“Our creative industries are under threat, the time to act is now”
here’s an eerie silence as I enter London’s Clapham Grand, which is strangely at odds with the rock ’n’ roll red and gold interiors, and Victorian splendour. It should be bustling with staff preparing for the evening shift and musicians rehearsing but, like music venues across the country, its doors have remained closed since March.
I’m here for a (socially distanced) shoot with Dior Beauty (opens in new tab) and the highly acclaimed Royal Ballet principal dancer Francesca Hayward to launch our Marie Claire Christmas campaign #SaveTheArts, a celebration of the power of the creative industries in partnership with The Theatre Artists Fund. The organisation, launched in July, has been providing critical financial support to freelancers in the performing arts whose incomes have been impacted by months of unemployment due to lockdown.
Having spent much of the year on enforced leave from the profession she loves, it’s a topic Francesca feels strongly about. The 28-year-old principal dancer had been about to make her debut as the Black Swan in ‘Swan Lake’, taking on one of the most demanding roles in ballet alongside her boyfriend Cesar Corrales when lockdown was announced in March. Confined largely to her home – a one-bedroom flat in the London’s West End – she put her rigorous seven-hour-a-day training regime on hold for the first time in her life, and has seen many of her friends in the industry lose jobs they’ve spent their lives training for.
Francesca admits the enforced pause has given her time to reflect on her wider ‘mission’ following a busy year in 2019 which included her Hollywood debut in the film ‘Cats’ alongside Taylor Swift and Judi Dench.
‘I feel really passionate about shifting the stereotypes around ballet, making it more accessible to a wider audience and encouraging people from diverse backgrounds to enter the profession,’ she tells me. As the daughter of a Kenyan mother and English father who was raised by her grandparents in Kent, she has spoken out this year about the casual racism she has witnessed herself, and how pleased she is that the Black Lives Matter movement has ignited more open discussions around diversity and inclusion in her industry.
It’s as I make my way up a dark narrow staircase towards the dressing rooms that I first glimpse Francesca, fresh out of make-up with the legendary artist Nikki Wolff. A white tutu and ballet shoes in hand, she hurries to get changed out of the black polo neck and sweatpants she has arrived in. She is slight, with delicate, beautifully proportioned features, huge brown eyes and a warm smile.
Minutes later she emerges resplendent in a spectacular black floor-length Dior gown slashed almost to the waist, drawing excited gasps from the crew. She effortlessly combines an elegant fragility with a tremendous sense of power and focus. There is genuine awe as Francesca begins to warm up on set, breaking into spontaneous pirouettes and then kicking a long, slender but muscular leg into the air.
As we start shooting, the venue suddenly comes alive with the sound of drums, an electric guitar and a violin. We’ve invited rock band Cruel Hearts Club and violinist Jess Murphy along to create the soundtrack and the theatre space is charged with creativity. Earlier this year, Jess organised a protest with 400 other musicians outside Parliament to appeal for more support for musicians hit by the pandemic and her passion is palpable.
As I look around at the hugely talented creative team here today, from the make-up artist to the photographer, the lighting engineers to the stylists and many more helping to bring our campaign to life, it only becomes more evident why the creative industries are so important - not just for the sheer range of jobs they provide but also for their power to inspire and empowerus in challenging times.
Andrea Thompson in conversation with Francesca Hayward
T
CAST
TALENT: FRANCESCA HAYWARD
BAND: CRUEL HEARTS CLUB, GITA LANGLEY AND GABI WOO PLAYING 'DIRTY ROTTEN SCUM'
VIOLINIST: JESS MURPHY
PRODUCTION
DIRECTOR AND PHOTOGRAPHER: VICKY LAWTON
WORDS BY EDITOR IN CHIEF ANDREA THOMPSON
BEAUTY AND STYLE DIRECTOR: LISA OXENHAM
MAKE-UP BY NIKKI WOLFF, DIOR UK CELEBRITY MAKE-UP AMBASSADOR,
USING DIOR BEAUTY AND DIOR GOLDEN NIGHTS HOLIDAY COLLECTION
HAIR BY TYLER JOHNSTON AT ONE REPRESENTS USING BUMBLE AND BUMBLE
STYLIST: PHOEBE LETTICE THOMPSON AT THE WALL GROUP
MOVEMENT DIRECTOR: KRISTEN MCNALLY
EXECUTIVE PRODUCER: CHELSEA STEMPLE AT TONIC REPS
SENIOR PRODUCER: BLAIR SMITH
PRODUCTION MANAGER: FRANCESCA CASILLI
PRODUCTION ASSISTANT: LOUISE FLOOD
PRODUCTION ASSISTANT: SARAH BARNES
MAKE-UP ASSISTANT: MAHA ALSELAMI
HAIR ASSISTANT: ROXANNE MORGAN
DESIGN BY ANA OSPINA AND OLIVER BOURNE
STILLS, FILM, POST
DOP: JOE DOUGLAS. FOCUS PULLER: JEFF VINE. LOADER: CHRISTIAN SWAIN. GAFFER: JOE SHERNO. SPARKS: SHAUN CLARK AND JACK RYAN. DATA WRANGLER: JESS VILJOENF. SOUND: PAUL CUTLER. FIRST ASSISTANT: TOMMY FRANCIS. SECOND ASSISTANT: DOMA DOVGIALO. DIGI: ALEX GALE. OFFLINE EDIT: SALLY COOPER AT THE QUARRY. GRADE: SIMONA CRISTEA AT COFFEE & TV. FINAL SOUND: NEIL JOHNSON. RETOUCHING: TRUEBLACK
COVER
BEAUTY CREDITS: DIOR BACKSTAGE FACE & BODY UNIVERSAL PRIMER, £27.50, BACKSTAGE FACE & BODY FOUNDATION, £29.50, BACKSTAGE FACE & BODY GLOW, £28.50, BACKSTAGE GLOW FACE PALETTE IN GLITZ, £36, DIORSHOW 24H STYLO IN MATTE BLACK, £22.50, GOLDEN NIGHTS 5 COULEURS COUTURE IN BLACK NIGHT, £50, DIORSHOW ICONIC OVERCURL MASCARA IN BLACK, £28, AND ADDICT STELLAR GLOSS IN
J’ADIOR, £28, ALL DIOR BEAUTY
FASHION CREDITS: DRESS BY DIOR, EARRINGS BY MILA MORE,
SHOES, MODELS OWN
Francesca Hayward
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As a seismic year comes to a close, Royal Ballet principal dancer
Francesca Hayward - radiant in Dior Beauty - talks to Editor in Chief
Andrea Thompson about the arts and finding her voice in 2020
BEAUTY CREDITS: DIOR BACKSTAGE FACE & BODY UNIVERSAL PRIMER, £27.50, BACKSTAGE FACE & BODY FOUNDATION, £29.50, BACKSTAGE FACE & BODY GLOW, £28.50, BACKSTAGE GLOW FACE PALETTE IN GLITZ, £36, GOLDEN NIGHTS 5COULEURS COUTURE IN GOLDEN SNOW, £50, GOLDEN NIGHTS ROUGE BLUSH IN ROSE FRISSON, £38, DIORSHOW ICONIC OVERCURL MASCARA IN BLACK, £28, AND LIP GLOW IN ROSEWOOD, £28, ALL DIOR BEAUTY
FASHION CREDITS: SHIRT AND CORSET BY DIOR, EARRINGS BY PATTY ROSE JEWELLERY AT WOLF & BADGER
Director of Photography and Photographer: VICKY LAWTON
“I feel passionate about shifting the stereotypes around ballet, making it accessible to a wider audience”
‘Yes, when we went into lockdown I was at my peak fitness, training over seven hours a day. As dancers we’re always fit, but there are times when you’re training for a particular show that demands more of you and you’re pushing yourself to the limit. Odette in Swan Lake is one of those roles. Out of all the bigballerina roles, it’s the last on my list to kind of tick off. I’d been psyching myself up for it for a long time mentally and physically, and I was finally in that place. There’s a famous part in Act III where the Black Swan does 32 turns on one leg continuously, which is really difficult. But at the very moment I was due to be performing, I was actually sat at home in my pyjamas with my boyfriend.’
For a month, we tried to practise in our tiny one-bedroom flat and kept kicking each other, trying to do our positions in the kitchen. But you can’t do proper pirouettes, you can’t jump, you can’t move and without doing that kind of stuff, you just can’t be at your fittest, and my body did change. It was tough because as dancers, we are so programmed to always feel we’re not working hard enough, and should be doing more, and we feel guilty if we haven’t pushed ourselves to the limit every day. But as lockdown dragged on, I thought I can’t be doing this half-heartedly. So I just decided to embrace doing nothing, and it turns out I’m quite good at it, which I never knew before! I went on a pasta pilgrimage and spent a lot of time watching box sets. I also ate too much chocolate.’
As a ballet dancer in optimum condition and always perfroming, this year must have been a challenging one...
Thankfully you had cesar [cuban-canadian dancer Cesar corrales] to get through lockdown with then?
BEAUTY CREDITS: DIOR BACKSTAGE FACE & BODY UNIVERSAL PRIMER, £27.50, BACKSTAGE FACE & BODY FOUNDATION, £29.50, BACKSTAGE FACE & BODY GLOW, £28.50, BACKSTAGE GLOW FACE PALETTE IN GLITZ, £36, DIORSHOW 24H STYLO IN MATTE BLACK, £22.50, GOLDEN NIGHTS 5 COULEURS COUTURE IN BLACK NIGHT, £50, DIORSHOW ICONIC OVERCURL MASCARA IN BLACK, £28, AND ADDICT STELLAR GLOSS INJ’ADIOR, £28, ALL DIOR BEAUTY
FASHION CREDITS: TOP BY CHOPOVA LOWENA FROM MATCHESFASHION, TUTU AND SHOES, MODEL’S OWN, BELT, STYLIST’S OWN, TIGHTS BY WOLFORD, AND EARRINGS BY PATTY ROSE JEWELLERY AT WOLF & BADGER
Do you think your passion for ballet was something you were born with?
‘Yes, I have memories of being two or three years old and just consuming all the ballets on TV with my grandparents, who I lived with. I remember understanding innately the emotions that dancers were miming in their movements and copying them, all day every day. I love being able to tell a story with my body.’
‘Yes, it gets harder and harder, so people drop out along the way. You have to be very, very dedicated. I know people who were really talented but they just realised that mentally they weren’t strong enough. I had many tearful conversations with my grandparents. I never thought seriously about giving up, butcame close a few times.’
Ballet training is notoriously hard. Were there moments you thought you might give up?
“You may be the one on stage but there are hundreds of people behind the scenes working so you can step out there each night”
BEAUTY CREDITS: DIOR BACKSTAGE FACE & BODY UNIVERSAL PRIMER, £27.50, BACKSTAGE FACE & BODY FOUNDATION, £29.50, BACKSTAGE FACE & BODY GLOW, £28.50, BACKSTAGE GLOW FACE PALETTE IN GLITZ, £36, DIORSHOW 24H STYLO IN MATTE BLACK, £22.50, GOLDEN NIGHTS 5 COULEURS COUTURE IN BLACK NIGHT, £50, DIORSHOW ICONIC OVERCURL MASCARA IN BLACK, £28, AND ADDICT STELLAR GLOSS IN J’ADIOR, £28, ALL DIOR BEAUTY
FASHION CREDITS: DRESS BY DIOR, EARRINGS BY MILA MORE
What are you most looking forward to about being back on stage for the nutcracker in January?
‘My boyfriend and I are rehearsing for the roles of the Sugar Plum Fairy and the Prince. It’s very much about the two of us and we’re in our kingdom of love. It’s all super cheesy but its amazing because we have great chemistry. I love our pas de deux [dance duet] because I have a crown on. It’s like my Beyoncé moment as I get to wear a blonde wig for it. It’s also the first time the whole dance company will be dancing together. We never see each other as a team because it’s all socially distanced, but it’s kind of the first big thing we’ve done as a group so everyone’s really happy. I can’t wait.’
‘Some were paid a pretty grim retainer for a couple of months and then just out of the blue were told that their job was gone – when you do a whole eight years of training every single day, have worked so hard to be where you are, it’s not easy. As dancers, we know how lucky we are to get to do what we love every day, and we wouldn’t change it for the world. But there is a particular branch of Sainsbury’s in the West End of London where the majority of the night shift are talented musical theatre dancers just trying to pay their bills and keep a roof
over their heads.’
What are you most looking forward to about being back on stage for the nutcracker in January?
You have a lot of friends in the creative industry - how were they affected by lockdown?
“You wouldn’t believe the number of people who say ‘But what do you do for your real job?’ when I tell them I’m a dancer”
‘Yes, and you get to know all of them. You may be that’s out onstage but there are hundreds of people behind the scenes all working so you can step out there each night. There are the people who designed my costume, like the tutu I wear, which had to be made by three different skilled professionals who spent their whole life training in that particular skill. I have someone who specially fits it for me so I can dance in it; someone who fits my pointe shoes, the people who do my hairand make-up, a person who even sets my wig. Then there are the lighting people, the props people, the stage department, the orchestra, everyone. We all know each other backstage and then to suddenly go back to the Royal Opera House and see that we’re not all there any more, it’s really heartbreaking.’
‘I found that hurtful but it’s no surprise. In the long-term I would love to see some recognition for how much we contribute to the national economy. We have so many negative stereotypes about ballet being just for girls and not a propercareer. I would love to see people value it as a career choice for their children. It’s a personal mission of mine. You wouldn’t believe the number of people that say to me “But what do you do for your real job?” when I tell them I’m a dancer.’
“There’s a Sainsbury’s in the West End where the majority of the night shift workers are talented theatre dancers just trying to keep a roof over their heads”
When it comes to a huge production like swan lake, there must be many members of the team behind the scenes too?
It must be difficult then when the arts are undermined - like in the now infamous government advert suggesting fatima the ballerina retrains for a career in ‘cyber’...
‘Yes, that has to be the answer. When I was young and watching ballet, it didn’t cross my mind that I was only watching white ballerinas. When I got to the Royal Ballet and people started asking me how it feels to be mixed-race, it kind of took me aback and I didn’t want to have to spend interviews talking about it. But I realise me being here is really important for other people. For me racism has never been a big issue but I am completely aware that it has been for others. There are stories coming out from companies in Germany [where black ballerina Chloé Lopes Gomes claims she was told she did not fit in because of her skin colour and was told to ‘whiten up’ with make-up], and I’m just kind of horrified.’
‘I still get quite emotional when I even just think about that video, how someone could be that inhumane to another human. On my social media I always steer away from anything political because it can be a very vicious place. But with my background I could not have been silent or carried on posting pictures of myself when this was happening. I can’t say I agree with the whole “black square” thing. I know for a fact there were people who posted black squares and their values were not aligned with what they were putting out there. They just wanted to beseen as “non-racist”. But the fact that we’re even having these conversations about racism in society is the most important thing, and that it’s being discussed by everyone of all races.’
“We have to start with the next generation, going into schools and inspiring people from all backgrounds”
You’ve spoken out this year about the need to open up the arts to more audiences from different backgrounds so that people feel ballet is for everyone.
Has the black lives matter movement and the death of george floyd had an impact on you this year as a mixed-race kenyan-british woman?
BEAUTY CREDITS: DIOR BACKSTAGE FACE & BODY UNIVERSAL PRIMER, £27.50, BACKSTAGE FACE & BODY FOUNDATION, £29.50, BACKSTAGE FACE & BODY GLOW, £28.50, BACKSTAGE GLOW FACE PALETTE IN GLITZ, £36, GOLDEN NIGHTS 5 COULEURS COUTURE IN GOLDEN SNOW, £50, GOLDEN NIGHTS ROUGE BLUSH IN ROSE FRISSON, £38, DIORSHOW ICONIC OVERCURL MASCARA IN BLACK, £28, AND LIP GLOW IN
ROSEWOOD, £28 ALL DIOR BEAUTY
FASHION CREDITS: SHIRT AND CORSET BY DIOR, BRIEFS BY COMMANDO, SOCKS BY FALKE, EARRINGS BY PATTY ROSE JEWELLERY AT WOLF & BADGER, GLOVES BY DENTS, AND SHOES, MODEL’S OWN
You’ve spoken out this year about the need to open up the arts to more audiences from different backgrounds so that people feel ballet is for everyone.
‘I don’t believe that there are lots of talented people from diverse backgrounds that are being rejected because when it comes to ballet, talent is the most important thing and if you’re talented you can make it. What I really believe is that they’re not being introduced to these art forms in the first place, or they are feeling like they’re not welcome there. This year, the whole industry and the dance world has had to address this. There’sno quick fix. I don’t think we’re going to see the issue resolved in the next few years. We have to start with the next generation, going into schools and inspiring people from all backgrounds. That is going to take time but that is what I feel committed to doing now.’
Donate the Theatre Artist Fund here and follow our campaign at @marieclaireuk #SAVETHEARTS
What steps need to be made to ensure the arts feel more inclusive to people from all backgrounds?
BEAUTY CREDITS: DIOR BACKSTAGE FACE & BODY UNIVERSAL PRIMER, £27.50, BACKSTAGE FACE & BODY FOUNDATION, £29.50, BACKSTAGE FACE & BODY GLOW, £28.50, BACKSTAGE GLOW FACE PALETTE IN GLITZ, £36, DIORSHOW 24H STYLO IN MATTE BLACK, £22.50, GOLDEN NIGHTS 5 COULEURS COUTURE IN BLACK NIGHT, £50, DIORSHOW ICONIC OVERCURL MASCARA IN BLACK, £28, AND ADDICT STELLAR GLOSS IN J’ADIOR, £28, ALL DIOR BEAUTY
FASHION CREDITS: DRESS BY DIOR, EARRINGS BY MILA MORE
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