When thinking about technique and injury, I cam
across a book that once I started reading, I found that there was a lot of
sense in what was being said. The
book titled, “Dance Technique and Injury Prevention” by Justin Howse and
Shirley Hancock, lead me to
realize that they refer to dancers knowledge of technique, or lack of it, can
lead to abrupt and long term injuries.
It is stated that “during student years, young
dancers will be more prone to injury as they try to put into effect technique
which they are in the middle of learning”
Hancock, S, Howes, J, 1988, Dance
Technique and Injury Prevention, 2nd edition, London: A&C
Black (Publishers) Limited.
This highlights that even though students are
being given knowledge, they don’t really understand how to put it into
place. Does this mean that the
dance syllabus to too complicated for people of such a young age?
Non-application of correct technique is the
situation that includes “professional dancers who are technically fully trained
but who for various reasons may allow their technique to slip” Hancock, S,
Howes, J, 1988, Dance Technique and
Injury Prevention, 2nd edition, London: A&C Black
(Publishers) Limited.
Why if the dancer has a full knowledge of
technique would they allow themselves to fall like this? The book suggests that this is “prone
to happen when they become tired” Hancock, S, Howes, J, 1988, Dance Technique and Injury Prevention,
2nd edition, London: A&C Black (Publishers) Limited.
Surly dancers stamina would have been built up
over time.
Once I read this, it reminded me of an interview
with Diria Klimentova, Internationally renowned Principle dancer with the
English National Ballet, where she discussed one of her injuries. Daria stated that “I was tired but as I was
preparing for a gala, I thought I could not miss one day of class, which was
stupid. Something pinched in my foot but I insisted on going ahead with the
gala” McCarthy, D, (No date), Dance Europe Interview, Daria Klimentova
website [online].
As a dancer myself, I can understand where Ms.
Klimentova is coming from, as dancers careers are diminutive and limited, so
dancers feel that the need to overcome injuries fast, or ignore them. By stepping back into dance too
quickly, or ignoring an injury can lead to greater problems.
Daria’s injury then developed into an inflamed bursa, which like most
professional dancers, Daria danced on.
“I was a stupid dancer. Eventually I had to have it surgically removed.
If I had missed one gala and given it a weeks rest I would have been fine” McCarthy, D, (No date), Dance Europe Interview, Daria Klimentova website [online].
After reading about Ms. Klimentova’s experience I realized that
professional dancers do not really have a clear understanding as to how to treat
injury. So why do dancers ignore
injuries?
When thinking about this, like Ms. Klimentova, I would keep quiet so
that the director would not get a bad opinion of myself, but here are many
other factors to consider. “Dancers realize that their contract may be
scrutinized for past injury history and may ultimately lead to dismissal. It is
understandable why this occurs as the average age for a dancer to retire may be
in the mid- to late 20s” Schoene, L, 2005, What You Should Know About Dance Injuries, Podiatry Today website [online].
Loss of job or even time taken out of the dancers short lived career
might be an emphasis on covering up problems that should be sorted out, to aid
the length of the dancers professional life.
This highlights how a dancer must treat their body like a temple! By allowing technique to slip we are
permitting ourselves to a shortened career in dance, which is already
short enough as it is.
One must keep in mind that “most dancers are not anatomically perfect,
there will be physical limitations and constrains” Hancock, S,
Howes, J, 1988, Dance Technique and
Injury Prevention, 2nd edition, London: A&C Black
(Publishers) Limited.
This is something that Daria knows and
understands, since her ankle injury, “I have lost some of my plie and so I have had to learn to work with a
little less, which is a challenge but it is going well” McCarthy, D, (No date), Dance
Europe Interview, Daria Klimentova website [online].
Dancers may struggle trying to fix a lifetime of bad habits (or in
Daria’s case, understanding a new limitation of her body), even Daria
understands this, “This was much harder than giving birth. With that I was in
class right up to the day before I gave birth and was back in class a week
later” McCarthy, D, (No date), Dance Europe Interview, Daria Klimentova
website [online].
This is a true dancers mind, trying to not
miss class, so that they do not fall behind. As Ms. Klimentova has shown us, not much can hold her back
from dancing!
This again brings me back to how technique is so important in the first
place. To avoid the whole
situation of covering up injuries, it is vital that one knows and understands
how to take care of their body. To
extend the period of time that the body has as a dancer is vital, and this can
be accomplished by clear, clean technique. It has also brought up the point, that if the dancer is
injured, don’t leave it, get is sorted as soon as possible to nip the problem
in the bud.
I highly suggest any dancer who desires to have a long, fruitful career with
less pain, and a greater understanding of the detail in dance, that as often
forgotten, to read “Dance Technique and Injury Prevention”. Not only will the artistry of the
dancer improve, but a deeper appreciation for those dancers who have elongated careers
in the dance world.
References
Hancock, S, Howes, J, 1988, Dance Technique and Injury Prevention, 2nd edition,
London: A&C Black (Publishers) Limited.
[Image 1]
McCarthy, D, (No date), Dance Europe Interview, Daria Klimentova website [online],
Available from: http://www.dariaklimentova.co.uk/daria/interviews3.htm
[Image 2]
Schoene, L, 2005, What You Should Know About Dance Injuries, Podiatry Today website [online], Available from: http://www.podiatrytoday.com/article/3468
[Image 3]
 |
| Image 1 |
 |
| Image 2 |
 |
| Image 3 |
No comments:
Post a Comment