Schools active on health issues - dance schools' policies on eating disorders

Dance Magazine, Oct, 1997 by Gail Cox

(Editors note: The death of Boston Ballet dancer Heidi Guenther in June at the age of 22 [see September Presstime News] raised awareness of potential health problems at dance companies. Dance Magazine contacted a number of leading schools to find out their policies on eating disorders. [See also Kickoff, page 7; Readers' Forum, page 24, and feature, page 80.]

"They're all fat," Arthur Mitchell has remarked during Dance Theatre of Harlem school ensemble rehearsals, according to sources at the company [Mitchell did not return calls to comment for this article]. Other school directors recalled, from their own dancing days, similar comments made by directors, teachers, or choreographers, words that inspired them to take the matter seriously when they became educators. Some things haven't changed much: the dance field still requires thin bodies, and there are still incidents of eating disorders; but many teachers today recognize the need to teach students how to be slim and strong without sacrificing their health in the process, and have implemented nutrition programs.

Elvi Moore, executive director of Washington Ballet, is quick to point out that things are much better than they were even ten years ago, in companies and in schools; directors are open to more types of bodies Says San Francisco Ballet artistic director Helgi Tomasson of the issue: "I enjoy having dancers of many different body types and do not strive to hire dancers who have a specific physical stature." Officials at Joffrey Ballet, Pennsylvania Ballet, and Houston Ballet say their ranks are populated by rounder, fuller dancers. while Boston Ballet artistic director Anna-Marie Holmes says the company "values and accepts a diversity of body types." However, the most obvious body diversity in all these companies is in height In BB's corps, the women range from 5' to 5'-9" but are not fleshy.

While many directors say they welcome a shift in aesthetics, the shift has been gradual; the skinny look of the George Balanchine era still exists and is firmly entrenched, not only in dance, but in society at large. Says Mavis Staines, artistic director of Canada's National Ballet School: "The standard of exaggerated thinness established in the 1960s in modeling and dance will change only if those recruiting students for professional schools or hiring for companies change their attitudes."

Schools have progressed; public weigh ins, common ten years ago, seem to be a thing of the past, and many directors scoff at their mention. Years ago, some dancers resorted to extreme measures to alter their readings. Jacqueline Weber, principal of the Royal Winnipeg School, remembered from her own experience as a dancer that one over-thin student put rocks inside her ballet shoes and drank a lot of water to add pounds, and that an overweight girl made last-minute trips to the bathroom to try to lose them. These days students learn about nutrition, including how to lose weight healthfully: Dr. Linda Hamilton regularly lectures Alvin Ailey American Dance Center students, and center director Denise Jefferson says results have been positive. At Pacific Northwest Ballet's school, which has a full-time consulting staff, doctors weigh dancers and measure body fat as part of a voluntary, confidential program, but at most other schools teachers rely on visual assessments.

"Leotards and tights don't let you hide much," says Moore. In addition to extreme weight loss, listlessness or behavioral changes might indicate anorexia nervosa, says Clara Cravey, principal of the Houston Ballet's school; bulimia might be more difficult to detect. Cravey, who once suffered from anorexia, talks with HB's body-conditioning monitor frequently to see if he notices any behavior--such as excessive exercise on machines--that might signal a problem and welcomes students to seek help from her. The Rock School of Pennsylvania Ballet also favors open communication between students and faculty but doesn't schedule regular lectures or workshops; it offers information and will call in a professional whenever it deems necessary. Director Bojan Spassoff, who says he has had only two students with eating problems in ten years, maintains that too much information might give students ideas that would lead to eating problems.

Many schools offer referral services to students in need. Although cash flow has been a limitation and workshops have been less frequent, DTH makes an effort to provide information plus a sensitive, helpful approach to students. This ammunition is necessary to counteract messages dancers may get later from directors, which can be as extreme as directors calling dancers "fat" to their faces. Such comments can be dangerous because the solution to a weight problem is not always to eat less or more: a dancer might not actually have a problem with the quantity of food that she consumes. "It is not all magic," reminds Sharon Williams, administrator of DTH's school, adding that reality mustn't be ignored: "How are you supposed to be lifted if you're over-weight?" Body weight fluctuates, and since dancers might face weight issues at some point in their training or careers, experts say they need to be taught how to lose or gain weight healthfully and not be badgered about their size.