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Chloé Lopes Gomes

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Chloé Lopes Gomes
Born
Nice, France
NationalityFrench
OccupationBallet dancer
AwardsBBC 100 Women (2021)
Career
Current groupStaatsballett Berlin

Chloé Lopes Gomes (born c. 1991) is a French ballet dancer known for being the first biracial female dancer from subsaharan African descent in the Staatsballett Berlin.[1][2]

Personal life

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Lopes Gomes was born in Nice, France.[3] Her father is from Cape Verde, and her mother is French and Algerian. She is mixed-race. [4]

Career

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Lopes Gomes first took dance lessons at the Conservatoire de Nice.[3] She later trained at Ecole Nationale Supérieure de Danse de Marseille then the Bolshoi Ballet Academy in Russia.[5][6] She has performed with Opéra de Nice, France, the New English Ballet Theater, and Béjart Ballet in Lausanne, Switzerland.[6][7]

Lopes Gomes joined the Staatsballett Berlin in 2018, and became their first Black ballet dancer.[2] In 2020, Lopes Gomes' contract was not renewed and she left the Staatsballett Berlin. Lopes Gomes later alleged she was discriminated against because of her race and directed to wear whitening make-up to perform while at Staatsballett Berlin.[2] Staatsballett Berlin conducted an investigation into the claims, later giving out €16,000 to Lopes Gomes and renewed her contract in an out-of-court settlement.[7][8]

Lopes Gomes was named in BBC's 100 Women 2021.[9]

References

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  1. ^ "Black ballet dancers 'proud' of Chloé Lopes Gomes after racism claims". BBC News. 2020-12-10. Retrieved 2021-12-07.
  2. ^ a b c Sulcas, Roslyn (2020-12-11). "Black Ballerina, Playing a Swan, Says She Was Told to Color Her Skin". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2021-12-07.
  3. ^ a b "Now is the time". Vogue Italia (in Italian). 2020-06-18. Retrieved 2021-12-07.
  4. ^ "Black dancer calls for change in 'closed and elitist' world of ballet". NBC News. Retrieved 2021-12-07.
  5. ^ "Chloe Lopes Gomes". www.staatsballett-berlin.de. Archived from the original on 2020-09-28. Retrieved 2021-12-07.
  6. ^ a b "Berlin: Staatsballett's first black female dancer accuses it of racism". the Guardian. 2020-12-09. Retrieved 2021-12-07.
  7. ^ a b "Black ballet dancer Lopes Gomes wins Berlin racism case". BBC News. 2021-04-23. Retrieved 2021-12-07.
  8. ^ Sulcas, Roslyn (2021-04-22). "Staatsballett Berlin and Dancer Reach Settlement Over Bias Allegations". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2021-12-07.
  9. ^ "BBC 100 Women 2021: Who is on the list this year?". BBC News. 2021-12-07. Retrieved 2021-12-07.