The Balanchine Body

Many dancers now are turned away because they are simply taller than the mandated height, sometimes they will be turned away based on their body types, yet having a thin body was a recent development by the famous George Balanchine. Commonly referred to as the ‘Balanchine Body’, this ideal body type that first began in the 1900’s shapes what we see as the perfect ballet body yet what is said and done in whispers behind closed theater doors, dressing rooms, and practice rooms, is often nowhere near perfect. Balanchine is often described as one of the best ballet choreographers of all time, and often revered by the New York City Ballet, but his work in the ballet has done more harm than good. Balanchine set out to create two large dance companies …show more content…
Guenther was told to lose weight during her time as a dancer and she achieved through a combination of skipping meals, diet pills, laxatives, and other methods, and being 5 foot 3 she only weighed 93 pounds. The coroner reported that she might have died from a heart issue, but most people suspect it was her abnormal thinness that killed her. At the time of her funeral, The Boston Globe published an article blaming the Boston Ballet Company for telling Guenther to lose weight and many news outlets followed by posting articles talking about how obsessed the ballet world was with being thin. Harrington Guenther, Heidi’s mother, talked openly about how she thought the pressure of the Boston Ballet led to her daughter developing an eating disorder. Before leaving to join the company, Guenther wrote herself a letter and told herself: "Do not forget to stay in shape. Take walks, do exercises and take class to keep in shape! Drop a few pounds too. Remember how good it feels. They always pick people for parts who are skinny and you only have until February to prove yourself! Be professional, stay thin and in shape. Lose weight and work your ass off and you'll get there and you'll feel good about yourself."(Heidi Gunether) This idea was embedded into the art of ballet even for newly professional dancers. Although her death was in 1997, Guenther shows much of what we see today in the ballet world; dancers who struggle to become thin enough for the parts they want, often not paying attention to their health. Harrington even spoke openly about the dangerous idea for dancers to gain weight because ‘If dancers gain weight, it is the worst. If you tell a dancer they’re overweight, you might as