While male dancers from The Cher Show protested outside the Good Morning America studio, cohost Lara Spencer apologized on-air for laughing at 6-year-old Prince George's love of ballet during a segment last week. She also sat down with three male dancers to address the stigma boys face as dancers.
"I screwed up," Spencer said on Monday's GMA. "The comment I made about dance was stupid and insensitive, and I am deeply sorry."
"I have learned about the bravery that it takes for a young boy to pursue a career in dance," she said. "And last night, I sat down with three influential dancers who lived it firsthand."
Shortly after the segment in which Spencer mocked George's overscheduled childhood with an emphasis on the ballet piece of his curriculum, she issued an apology on her Instagram.
"My sincere apologies for an insensitive comment I made in pop news yesterday," Spencer wrote on Instagram. "From ballet to anything one wants to explore in life, I say GO FOR IT. I fully believe we should all be free to pursue our passions. Go climb your mountain - and love every minute of it."
But the outrage roiled throughout the weekend with members of the Broadway and dance communities calling her out for perpetuating a hateful stereotype. Debbie Allen, a towering figure in the dance world since Fame, recorded a video message for Spencer calling on her to do a better job as a journalist because the arts are already poorly funded.
During Monday's segment, Spencer sat down with dancers Travis Wall, Fabrice Calmels, and Robbie Fairchild to hear their stories. Fairchild, star of the upcoming Cats movie, shared his experience of having been bullied for his love of dance.
Meanwhile, outside the GMA studio in Times Square, dancers from the recently shuttered Cher Show, along with other dancers, taught a ballet class to boys and girls.