A few days ago I posted a .gif I made attributing Prince Florimund’s (Prince Desiré? Who knows) angst to his inability to eat his way out of feeling blue due to the demands of white ballet tights .
While meant as a humorous take on one of the dilemmas of dance – white tights are a merciless mistress, as many dancers know, the number of ‘sad but true’-type comments surprised me.
So I think it’s worth saying – although you’ve probably heard it many times before, BUT.
You dancers are athletes as well as artists. You are far more active than the average human; you push yourself physically and mentally far more than the average human; you require far more nourishment than the average human.
While the inescapable fact remains that ballet still favours a certain physical aesthetic, should you deprive yourself of the nutrition you need to perform and train to the best of your ability, you are doing a disservice to yourself and this art you purport to love.
Food is for enjoyment, nourishment and communion. It should invigorate us, not burden us.
If you face rejection not because of your abilities, fitness and work ethic as a ballet dancer, but because you don’t physically fit a certain mould, be assured that there is a another, far more suitable place for you to grow as an artist than that one.
I may say this as someone who is not and will never be a professional dancer. But I came to ballet from a place of malnourishment, and I realised that if I didn’t take care of my body, I was simply wasting my time, energy and money because I was never going to learn much or enjoy myself if I was constantly physically and mentally exhausted. In being weak and unfocused, I was actually endangering myself by dancing.
And you, who pursues this art with infinitely more dedication than I ever will – you don’t do it because it is easy or because it will give you a good, comfortable livelihood, but because you feel deeply for dance. And if this thing that is supposed to fulfil you ends up ruining you, then what is the point?
SHORT VERSION: Eat some pizza sometime, that stuff is delicious.
– ♡, Min, Cloud & Victory.
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This was originally posted on Cloud & Victory’s instagram.
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