the godfather of dance- gus giordano

photo courtesy of giordanodancecenter.com

a truly great man, style, contributor, creator, teacher. 

you wanna immerse yoursef in all things jazz (and other dance styles too...) attend the Jazz Dance World Congress. You and your technique will never be the same again!!   


Click Here for : Giordano Dance Center- Evanston Illinois


Click Here For: jazz dance world congress

smarter sipping

Dancers have always had a love-hate relationship with sports drinks. They are always been a tasty, easy way to rehydrate and get an energy boost, however the number of calories never seemed worth it. Major market brands have recently come out with low- and zero-calorie versions of their popular flavors. Formulated to cater to an athlete’s needs, these drinks are also smart options for dancers looking to stay on top of their game.

While many think dance students should stick to the water fountain, if dancers are at the studio all day, hydrating requires more than water. According to Sonia Turk, past wellness director at my former studio “Body fluid lost as sweat can be replaced by water, but sports drinks also replenish electrolytes like sodium and potassium—which are important for preventing muscle cramps.” Unfortunately they maybe low calorie but they are still high in sugar.

We love Herbalife’s H³0 Fitness Drink is the next generation of hydration providing rapid hydration, sustained energy plus antioxidant protection so you feel refreshed and energized all day long. It contains the good kind of energizing carbs for immediate and sustained energy. Powerful antioxidants vitamins A,C and E as well as potassium ( 70% more  than the leading competitor.) that will protect your body from fatigue and soreness. There is also no caffeine and a healthier alternative to high-calorie/high-sugar beverages. It is made from a naturally derived source of sugar (think fruit which breaks down in the body quickly-not into fat)

“After dancing more than two hours, drinking water will quench thirst, but in reality you will still be dehydrated because sodium levels are low.” Even minor dehydration can hurt a dancer’s performance—and it puts them at a greater risk for injury.Turk says low-calorie sports drinks are dancers’ smartest options. They replace carbohydrates, which are essential for keeping muscles and the brain fueled. 

Keep in mind that zero-calorie versions lack this benefit since they have no carbohydrates. Check out the H³0 Fitness Drink , we can tell you where to get it, just add a comment and we will guide you!!

Snap that picture perfect audition shot-ballet edition

According to the February issue of Dance Spirit Magazine, having a great audition photo is absolutely necessary and can make or break your placement.  The casting department will utilize these shots to remember who you were, how you moved in the audition, and your demeanor. Allison Fuller of DSM provides a great list of "to do's" for taking a self-audition photo (if you do not have professional head shots) for a summer intensive, such as SAB Summer program, or company intensives.

SAB audition- courtesy of Scott Shaw/The Plain Dealer

• Clothing: wear a clean, solid color leotard with simple, flattering lines. New, clean pink tights with no holes or stains. Clean, crisp, ballet shoes, with no ties secured.
• Hair & Makeup: Hair should be slicked back in a neat bun. No wisps or bangs. Use as many bobby pins as possible and use a hair net. Natural, simple, clean make up is bet. Do not wear stage make up, as this makeup is much heavier for stage lighting, which you will not have. You want to be recognizable as you from your audition.
• Technique: Exceptional, flawless technique should be displayed no matter what pose you are in for your shot. Be sure to show off your turn out, stretch all the way through your ankles to your feet, utilize your core muscles to show stable balance and posture. Arm and head placement is also key. In this digital age we have limitless shots. Do not stop until you have several flawless poses with perfect technique.
• Background, perspective & lighting: Do use plain, uncluttered background. There should not be any mirrors, and aim for a white wall to pose against. The busier the background-the less focus is on the dancer. Simple bright light is best, try not to add in spotlights and absolutely no photo shop or effects!!! Be sure the person capturing the photo is standing at your level, far enough to capture whole body but not to far to lose your face and other features you are marketing to the company.

Allison adds this note, " If the school or company you’re auditioning for doesn’t specify a position for your audition photo, include photos in first arabesque and tendu croisé devant as well as a headshot.  If you’re confident going beyond a standard first arabesque position, go ahead and try something a little different (in addition to the arabesque photo). Just make sure what you do is still clean and technically flawless. "

first arabesque- courtesy of dance.net

tendu croise devant- courtesy of flicker.com

Utilize these tips to take your audition shot and you are sure to be remembered in a professional light! Best of luck! Submit your stories of success with your auditions here! We love to share the great news!!

Check out Dance Spirits article here: Dance Spirit- Feb 11 Picture Perfect by Allison Feller

laissez-nous danser au soleil

Casting Dancers - for the choreographer

Casting Dancers - for the choreographer

Finding the dancer that will represent your inner soul on a stage full of voyeurs is a very daunting task.  The dancer will execute your minds eye, which will show the audience exactly who you are with a particular musical selection. They will see how the music moved you and your capabilities as a choreographer. Your ability to set the piece on the dancer, offering him or her guidance on execution, emoting, staging will either rise or fall with the curtain.

Be sure to get a good nights sleep the day before the audition, and eat a high protein breakfast t help you from getting hungry, and keeping you full of energy and focus. A high nutrition shake with a protein shot is a great way to have a quick 2 minute preparation breakfast to go that will keep you rolling for at least four hours. For dancers only loves Shapeworks shakes, that are super high in macronutrients, delicious and flavor, and can be mixed up in 30 seconds in a blender to mix up flavors like: café latte, Dutch chocolate, pumpkin spice or custom shakes like white chocolate peanut butter cups or chunky monkey. Dump in a shot of personalized protein powder and you are good to go for hours without feeling sluggish or hungry.

Prepare an improvisational exercise. Improv is a great way to see different dancers interacting with each other, giving you opportunity to determine who may work well together. Also prepare a choreographed piece, no more than 32 counts, which best represents the project in which you are casting. You need to see that the dancers are capable at being successful with your project. You may have technical specifications, character specifications, acting or singing specifications that all maybe needed to be accounted for within your casting session, be sure to have enough material prepared to assist in decision making in the casting room.

During auditions, be sure to have a high protein snacks available for yourself and your dancers. Dancers may need a shot of energy at some point in order to perform exhausting combination repeatedly, depending on the size and technical difficulty of your audition.

Remember to look for dancers attitudes. Do they take direction, make corrections and able to sequence the progressions together quickly? How do they behave with the other dancers? Does the dancer have limitations or special abilities? Are they overly enthusiastic? Are they extremely talkative? Do they continue dancing after making a mistake? How is the attitude? If your project is not a top notch production such as a Boston Ballet performance, be sure to show your team you are concerned about choosing dancers who will bring positive energy to the project, so that it will be an enjoyable experience for all involved in promoting your piece.

You can teach anyone to dance your steps on a stage. You don’t want dancers who want to dance. You want to cast dancers who need to dance for their body and soul. You will find the emotionality of your piece will soar to places you could never imagine.

on a personal note:

This morning I awoke to something that shook me to my core.  I have never said that about anything in my adult life. I do not understand it but it has transformed into a life lesson for me. Through the magnificence of all things facebook, I was able to fall in love with a little sea lion  who was rescued on Thanksgiving day, 2010 in San Clemente. He had beached himself to prepare to die and was horribly dehydrated. The rescue center (Pacific Marine Mammal Center in Laguna Beach) named him appropriately, Cranberry.

cranberry after his rescue

 He quickly grew and became healthy, gaining weight and coming off tube feeding and onto fishies, even on warm days getting to swim in the outdoor pools. As new residents came in he always tried to get over the half wall to see what was all the excitement! My family quickly fell in love with his daily photos, progress and antics. We quickly made a list of the needs of the center for donation and began to schedule a trip (only 20-25 min away!) to meet Cranberry over our holiday break!

squeaky clean and so handsome!

Then So Cal was hit with a big storm, flooding all of Laguna Beach causing evacuations for all the residents to an LA marine center. Cranberry was moved in with a female who quickly became his friend, and I wondered when he would come home so we could meet.

I never got that chance this morning PMMC posted this update on their wall:

Pacific Marine Mammal Center "We are saddened over the loss of our sea lion Cranberry who passed away earlier this week. He suffered from an internal injury that was undetectable and his condition quickly deteriorated. We want to thank everyone that cared for him and made his final days peaceful." 17 hours ago.

Even though we never met, this animal tugged at my heart and reminded me I moved to this area to be a part of the marine life. Find a passion that is not dance...then volunteer. It is that important. I gave the center my word, Christmas day or not my young son and I would be there to clean up from the flood to bring everyone home.  They did not require outside help. Today I printed out my volunteer application for my annual commitment. Although I cant afford the gas to get there every week, I will make it happen Not getting the chance to meet Cranberry taught me a significant lesson about time....its wasting and people, animals and the environment need us...pick a cause and get on it.....

RIP my little love....

Please visit the website to offer financial support for the disaster, or if you are in the area, please donate items needed so the center can get back to business saving the seals of Orange County.

http://www.pacificmmc.org/news_events.html

Fuel your body - feed your technique and endurance (& muscle recovery!)

Every dancer knows that their body is their instrument, but what is important to understand is it is also a machine. The body performs at its best when filled with the the proper fuel. Dancing requires lots of energy, so dancers must consume enough calories  (low fat-high nutrition calories) to keep up with physical demands. This blog will break these down section by section now and then to go further into topic and offer solutions, but today is just general information on basic diet, common knowledge refresher. Stick around and later I will teach you how to make sense of all of this and turn your body into a fat burning, muscle ripping leaping turning machine!!!! A dancer's diet should consist of a balance of carbohydrates, proteins, fats, vitamins and minerals, and adequate fluids.

Carbohydrates:
Carbohydrates should make up about 50-65% of a dancer's diet. Carbs are found in foods such as cereal, pasta, bagels, breads and baked potatoes. These provide you with energy. I will later tell you what carbs to focus on (and what no NOT focus on!!)

Proteins:
Proteins are important for building and repairing muscles. Proteins should comprise about 12-15% of a dancer's diet. Good sources of protein include lean meats, poultry, beans, legumes and tofu. Protein builds long lean dancer muscles, not thick and bulky muscles! BONUS! The average girl needs about 40 g of protein a day ( more for dancers for energy, fullness, and muscle repair) I can offer you a personalized protein needs reading based on your body needs, but save that discussion for another day.

Fats:
Many dancers worry about gaining weight, and therefore, strictly limit their fat intake. However, a diet too low in fat can impair performance and may cause serious health consequences for the dancer. A dancer's diet should be composed of about 20-30% fat. Aim to eat foods low in saturated fats, such as avocados, nuts and seafood. Also, when there is no fat in the diet, the body believes it is starving and it will eat your muscle looking for fat, then it STORES ANY FAT IT FINDS!!! (hence keeping enough protein in the body to stay full, and GOOD FATS ONLY- again we will discuss more on fats another day)

Vitamins and Minerals:
Vitamins and minerals play important roles in the body, such as energy production and cell reproduction. To obtain all important vitamins and minerals, dancers should eat at least 5 servings of fresh fruits and vegetables per day and choose whole grain breads and cereals.  Supplements is a HUGE part of the puzzle people tend to shy away from in the mind and pocketbook. It is just as important as the water and food you need for strong bones, lean strong muscles, and a healthy cardiovascular system to maintain and increase endurance.

Fluids:
Water is required to regulate body temperature, maintain circulation, maintain salt and electrolyte balance, and remove wastes. Fluids are lost through sweat created by the body's unique cooling system. Because it is possible to lose large amounts of water before becoming thirsty, dancers should remember to drink small amounts of fluids before, during and after class, rehearsals and performance.

This sounds like an easy task, but ensuring your dancer has enough calcium to protect bones from jumping, fats for a healthy brain, and protein to repair and repel injury, as well as nutrients and minerals for growth and development is tricky when they eat small dancer meals, and dance until the late hours of the night! I have easy tips and tools for everything listed here. Check back later for help on increasing your energy, focus and strength for class, rehearsal and performance!

References: Nutrition Fact Sheet: Fueling the Dancer. International Association for Dance Medicine and Science (IADMS), 2003.

Amazing information on nutrition for dancers! Read article HERE

Nail it!

Be sure to nab that audition! According to Dance Spirit Magazine,  there are easy tactics to prepare yourself fully for your audition so that you can show up ready to perform at your best.

• do your research about the project, being sure to understand what exactly it is that casting is looking for
• give yourself enough time to arrive, stretch, as well as sit and clear your thoughts
• bring copies of an updated headshot and resume
• if freestyle is on the menu, come prepared mentally
• have a high protein breakfast, bring a snack such as a protein bar and a bottle of water with you
• get into technique classes in the days prior to audition date (many!!!) not just to strengthen technique, but to prep your brain for picking up choreo quickly
• take musical theater classes- it will help you to build character. Brush up on acting and singing. You never know which direction the audition could go!
• come prepared with extra shoes in case there is a surprise at the audition. (bring sneakers and heels)
• dont just pick up on the choreography~read how the choreographer is performing the piece
• present yourself as if you are the star already! make everyone in the room want to watch you (in a good way)
• mind your manners!!!!!!!!!
• stay out of your skull, dance it - love it- feel it.  your passion will flow through your body. It will be then out of your control, so dont focus on what you may have done wrong, just enjoy the movement and leave your passion on the dance floor

see the original dance spirit article here

everybody can-can!

re-birth

re·birth   
[ree-burth, ree-burth] –noun
1. a new or second birth: the rebirth of the soul.
2. a renewed existence, activity, or growth; renaissance or revival: the rebirth of conservatism.*

The funny thing about rebirth, you can start with a nice, clean, fresh face. You can hold yourself high and confident and begin anew.  This blog was created as an assignment, however it is really a long time coming. I should have done this specific blog a decade ago.This is exciting stuff, hope you come along for the ride!

*definition from dictionary.com