In an interview with The New York Times last week, Charlize Theron refuted Timothée Chalamet's claim that ballet is a struggling art form. By April 22, she turned her pro-dance words into action by twirling through her Apex press tour in Spring 2026's jazz shoes trend.
Theron originally moved to New York City to be a ballet dancer, so it's only right she channeled that side on The TODAY Show. Her longtime stylist, Leslie Framer, traded the morning's mesh Alaïa pumps for stark white, fresh-from-jazz-class derby shoes. The Bottega Veneta Fall 2026 pair added monochrome shoelaces to the elongated, square-toe uppers of high-vamp flats. That way, the soft, sole-cradling flats could've gone straight from her TV interview to a dance rehearsal (if she had one).
Theron's lace-up derbies could've been plucked from a ballerina's dance bag, but the rest of her outfit felt rehearsal-ready, too. First, the Oscar winner stacked a white bralette beneath an oversize, semi-sheer long-sleeve. Together, the pieces appeared lightweight enough for a dancer to wear them during warm ups.
The top's elongated hem covered the waistline of her asymmetrical tutu-adjacent mini skirt. Distressed tiers gave Theron the look of the white swan in Swan Lake after a long day of pas de deux practicing. For her grand finale, the actor swapped Bottega Veneta's beanie for yellow gold hoop earrings and a chocolate brown Intrecciato hobo bag.
Similar styles from Dries Van Noten, Ralph Lauren, Jil Sander, and Tibi shared the Spring 2026 stage months before Chalamet's opinion went viral. Now, Theron is using the silhouette to get her rebuttal back to Chalamet: "That was a very reckless comment on an art form, two art forms, that we need to lift up constantly because, yes, they do have a hard time," Theron told The New York Times. "Dance is probably one of the hardest things I ever did. Dancers are superheroes. What they put their bodies through in complete silence.”
Celebrities have yet to join the jazz shoes corps en masse, but fashion insiders like Style At Large contributor Irene Kim are making the trend their "most-reached-for shoe." See? You don't have to be a ballerina-turned-Oscar winner to sample jazz shoes. All you need is an appreciation for the arts, and the fashion trends they inspire.
