Timothee Chalamet’s swipe at opera and ballet has drawn a withering response from New York City’s Metropolitan Opera and London’s Royal Ballet and Opera.
The 30-year-old made the candid remark while talking to Matthew McConaughey about his hopes that movie theaters are able to survive.
He then then added that ‘I don’t want to be working in ballet or opera or, you know, things where it’s like: “Hey, keep this thing alive,” even though no one cares about this anymore,’ in an interview for Variety’s Actors on Actors.
‘All respect to the ballet and opera people out there,’ added the Oscar contender. ‘I just lost 14 cents in viewership, I just took shots for no reason.’
The Metropolitan Opera retaliated by posting a montage of its employees hard at work, with: ‘All respect to the opera (and ballet) people out there,’ written onscreen.
In the caption, the august institution left no doubt as to the target of its message, writing: ‘This one’s for you, Timothée Chalamet…’
Timothee Chalamet’s swipe at opera and ballet has drawn a withering response from New York City’s Metropolitan Opera and London’s Royal Ballet and Opera
Meanwhile the Royal Ballet and Opera, often colloquially called ‘Covent Garden’ after its neighborhood in London, has issued its own statement.
‘Ballet and opera have never existed in isolation — they have continually informed, inspired, and elevated other art forms,’ they told the Hollywood Reporter.
‘Their influence can be felt across theatre, film, contemporary music, fashion, and beyond. For centuries, these disciplines have shaped the way artists create and audiences experience culture, and today millions of people around the world continue to enjoy and engage with them.’
Chalamet’s dig at opera and ballet came when he and McConaughey were discussing the Hollywood figures who make public statements in support of movie theaters.
‘I admire people, and I’ve done it myself, doing a talk show about how we’ve got to keep movie theatres alive, you know, we’ve got to keep this genre alive,’ he said.
‘And another part of me feels like, if people want to see it, like Barbie, like Oppenheimer, they’re going to go see it and go out of their way to be loud and proud about it,’ he added, noting opera and ballet do not have that mainstream audience.
When he then apologized for the ‘shot’ he had taken at the art form, McConaughey said: ‘That’s not a shot, I hear what you’re saying.’
Opera fans and balletomanes were left seething at Chalamet’s comments, with two famed classical singers going as far as to chastise him in public.
Francesca Hayward is pictured performing in Swan Lake at the Royal Ballet’s venue, the Royal Opera House, colloquially called ‘Covent Garden’ after its London neighborhood
Soprano Lise Davidsen is pictured rehearsing a production of Wagner’s Tristan und Isolde at the Metropolitan Opera in New York City last month
‘Honestly, I’m shocked that someone so seemingly successful can be so ineloquent and narrow-minded in his views about art while considering himself as an artist as I would only imagine one would as an actor,’ said American opera star Isabel Leonard.
‘To take cheap shots at fellow artists says more in this interview than anything else he could say. Shows a lot about his character. You don’t have to like all art but only a weak person/artist feels the need to diminish in fact, the very arts that would inspire those who are interested in slowing down, to do exactly that.’
Canadian mezzo-soprano Deepa Johnny said: ‘What a disappointing take. There is nothing more impressive than the magic of live theatre, ballet and opera. We should be trying to uplift these art forms, these artists and come together across disciplines to do that. The impact of these mediums are long, long-lasting and life-changing.’
However Chalamet was defended by Slovak pop act Adela, who began her showbiz career as a ballerina but is now opening for Demi Lovato on tour as a singer.
‘I think people are maybe blowing it out of proportion,’ she said when she was asked about Chalamet’s remarks in an LAX interview with TMZ.
‘I’ve seen it but it’s just like, I don’t think it meant it like that. I think it’s fine,’ she added. ‘He’s not wrong. It is kind of a dying art form. It’s sad. If anything, he just highlighted that. I think people are very upset, but as a ballerina, it kinda is. People should be going to the ballet more. Honestly, maybe this is good publicity.’
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