an issue with the rest of his comment: “I just lost 14 cents in viewership. I just took shots for no reason.” First, as someone who does “care about” ballet, some forms of opera, and arts and arts education in general, the dismissiveness of his comments took me aback — especially given his background, which included an arts education and subsidized housing. Lots of people cared enough about things like ballet and opera, to the point where they/we helped pay for Chalamet’s very specialized education and housing. Had he gone on to say something about the positive value of these art forms, his comments likely would have been quickly forgotten. Instead, he acknowledged his own mean spiritedness — taking shots for no reason — and belittled audiences and supporters of art forms he himself doesn’t have the skills to pursue. I shifted from vaguely thinking of him as “that young man in Little Women” to seeing him as arrogant, ungrateful for many of the opportunities that he has had access to throughout his life, and mean spirited. It might only be 14 cents, but when I spend it intentionally, I’ll happily use it towards a Ryan Coogler production, ballet tickets, or a jazz performance. Chalamet doesn’t need or appreciate my 14 cents, and the feeling is now mutual. |
Totally agree. It came off as simultaneously punching down and totally ungrateful for is own opportunities. And honestly while I don't think it lost him the Oscar this year, I do think it will contribute to the perception of him as being arrogant and thoughtless, which will not endear him to an industry full of older people who care deeply about the arts, plural and in general. The Academy skews older and lots of voters view it as part of their duty and legacy to support not only film but also theater and older art forms like ballet and opera. Many sit on the boards at major ballet and opera companies and raise money for these organizations as part of giving back. It might only be worth 14 cents from the broader population, but it's actually worth a lot more than that within his own community. |
I guess I wonder why these older people aren’t doing a better job of attracting a new generation to ballet, opera, and even the movies. They have all this power and money— what are they doing with them? While Chalamet made his comments in a stupid way, these old people deserve to be called out. |
It's on the parents, too. Young people don't even really enjoy film anymore. You should read that Atlantic article: "The Film Students Who Can No Longer Sit Through Films." Professors mention that "the longer they [students] go without checking their phone, the more they fidget." And these are FILM MAJORS. Can you imagine how this generation would behave during an opera? |
Nobody cares about cancellations anymore. He was right that his fans won’t care about any of this. The people getting worked up never liked him and they aren’t opera or ballet fans either. Just faux outrage over nothing, as usual. |
Can you scroll and watch videos on your phone while at the opera and ballet in your pajamas? Because that’s what people want. |
| I think because he is dating Kylie Jenner (the queen of publicity.) |
This. There should be fancy popular awards fir opera and ballet. but not only is the work difficult to execute, but like the bedt art, it’s not always easy on the audience. |