Producers Scott Rudin, Barry Diller, and David Geffen recently announced casting for an intriguing revival of West Side Story helmed by visionary director Ivo Van Hove. Among the talented cast is Amar Ramasar, a principal dancer at the New York City Ballet (NYCB). Ramasar was last seen on Broadway in the revival of Carousel, where he triumphantly danced Justin Peck’s stirring choreography. While this makes him a great artistic fit for the dance-heavy West Side Story, his conduct renders him a demonstrably poor choice to join this, or any musical.
In September of 2018, Ramasar was fired from NYCB (but later reinstated when the dancer’s Union got involved) for engaging in sharing nude and explicit photos of a woman with whom he was sleeping, without her consent to take or share these pictures. In addition, he used crass and misogynistic language in talking about the women in the shared pictures, one of whom was training at the affiliated School of American Ballet. (For a more thorough description of his actions, you can read this article in the New York Times.)
Anyone who has witnessed Ramasar on stage can attest to his singular dancing, a mix of athleticism, strength, and weightlessness. But what does that matter if he is an unrepentant assaulter? When he was reinstated into NYCB earlier this year, Ramasar was quoted in the New York Times saying, “As I move forward, learning, and evolving, I am eager to once again dance amongst the colleagues I respect.” This statement is utterly tone deaf, as his actions clearly showed a fundamental disrespect for his fellow female dancers.
I will not co-sign his presence on stage by buying a ticket, nor can I support a production that willingly places it’s performers at risk. How can there be a “place for us” when that place is fundamentally unsafe? Acting requires trust and safety. The show’s producers have allowed a man known to disrespect and mistreat women to rehearse, hold, touch, lift, share scenes, and change backstage with female cast members. How can you put these women in harm’s way, even if that harm is the perception of being unsafe, in good conscience? What will you do to ensure that your female cast members feel and are safe?
In my clinical practice, I specialize in trauma, consisting mostly of women who have been sexually abused. So let me be clear: What Ramasar (and the two other men) did IS abusive. He violated these women and abused their sense of safety. They did not ask to be sexualized or seen naked by other men. They did not consent to their nude body parts being seen by others. The damage such behavior does to these women is ample and can cause nightmares, hyper-vigilance, avoidance, and anxiety. It can cause women to feel fundamentally unsafe in intimate relationships ever again.
Humans can and do learn, grow, and evolve. It is still possible for someone like Ramasar to be part of a production. Healing and repentance can occur but require work. He must acknowledge the harm that he caused, ask for forgiveness from the harmed parties (the women and the public), and create a living amends through reparative action. Ramasar has done none of these visibly. He might have completed some of these steps privately, but the harm that was done was both private and public (i.e. triggering survivors) and therefore the repair must also be public. I will be standing in solidarity with my patients who have survived sexual assault and the millions of other men and women who are survivors. I will not be seeing this production of West Side Story.
Best,
Dr. Drama
#BoycottWSS