As a competitive dancer myself, I've seen my fair share of "hey, that's my choreography..." moments. It's really unfair because one choreographer could work really hard on a piece and record the work to put on a website just to have another choreographer come along and steal it! It can be considered as a great compliment because obviously it was good choreography- but the original creator should be acknowledged. Think the pros would be above something like that?- think again. Beyonce has been accused of using Ms.Anne Teresa De Keersmaeker's ballet moves (and similar costumes and sets) from “Achterland” and “Rosas danst Rosas” (from the early 90's) in her new pop song music video "Countdown". I watched the video and it is very obvious that the steps are almost identical. Beyonce admits Keersmaeker was one of her inspirations for the music video, and she used the steps in a different setting, but its plagiarism. "Inspiration" doesn't quite cut it. Personally, I think that most stolen choreography is nothing compared to the original.
This article is written by James C. McKinley Jr. and he seems to agree with the hard facts, that Beyonce used Keersmaeker's original choreography, and there should be appropriate repercussions. He mentions a previous time that Beyonce was accused for copying dance choreography and includes quotes from sources scolding the pop artist's actions. He ends the article with a quote from Keersmaeker saying, "I don’t see any edge to it. It’s seductive in an entertaining consumerist way.” (McKinley). Doesn't sound like anything special to me. Beyonce is simply referred to as "pop artist" while Ms. De Keersmaeker " has been a major force in contemporary dance for three decades." (McKinley). I think you know which one sounds more impressive. The author also uses simple but effective vocabulary and diction that even a non-dancer could understand.
Decide for Yourself
http://artsbeat.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/10/10/beyonce-accused-of-plagiarism-over-video/?ref=dance
Well done.
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