In late February, during an interview with Matthew McConaughey a part of the CNN & Variety Town Hall Event, Timothée Chalamet, a 30 year old actor gunning for an Oscar he failed to win for his new ping pong movie, said “And I don’t want to be working in ballet or opera, or things where it’s like, ‘Hey, keep this thing alive,’ Even though it’s like, no one cares about this anymore.”
After Chalamet’s appalling comment he quickly added, “All respect to the ballet and opera people out there,” and then remarked that the consequence for his words would likely be a small loss in profit from less viewership.
Within hours of the clip being released to the public, social media took off with it. Prominent ballets and opera companies around the world posted about their flourishing programs adding Chalamets sound bites over their videos. Even Misty Copeland, the first African American ballerina to be promoted to principle dancer at the American Ballet Theater in 2015 spoke out on the interview, saying, “I mean, he wouldn’t be an actor and have the opportunities he has as a movie star if it weren’t for opera and ballet and their relevance in that medium.”
But now, it’s been 50 days. And the internet has moved onto the next appalling thing that a celebrity with too large of a platform is saying. However, this comment has a larger ripple effect on the industry of performing arts, including not only ballet and opera, but Chalamet’s line of work in acting as well.
With the rise of AI, there has been a shift away from human made art, and every day it seems there’s a new robot of sorts to replace human creation. It started with AI images and video generation in the form of sloppy and jumbled animations of humans as dogs or fake security camera footage. Because of this, there has been a rise in generating logos, merchandise and promotional materials using AI. The instantaneous and relatively cheap (because you’re not paying an artist) ability to generate and edit one’s content has led to a decrease in supporting and paying actual artists’ for their work. AI music and entertainment is next on the chopping block. What may have started as harmless fun is expanding, learning and growing. It would be foolish to assume that performing arts are not at risk from this growth in AI. A robot may never get on stage and sing, but their presence could replace the need for live performing art.
Comments like Chalamet’s add indirectly to this growth in AI. Chalamet holds power and influence, and with it he chooses to diminish an entire sector of performing arts. One of the oldest and most foundational forms. Chalamet is setting his own house on fire, by blowtorching one room and hoping that shutting the door will block out the flames from all the other disciplines. If art forms like ballet and opera were to die out, musical theater and acting would be hit next.
Art is a place of community. It’s a place of safety and security. It’s a setting where you can be a part of something bigger than yourself, in any position, whether audience, actor or techie. It’s incredibly important that we support and protect these spaces and experiences for our fellow artists no matter their disciplines.
This brings me to my next issue with the Chalamet comment. The art forms he chose to call out are the only women dominated fields in the performing arts industry.
Theater has been a traditionally male dominated profession. Only 18% of Shakespeare’s roles are for women, out of a 39 play discography. In ancient Greece, theater was only performed and viewed by men, meaning even female roles were portrayed by men in costume. Currently, women and men equally make up the theater industry, but women are often forced into the same roles over and over again. The helpless wife, the scared princess, the damsel in distress. These typecasts not only keep women’s acting and creative freedom restrained but keep actresses stuck in the same cookie cutter shape, with an overwhelming pressure on women in theater to be the same body type, hair color, and skin color. That being predominantly skinny, white and blonde.
Men make up 70% of all theater technician jobs, orchestra conductors are overwhelmingly 85% male dominated. Ballet dancers are 80% female dominated but male choreographers and directors make up 80% of the field. Opera is the same, with 60% of singers being female while 95% of conductors are male.
These startling demographics add more meaning to Chalamet‘s comments. Ballet and opera, despite still being heavily influenced by male input and direction, is the only performing art subsection that is dominated by women. For these two to be specifically highlighted in Chalamet’s interview, puts women in these fields in even less power.
This era of society has brought on a feeling of helplessness. A feeling of being unable to change or stop the people in charge from harming the communities and people we care about most, but it’s important to keep moving forward, fighting for what you believe in and to support those around you. It takes a village. Keep dancing, go out for that new play, give directing a shot, start a new club. Bring art into your life and into your community. As Demetri Martin once said, “Earth without art is just ‘eh.’”
Below are links to performance centers in the area!
PRAx at Oregon State University
Corvallis High School Performing Arts Department
References
Dance Magazine. (n.d.). Women ballet choreographers. https://dancemagazine.com/women-ballet-choreographers/
Elle. (2026). Misty Copeland’s “Sinners” performance at the Oscars. https://www.elle.com/culture/music/a70744771/misty-copeland-sinners-performance-oscars-2026/
The Hollywood Reporter. (n.d.). Misty Copeland says Timothée Chalamet wouldn’t be an actor 100 years ago. https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-news/misty-copeland-timothee-chalamet-actor-opera-ballet-1236526725/
The New York Times. (2023, October 16). Gender imbalance at U.S. opera companies. https://www.nytimes.com/2023/10/16/arts/music/gender-imbalance-at-us-opera-companies.html
NYU Mercer Street. (2022). And all the men merely players: Gender in the classical theater. https://wp.nyu.edu/mercerstreet/2021-2022/and-all-the-men-merely-players-gender-in-the-classical-theater/
Symphony Magazine. (n.d.). Shattering the glass ceiling: Gender equity at orchestras. https://symphony.org/shattering-the-glass-ceiling-gender-equity-at-orchestras/
Zippia. (n.d.). Ballet dancer demographics and statistics in the U.S. https://www.zippia.com/ballet-dancer-jobs/demographics/
Zippia. (n.d.). Opera singer demographics and statistics in the U.S. https://www.zippia.com/opera-singer-jobs/demographics/
Zippia. (n.d.). Symphony demographics and statistics. https://www.zippia.com/symphony-careers-1383383/demographics/
Zippia. (n.d.). Theater technician demographics and statistics in the U.S. https://www.zippia.com/theater-technician-jobs/demographics/
