How much are our opinions of dancers' performances influenced by their social media personas?

[Candleque]

Super interesting thread. Thanks capybara 🙏

My opinions of dancers' performances is not influenced by their social so much as my interest in them as people/celebrities. Which makes me want to see them dance. Which makes me buy more tickets. For example, I love Balanchine and adore his masterpiece Jewels. But only saw it once. My head (budget) won over my heart, because I didn't know any of the Australian dancers.

Instagram is a great tool to spot the younger dancers, which makes it easier for me to recognise them on stage. Caspar Lench is already my fave new RB joiner and I have never seen him dance IRL. His Instagram posts just seems full of joy and charisma. I think a lot of us root for corps members and soloists to get opportunities because we follow their lives on social. 

 

Even the principal dancers are relatively young. They grew up knowing how to use social to control their own narrative. Which is fantastic in my eyes. For example, soon after it launched in 2004, Facebook introduced the Relationship Status feature. Now, Instagram is the platform of choice when dancers want to publicly share a relationship milestone, as well as a career highlight. They do it purposefully. Considering how much their dance career is controlled by others, I love seeing dancers take agency for their own lives.

There are common conventions for content on Instagram that may seem off-putting to us. Wikipedia tells us that thirst traps (those sexy photos) can contribute to personal branding. The line between tasteful and icky is different for everyone, but the poster is controlling their own content and increasing their reach on purpose. Brand sponsorships and modelling opportunities definitely look at follower counts and type of content posted. I suspect gala producers do as well. Humble brags (publicly thanking partners, announcing guest performances, et al) are seen as good manners. I agree with FionaE that a star like Natalia Osipova could really help boost ticket sales if she chose to. Dancers that post a lot about their photo shoots or brand gifts are signalling to that world — saying both thank you and this is something I'm open to as a side gig.

Anything dancers can do to boost their income is a positive imo. Even world class stars get paid so little in comparison to their peers in sports and entertainment. Part of that income disparity is a dancer's fame is quite niche. I believe the more famous dancers get as individuals, the better for the art form. How many people went to their first ballet because they saw Darcey Bussell in mainstream media?  What would it mean for ballet if TV stations were fighting for the broadcast rights as they do for football?

While many here may disagree with our celebrity chasing culture, we probably agree that these amazingly talented artists deserve kardasian-level attention and rewards. 

[Neverdancedjustamum]

15 minutes ago, LinMM said:

I’m pretty sure I know who RBX is as think it’s the person referred to in my first post!! At least I think I do…be funny if we’re all thinking of a different person though!! 
Have no idea who RBY is and probably best it remains a mystery ( have now got the ear worm Ruby Tuesday from Ballet Rambert in mind) 

It probably is! I didn’t know the dancer had FB  but I just looked and yes, it probably is! The profile photo is a big clue and preview of similar such photos and videos.

[LinMM]

It does help to get to know the dancers in a Company more and might make you want to attend more performances to see more casts to see favourite dancers etc but for me that knowledge still comes from getting to know the dancers from seeing them dance and seeing their potential talents as artists on the stage ….not at all by getting to “know” them as people. 
I first went to see the Ballet because I loved doing ballet and so it was a natural progression to want to see the dancers of the day ( early 60’s) performing. Of course you were aware of famous names like Margot Fonteyn but it wasn’t seeing a picture of her in the paper which made me want to go and see her …it was seeing her actual performances which made me want to book to see her perform again. 
Dancers like Nureyev at the time came with a lot of hype ( newspapers Tv news etc) because of his particular circumstances and I’m sure caused a lot of people to book at that time who didn’t usually go to the ballet but that didn’t keep him famous…his dancing did that for him ….so you booked because he was worth going to see at the time! 
It’s fine if dancers want to keep a high social media profile (and if can earn a bit of extra money from product endorsement all to the good) they will attract followers of course but I can’t see that having that profile will necessarily keep people going to their performances if in the end they don’t feel attracted to their actual performances on stage. 
I suppose it depends whether you choose to follow somebody because you like their profile or follow somebody because you like them as dancers ….so the dancing came first. 
Even in the case of RBX I would still book to see him dance in certain roles ( love him as Oberon) so it hasn’t changed how I see him as a dancer. 

 

 

[MAB]

Well Lin,  you'll no doubt remember the size and enthusiasm of audiences back in the 60's.  No social media to lure them in back then.  I suspect no one cares what the current crop of dancers are doing apart from those that are already fans,

[bridiem]

50 minutes ago, Candleque said:

There are common conventions for content on Instagram that may seem off-putting to us. Wikipedia tells us that thirst traps (those sexy photos) can contribute to personal branding. The line between tasteful and icky is different for everyone, but the poster is controlling their own content and increasing their reach on purpose. Brand sponsorships and modelling opportunities definitely look at follower counts and type of content posted.

 

I'm sure this is all correct, but for me it's part of the often rather sick social media game that is really a form of blackmail. If you don't post sexy pictures you won't get sponsorship. If you don't create an artificially perfect image of your life you won't get modelling opportunities. Etc. Apparently under the 'control' of the account holder, but really placing a lot of pressure on them to take advantage of what's on offer. (And thereby placing a lot of of pressure on many impressionable young followers to aim for an equally 'perfect' life.)

[LinMM]

Well I wonder which couple dancing now people would be prepared to queue for 14 hours for to get tickets!! 

[Fonty]

How much influence does it have?  Well in my case absolutely none.   The only social medium I use is FB, and that is because it is very easy to message and share photos with my friends, many of whom have moved away from the UK.  It is brilliant for that purpose, and these people really are my friends and not some people with a rather vague connection.  (Does anyone really have thousands of real friends?) .  I have no real interest in the private lives of performers in any of the arts, and I cannot see the point of knowing what their pet/garden/kitchen looks like.  I have no problem with dancers who want to share this sort of thing, but it doesn't make me appreciate Mr X or Miss Y's performance any more if I know that their dog has fleas or their daughter is teething.  I don't care.

 

Publicity is very important, of course, but self publicity is another thing altogether.  My main concern is that there could be a possibility of one dancer being cast in something rather than another purely because they have a very high profile on social media.  I think it would be tragic if a wonderfully talented dancer failed to be cast because they didn't self publicise.  Theatres are not immune to the "bums on seats" principle, and if the public are clamouring to see an individual who has an enormous number of followers on Whatever, this might have an influence.  

 

With regard to revealing photos, there are some truly eye watering ones of Nureyev if you care to look.  However, he was already a subject of great interest to the general public, and in any case those were taken by a professional photographer for his own portfolio.  I haven't seen any of these current photos that you are referring to, but putting them on your own social media sounds so narcissistic it would definitely put me off that person.  

 

 

 

 

[Lizbie1]

I understand the point being made about Osipova being "bad" at social media, but my assumption is that she has made an active decision not to post routinely about forthcoming engagements. Not everyone wants to be a slave to Instagram, and she is one of the few dancers in a position to push back on such demands. She might pocket a smaller fee as a result, but I'd applaud her for doing so.

[Guest oncnp]

1 minute ago, Lizbie1 said:

I understand the point being made about Osipova being "bad" at social media, but my assumption is that she has made an active decision not to post routinely about forthcoming engagements. Not everyone wants to be a slave to Instagram, and she is one of the few dancers in a position to push back on such demands. She might pocket a smaller fee as a result, but I'd applaud her for doing so.

 

Perhaps she thinks her name on the program is enough to bring in the punters and no more is necessary

Edited August 26, 2023 by oncnp

[LinMM]

If the RB wants to promote its dancers more than now then fine let them get on with it …..but the onus should not be on individual dancers to get “bums on seats” via Instagram!! ( If that is the case implied) Only via the quality of their dancing on the stage. 
Why should any more be necessary? 

 

Edited August 26, 2023 by LinMM

[capybara]

30 minutes ago, Fonty said:

Publicity is very important, of course, but self publicity is another thing altogether.  My main concern is that there could be a possibility of one dancer being cast in something rather than another purely because they have a very high profile on social media.  I think it would be tragic if a wonderfully talented dancer failed to be cast because they didn't self publicise.  Theatres are not immune to the "bums on seats" principle, and if the public are clamouring to see an individual who has an enormous number of followers on Whatever, this might have an influence.  

 

This is another very interesting dimension which hadn't crossed my mind.

 

Thinking for a moment of Ms RBA, Ms RBB, Ms RBC and Ms RBD all of whom have over 100k followers on IG, in one case five times that number and all of whom are undoubted stars........

 

In my view, the social media content of A comes across as very balanced (even with the inevitable promotional material); B posts avidly on a daily basis, mostly ballet-related but with a few more personal images in the mix;  C emphasises a life outside ballet, often using model-type photos, in contrast with D whose account is focused entirely on her performances and preparations for them.

 

Should any of that make a difference in relation to casting, first nights, cinema relays, streaming, ROH publicity etc? No. Does it, despite Kevin O'Hare's obvious attempts to 'share out the spoils', as it were? Possibly, yes - if the speed at which tickets sell for performances and the perceptions of critics are anything to go by. But individual social media accounts are surely only part of the picture.

 

[I wish that there were examples to use involving dancers from companies other than the RB but they seem to be less active on social media.]

[Jan McNulty]

I think a lot of the dancers I follow (not RB) post on “stories” which are only available for 24 hours so if you don’t follow them you won’t see their stories.

[Angela Essex]

6 hours ago, capybara said:

 

This is another very interesting dimension which hadn't crossed my mind.

 

Thinking for a moment of Ms RBA, Ms RBB, Ms RBC and Ms RBD all of whom have over 100k followers on IG, in one case five times that number and all of whom are undoubted stars........

 

In my view, the social media content of A comes across as very balanced (even with the inevitable promotional material); B posts avidly on a daily basis, mostly ballet-related but with a few more personal images in the mix;  C emphasises a life outside ballet, often using model-type photos, in contrast with D whose account is focused entirely on her performances and preparations for them.

 

Should any of that make a difference in relation to casting, first nights, cinema relays, streaming, ROH publicity etc? No. Does it, despite Kevin O'Hare's obvious attempts to 'share out the spoils', as it were? Possibly, yes - if the speed at which tickets sell for performances and the perceptions of critics are anything to go by. But individual social media accounts are surely only part of the picture.

 

[I wish that there were examples to use involving dancers from companies other than the RB but they seem to be less active on social media.]

Ooh now I am wondering who Misses RB A, B, C & D are and Mr RBY too this thread is killing me can somebody pm me pls & put me out of my misery 🤣

[Dawnstar]

21 minutes ago, Angela Essex said:

Ooh now I am wondering who Misses RB A, B, C & D are and Mr RBY too this thread is killing me can somebody pm me pls & put me out of my misery 🤣

 

I too am busy wondering who A, B, C & D might be! (I'm pretty certain of the identity of X, a dancer who I'd already unfollowed on Instagram before I got kicked off by it 18 months ago.)

Edited August 26, 2023 by Dawnstar
Typo

[Linnzi5]

The four female dancers have 100k+ followers so it's easy to see who they are by looking at how many followers dancers have - I follow all of them. There is only one RB female star who has 500k+ followers and I love reading her Instagram posts - her love of ballet permeates everything, IMO, and she comes across as a lovely person. I don't think it's inappropriate to say that I am talking about Marianela Nuñez - I genuinely get a lot of pleasure from reading her Instagram pages and hers is one I do read more often.

[capybara]

In the post where I said A, B , C and D it was because I wanted to illustrate a point rather than imply criticism of individuals who have a perfect right to ‘play it’ their way!

[Linnzi5]

1 hour ago, capybara said:

In the post where I said A, B , C and D it was because I wanted to illustrate a point rather than imply criticism of individuals who have a perfect right to ‘play it’ their way!

I didn't see any implied criticism in your post using A,B,C and D as examples of having different approaches to their handling of social media - in fact, I found your observations really interesting.  I find it fascinating how many well known personalities/artists use their social media platforms and I think, as dancers' careers can be so relatively short, that it's important for them to be 'out there' creating opportunities for themselves. I also do enjoy seeing little videos and photos they post of behind the scenes and those profiles are the ones I access the most.

[JennyTaylor]

I started off following dancers on Twitter but very few post now, so I turned to Instagram to follow my favourites. I enjoy seeing their photos and I usually look with very positive feelings.  There is only one dancer who has really put me off with their self promotion and I never book to see them now - is social media responsible for this - yes.  Otherwise, my booking preferences are not influenced in the slightest and I would always book for Laura Morera, for example, even though she had no social media presence at all.  I don't post on Instagram myself, I just look at dancers.    

[taxi4ballet]

In my case, not at all, because I don't follow any of them.

[maryrosesatonapin]

For dancers I care about, I am very glad to get glimpses into their off-stage lives.  I think what they put, or allow to be posted on their behalf, on Insta is a reflection of their personality.  Some of them are very 'glossy' and professional.  Some are family-oriented and I like to see that too.  For example - I am touched by the way that one of the greatest ballerinas of all, Zakharova, is so simple in her posts, maybe showing herself without makeup in a knitted bobble hat, or writing how she is celebrating a religious festival which she takes very seriously. It gives an added understanding of someone I admire from a distance.  And there is a gay male ballet dancer who is one of my favourites in Britain who is often quite wistful and poetic, and whose main love seems to be his doted-on dogs. I keep checking in the hope he has a partner who loves him as he deserves! For those who use the platform to make money, well good for them, it does no harm and is well deserved IMO. Only a very few are in a position to do this; in the RB not many dancers have a high enough profile with the public.

I've not noticed any of these scantily-clad poses though; I must be following the wrong dancers!  Tee hee. But I only look from time to time when I'm in the mood.  I don't check Instagram every day.

In answer to the question: it makes absolutely no difference to me how I view a performance after having read more about some particular dancer or other.  On stage they transform into someone else, someone super-human and removed from the mundane.