Dancers

By: Allison Thornton Dancers, ballerinas in particular, are often described as tragically beautiful due to the popular negative perceptions that we don't eat. Although many people in the field do suffer from eating disorders, quite a few maintain a healthy body weight due to the constant exercise. But because perfectly happy girls in tutus are rather boring, the media chooses to focus on the dark side of the ballet: anorexia, competitiveness, and drug addictions.
 * __ Getting to the Pointe __**

The physique of an ideal ballerina is hard to come by; the positive mind set is even harder. She has a long, slender neck accentuated by a lifted chin. She's small in the shoulders with a short body and long legs. She's thin, but lean muscle covers the whole of her body. She has delicate hands that have a mind of their own as they float about her, and her feet are perfectly arched. She's competitive and confident even though criticism is constantly spat at her. Another dancer in her company, slightly unsure of herself, can't take the harsh remarks. Her drive to impress pushes her to an eating disorder just to get a hint of praise.

Although eating disorders are rampant throughout the ballet industry, it is the demanding critics who are to blame. "[Dancers] live with the same pressures as the rest of society, however, they also have to deal with the risk of unemployment if they gain any amount of weight or their bodies do not look a certain way." (Kelso, 2003.) Their jobs have them constantly on display to audiences and to choreographers just waiting for criticism. The skeletal look, popular amongst American ballet companies, was promoted by George Balanchine (a world famous dancer, teacher, and choreographer), and is often referred to as the "Balanchine body".

Critics have no obligation to be gentle, and their harsh comments have no filter. Jenifer Ringer, a ballerina who has struggled with weight and self esteem issues and was out of commission for a few months due to a back injury, received no sympathy from critics after returning to the stage. Alistair Macaulay wrote in his review of The Nutcracker, "Ringer, as the Sugar Plum Fairy, looked as if she'd eaten one sugar plum too many." (Fenner, 2010.)

Knowing this, dancers learn from a very early age that punishments and rewards are based upon weight. In the recent film //Black Swan//, the main character, Nina, is shown being measured for her Swan Queen costume, looking quite thin and bony. When the numbers come up smaller than before, the seamstress praises Nina for having dropped a few inches and pounds. In the movie, her company must be aware that she isn't losing the weight safely — Nina suffers from anorexia, bulimia, and low self esteem—yet they never intervene. “[Eating disorders are] a phenomenon that affects the whole of the ballet world, but it is very rarely discussed, as if there is a Mafia code of silence that rules over us, and as a result it must never be broken.” (Pisa, 2011.) Nowadays, dance schools often recognize eating disorders more easily, and dancers have nutritionists constantly watching out for their welfare.



Another characteristic of ballet companies is the cutthroat competition among the dancers who are willing to do anything to be a star. In //Black Swan,// Nina’s director of choreography manipulates her to make her fight for the lead role harder. Overly competitiveness isn’t only found in professionals. The Reality TV Show, //Dance Moms//, follows the career of four pre-adolescent dancers on track to becoming stars. In the show, 10-year-olds are seen stabbing each other in the back at competitions and talking trash to the other studios. The attitudes of these ‘mini divas’ are horrible because from early on, they’re taught to only focus on their own success. Within a studio, dancers are always comparing themselves to each other. “Has someone done more pirouettes than you or extended their leg a little higher?” (Phillips, 2011.) They’re always striving to be the best and to be noticed by their teachers as a possibility to play a lead role. “Often there will be three people dancing the lead, all vying to do it opening night. When you are not chosen, there is a sickening thud of jealousy. You go home and suffer.” (Phillips, 2011.) But by getting ahead of their peers, a dancer risks friendships within the company and is often given the cold shoulder by the other girls. “[Nina’s] former corps friends begin to ignore her once she moves from the group dressing room to the one reserved for principals.” (Cohen, 2010.) Envious dancers can be quite vicious and petty, engaging in juvenile acts such as hiding Pointe shoes backstage during a quick change or stealing someone’s favorite leotard. Due to the never-ending comments and evaluations a dancer must listen to, some develop psychological disorders, or they look for an escape and develop a drug dependency. “You have to look in the mirror all day long, and that can tend to play with your mind. All of us ballet dancers are a little crazy.” (Cohen, 2010.) Many people often think dancers would be perfectly happy with their size and their lean bodies, but they’re constantly compared to people just as thin as themselves. “To anyone on the outside, I look thin and willowy, but in the world of the Manhattan ballet, my figure is apparently unacceptable.” (Flack, 2011.) In order to avoid the pain of the cutting remarks dancers receive, many succumb to drugs. In //Black Swan//, Lily, the girl competing against Nina for the role of Swan Queen, tries to get Nina to loosen up and not worry about the part so much, so she slips a drug in her drink. Lily has a drug problem and smokes to get away from the uptight life of the ballet for a while. While the movie contains many exaggerations, this was not one of them. Gelsey Kirkland, a famous Balanchine dancer, endured struggles with her weight and her self-image and eventually developed an addiction to cocaine. In her autobiography, __Dancing on my Grave__, she reveals that Balanchine once gave her “amphetamine vitamins” while on tour in Soviet Russia.

Although ballet gets a bad reputation, there are many benefits from dancing as long as a dancer maintains control over his or her body. Some of the traits drilled into dancers’ minds from a young age are hard work and determination. In the movie, //Step Up,// Tyler is a delinquent from the streets who is serving his community service hours at the Maryland School of Arts. After meeting Nora, a talented ballet dancer, he asks the director to join the ballet program at her school. Due to the strict discipline of ballet classes, Tyler transforms from a felon into a responsible, hard-working young man.

Here's some clips of Tyler's transformation: [] []

Many dancers stay healthy and fit by taking classes and focusing on their technique rather than counting calories and throwing up. “They spend years training their leg, feet, and abdomen muscles in order to jump, balance, and dance on Pointe properly.



These skills require intense years of training and hard work in order to establish the right strength.” (Kelso, 2003.) Dancers express through dance what they can’t get across in words and develop a passion for the art. “I am a person who knows how art can change lives, because they transformed mine.” (D’Amboise, 2011.) D’Amboise, another famous Balanchine dancer, loved performing with “Mr. B’s” company and travelling around the world dancing. In his autobiography, __I Was a Dancer__, after he retired from the company, he continued his passion and ventured to various countries around the world, teaching young children to dance.

The key to a well-rounded ballerina is just maintaining control over their body and knowing their own limits. Being confident enough to remain stable through all the criticism is another vital characteristic. Although the world of ballet isn’t always glamorous, many movies and books that delve into the world behind the curtains often stretch the truth to make a more interesting show for viewers. For me, as a dancer, I think the benefits I get from dancing will always outweigh the negative aspects.

**__ Works Cited __**
 * “Abbygeddon.” Dance Moms. Lifetime. 4 Apr. 2012. Web. 12 Apr. 2012. [].
 * Bentley, Toni. __Winter Season: A Dancer’s Journal.__ New York: Random House, 2003. Print.
 * Cohen, Stefanie. “Dancing on the dark side.” Dancing on the dark side/New York Post. Page Six Magazine, 2 Dec. 2010. Web. 22 Apr. 2012. [].
 * D’Amboise, Jacques. //I Was a Dancer.// Knopf, 2011. Print.
 * Fenner, Justin. “NYT Writer Defends Article Criticizing Ballerina’s Weight.” Alastair-Macaulay-Jenifer Ringer-NYT Ballet Criticism. Ed. Dan Abrams. Styleit, 6 Dec 2010. Web. 12 Apr. 2012. [].
 * Flack, Sophie. __Bunheads.__ Little, Brown Books for Young Readers, 2011.
 * Kelso, Paula T. “Behind the Curtain: The Body, Control, and Ballet.” //Behind the Curtain: The Body, Control, and Ballet.// Edwardsville Journal of Sociology, 2003. Web. 11 Apr. 2012. []
 * Kirkland, Gelsey, and Greg Lawrence. __Dancing on My Grave.__ Garden City, NY: Double Day, 1996. Print.
 * Phillips, Arlene. “Is the world of ballet as brutal as Black Swan portrays it? Ex-ballerina Arlene Phillips gives her verdict.” Black Swan: Anorexia, dark sexual encounters, is ballet as brutal as the film portrays it?. Daily Mail, 21 Jan. 2011. Web. 22 Apr. 2012. [].
 * Pisa, Nick. “Ballerina lifts lid on health problems rife in industry.” Ballerina lifts lid on health problems rife in industry_Telegraph. The Telegraph, 4 Dec. 2011. Web. 12 Apr. 2012. [].
 * Portman, Natalie, perf. //Black Swan.// 2010. Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation. DVD-ROM.
 * Tatum, Channing, perf. //Step Up.// 2006. Touchstone/Disney. DVD-ROM.