Can I take my child to this ballet?

Many ballets are based on fairy tales and well-known stories. This makes it seem that the performances are appropriate for or even geared toward young children. While many ballets are beautiful and full of princesses and fairies, not all of them end happily ever after.

Most ballets are performed in theaters, which are sometimes not child friendly environments. Seats are set very close together, and some areas are very far away from (or too close to) the stage, which can make seeing the dancers difficult. It is not appropriate to leave your seat, talk, eat, or play during the performance, so some young children or others who cannot respect these rules do not make good audience members. If a child can attend a film at the movie theater with little or no problem, he or she is probably able to be a good audience member. 

A lot of ballets are based on stories that have been picked up by Disney or other movie making companies. When a ballet company puts on "Sleeping Beauty" or "Little Mermaid", do not expect the story to follow the Disney version. The music and costumes will also greatly differ from what is in the animated movie. As a parent, you may want to research the original story upon which the ballet and Disney film are based (some of the originals can be sad or violent). If you don't feel like your child can handle the original story, he or she may not be ready to see the ballet. If you think your child is ok to attend, have a discussion with him or her about what to expect. If the ballet is very different from the Disney version of the story, it is not "wrong". It is very disruptive to the audience and rude to the dances and choreographer if children (or adults) exclaim their disappointment that the ballet is not a total copy of the Disney movie. 

Some ballet companies (usually big companies in big cities) have special daytime performances geared toward young children or people with disabilities. These shows are usually shorter and may have different music, lighting, or endings to make them less sad or scary. If your child would do better with a performance like this, contact the companies in your area and see if they offer children's shows. Even if they don't currently offer such programs, many companies take audience needs and requests into account when planning programs for upcoming seasons. 

It's also ok to go to the ballet as "parents' date night" or "girls' night out".  Don't take your child to an event he or she can't handle. There will be plenty of ballets in the future to enjoy as your son or daughter becomes more mature.  

Dancers should learn to sew

Sewing may not seem like a skill that goes hand in hand with dance, but it is actually very important. All dancers who take ballet should know the basics of hand sewing. In the "olden days" (approx. year 2000 and earlier), all ballet shoes (pointe and flat) were purchased unsewn. There were no elastics sewn on the shoes, and some didn't come with elastics either. Dancers had to purchase them separately and sew them on their dance shoes. Today, many flat ballet shoes come pre-sewn with either one or two elastic straps. However, not all do, and sometimes the pre-sewn straps are too tight, too loose, or not in the right place. It is a very useful skill to be able to sew on or alter a shoe's elastics for enhanced looks or comfort.

All dancers who dance en pointe must know the basics of hand sewing in order to sew the ribbons and elastics on their pointe shoes. Sansha pointe shoes come with elastic pre-sewn on one side, but all other brands require dancers to acquire and attach their own ribbon and elastic. It is lazy and irresponsible to expect another person to sew your pointe shoes for you. It is totally acceptable for a mom or other family member to help a young dancer with her first pair or two of pointe shoes, but the dancer should try to do most of the stitching herself. 

Remember that you do not need to learn fancy stitches or do anything other than the bare minimum. Learning this simple skill can really help you be prepared and responsible with well-fitting dance shoes. 

Online resources for dancers

All dancers need places to explore information about technique, trends, and upcoming dance events.  The internet is a great place to start when researching anything about the dance community.  I strive to make my blog one of these resources, and here are some more good ones to look at.

**Note: most of these are related to ballet, since that is my main style of dance.

1.  The website of your local dancewear store.  For me, that is http://www.nmdancewear.com/ since I live in Albuquerque and my local store is New Mexico Dancewear.  Many local dancewear stores have information about the products they carry, as well as info about upcoming events in the local dance sphere.

2. Discount Dance Supply: http://www.discountdance.com/index.php  Even if you don't shop online, Discount Dance is amazing to use as a resource.  Most of the products they sell have reviews attached to them, so you can see what other dancers think of specific products before you buy them.  You can also find the specific style numbers to all the products sold on their main pages on Discount Dance.  If you need to place a special order with your local dancewear store, you will most likely need the specific style number of the item you need.  If you follow Discount Dance on Facebook, Pinterest, or Instagram, you can see fashion picks and technique tips from the professional dancers who model most of the items on the website.

3.  YouTube.  Specifically check out these channels:

Kathryn Morgan .https://www.youtube.com/user/Tutugirlkem Katie Morgan is a professional ballet dancer coming back to the dance world after being diagnosed with hypothyroidism.  She has an amazing channel dedicated to helping ballet students on the road to going pro.

Twinstalkballet93. https://www.youtube.com/user/twinstalkballet93  This is a channel put together by twin sisters Kirsten and Kelsey, college students and ballet dancers.  They have lots of good advice, as well as tutorials and product reviews.

AnaheimBallet.  https://www.youtube.com/user/AnaheimBallet This is, obviously, the channel of Anaheim Ballet in California.  They have tons of dancer spotlights, as well as technique tips and tutorials.

4.  Magazine websites:

Pointe magazine. http://www.pointemagazine.com/  This is the "ballet Bible" magazine that gives info on fashion, technique, and everything happening in the professional world of Ballet.

Dance magazine. http://www.dancemagazine.com/  This is the site for Dance magazine, which includes many styles of dance like ballet, jazz, modern, tap, hip hop, and more.  Look for dancewear fashion, interviews with pros, and information about auditions.

Dancespirit magazine. http://www.dancespirit.com/  This is very similar to Dance magazine, but with a slightly younger target audience, I think.



Share your favorite dance resource websites in the comments!

What makes a dance teacher qualified?

Are you looking for a new private teacher or coach?  Here are some things to look for when finding a good teacher that can help develop a student into a professional dancer.

1.  College degree.  Degrees in dance come in many shapes and forms, and vary from school to school.  Generally a BA or MA in dance means that the teacher has experience and expertise in dance history, criticism, or choreography.  BFA or MFA in dance means that the teacher has experience in performance.  BA in dance pedagogy means that the teacher has experience and expertise in teaching dance.  A BA or MA in arts management or fine arts management (or a minor in fine arts management when paired with a degree in dance) means that the teacher has experience in dance as a business or studio management.

2.  Professional work.  Has the teacher danced professionally as a member of a company?  In a university performance group?  On Broadway or in musicals?  In film or other video work?  In what productions?  For how many years?  What parts did he or she perform? 

3.  Teaching from a syllabus.  Many ballet teachers work from established methods such as Vagonova, Cecchetti, or Balanchine.  Ballroom instructors may teach from the DVIDA syllabus.  Other styles of dance have their own methods.  In general, if a teacher is using a syllabus (correctly), students who learn that syllabus will be comparable to students at other studios also learning that syllabus.

4.  Where are former students now?  Does this teacher have former students that are now working professionally?  This is a huge predictor of how “good” a teacher is, but this information can be hard to come by.

A teacher that has a degree, professional experience, and uses a syllabus is usually a good, qualified teacher.  However, not everyone with a degree in dance pedagogy is a good dancer, and not everyone with professional experience is a good teacher.  Some wonderfully talented and successful dancers, choreographers, and teachers did not attend college.

 When “shopping” for a new teacher or private coach for yourself or an older child, browse a few local studios’ websites and find teachers with at least 2 of the following 3: a degree, experience, and/or a syllabus.  Then meet with the teachers and take class or lesson with each.  If you would like, you may ask the teacher about his or her qualifications (just remember to be pleasant and not accusatory).  After you have done your research, make a decision about who is the best teacher for you.  It is ok if your perfect teacher is different from someone else’s.

            If you are looking for a dance class for a child (or adult) beginning dancer, look more at the                studio reputation than the qualifications of the individual teachers.  Many classes for small                  children or adult beginners are taught by advanced students in high school or college.  These                teachers should do just fine as long as they are patient, kind, experienced dancers, and teaching            from a syllabus.

Why is stage makeup so heavy and bold?

Are you dreading putting winged eyeliner on your 9-year-old for her debut performance as a Christmas angel?  Or do you hate staining your lips with red lipstick at every performance?  Here are some things to consider to make you feel a little better about your stage makeup.

Why stage makeup?  The basic reason that dancers wear stage makeup is to make them look like they have facial features from a stage distance.  Have you ever noticed how members of an orchestra across the room or baseball players down on the field start to all look like faceless stick-figures?  That’s how dancers would look too if they did not wear stage makeup.

Why winged eyeliner?  Female dancers wear winged eyeliner to make their eyes look bigger and more feminine.  Male dancers (and girls playing male parts) usually wear “basic” eyeliner that defines the eyes without emphasizing a feminine shape.

Why red lipstick?  Girls and women wear red lipstick so the shapes of their mouths are visible from the audience.  Men and boys wear brown or mauve lipstick for the same reason.  If the audience cannot see the dancers’ mouths, they won’t know if the dancers are smiling.

Why contour?  Children don’t need to contour, since round faces appear cherubic and cute.  Teen and adult dancers use contour, highlight, and bronzer to make their faces look thinner and more 3-D from the audience.  A round face is cute for a Christmas angel, but the Arabian soloist generally desires a more grown up and chiseled appearance.

Why false lashes?  Female dancers use false lashes to make their eyes look feminine and defined.  Male dancers usually do not wear lashes (unless performing parts in drag), and from a stage distance, they usually look like they do not have lashes.  If you really, really hate false lashes, you can get a similar effect by applying 3 or more layers of very black lengthening and volumizing mascara.

Stage makeup may be a big pain to put on and take off, but it does a lot for you when you think about how you look from the audience’s perspective.

Navigating the Christmas dessert table

Too many temptations this holiday season?  Did your friends give you sweets as merde gifts?  Did your neighbors drop off a plate of cookies?  Is Grandma in the kitchen cooking up cakes and pies?  In this post, I will outline some nutritional benefits and pitfalls of common holiday desserts.  The goal here is not to tell you to indulge or abstain, but to give you an idea of what each treat has to offer nutritionally so you can make an educated decision when choosing what treats to eat.

Treat	Pros	Cons
Chocolate	Dark chocolate contains antioxidants and less sugar.	Dark chocolate can taste bitter. White chocolate is not actually chocolate, contains almost nothing of nutritional value, and is high in fat.
Gingerbread	Ginger soothes the stomach if you are concerned about sweets giving you a stomachache.  Cinnamon promotes a healthy immune system.	High fat content in moist cake and chewy cookies.  Frosting is very high in sugar and artificial ingredients if it is colored.
Pumpkin pie	Pumpkin is high in Vitamin A and Beta Carotene, which promotes healthy eyesight, good skin, hearth health, and a good immune system	Crust is often high carb and high fat, pie filling is high sugar.  Not a safe dish for egg allergies.
Pecan pie	Nuts are high in fiber for good heart and digestive health, as well as minerals phosphorous and magnesium	Very high fat, high sugar, and not friendly to nut allergies.
Candy canes	Peppermint soothes upset stomachs and contributes to alertness and concentration, also low or no fat	Very high sugar content, fruity candy canes do not have peppermint benefits, lots of artificial colors
Fruitcake	Dried fruits in fruitcake contain antioxidants and vitamins (usually B for berries and C for citruis).	Usually very high sugar content, also beware of cakes soaked in alcohol.
Cinnamon rolls	Cinnamon promotes immune health, and loading up with carbs can be a good way to refuel after a performance	If you are not active, too many carbs will just weigh you down.  Watch out for high levels of saturated fats in the frosting.
Pudding or custard	Dairy promotes strong bones and teeth.	High sugar, also not friendly to dairy or egg allergies.
Sugar Cookies	Carbs are great post-performance, and one super sweet cookie should keep you satisfied on the dessert front for a long time.	Obviously very high in sugar, and chewy cookies are high in fat.  Watch out for colorful frosting with its saturated fats and artificial colors.
Meringues	Very low calorie and fat free	Not safe for egg allergies.  Do not expect a meringue to keep you energized for long!  Can also be high in sugar.

The truth about understudies

Are you understudying a part (or parts) in this year’s Nutcracker or winter show?  Are you feeling disappointed that you aren’t performing that role as part of the main cast?  Here’s why you should actually feel good about being an understudy.

 1.  The artistic director trusts you.  He or she thinks you are reliable and won’t get sick or hurt and have to drop out of a performance. 

2.  The choreographer believes in you.  He or she thinks you are able to pick up choreography and perform it on stage with fewer rehearsals (and probably no dress rehearsals) than the main cast.

3.  The artistic director recognizes your hard work and humility.  He or she knows you are good enough to dance the part, but also knows that you are mature enough to handle not being in the main cast.

It can be totally boring to stand in the corner of the studio and mark steps while the rest of the company rehearses, but try to remember that being an understudy is an extremely important part of what makes the company run successfully.  Even though it may not feel like it, being an understudy is an honor.