Introducing Dancers to the Theater

            “The theater is magic, and blessed are those who make that magic.” -Author Unknown

            It is performance time for dance schools around the world.  Young children gather at theaters, excited to show friends and family members what they have learned in weekly dance classes, and teachers excitedly anticipate the moment when they will feel a sense of pride, knowing that they have been able to pass this art form on to another generation.

            Quite often when teachers and students enter the theater, it is viewed as a finish line to be crossed.  It is important to remember, that because dance is a performing art, the year-end performance, or recital, needs to be treated as an educational experience in its own rite.

            The theater is a very different place than the classroom.  Since dance educators have spent countless hours in the theater, it is easy to forget that this experience may be the first of its kind for many of the students.  Performing in a theater can be overwhelming, and one of the dance educator’s jobs is to make the experience a pleasant and educational one. 

            As the performance approaches, class time should be spent learning and reviewing the rules of the theater.  Students need to be taught about the hierarchy that exists backstage, how costumes should be treated and backstage etiquette.

            Upon arriving, the younger students should be given a tour of the theater, including dressing rooms and the house, as well as the stage area.  Walking around in a small group both backstage and onstage, in full light, can help quell any traces of fear or anxiety.  The students should be taught the proper names for the different areas of the stage, become acquainted with the wings and the placement of lights and made to understand the importance of being quiet backstage.

            It is also extremely important that the students meet the stage manager and stagehands and realize that a show would not be possible without these important people.

            The theater is, and has always been, a sacred place, and young dancers need to be taught to treat it that way.  It is easy to forget amidst the excitement and bustle of spacing and dress rehearsals that a dance educator’s job is to teach dance students about all the aspects of the dance form.  Since dance is a performing art, learning to respect the theater is as integral a part of a young dancer’s education as is learning proper technique.

Forcing Turnout: Is It Really That Bad For You?

            "Dance, an art form; the body, an instrument. Learn to play the instrument so you can master the art form."-Debbie Dee

       Turnout is an integral part of ballet technique.  It involves externally rotating each leg 90° so that the inside of the leg is visible from the front.  Turnout originated in the 1600’s during the reign of the French king, Louis XIV.  Ballet was performed on a proscenium stage, which necessitated sideways movement while displaying as much of the body as possible.  The shoes that were used were elaborately adorned, and it is believed that part of the reason for turnout was to display the beauty of the shoes while performing.

     

              When the “rules of dance” were written down by Pierre Beauchamp, they included the five positions that are the basis for ballet today and the concept of turnout.  Today’s turnout is much more exaggerated and extreme than it was originally, and perfect 180° turnout is the ideal to which today’s ballet dancers aspire.

           

            Unfortunately, not everyone’s body structure allows for perfect turnout.  The rotation must originate from the hip since it is the only ball and socket joint in the leg.  The ability to turnout is predetermined by the shape of the head of the femur, or thighbone, the angle that is formed where it inserts into the pelvis and the flexibility of the muscles and ligaments surrounding the hip.  While the actual skeletal structure cannot be changed, the flexibility of the hip can be increased through specific stretches to allow for a greater range of motion.

            Since few dancers are born with an ideal body structure for turnout, ballet dancers often feel the need to force their legs to rotate more than is anatomically feasible.  Dancers bend their knees, outwardly rotate their feet and then force the body to hold that position while they straighten their legs.  It is quite easy to spot the dancer who is forcing turnout.  Teachers need to check to see if the dancers’ kneecaps, or patellas, are facing the same direction as their toes.  If they are not, the rotation is being forced and the dancer is probably struggling to hold the position.

            It is the struggle to maintain forced turnout, which can lead to a variety of problems.  In an attempt to hold forced turnout and remain balanced, the dancer begins to grip the floor with the toes, which keeps the plantar tendon in a contracted state which inflames the tendon and eventually results in plantar fasciitis.  The dancer may also begin to pronate, or roll forward at the ankle.  Pronation causes the dancer to use the inside of the foot when pushing off the floor for relevés and jumps instead of using the bottom of the foot.  In addition to making the movement less efficient, this action puts pressure on the big toe joint, which will become inflamed and irritated, and eventually a bunion will develop.

            Forcing turnout from the ankle also causes the tibia, the large shinbone, to twist.  This twisting irritates the tibialis posterior muscle, which attaches to the tibia, and can result in shin splints.

            All of the unnatural twisting weakens the ligaments that are responsible for the stability of the ankle and the knee and disturbs the natural line of the Achilles tendon, causing tendonitis.  Tendonitis can also develop in the patellar tendon, which attaches the quadricep muscles of the thigh to the tibia.

            Lastly, in order to balance while forcing turnout and pronating, the body compensates by tipping the pelvis forward.  As this happens, the curve in the lumbar spine increases, causing swayback, or lordosis.  Lordosis stretches the hamstrings, puts a strain on the lower back and decreases the shock absorption quality of the spine.

            The feet are the body’s foundation.  Just like any change in a foundation causes detrimental shifts in a building, when the feet are placed in an unstable position, the other body parts must shift to compensate for the instability.  It is imperative that turnout originate at the hip joint and not be forced from the ankle or knee.  An efficient, healthy dancer is one who learns to make the most of his or her body, respecting and working with its strengths and within its limitations.