drdance

Pirouettes are one of the few dance movements that are all about the mechanics - not to say that emotion or psychology cannot affect the mechanics, because they most certainly can - but from a purely mechanical point of view, for an object to rotate, it is all about forces. One of the most crucial forces is gravity. For an object to balance inequilibrium, it's centre of mass (CoM) needs to be directly above it's base of support. In a human standing on two feet with arms down by the sides in a neutral posture, the CoM is somewhere between the belly button, and the lumbar vertebrae L4/5. I teach my students this as soon as they are old enough to understand the principle. When your base of support is large, it is easy to keep the CoM above it. The CoM also changes as you move your arms/legs. In order to perform a secure pirouette, the dancer must first establish (and learn to feel) where their centre of mass is, and how to get it placed over the (now small) base of support. Hence practicing the preparation into balancing in pirouette position over and over and over again. This must be so rehearsed that the dancer can do it successfully every time. OF course that is only half of the battle, because once one starts to turn, more forces come into play, which threaten the delicate balance of centre of mass/base of support. The dancers who are the most successful turners are those who do not allow any peturbation of their arms, body, spine or legs, that might move their centre of mass. Because of the small surface area of the base of support, it only needs a slight change in arm position, a lift of a hip, or a lean of the head to shift the CoM so that it is no longer securely above the base of support. The moment that happens, the dancer will feel off balance. A seasoned successful turner may be able to counteract this and 'save' the turn but it is usually at this point that the turn will fail. I have learnt so much about turning recently by watching good turners on youtube. Whatever you feel about the competition scene in the USA, those kids can TURN! The most successful keep their arms, back and body locked and are completely on balance.

Just as an aside - it really is interesting (as a sufferer myself too) how common a condition depression is, and how it still appears a taboo subject. For something so common, it still seems so misunderstood. There is some comfort in knowing that you aren't alone... but the other side of the coin is that every case is different and to be told that what one is feeling is really common almost negates the fact that you're feeling anything at all - while feeling so low you want to shout out loud I'M FEELING LIKE THIS SOMEONE NOTICE PLEASE!!!!!!

Many sufferers of depression refer to it as a 'black cloud' or a 'black box' so that's interesting she used those words. In fact Winston Churchill is famous for having referred to a 'Black dog' that followed him around. As long as she knows you're there for her, and as other people have said, let her know that how she feels is totally valid, not at all silly, and that you understand - and that she's allowed to feel like this. If it goes on and on, or she appears to want to feel better, it might be worth seeking professional advice. Does the school have a counsellor or a doctor?

Have you asked your DD's teacher? Most dance schools do pre-pointe work classes or have the children participate in pointe classes doing the exercises on demi-pointe. It's not just the ankles that need strengthening in preparation for pointe work, it is the entire kinetic chain from foot to head - the backs of the legs need to be stronger, turnout needs to be 100% secure, posture needs to be stable as the dancers weight placement changes on pointe.....

Maybe it would be worth adding a few hip strengthening exercises in on days when she doesn't have a ballet class just for 5 minutes of an evening. I can advise if you want. Send me a PM. However it sounds like she's doing plenty and the strength will come.

I have mentioned this before but there are some common misconceptions about 'strength' in dance. Pure muscular strength relates to the maximum load that one person can 'lift' in one go. In dance this attribute is very rarely required, as it's not really very functional. The only example would be performing a single developpe or single battement lent. The height that this leg goes to depends to partially on flexibility, and partially on pure strength across the whole range of flexibility. Muscular power is a combination of strength and speed. Movements such as grande battements or jumps require a high level of strength, which needs to be very quickly executed. This requires rapid contraction of the fast twitch muscular fibres rather than slow twitch. Some people have a larger proportion of fast twitch fibres so will be good at jumping but struggle with adage, or vice versa. Muscular endurance is the major player in dance - and is often confused with strength. Muscular endurance is the ability of the muscles to perform contractions repeatedly, or to sustain a contraction longer than a second. Most dance movements require muscular endurance. It is related to strength, so some strength training may help improve it. Shaking muscle is a sign of fatigue or muscle weakness - either way it's a sign that your DD won't be able to perform much more at the time. Don't worry that she's not sore afterwards, there will still be some gains however it might be worth increasing the frequency of working on those movements. How often does she take ballet class? As for the core - if her teacher says her core is strong then I'd trust her teacher. The core is important in 'lifting up' the body 'out of the hips' which will allow a dancer to lift their leg higher. The iliopsoas muscle also has two parts, one is mostly core and and one is a hip flexor so this muscle will affect leg height to some degree. But ultimately, the height of the lifted leg relies on strength and endurance in the hip and thigh musculature, primarily.

Let her know that you love her and that no matter what she does, you will always love her. Give her plenty of hugs and affection. She might think that what she is feeling is silly so won't open up, but if you approach it by letting her know that it's not silly, it's real, and that you want to help her feel better she might start to open up.

Shaky muscles are a sign of weakness but that's ok if the dancer then repeats the exercise a few times over - this will then build strength eventually. Doing the exercises that she struggles with will ultimately help, but the concept of loading + rest must be understood.... In order to perform a certain exercise successfully, it must be done over and over to create sufficient load to stress the muscles. This 'stress' causes microtrauma which may or may not be felt soon after or there may be be delayed onset muscle soreness (DOMS). This microtrauma then repairs itself when the body is at rest, and it is this repair activity and time that causes muscles to get stronger. Without this time, repetitive microtrauma builds up and causes chronic inflammation.

MIDAS summer course is in Birmingham from August 19-23rd. Not residential I'm afraid but there are good value hotels nearby. PM me or check websites for more details. Emily

Characters are so hard - many, many people use established characters from stories or films that already exist, and adjudicators must see so many things over and over again. I would really guard against choosing something that already exists, because you run the risk of assuming that the adjudicator already knows the story. The whole point of a character solo is to act - and adjudicators want to see dancers act. If I was judging (something I'd love to do) I would rather not have words in the music, or spoken work audio, or lengthy titles, or a title that assumes I know the story already such as 'juliet' or 'the little matchgirl' etc etc And.... of course, everyone knows that the older the dancers get, the more depressing the character solos! I vividly remember being at a festival early in my career as a teacher watching a character E section (15 years +) where EVERY character died at the end! The adjudicator even commented "I was wishing one of you to live!"

Hi all, I'd just like to point out that most people have asymmetries in the body and it is totally normal. If someone is having pain at any joint in a leg, or in the back it might be related to a leg length discrepancy at which point a good musculoskeletal physiotherapist can do muscle or fascial release techniques or manipulations or mobilisations to address the issue. Or you could be given a heel wedge for the shoe, or orthotics which would then address the LLD but further release or strengthening of muscles further up the body would also be needed to retrain them following compensation. Growth is not only asymmetrical, but also different structures of the body grow at different rates eg bone before muscles so things can get pretty difficult to deal with for teenagers who rely on knowing what their limbs and muscles etc are doing! the main thing is not to be concerned over anything that doesn't cause pain. Awareness of a LLD can help with technique but until the growth spurt is over there's no point intervening long term as things can change the next day. Finally - this is my personal opinion, and I'm sure there are people who disagree with me, but if a healthcare professional gives you some kind of vague statement such as "your ribs are out" or "your hips are twisted" make sure you ask what is causing it, and ask them to show you the anatomy on a model. And if they perform a lot of hands on clicking and clunking and profess to have straightened it all up instantly, I'd be wary. Without muscular work, everything will return to how it was after a day or so and you'll have to keep going back and paying more money!

and.. if you follow the line of the leg, over the ankle joint and then there's a bump on the top of the foot, it's pretty obvious.

I'm afraid my internet is being difficult at the moment, but if you google Dance UK Healthier dancer programme there should be a link to the practitioners register off the HDP home page :-)

Full sugar coke is good, or water. Rosin is a no-no especially for tap! Ballet it could help but a build up on the shoes makes it worse.

Yes Shirley Hancock is one of a growing number of very good physiotherapists in the UK. She's worked with many schools and companies over her career, and co-authored one of the most published and referenced books on dance medicine. Your first port of call should be your teacher who can give advice. If that isn't successful then try the practitioners register on Dance UK's website and arrange a consult with a physio or someone else suitable who can advise you on the most appropriate exercises to do for the correct part of the foot/ankle. Feet/ankles are very complex - made up of many, many joints and each part can be stretched and/or strengthened individually by doing different exercises. It's important that the most suitable exercises are given and that the dancer is instructed on how to do them with the correct technique, supervised by whoever gave the exercises, before they are 'taken home'.

Thank you. I can't take all the credit of course, as they are mostly trained by other wonderful local teachers! I really enjoy working with them though - they're all so hardworking :-)

Balletmum20 try this link: https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=518167021553458&set=a.199214690115361.43947.178080225562141&type=1&theater

I question their efficacy in improving the arch without doing any strengthening work as well. Also, by strapping the foot/ankle into something mechanical, and forcing it into a stretch, if you do injure yourself it is going to take a few minutes to remove said device and could cause more problems. You can apply some pressure passively by using your hands, which is much safer, as you can feel what's going on, and have total control over it, and also you can apply resistance with your hands to work against, as a strengthening tool. I gave this exercise to a student several weeks ago and she's worked really hard with it and has been taking photos to track her progress - I actually posted them yesterday onto the MIDAS facebook so if you want to see if it works, have a look. Also if anyone wants a video of the exercise PM me your email address and I can try to send it to you but its almost 15mb so make sure you can receive files that big first!

Hi Loulabelle - the course will be 5 days long this year and cost is the same as last year - £195. This will (hopefully) include a 1 day workshop with Grant and Rebecca Davies from RGDANCE in Sydney, Australia which will also be offered to anyone who wants to attend just for the one day, at £95 (early bird rate of £65 if booked before July 31st). Applications will open to MIDAS students first, and then to the public. I am waiting to hear back from my colleagues in Australia to know which day they would rather do, and then we will launch the event. Details will appear on our facebook page (www.facebook.com/midasdance) as soon as I get them! C-thank you for your support!

Hi everyone - I just wanted to let you all know that this years auditions for September start will be on Sunday May 26th at Midlands Arts Centre (MAC) in Birmingham. If there is enough demand there may be another audition in June. If you want to apply please visit the website www.midas-dance.org.uk or you can send an email via the website too, or of course you can just PM me here if you have any queries.

Hi everyone, I've just come across this video (1948) on youtube - talk about differences in technique nowadays... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6TPGdpAln-Q Without even commenting on flexibility/leg height, I was amazed to see such a difference in turnout, control and placing in the upper body (the arms/shoulders seem so tense!)

VERY rare!

Having been at dance medicine and science conferences where this has been discussed, I was surprised to hear that many dance orthopaedic surgeons / consultants / doctors actually discount the discussion of the skeleton in pointe readiness. I wish I could remember who it wa that brought it up, but they all agreed that as ossification happens at different rates in different people it was impossible to give an age as to when its reached a certain stage. What will be one stage at age 9 in one student will be the same stage at age 12 in another. It's similar to the age that a girl starts their periods - one girl may start at 10, another at 15. These professionals also agree that it is not this topic (re hardening of the skeleton) that causes any injury due to beginning pointe. They cite weakness in the soft tissues as much more likely to cause injury from being on pointe too young. I hope I'm not seen as being provocative or argumentative by posting this, as that is not my intention. I had always believed that the main reason age was given as a factor in pointe readiness was to do with bone, so to hear these dance medicine experts (which they truly are) say that shocked me quite a lot! But it does make sense, especially when you consider, as Anjlui said, bones don't fully ossify until adulthood.

Also worth a thought to pop down the M1 to Mark Suffolk in Earl Shilton....

Do remember a lot of it is a) staged and edited by the producers to look a certain way!