Pre-surgical Nutrition

An unfortunate part of a dancer's life is dealing with surgical repairs of the body. Ballet is unforgiving to the body, so from time to time joints need cleaning out. One of the most important parts of the surgical process is your pre-surgical diet.

Nutrition plays a huge role in the healing from surgical procedures because surgery poses a catabolic stress on the body. The catabolic process is when the body breaks down complex molecules to form simpler ones, essentially it is a destructive metabolism. The body’s reaction to surgery produces lots of inflammation and depletes the body’s nutrients; without proper nutrition, the immune system is impaired and the patient can be susceptible to infection.

For a pre-surgical diet you should eat a diet that is rich in protein, whole grains, vegetables, and dairy leading up to surgery, with a special emphasis on ensuring that three full meals are consumed each day. A pre-surgical nutrition plan should also recommended foods that are rich in protein with each meal; cheese, eggs, nuts, milk, yogurt, fish, beans, poultry, etc. are all foods that you should include in each meal. The importance of hydration should also be stressed; I recommend that you consume at least sixty-four fluid ounces a day, to ensure proper levels of hydration going into surgery. In addition to my consumption recommendations, you should take “IN” supplements, Impact Advanced Recovery and Nutren Optimum vitamins. The main ingredients in this cocktail of vitamins are omega-3s, prebiotics, vitamin E, arginine, nucleoids, and high-quality protein. Of these ingredients, I must stress the importance of arginine for bolstering the function of immune cells, enhancing the function of proline and polyamines, which are essential to the process of lesion healing and tissue repair. I must also stress the importance of omega-3s, which help to reduce inflammation, which is part of the inflammatory reaction to surgical intervention.

I hope that all of you avoid surgery down the road but in case you have a procedure, don't forget your nutrition!

5 Best Dance Movies

It seems that dance movies are everywhere nowadays but that doesn't mean they are all that great! I have seen several dance movie flops in my time and thought it would be nice to recommend the ones that I think are done well! There is no such thing as the perfect dance movie, but some do a better job than others.

1. Dirty Dancing

This dance movie is the best dance movie of all time! This story of Frances “Baby” Houseman truly leaves its viewers wishing they were also having the time of their life at a summer resort. Johnny Castle is the dance instructor at this resort and the love interest of the film. All one must do is watch the final dance sequence of Dirty Dancing to understand why this film is number one on my list!

2. Center Stage

Center Stage is number two on my list because it is the dance film that follows my experience in the dance world most accurately. This movie details a group of dance students in their last year training, preparing for their end of year show, and auditioning for ballet companies. This dance movie is based on the School of American Ballet, where I studied ballet for ten years. If you haven’t seen this movie, go watch it!

3. Step Up

Step Up is a gritty, hardly believable story of a boy from a rough neighborhood who helps a ballet dancer student learn hip-hop. The hip-hop dance is fused with her ballet technique to create an audition routine. While the plot of this film is weak, the dance in this film is highly entertaining!  The quality of dance is what brings this film to number three on my list.

4. Flash Dance

This 80s-dance film is a story of Alex Owens, a welder who nightlights as a burlesque dancer. Owen’s big dream is to be a professional ballerina! Aside from the great story of Flashdance, the soundtrack is awesome! Check this movie out and at the very least, download the soundtrack.

5. Footloose

Kevin Bacon is amazing in Footloose! Whatever you do, make sure you watch the 1984 original and not the remake. The magic is not there in the 2011 remake!

I find that when dance seems stressful and work gets busy, it helps to watch a fun dance movie. Watching a good dance movie can remind you of how fun it is to dance and move around. This reminder can be all you need to inspire yourself to return to the rosin box.

An Interview With Amanda Phelan

Meet Amanda Phelan!

Amanda Phelan is a New York based choreographer and performer with a love for crossword puzzles and green tea. She was born and raised in Princeton, NJ, with three younger siblings, all of whom have been her choreographic muses since the age of 7.

She was the assistant choreographer for Amelie the Musical, and has worked with choreographer Sam Pinkleton on other projects including Pretty Filthy (The Civilians), A Doll’s House (TFANA), The Lightning Thief (Theatreworks USA), and the CBS Upfront presentations. She recently choreographed Mr. Burns at Ramapo College and a workshop reading of Good Children for New George’s. She choreographs plays and musicals at Acting Manitou every summer. Some of her performance credits include Clare Barron’s I’ll Never Love Again and the Clubbed Thumb workshop of Sarah DeLappe’s The Wolves. BFA- NYU. 

Recently I got a chance to interview Amanda Phelan for my blog. Here are the highlights from our conversation:

Where did you go to school/train?

NYU Tisch School of the Arts, Pacific Northwest Ballet and Princeton Ballet School.

Who inspires your choreography?

OMG! OK, um…..I want to say my choreography is inspired by the ballet I watched as a kid. If you inter-splice silly dancing with ballet, you will get my style. My choreography is very much the dance that I use to express myself when no one else is watching, it is the cousin to the dance I have seen my friends do while they are uninhibited. I would say my dance its borderline cartoonish, but in a good way!

How did you get into choreography?

I took an amazing class from a choreographer/director at NYU. I was so excited and moved by his classes and eventually TAed for him. He offered me my first job assisting as a choreographer and I fell in love with it! At a young age, I would choreograph musical numbers on my sister and cousins and make them perform these pieces for our family at the holidays.

How was the process of working on Amelie?

It was incredibly informative and challenging. I trusted the vision of my boss, the choreographer, and went with it. His vision wasn’t necessarily trusted by other members of the creative team but I was there to back him up. I had a great time working with the actors and facilitating the choreography on the actors. It was frustrating to see his creative juices being stifled.

Describe your choreographic process!

This is the thing that I feel sets me apart from others. My process is very inspired by prompts and doing work in the actual space. I give artistic freedom to those I am working with to create off of what I give them and allow them to put their own touches on things. I will reign in their ideas if they differ too greatly from my intentions but I am always open to hearing their input. I love that this approach to choreography make people’s movements look natural.

I will sometimes task cast members to come up with movements that express a plot line and I will incorporate them into my work!

What advice would you give to young people who may want to pursue a career in choreography?

The best thing I have found is that practice makes perfect. Go out there and be a part of a process where you are constantly making new work. You will learn from every process! The more creative processes you are involved in, the more you will learn! You will work with people who will inspire you and you will learn from them!

Want to know more about Amanda Phelan, check out her website!

Keep in mind dancers, a choreographer is a dancer's best friend and they are always welcome around the rosin box!

Dance Pick of the Week

This week, the Joyce Theater in New York City is presenting their Joyce Theater Ballet Festival. The festival begins on July 18^th and runs through July 29^th. The festival’s goal is to give new generations of dancers and choreographers a chance to present their works in New York City.

The festival will feature dancers from companies such as American Ballet Theater, New York City Ballet, and Dance Theater of Harlem. One of my favorite things about this festival is that they are specifically focusing on presenting works by female choreographers. Historically, female choreographers have been underrepresented in the ballet world. This festival’s aim, to showcase female choreographers, is very important!

Of the choreographers being presented at the festival, I recommend trying to catch Claudia Schreier & Company as well as EmeryLeCrone Dance. I have been following both choreographers for quite some time and I love their work!

You can find tickets here!

Grab a friend from around the rosin box and go check out the Joyce Theater Ballet Festival!