Hi All.
I'm back. I haven't written anything in quite a while, but do have something new coming your way soon. I had written an open letter a while back, in response to some of the backlash to the TTC's, We Move You Campaign, featuriting artists of The National Ballet of Canada. I was asked to re post this last night, so decided to post it on my blog. I had received both positive and negative feedback, but am happy to say, that the positive far outweighed the negative. So...here it is.

An Open Letter to Jill Andrew and Body Confidence Canada

Dear Jill Andrew, my name is Stephen Findlay and I am a part of the Toronto theatre / dance community. It is a community I’m very proud to be a part of for many reasons. It is a hugely talented community that is diverse, inclusive, creative, and exciting.  In reading your response online regarding the TTC “We Move You” campaign, featuring five of the dancers of the National Ballet of Canada, I couldn’t help but feel both surprised and saddened, by your response to the efforts of both the TTC and The National Ballet of Canada, to promote both the arts and transit, in this great city.

By no means is this letter meant to undermine your cause or what you may have experienced personally. I think anyone who fat shames anybody is extremely ill informed, and unkind. I personally do not subscribe to this kind of behaviour, nor would I defend anybody who does. I myself am a member of the LGBTQ community, so I do know what it’s like to feel marginalized. I have never experienced racism, nor have I experienced fat shaming, but believe me when I tell you, I’ve experienced much prejudice, as well as bullying growing up, because of who I was, and because I studied dancing.

In reading your response, as well as watching news clips online, I felt the need to put to rest some misconceptions the general public may have about ballet dancers. One of which, that dancers are skinny. Dancers are in fact, lean, muscular athletes, who train very hard, from a very young age to do what they are able to do, and look the way they look. Believe me when I tell you, it is not about being skinny. The physical demands of a dancer are so very great, that very few are actually suitable for a career as a classical dancer. Some of the criteria includes natural turn out from the hip, feet and ankles that are supple, so that they may stretch beautifully. There needs to be a certain amount of natural flexibility present, short to medium length torso, long legs, and on, and on, and on.  It’s a long check list, that very few fulfill.  For the most part, serious training usually starts around the age of ten, and continues throughout their careers. Once a dancer is employed by a company, their average work week is six days a week, eight hours a day, with their day usually beginning with company class. So yes, a dancer may not be your everyday, average body type, but the dancers in question have trained many years to achieve what they have achieved both physically, and artistically, and I am not alone when I say I think they’re worth celebrating.

(One does wonder if we’d be having this conversation if this was a campaign featuring our countries Olympic Athletes, or one of our sports teams such as the Raptors or Blue Jays, all of whom are highly skilled athletes, whose bodies are also muscular and athletic.)

I also feel the need to point out, that we live in a country that needs to celebrate its artists more than we do. To be an artist in Canada presents so many challenges, that to not support campaigns such as this, I find, to be very disheartening. The National Ballet of Canada, founded in 1951, is one of the most revered ballet companies in the world. Their dancers are second to none, and are highly regarded on a world-wide scale. I would go as far to say that The National Ballet of Canada, is a shining jewel of the Canadian dance world. To not support them and their dancers, seems almost philistine.

We live in a time where we need to educate our audience in not only dance, but in all of the arts. Art is important on so many levels, and is an important part of what makes Toronto a world class city. I’d go even further and say that Canadian artists are an important part of our cultural identity, and it is high time that we all stand up and recognize that. I, for one, applaud the TTC for featuring these wonderful artists in their “We Move You” campaign, and would love to see more campaigns like this, featuring artists from many different mediums, irrespective of size, race, religion, or sexual orientation. Artists in Canada, need our support, not our disdain. After all, this is just one campaign. As pointed out by Stuart Green from the TTC, they’ve partnered with many diverse groups in past campaigns, and hopefully will continue to do so.

I’d be remiss not to mention, that talent and body size aside, dancers are still just everyday people, who experience everyday challenges, like everyone else. I’m sure your response to their participation in this campaign, hurt them deeply. Not to mention, the wonderful photographer who took these beautiful photos. Artists invest so much of themselves in what they do, that to be regarded in this manner, although not intentional, would make them feel undervalued as not only artists, but as everyday people. Yes, everyday people, who like myself, take the TTC.

Sincerely

Stephen Findlay-

So there you have it. When I first wrote this, I realized, that although backlash like this is not new, it occured to me that we as a society, have become so offended at so many things. Some things are extremely justified, and deserve our disdain, and some, although they may come from a good place, seem often misguided. Some of the things that offend me are poverty, animal abuse, homophobia, racism, it's quite a lengthy list. But when it comes to the arts and the artists, who bring so much joy to so many, I have nothing but admiration and respect for all that you are. So please keep creating. You do make a difference.

Happy Holidays Everyone. Go out and see a ballet, listen to a concert, or go support support a small storefront theatre. I'm quite certain you'll be glad you did. I've done a lot of this, this past little while, and I'm all the better for it. I truly believe that when you contribute to the arts, you are in fact contributing to humanity.

Sincerely Stephen Scott Findlay-AKA -The Oldest Male Chorus Dancer in Toronto