Jamie Lee Curtis, The New York Times Add Fuel to Debate Over Timothée Chalamet’s Ballet, Opera Dig
Jamie Lee Curtis and others responded to Timothée Chalamet’s comments on the ballet and opera this weekend, adding fuel to a fire that began raging after his words were shared on social media.
Curtis weighed in on the debate Friday by sharing multiple videos via her Instagram Stories that questioned why Chalamet would slam ballet and opera in a time when A.I. potentially threatens most forms of art. Though, she did not offer up a direct statement on the controversy.
“I don’t want to be working in ballet or opera where it’s like, ‘Hey! Keep this thing alive, even though no one cares about this anymore,’” Chalamet told Matthew McConaughey in February. “All respect to the ballet and opera people out there … I just lost 14 cents in viewership. I’m taking shots for no reason.”
As one might expect, the comments spurred a flurry of responses from stage stars and opera houses, including the Metropolitan Opera House, who wrote on social media in response, “This one is for you, Timothée Chalamet,” before showing some of the behind-the-scenes work that goes into making one of its productions.
However, others have since defended the young actor. “Y’all, come on. I used to work for an opera company. My checks—which I needed to pay rent—bounced more than once,” reporter Billy Binion wrote on X. “Glib phrasing aside, Timothée Chalamet is right: very few people care about opera. It sucks, but that’s reality.”
The New York Times also published a defense of Chalamet, suggesting in their headline that the actor “has a point about ballet.”
“He shouldn’t have brought up an idea that he couldn’t properly flesh out … yet what he said wasn’t untrue,” the outlet wrote in an opinion piece published Friday. “It was clearsighted, even practical. As someone from a dance family, he knows this world.”
“His comments are harsh to hear, but this is the frustration of working in the fine arts,” the article continued.
Chalamet has yet to weigh in on the growing controversy, though, it appears that plenty of people are speaking on his behalf.
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