In developments only slightly undercut by the fact that we’re only really seeing coverage of it all because it’s in response to something said by Very Famous Movie Star Timothée Chalamet, a number of opera and ballet companies from across the world have fired back at the Marty Supreme star over recent comments he made about whether or not people give a crap about them. Specifically, Chalamet was in a conversation with Matthew McConaughey last week, about the need to “save” the theatrical experience—making the fairly relatable point that, while he loves movies and theaters, the best way to save them might be to make movies people want to see in them—when he got himself in trouble via a completely unnecessary comparison. Per Variety, Chalamet told McConaughey, “I don’t want to be working in ballet, or opera, or things where it’s like, ‘Hey, keep this thing alive, even though like no one cares about this anymore.’ All respect to all the ballet and opera people out there.”
The ballet and opera people do not appear to have received the “all respect” in question, though, because several of them seem pretty pissed off about Chalamet’s tongue-in-cheek comments. (He did not help his case by quipping, immediately after making the above statement, that, “I just lost 14 cents in viewership. I just took shots for no reason,” and then pretending to sing opera himself.) As reported by Deadline, Chalamet is facing some fairly stiff punishments here, up-to-and-including the possibility of actually having to go see an opera himself, as the English National Opera gave him an open offer of tickets in order to help change his mind on the artform. (Other organizations, as well as several younger opera performers with social media followings, were a little less live-and-let-live, with many reminding Chalamet that their craft is insanely hard work that doesn’t get any easier when film actors start punching down. We’re honestly a bit more amused by efforts from the Seattle Opera, though, which announced a new promo code for 14 percent off seats for this weekend’s performances of Carmen: TIMOTHEE.)
Chalamet has had some defenders amidst all the hostile scales and pliés: The New York Times ran a culture op-ed defending his point, noting that Chalamet wasn’t making a comment about ballet and opera’s actual value, but the amount of respect it’s afforded in wider American society. (Writer Gia Kourlas points out that Chalamet went to high school at one of New York’s most famous performing arts schools, and his mother and sister were both trained at the School Of American Ballet, so he’s not exactly ignorant of the artform’s merits.) Still, uh… At least people are talking about ballet and opera now, right?
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