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The Berlin National Ballet in Germany has decided not to upload 'The Nutcracker', the representative repertoire of the Christmas performance, this year.

This is because there is a racist element in some of the directings.



According to The Times on the 27th local time, Christina Theobald, acting artistic director of the Berlin National Ballet, said, "There is a racist element in the performance of 'The Nutcracker' based on the choreography of Marius Petipa. I will keep my promise."



The ballet company has been examining whether there are any problems in classical ballet by modern standards since last June, but found a problem in the 'Chinese Dance' of the Kwakland doll in the play 'The Nutcracker'.



There are elements of racism, such as ridiculous makeup, exaggerated dance, and white dancers painting their skin yellow.



This reflects the image of the Chinese in the 19th century Europeans.



Recently, the Scottish Ballet also modified the dance and makeup of Chinese and Arabs in the play in line with the anti-racism trend.



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At the same time, there are voices of dissatisfaction about not performing the work, and encouragement and support for changing the old-fashioned elements into a modern one.



Acting coach Theobald said, "There have been complaints from the Berlin audience since 2015, and we want to take it seriously. I think it's our duty to take a closer look at it."



Earlier, an internal investigation was conducted after being accused of racial discrimination against the black dancer Chloe López-Gomez at the Berlin National Ballet in Germany.



Lopez-Gomez revealed that at the time, Ballet Mistress (female choreographer and director) had been asked to "make her face white" in order to blend in with the other dancers.

He also shared that he was given white veils to other members and told himself, "I won't give it to you because you're black."



Last April, the Ballet Company paid Lopez-Gomez a 16,000 euros (about 21.6 million won) settlement money along with negotiations for a one-year contract extension.



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