Connectedness as a Dancer

Being connected as a dancer meaning that not just one part of the body is operating, but the whole entire body and all the energy of the body is fully awake, and in tune with what is going on externally and internally. Our bodies have a unique way of turning on and off. I believe one of the most challenging obstacles I faced this semester was really being able to engage that inner connectedness. When you internally find that flowing energy, the movement and performance of motion and presence draws the audience in. Not only does this idea and feel draw the audience in, it helps you as a dancer prevent yourself from injury. When you are aware of what is going on in your body, and know the limitations you have, you can prevent injury and keep your body healthy and not worn. When the body is kept healthy and you know your boundaries, and continue to work and strengthen the things need be to improve, your dance career will most likely last you longer than the age of 21. That's at least what I keep trying to tell myself. I had injuries this semester and the last that were very difficult to deal with but I grew throughout the semester learning different muscles to use and to know when my body says that something is not okay and to take at easy. For example, I have always had pretty bad hips. The way my hips are formed don't seem to work in my benefit and a lot of why I am not able to lift my leg high when I battement or balance in arabesque is because I was trained improperly and I formed this habit of lifting my leg from the hip flexor and not from the inner thigh muscles, and also was not engaging under my poepoe. Though it has taken some time this semester, I have been retraining my body the proper way to lift my leg, and I feel that connection when I use my breath. The bad habit I had formed hasn't fully gone away, but with practice each day and knowing that feeling, I am able to be aware of what I need to do in order to protect my body. That is one reason why it is so important to get your body warm at least a half hour before class time so that you can talk to your body and know what it needs in order to start dance class, rather than going into class cold turkey and end up pulling muscles, or creating long term injury. This is something I need to work on in the fall semester because until I got injured, I never realized the importance of this idea and feeling of being connected and knowing your body.

Below is a link to a really fantastic example of a man who is doing yoga, and is completely in sync with himself. You can see the energy radiating right off the get go. He knows his placing and he knows his body. This is something I hope to achieve someday soon.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sT86Yh4pM9Y