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Turning Pointe

How a New Generation of Dancers Is Saving Ballet from Itself
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( 779 ratings, 134 reviews)
Book Hero Magic crafted this summary to help describe this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Summary
Turning Pointe by journalist Chloe Angyal explores the complex world of ballet, focusing on the experiences of countless young dancers in studios across America. The book delves into the powerful influence ballet has on shaping their identities, while addressing the significant challenges within the art form, such as gender imbalances, oppressive beauty standards, and racism. Angyal highlights a new generation of dancers who are confronting these systemic issues to ensure ballet's survival and evolution towards a more socially just future.
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Format: Hardback
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Book Hero Magic created this recommendation. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! IS THIS YOUR NEXT READ?

This thoughtful and critical work is suited for readers interested in arts and culture, particularly those passionate about ballet and its evolving role in society. It appeals to ballet lovers, performing arts students, sociologists, and anyone concerned with gender politics and social justice in traditional art forms.

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A reckoning with one of our most beloved art forms, whose past and present are shaped by gender, racial, and class inequities-and a look inside the fight for its future.

Book Hero Magic formatted this description to make it easier to read. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Description

Every day, in dance studios all across America, millions of little girls line up at the barre and take ballet class. Their time in the studio shapes their lives, instilling lessons about gender, power, the value of their bodies and minds, and their place in the world both in and outside of dance.

In Turning Pointe, journalist Chloe Angyal captures the intense love for ballet that so many dancers feel, while also grappling with its shortcomings: the power imbalance of an art form performed mostly by women, but dominated by male choreographers and ballet masters, the impossible standards of beauty and thinness, and the racism that pervades ballet.

A new generation of dancers is confronting these issues head on. If ballet is going to survive the 21st century and forge a path into a more socially just future, this reckoning is essential.

Book Hero Magic summarised reviews for this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! HOW HAS THIS BEEN REVIEWED?

Critics describe Turning Pointe as an important, well-researched, and compelling examination of the ballet world. The Seattle Times calls it "not always an easy read, but an important one" and ultimately hopeful. The New York Journal of Books deems it a vital manifesto for ballet's new era. Brandon Taylor praises its skillful storytelling of difficult truths, while the Library Journal recommends it as required reading for ballet enthusiasts. Other reviews highlight its groundbreaking, incisive nature, with the Boston Globe and Ms. Magazine commending it as essential for conversations about ballet's future.

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Book Details

INFORMATION

ISBN: 9781645036708

Publisher: Bold Type Books

Format: Hardback

Date Published: 27 May 2021

Country: United States

Imprint: Bold Type Books

Audience: General / adult, Tertiary education, Professional and scholarly

DIMENSIONS

Spine width: 32.0mm

Width: 156.0mm

Height: 238.0mm

Weight: 517g

Pages: 304

About the Author

Chloe Angyal is a journalist from Sydney, Australia. She is a contributing editor at MarieClaire.com and her writing about politics and culture has appeared in the New York Times, Washington Post, Atlantic, Guardian, and New York Magazine. She holds a BA from Princeton and a PhD in arts and media from the University of New South Wales. She lives in the Iowa City area.

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  • Turning Pointe
    A reckoning with one of our most beloved art forms, whose past and present are shaped by gender, racial, and class inequities and a look inside the fight for its future. Every day, in dance studios all across America, legions of little children line up at the barre to take ballet class. This time in the studio shapes their lives,...
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    Available
    Ships in 2-3 weeks

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