However, this was all back in Reno, Nev. Dummar took a circuitous route to get to Chicago and joining the world-famous Joffrey Ballet. He took summer courses in Seattle, Wash.; went to the Harid Conservatory in Boca Raton, Fla. (where he graduated first in his class) ; and danced with Ballet Memphis in Memphis, Tenn., before ending up in the Windy City.
As for being out, Dummar said that a situation in boarding school helped him come to terms with his sexuality. (“It wasn’t the first situation, but it was the first one where I was comfortable enough to admit it.”) He added that “my mom still has issues with it because she wants grandkids—but she’s met every guy I’ve called a boyfriend, and she’s been gracious.”
Dummar has been with the Joffrey for more than five years, meaning that he was here when Ashley Wheater became the company’s artistic director (a development Dummar called “the great turnover”). “Honestly, I think he’s done great things,” Dummar said. “I can’t complain about him at all. He’s a wonderful human—so kind, so generous.”
As for the company, it’s currently performing The Merry Widow through Sunday, Feb. 27 at the Auditorium Theatre, 50 E. Congress. ” [The Merry Widow] is fun; it’s kinda more of a Broadway show than a ballet, but it’s nice to have some levity now and again. I mean, we actually do the can-can at one point.” However, Dummar is really looking forward to the Joffrey’s spring show, “Rising Stars”: “We’re doing two world premieres as well as a Joffrey premiere with Julia Adam, whom I’ve had the pleasure of working with in Memphis. I’m so thrilled; I can’t wait.”
Dummar also teaches at the Academy of Dance. “I love teaching,” he said. “Having students is such a good experience. It can make things so clear sometimes when you’re trying to communicate what you’re trying to achieve. I think the students also being taught by a professional—sometimes it brings in a more realistic perspective about what they’re expected to do. The best thing is that knowledge is being passed down from generation to generation; it’s nice to be able to share what you’ve learned, and to see that it makes a difference.”
Lastly, with all the hype surrounding the Natalie Portman movie Black Swan, that flick begs the question: How realistic is that movie? “I actually think the competition factor is a little overstated,” Dummar said. “No one wants to be doing these roles every night. We do 30 to 40 performances of The Nutcracker, and if I had to go out there and do the Cavalier 40 times, I’d be in the hospital. I think you’re in competition with yourself. … The director was probably the most ridiculous aspect of that movie.”
THE STATS
Age: 27
Neighborhood: Boystown
Hometown: Reno, Nev.
Relationship status: Has been with his boyfriend for a year
Favorite snack food: Fresh produce
Dream destination: Mount Shasta
Hobbies: Reading, meditating, yoga, playing video games, going to Sidetrack’s “Musical Mondays”
Favorite singer: Yolanda Adams
Text by ANDREW DAVIS, photos by Andrew Davis, Herbert Migdoll