“I screwed up. The comment I made about dance was stupid and insensitive and I am deeply sorry,” Spencer said on the ABC show. “I have learned the bravery it takes for a young boy to pursue a career in dance,” she added.
The host also reached out to dance icons like Debbie Allen and Travis Wall for the comments she originally made on Thursday. In addition to her apology on the show, Spencer posted on Instagram stating, “From ballet to anything one wants to explore in life, I say GO FOR IT. I fully believe we should all be free to pursue our passions. Go climb your mountain-and love every minute of it”
Spencer, during a segment on Good Morning America, had made a remark about 6-year-old Prince George enjoying ballet classes that were a part of his school curriculum. Referring to an earlier comment by his father, Prince William, about how much the young royalty enjoys the dance form, Spencer laughingly said, “I have news for you Prince William—we’ll see how long that lasts.”
The insinuation that boys could not enjoy dancing ballet was not well received by members of the community. Male dancers from the cast of the Broadway musical Cher protested outside GMA studios the same day Spencer apologized, CNN reported on Monday. Meanwhile, dance legend Allen took to Instagram stating poking fun at young boys and ballet was “just not cool.”
So You Think You Can Dance’s Wall said he was bullied for dancing too, and made an appeal to “ask yourself if you want to be a bully.”
A post shared by Debbie Allen (@therealdebbieallen) on Aug 23, 2019 at 11:28am PDT
Prince George attends Thomas’s Battersea, a private school in London. The young prince will be moving from Year 1 to Year 2 this fall and will be taking a wide range of subjects. According to the school’s website, students study subjects ranging from Literacy and Science to Art and Ballet.
