Ballet dancer Jovani Furlan has had an up and down year. That is now culminating (in dance terms, as the performing arts wrap up their schedules for the summer break) with the launch of their new performance wear brand Furlan Dancewear, which is among the first dancewear lines specifically for available men. And Furlan approaches it with a decidedly modern approach.
The line is just the latest achievement for Furlan, who began the year in her native Brazil, not knowing if she would be granted a visa to return to the US in time for New York City Ballet’s post-closure return to the stage. . Since then, despite his personal struggles, he’s come back stronger: He finally moved up to lead dancer in February and debuted in a quick series of key Balanchine roles.
Furlan, who has been dancing professionally for 12 years, previously for Miami City Ballet before joining NYCB in 2019, arguably has enough experience to know what the men’s dancewear market is missing. And so, in the midst of the pandemic, while she was still living with her family in Brazil and looking to use the time offstage, that’s exactly what she set out to do.
“I did a lot of research on brands dedicated to men and could only find a couple. For the most part, there are brands that have sub-brands dedicated to men like Capezio and Bloch,” said Furlan, who produces the line in Brazil with locally sourced fabrics.
Furlan dance clothes.
Alinne Volpato
For the launch, Furlan Dancewear includes a fitted edition of leotards, leggings, shorts, a biketard and an elasticated belt that was made to enhance the lines of the body or support billowy pants as dancers like to do.
They are produced in a color palette reminiscent of costumes from Jerome Robbins’ postmodern classic, set to music by Phillip Glass, “Glass Pieces,” a shade of sage green, merlot red, blush pink, sky blue and plain black.
Colors, which can be mixed and matched or worn alone for a monochromatic effect, were important to Furlan, who felt color was generally missing from men’s dancewear options. She “wanted more than black, gray and white tights. She wanted almost a sense of fashion. My pieces are simple, all solid colors, but you can play around with them and wear a shirt on top and a cape.
“I wanted something that didn’t restrict you. The main message is how dancers present themselves day to day and I think fashion is a big part of that,” she said.
Furlan is already considering extensions like leg warmers and hoodies. Everything is priced between $19 and $75 and is available exclusively on Furlan Dancewear’s site, but Furlan is considering certain wholesale partners for the future.
But the brand could have legs beyond the dance. In promotional images shot by Alinne Volpato in Brazil of dancers from Furlan’s hometown studio, the designs are presented with a more luxurious, high-performance angle that might invite buyers from other athletic disciplines to join in.
“I wanted to show the physicality of the dancers, not in a balletic way. I told them to be themselves and be athletic, don’t consider yourselves dancers,” he said.
Furlan, feeling he “couldn’t do this for me alone,” is donating 10 percent of the brand’s profits to a scholarship for young dancers in Brazil to help them realize their dreams, just as he has. “I always depended on scholarships, it was a great struggle. As if dancing wasn’t hard enough, I had other challenges trying to find someone to support me. Even if I impact one student per year, it’s very important to me,” he said.
Source: wwd.com