Aug 07, 2014 03:08 PM EDT
Following a more recent debate, ballet still may or may not be considered a sport. And yet, ballet has a larger problem at hand in dealing with race and, if you couldn't tell, self-image.
Katherine Brooks writes in the Huffington Post, "Take one look at the dance landscape of the world's most popular ballet companies and it's not difficult to see that white men and women dominate the field."
She continued, "Before Misty Copeland, there hadn't been a black soloist at the American Ballet Theater (ABT) for 20 years...[and] beyond race, ballet dancers have been held to tyrannical body standards"
The sport, respectively, is physically demanding; the industry, itself, has a reputation of favoring skinniness instead of fitness.
So, while critics have taken aim in addressing concerns and bringing these issues to light, HuffPo has conjured up a list of 17 dancers that are making the dancing game fair enough to any player.
From the so-hot-right-now Misty Copeland--perhaps thee pioneer in fair-form dance stage--to Shannon Harkins who found success at a very young age (to even Tokyo-born Shiori Kase), HP's list tackles all aspects and events encapsulating the term and sport of "dance."
For your added enjoyment, Clites, check out barre bender Chi Cao in an interview below.
