Western stereotype of the male ballet dancer

Since the early 19th century, the Western world has adopted a view of male ballet dancers, or danseurs as weak, effeminate or homosexual.

[1][2] Through education and media exposure, the stereotypes about male ballet dancers[clarification needed] lead to changes in perception.

[3] William L. Earl's 1988 exploration of American stereotypes asked upper-middle class mall shoppers to describe male ballet dancers, as a whole, using up to 15 words or phrases.

", "secretive", "neurotic", "narcissistic", "soft", "vain", "frail", "homosexual", "Momma's Boy", “irresponsible", "probably hard workers", "creatures of the night", "flighty", "afraid of intimacy", "use people", "cold", and "fancy".

[5] In a 2003 sociological study, male ballet dancers reported several stereotypes they had been confronted with, including "feminine, homosexual, wimp, spoiled, gay, dainty, fragile, weak, fluffy, woosy, prissy, artsy and sissy".

[6] In preparation for their 2009 anthology on masculinity and dance, Jennifer Fisher and Anthony Shay interviewed several male dancers from different age groups, ethnic backgrounds, and sexualities.

He tells of the time he performed in his school's talent show at age eleven, "I was so excited about doing A Dance from David, my first choreography.

"[9] A number of notable actors, sportsmen and other celebrities have studied ballet, including Australian rules footballers James Hird and Josh Dunkley,[10][11][12] footballer Rio Ferdinand, rap artist Tupac Shakur, and actors Arnold Schwarzenegger, Christian Bale, Jamie Bell and Jean-Claude Van Damme, noted for their action and martial arts acting roles.

Male ballet dancers take on different movement characteristics and different technique compared to their female counter parts.

[2] Within the dance world words like strong, proud, and in control were used to describe a good male ballet dancer.

Men are often perceived as and are expected to display qualities such as dominance, independence, authority, strength, and a lack of emotions.

[15] Since dance is an expression of emotion that is based on vulnerability, men thus open themselves to mockery by displaying different characteristics than the expected male attributes.

In a study done on peer attitudes of participants in "gender specific" sports (e.g. ballet and American football), teens ages 14–18 were found to have strong stereotypical views.

Likewise, these stereotypes may tend to filter out certain types of potential participants — e.g., macho males ... in athletic activities which are 'inappropriate' for one's gender.