Lara Spencer Laughs at boys in ballet- Page 2

[VintageSnarker]

Posted: 8/24/19 at 12:24am

Did she say more than "we'll see how long that lasts"? I could only find a short clip. I agree, it's not great but she seemed to mean it in the context of him having an over the top curriculum for a child. 

If she was trying to police his behavior and enforce gender norms, then, boo. But I'm not sure it needed so many people to respond. How many people care what Lara Spencer thinks? Who even is she?

[SweetLips22]

Posted: 8/24/19 at 3:14am

Doesn't matter who said it----it's what was said.

[A Director]

Posted: 8/24/19 at 4:55am

VintageSnarker said: "Did she say more than "we'll see how long that lasts"? I could only find a short clip.I agree, it's not great but she seemed to mean it in the context of him having an over the top curriculum for a child.

If she was trying to police his behavior and enforce gender norms, then, boo. But I'm not sure it needed so many people to respond. How many people care what Lara Spencer thinks? Who even is she?"

Over the top curriculum, my butt. If Ms Spencer had more than two brain cells, she  do more research. The s school's curriculum is age appropriate.

Male ballet dancers and ballet companies have every right to speak out!

If dance was any easier, it would be called football!

 

[dramamama611]

Posted: 8/24/19 at 7:19am

She laughed at the idea of a boy taking ballet, and insinuating there was no way he'd like it.

Its not much that it matters what she thinks, but the entire panel on a national tv show laughed, too. Once again implying its ok to make fun of children, make fun of the arts, make fun of boys that partake of the arts.

[BrodyFosse123]

Posted: 8/24/19 at 10:57am

How many people care what Lara Spencer thinks? Who even is she?

She covers pop culture on a highly rated morning show watched by millions so millions of Americans are being exposed to pop culture information by this woman.  Her reporting and attitude towards a topic is how millions will respond to as well.  If she finds humor on a topic, that’s the attitude millions will respond with.  She never reports anything without adding her own personal attitude towards a topic.   

[Call_me_jorge]

Posted: 8/24/19 at 12:01pm

It’s so interesting to think about how everything gets so blown out of proportion nowadays. If she had done this 10 years ago, no one would blink an eye. Wouldn’t be surprised if ABC/Disney gave her a one week paid suspension. Deservedly so. I think anchors are becoming more aware of what they say and how vast their audiences are now. Before, all they had to offend was white stay at home mothers. Now that you can watch GMA on twitter(which is where I first watched the video) you can offend any sorts of people.

[mpkie]

Posted: 8/24/19 at 3:33pm

I have no interest in who this person nor interest in hearing what she said, but I'm here to support one of my favorite shows (and movies) -- Billy Elliott -- and the boys who portrayed him.

Those Billy's are talented as heck and there are at least three famous Billy's -- Jamie Bell (original film Billy), Dean-Charles Chapman (Tommen Baratheon on Game Of Thrones) and Tom Holland (Spider-man). Jamie became famous from his award-winning work in the movie and I'm pretty sure Tom landed the Spidey role partly because he had ballet/ Billy training where he was able to build other skills on top of that during his youth.

[Wayman_Wong]

Posted: 8/24/19 at 4:09pm

The British show ''The Feelgood Factor'' once featured three child stars from ''Billy Elliot'' in the West End, and one of them was a then-12-year-old Tom Holland. The TV show then had Holland work with a group of schoolboys, and they later performed a version of the ''Angry Dance'' from the musical. As an adult, Holland told People magazine: ''I had my rough patches. There were times I was bullied about dancing and stuff. But you couldn't hit me hard enough to stop me from doing it." And he got the last laugh. Holland says his physical agility as a dancer & gymnast is what landed him the marvelous movie role of Spider-Man.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eKywb3ylGTE

[klinnerz]

Posted: 8/24/19 at 11:43pm

Call_me_jorge said: "It’s so interesting to think about how everything gets so blown out of proportion nowadays. If she had done this 10 years ago, no one would blink an eye. Wouldn’t be surprised if ABC/Disney gave her a one week paid suspension. Deservedly so. I think anchors are becoming more aware of what they say and how vast their audiences are now. Before, all they had to offend was white stay at home mothers. Now that you can watch GMA on twitter(which is where I first watched the video) you can offend any sorts of people."

Pathetic excuse. Just as pathetic as Lara's comment. I'm glad you feel so entitled that nothing in the world goes against your daily life. Lara's actions created a mess that reflects the issues that many people, specifically young face everyday. Your words are the reason why so many people commit suicide and succeed. Your words are what trickle down into local communities where bullies take these actions done by Lara and find them just and acceptable behavior. And it's the same "everyone is too offended" rhetoric that is SOOOO ironic. Because the people who quote you are usually the ones getting the most offended..

[KathyNYC2]

Posted: 8/25/19 at 11:20am

It’s not just the dance part. This is a grown woman bullying a six year old on a major network (that owns Disney no less) as she is getting paid to represent them.

Any apology for something said ON AIR needs to be addressed ON AIR not In some token insincere post with mountain scenery in the background.

[BrodyFosse123]

Posted: 8/25/19 at 11:59am

Well, the response to her comment is across the board.  Even the legendary Mitzi Gaynor has addressed Lara Spencer’s moronic comment.  The response has been global not just in the U.S.

https://www.instagram.com/p/B1jh471HmUf/?igshid=1naroot6140ku

[CT2NYC]

Posted: 8/25/19 at 12:58pm

Looks like it's going to be addressed on Monday's show:

https://people.com/tv/lara-spencer-horrified-after-mocking-prince-georges-ballet-class-travis-wall/

[Susanswerphone]

Posted: 8/25/19 at 6:27pm

CT2NYC said: "Looks like it's going to be addressed on Monday's show:

https://people.com/tv/lara-spencer-horrified-after-mocking-prince-georges-ballet-class-travis-wall/"

I 'd say "mission accomplished". Ms. Spencer's insipid inanity, calculated or not, has ensured an uptick in ABC's rating in the morning market for the foreseeable future. I'm certain her bosses, and the sponsors, are kvelling.

[Smaxie]

Posted: 8/25/19 at 7:42pm

Is Stephanopolous apologizing as well for his reams of mocking laughter? Her comments were idiotic, but he was pure mean girl. 

[bisous3]

Posted: 8/25/19 at 9:12pm

I actually tweeted Rahm Emanuel today and suggested he school George about boys in ballet class since Emanuel was appearing on his show  (not necessarily on air... in private would have been fine too) and a friend DM'ed me and suggested I listen again because George did say "good for him" but was sort of drowned out by the laughter. 

For anyone who says "what does this have to do with Broadway?" I would just like to say if you have been to a Broadway musical you have been entertained by people who have had ballet training. Especially in today's "biggest bang for the buck" casting, where they're no longer interested in hiring "the singers" and "the dancers" but the triple threats.

And for anyone who says "stop being offended", unless you're a male who has danced and been subjected to bullying, abuse and judgement, consider sitting this one out in the name of supporting the men who have been subjected to that. 

I am hoping Lara Spencer will sit and listen to the stories of a few of these men tomorrow so she can see the impact  of the words and laughter like hers.  Kids commit suicide over this stuff. 

Lastly... I own a dance studio and have had countless conversations with parents who won't have their sons in a dance class because they know this attitude exists. They don't necessarily have an issue with dance per se, they just don't want their children subjected to the ridicule of ignorant people. So I am hoping that this situation can be turned around and used as a means to educate. I guess we shall see. 

Updated On: 8/25/19 at 09:12 PM

[yankeefan7]

Posted: 8/25/19 at 9:51pm

My daughters started taking dance classes when they were 4 yrs old and became professional dancers and teachers. Through the years, they were very few boys taking dance classes with them. It is not easy on a young boy. For the most part they may be the only boy taking class and have no other boy to have as a buddy/friend. Then you have the ignorant kids who will call a boy taking dance all kinds of names. Thankfully, there are boys who rise above it and continue to dance. BTW - One of the guys at my daughters HS (Northwest School Of The Arts) went on to be in "Hamilton".

[OlBlueEyes]

Posted: 8/26/19 at 12:11am

If your a host of a two hour show five days a week for eight years you're going to say something stupid that offends some group.

No mercy.

[BuddyStarr]

Posted: 8/26/19 at 10:21am

I was torn on  this issue.  I had heard the ramblings or people saying that it was bullying, etc... so I caught the segment on youtube.  My initial impressions weren't so much anger at Lara Spenser but the other hosts and the audience.  Lara hosts a show call "Flea Market Flip" and has had gay people on that show many times.  After watching the segment I didn't take her laughter as making fun of a boy taking ballet but laughing that in addition to all his studies, religious education, French lessons he was also taking ballet which was just one more thing that the child had to do.

Be that as it may, she was on the  show this morning and apologized for being wrong and that that was not her intent.  She did provide the three men a chance to talk about their backgrounds and history of dance in their life.

[Call_me_jorge]

Posted: 8/26/19 at 11:14am

Re: Amar

https://twitter.com/iightandharmony/status/1165836655145754626?s=21

https://twitter.com/msdianecardoso/status/1165839059798962177?s=21

[fashionguru_23]

Posted: 8/26/19 at 11:20am

I assumed she was laughing because how many 6 year olds try something, and give it up months or weeks later. I never took it as there is something wrong with boys in ballet, but it was interesting and exhausting to see it blow up so quickly. 

[OlBlueEyes]

Posted: 8/26/19 at 2:22pm

What puzzles me about this is the notion that male ballet dancers are somehow non-virile sissies. The two great dancers of the last Century, arguably, were Nureyev and Nijinsky. Both were cultural superstars. Admired for the condition of their bodies and the athleticism that allowed them control over the bodies.

Nureyev created a sensation when he defected to the West from Russia. He never lacked for offers of work from all over the world. The duo of Nureyev and Fonteyn was almost as well known as Astaire and Rogers. His social circle included Jackie Kennedy Onassis and Mick Jagger. He even appeared on the Muppet show, where he and Miss Piggy performed "Swine Lake."

Nijinsky was similarly popular at the beginning of the Century. He was very popular with women and had many affairs. A great racehorse was named after him who was perhaps the most prolific sire of other racehorses in the Century. Unfortunately he ran into problems of mental disturbance when it was a bad time in history to seek help for mental diseases.

[bdn223]

Posted: 8/26/19 at 2:56pm

Having finally watched the initial video after seeing the fallout and internet rage machine, I have to say Spencer did nothing wrong. She’s clearly making a joke about the attention span of a 6 year old, and not the activity itself. It’s further emphasized by her longing for the days her child being content with just playing with play dough, instead of signing them up for ballet and dropping $1K on a class only for your kid to be bored and want to quit halfway through. Yes its part of his school curriculum so he can’t quit, but still a 6 year olds favorite subject in school can change on a monthly basis.
She didn’t say one negative thing about ballet, or men doing ballet. If anything the Broadway community owes her an apology for dragging her name through the mud in an attempt to market dance and ballet to boys.

[dramamama611]

Posted: 8/26/19 at 3:22pm

Well, that's one interpretation, but even SHE isnt claiming that.

[everythingtaboo]

Posted: 8/26/19 at 3:24pm

bdn223 said: "Having finally watched the initial video after seeing the fallout and internet rage machine, I have to say Spencer did nothing wrong. She’s clearly making a joke about the attention span of a 6 year old, and not the activity itself. It’s further emphasized by her longing for the days her child being content with just playing with play dough, instead of signing them up for ballet and dropping $1K on a class only for your kid to be bored and want to quit halfway through. Yes its part of his school curriculum so he can’t quit, but still a 6 year olds favorite subject in school can change on a monthly basis.
She didn’t say one negative thing about ballet, or men doing ballet. If anything the Broadway community owes her an apology for dragging her name through the mud in an attempt to market dance and ballet to boys."

Except it's basically the entire dance world, from just about every dance discipline, who heard it in a different, more mocking light, than you might've heard it. 
 
Do I really think it’s been an education on dance for Laura? I mean, she herself said she did ballet. To me, the education is hopefully finally realizing she's not that funny to begin with and to stop editorializing on stories and just read the TelePrompTer. I've never been a fan of her superior mocking tone, she's had it for decades, and rumor is they can't stand her at GMA anyway.

Updated On: 8/26/19 at 03:24 PM

Posted: 8/26/19 at 3:25pm

bdn223 said: "Having finally watched the initial video after seeing the fallout and internet rage machine, I have to say Spencer did nothing wrong."

 

Except to insult and bully a little boy.  But long after that woman is forgotten, Prince George will be remembered as King.  Karma, you see.