THE ARTS

Plies Are Safer: A ballet dancer getting ready for “Romeo and Juliet” carried his rehearsals too far, in the eyes of police in Austin, Tex. Edward Moffat of Ballet Austin was jailed for practicing his thrusts and parries with a stage prop sword while riding a unicycle on the street. The charge of carrying a weapon could bring up to a year in jail and a $2,000 fine. Freed on $900 bail and back in rehearsal, Moffat found the incident “kind of funny.” However, a police lieutenant said, “A sword by any other name is still a sword.”