Ballet Theatre Soloist Dancer, Gabe Stone Shayer On 'PAS DE DEUX', Working With Chanel and Alicia Keys
WITH GABE STONE SHAYER
The outside perception of the Ballet industry forms the notion of strict routines, absolute discipline, and total dedication to the movement. But is that what it’s really like?
Photography, Xavier Duah
Words, Brett Staniland In Conversation with Gabe Stone Shayer
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The inherited perception of masculinity is something men have tackled with more and more in recent years. Being led to believe that masculinity and femininity are opposites, which by definition, means we must reject feminine qualities, to satisfy this machismo, that actually forms part of a well-rounded and refined human. Ultimately these perceptions stem from a desire to be accepted and liked by other men, but why are they often seen as strengths and weaknesses? Ballet is an art form similar to few others. Requires but also produces, emotion, strength, passion and vulnerability. But escaping the historical stigma of an effeminate industry is a hard nut to crack.
The outside perception of the Ballet industry forms the notion of strict routines, absolute discipline, and total dedication to the movement. But is that what it’s really like? And how does one battle with the stresses and manage to practice personal wellness at the same time? All of course, whilst dealing with the social stigma and larger battles which reside from the identity of a male ballet dancer.
It’s hard to not get lost in putting on the brave face once you feel you’ve become who you wanted to become.
Gabe Stone Shayer is a product of the prestigious Bolshoi Ballet Academy in Moscow, a school almost 250 years old. However, Russia isn’t where it started for Gabe. Raised in Philadelphia, by his adoptive mother and grandmother of Ghanaian descent, he recalls it was at age 6 when he wrote it down on paper for the first time, that he wanted to be a dancer. “At first, they were just finding ways to tire out an energetic kid in as many ways as possible”, he tells. “But this is the one that stuck”.
Following a successful workshop in his home town (and a Russian-American partnership we’re probably more proud of) he was invited to Moscow aged 14. He spent his teen years grinding through his Russian education before graduating as the first African-American male in the schools’ long history.
After impressing upon his return from the cold megacity, Gabe embarked on his next journey with the American Ballet Theatre. His latest project; “Pas De Deux” showcases the remote coming-together of performers in a challenging time, in a mini-series that he hopes will bring hope and inspiration. His own episode features amidst a divine performance at the desolate Apollo theatre, a beautifully provoking conversation with Alicia Keys, about the challenges experienced as performers, their blackness, and embracing other parts of their heritage.
He spoke to me from his hub in New York, with the renowned melody of the city partially awake in the background. Gabe looked delicately cool, in simple style, accompanied by some distinctive personal touches such as a bejewelled neckline; a doubled-down gold chain hanging in front of a black sweater and his cornrows d’or to match. Discovering Gabe’s insight from the industry was particularly intriguing. I wanted to understand how he approaches the stigma of masculinity, his image, and self-care in a physically and mentally demanding role and environment.
THE LOOK
Suit, TEDDY VONRANSON; Shirt, ETON
BO: What was your introduction to ballet?
GS: I had already been dancing a few years, but a huge turning point was when I was around 8 or 9 when the Bolshoi ballet came to Philadelphia and performed the Ballet Spartacus. Everyone sees the Nutcracker, but seeing a ballet that was male-centric, and was so filled with drama and bravura and romance was the first time I had really seen ballet do that in a huge Bolshoi-way.
BO: You were very young when you moved to Russia, how was this process for you?
GS: I had a 6-week intensive program with the teachers from the Bolshoi at the Russian-American foundation in New York. I was then invited to attend school in Russia, by the director of the school who had witnessed my final performance. My first day was kind of hilarious. I walked in the school, with all my bags still, and one of the teachers stood before me, and said (in Russian, translated by my friend), “welcome to the academy, your room is this one, you have class in half an hour and before we ever put you on stage you will need to lose 20-30lbs”. This was literally at the front door.
BO: Did you experience any pressure with adhering to traditional image ideals within ballet?
GS: Well yeah. Being told this at the front door, of course there is pressure. But this was also something that I had signed up for. I knew in some capacity that I was about to go into this cut-throat environment and I was going to be working very hard. I was also looking forward to creating the result that I wanted. In Russia, I did feel like I was the only black person...sometimes in the country. But at the school, as it pertains to race, it was a very matter-of-fact situation. You’re Gabe, you’re American, your skin is brown. That’s it. Now you’re in our school and we are here to dance. Respect our traditions and training and that’s kind of it. I delved into that and learned Russian and worked really hard. I was never held back because of anything and actually graduated top of my class and was the featured performer.
BO: Did you feel welcomed and at home at Bolshoi? Were you aware that no other African American male had graduated before you?
GS: I think after a month, I thought ‘yeah this is my place’. I had no idea about it. It’s actually funny. I didn’t even start thinking about it until this year. It was never highlighted in that way and I never thought of it that way. My desire to succeed based on my merit rather than anything else, maybe I ignored it, but it’s hard to think retrospectively about it. Perhaps because of my upbringing, skin color wasn’t something I had even considered. (Having a white mother, Ghanaian grandmother and white brother). There were times where I thought maybe it is strange, as people noticed I was this random black kid speaking Russian and graduating school, but yeah it wasn’t really a thing at the time.
THE LOOK
Pink Blazer, Institchu Made To Measure
I still think there’s work to do here in America. I don’t think we have the best view or track-record of what “healthy” really means.
BO: We hear of the intense training regimes within ballet, is that when you started to focus on your own health and wellness?
GS: Yeah especially as it pertains to Bolshoi, it is intertwined with the training. You eat-sleep-train ballet. They feed you, the nurses are there advising you. We had to show up to training ready to go which is different to America. We had to stretch a lot and prepare the muscles ourselves. A lot of body maintenance was involved pre and post-working out. We used to use the living rooms in the dorms with all the students from all over the world trading tools and techniques with each other. It gave me a taste of sports medicine 101.
BO: What kind of personal routine do you have today?
GS: My routine is quite sporadic as my schedule is so different. Something I make sure I find time for every week is meditation. Amongst all the projects I am excited to do, I tend to bite off a little more than I can chew and challenge myself, so amongst the stress I make sure I do some stretching and open up my body. I have this light with a blue bulb, and so around midday, I would light some sage and put on some soothing sounds and try and zone out. Originally I used this light to help navigate to the fridge when I came home drunk, without switching on a bright white light.
BO: How do you take care of your skin amidst the challenging training conditions and intense schedule?
GS: I try and use natural ingredients and less chemicals. It’s tricky of course because I sweat a lot training 7 or 8 hours a day. I find that my night routine is greater than my day routine. I cleanse and tone my face and then moisturize. In the morning, I use some water, toner and dilute tea-tree oil and a light moisturizer. Throughout the day, I try to maintain the ph balance of my skin. It usually works! I am actually really excited about the Dr. Barbara Sturm range for darker skin tones (face creams, enzyme cleanser, foam cleanser and hyaluronic serum). I feel that before, people hadn’t realized that not only is my skin darker, but that treatments react differently to my skin. I also have combination skin as well so it’s even more challenging trying to balance. Having a product focused on my skin type and skin color is really exciting for me to use.
THE LOOK
Boots, Givenchy
BO: Following your success in Russia, how was the transition back to the states?
GS: I tell people I grew up in Russia, but what I mean by that is that I spent my formative teen years there amongst an international community. Having all these milestones occur there, made moving back to America feel very different. I definitely had culture shock coming back. I was only 16 and originally planned to go back but then had a similar summer intensive at the American Ballet Theatre, and was then invited to join the program there. I went back to Russia for a short while, and then went back to ABT. The days were very different, there’s a seasonal format here rather than a constant flow of ballet year-through which is what I had in Russia.
BO: Did you find the industry had changed in its portrayal and the image of ballet dancers?
GS: The way this exists in Russia and America are polar opposites. I think it is becoming more universally healthier, in the image of a ballet dancer. But I still think there’s work to do here in America. I don’t think we have the best view or track-record of what “healthy” really means. I’m all for empowering body types, but when it comes to being healthy I think it’s a whole other beast.
In regards, to masculinity, I personally feel that my presence and acceptance of the delicacy of the art form is me redefining what masculinity means, whether it be a superfluous term or not.
THE LOOK
Sunglasses, Oliver Peoples; Turtleneck, H&M
BO: From the abstract of a research article from Halton & Worthen (2014) “Ballet is one of the most highly gender-codified sports, male ballet dancers must negotiate their identities as men while performing a dance form that is highly stigmatized as effeminate” – How do you approach and overcome this stigma?
GS: From a young age, I have been bullied and gone through all that so the stigma was at the forefront of my understanding. On the other hand, I understand how nuanced all of us as humans are, whether we embrace it or not. In regards, to masculinity, I personally feel that my presence and acceptance of the delicacy of the art form is me redefining what masculinity means, whether it be a superfluous term or not. I identify as a male right now, although I feel like if I was to use the term masculine, why can’t it be synonymous with grace and delicacy? We define femininity as delicate and demure and vulnerable, we all have those traits in us somewhere whether we highlight them or not.
BO: You recently styled your hair with cornrows - can you tell me about why you decided to do this now? Were there times previously when you couldn’t?
GS: I was never explicitly told to style my hair a certain way, but sometimes I felt I did have to. Often the makeup artist wouldn’t have the correct tone for my skin and I would be deprived of certain colorful looks in performances. It’s good to see that now the conversation is on the table about having the choice to style how we want or to honor our heritage if we want to. At the start of quarantine my hair was getting to the stage where it needed cutting, but with no performances happening I didn’t need to. There was a culmination of a few issues which pertained to race, with some things being directed my way, and so the cornrows were kind of an act of rebellion. I was also trying something I had veered away from due to nervousness about being seen in a certain light, especially in the world of ballet and how could be perceived.
BO: You’ve recently been featured in Chanel, an exclusive club, how do clothes and outfits fit in with your feeling within yourself?
GS: I feel like I’m always dissecting another part of my personality through clothes. I grew up around my mum a lot, and I would go through the department stores with her. She was a psychologist, and would go to work in these glamorous outfits, like a beige Dolce & Gabbana pant suit, with pearls and everything. Seeing her and other women like that, I naturally identified clothing being a projection of who I was internally. Wearing Chanel reignited that. I always associated with dressing ‘up’. It felt very natural to put on Chanel and feel like myself in that clothing. And I wore the pearls wrapped around which were from my mom!
BO: How would you define modern masculinity?
GS: Confidence and grace.
THE LOOK
Suit, TEDDY VONRANSON
BO: In your recent work “Pas De Deux”, you speak about being a prince - what does this mean to you?
GS: The decorum and etiquette of how a leader should act, and bringing that down to a civilian level. I have always wanted to conduct myself in that manner. The things I want to do and the manner in which I want to do them; I try to be as graceful as the English sovereign and a prince. A modern day prince in America would hopefully be doing similarly. Making an impact and having a meaningful contribution, in a royal manner.
BO: The choreography work, and dancing yourself, do you ever use these as a method of escape or as a mental wellness technique?
GS: I didn’t particularly feel boxed in as many others perhaps have. I went out to long beach and took a couple weeks off. Dance and choreography works as an uplifting feeling of being more and feeding that output. I don’t feel constricted myself, but I wanted to make something for people who maybe do feel that way and let them see in the worst of times, which is when this series was made, that they can be inspired. I hoped it presents as an opportunity for more possibilities that they can think in innovative ways to collaborate on something cool.
BO: The Song and piece titled; “Love looks better” with Alicia Keys, how did this resonate with you?
GS: I tried to interpret what she was saying so I wouldn’t put only my perspective into it. It was about rekindling that sense of self. Going back to the beginning of who you were, really naively go into whatever you want to do and make these big things happen. The supreme maturity you need to really lean into that naivety. It’s hard to not get lost in putting on the brave face once you feel you’ve become who you wanted to become.
BO: What would be your advice for people during the challenging weeks ahead?
GS: Really focus on self-care. I love thinking about what I’d be doing if I was living in a more ‘primitive’ time. Listen to your body and the environment that you’re in. React to what you need to react to, and agree to the things you want to agree to. Take time to rest, things can feel too much so listen to what your body is saying.
