Exit
leave their personal style?
“When you know you’re going
to walk for five minutes and then
take everything off again, it just
kind of puts a damper on it,” Taylor
admits. It may be easy to feel discouraged, but Taylor goes for bright
pops of color, bold accessories and
layers when she’s off duty — hardly
the look of a woman who’s been defeated in the fashion department.
In fact, it seems like the dancers’ rigid style schedule has only
served as motivation to amp it up
when they’re not performing or in
rehearsal. “I find a difference now
STYLE
in how I dress when I’m not working,” Smith says. “I put a little bit
more time and effort.” Though she
prefers flats, Smith has her goto heels for when December rolls
around and her calves are “blown
out” from performing Balanchine’s
The Nutcracker for weeks on end:
J. Crew’s wedges.
“The plastic from the wedge
absorbs your shock when you’re
walking,” she says. “It gives your
calves a break. And it’s cute.”
These ladies may not fit the
mold of your archetypal, prissy
ballerina, but they’re sure unique
and they definitely have style.
Something tells us Balanchine would be proud.
HUFFINGTON
12.08.13
“I’m very
scissorhappy when
it comes to
what I wear
at work,” says
Gretchen
Smith, a
corps de
ballet dancer.