With his flat feet, he was not necessarily destined to last long at the Paris Opera. Guillaume Diop defied all predictions by achieving the supreme title of star, on March 11, 2023, after a performance of Giselle in Seoul (South Korea). A first for a black dancer in the history of ballet.
At 23, the Franco-Senegalese then became, despite himself, an ambassador for diversity in the artistic world. A role that is not always comfortable. How do we experience our difference in skin color in renowned cultural institutions? And how do these institutions manage, or not, to adapt to changing artists and audiences?
This is what Virginie Plaut sought to find out with her two co-authors Youcef Khemane and Isabelle Boni-Claverie, in the documentary Being black at the Operabroadcast this Monday, December 23 on until . “In 2014-2015, I made a first documentary on the Paris Opera in which the dance director at the time, Benjamin Millepied, criticized the house for its lack of diversity. Faced with the outcry that his statement had caused in the press and within the company, I had considered doing a story on discrimination in the dance world but no one wanted to hear about it. »
“Some artists have been called monkeys”
The publication in 2020 of a manifesto against racial discrimination at the Paris Opera relaunched the project. “Some signing artists have been called monkeys. Others were criticized for not being black enough. » Enough to accelerate awareness within the institution. “My producers then renewed the request, and to my great surprise, management agreed to open the doors to us. »
It remained to convince the main witnesses. “When we met Guillaume Diop in 2021, he was still at the bottom of the hierarchy, says Virginie Plaut. He was keen to tackle the subject and at the same time he was afraid that it would be detrimental to his career. After some time thinking, he finally decided to participate. » Double bassist Sulivan Loiseau did not feel the same pressure. “In classical dance, it is the body that we look at while in Music, we play in the pit, analyzes the director. We are therefore much less visible. »
“Being black at the Opera”: an intimate documentary
The musician, however, admits to having had some reluctance at the beginning. “I prefer to be interested in my music rather than my physical appearance. But in talking with my family and friends, I realized that it was important that our voices were represented. When I was admitted to the National Conservatory of Music and Dance, some people claimed that it was because I was a woman and I was black even though I worked very hard for it. I hope that the documentary will facilitate dialogue on questions of identity and difference. »
Intimate, the documentary highlights the obstacle course of artists of color to make their place in this very homogeneous world. He also highlights the efforts made by the institution to break stereotypes by adapting certain works from the repertoire in particular. However, we can see how far we still have to go to achieve real diversity.
until23 h 05.
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