Advice for dancers.

I AM A SENIOR DANCE MAJOR IN COLLEGE WHO HAS CHOREOGRAPHED PIECES FOR STUDENT CONCERTS IN HIGH SCHOOL AND COLLEGE. I ALSO TEACH AT A LOCAL DANCE STUDIO WHERE I HAVE CREATED A FEW PIECES. OVER THE YEARS, MY GROWING INTEREST IN CHOREOGRAPHY MAKES ME THINK THAT THIS IS THE PATH I AM MEANT TO PURSUE AFTER GRADUATION. MY PROBLEM IS I HAVE NO IDEA HOW TO GET MY NAME OUT IN THE DANCE WORLD. I KNOW I MUST START FROM THE BOTTOM, BUT WHERE EXACTLY WOULD "THE BOTTOM" IN CHOREOGRAPHING BE? HILARY GLADE, JACKSONVILLE, FL George Balanchine began his career working with students, so you're definitely on the Tight track. The next step is to create works for professional dancers who perform in your area, while you continue to hone your craft. My advice is to cheek out Regional Dance America, whose members include companies in the five regions of the United States. This nonprofit organization offers opportunities for promising choreographers to showcase their work at annual festivals for regional dance companies. They also offer special conferences for emerging choreographers to create under the guidance of nationally recognized professionals in the field. If you've fallen in love with choreography, then your best bet is to get out there and learn everything you can about the whole process of putting steps to music. For more information about RDA, check out their website (regionaldanceamerica.org).

I AM CURRENTLY TAKING TAP, JAZZ, AND HIP-HOP CLASSES. I LOVE TO DANCE BUT A GIRL IN MY TAP CLASS MAKES IT HARD TO LEARN AND CONCENTRATE. SHE IS ALWAYS MAKING NOISE, TAPPING WHILE THE TEACHER IS TALKING, AND THEN TRYING TO GET THE REST OF US TO BE OBNOXIOUS WITH HER. SHE JUST SLOWS THE REST OF THE CLASS DOWN. ONE GIRL IN MY CLASS TRIED TALKING TO HER, BUT SHE KEEPS ON DOING IT. WHAT SHOULD I DO? SARA FROM OREGON, ADDRESS WITHHELD The question is, what's your teacher going to do about it? According to research published in Medical Problems of Performing Artists (Volume 17; Number 4; pp. 173-177), one of the most stressful aspects of teaching is working with unmotivated students. While professional training academies have the luxury of expelling students with behavioral problems due to an abundance of applicants, smaller schools (with fewer applicants) may overlook behavioral problems--even if the child is hyperactive and unable to concentrate due to an attention deficit disorder. As I see it, either all the parents can get together to file a complaint with your teacher (which carries more weight) or yon can look for a new tap class.

IS IT STUPID FOR ME TO DREAM OF ACHIEVING PERFECTTURNOUT? I'M A 15-YEAR-OLD BALLET STUDENT WHO HAS TRAINED FOR SEVEN YEARS TO BECOME A PROFESSIONAL DANCER. MY TEACHERS TELL ME THAT I CAN STILL IMPROVE MY TURNOUT BY WORKING CORRECTLY. HOWEVER, I'M STARTING TO DOUBT THIS BECAUSE MY HIPS AREN'T GETTING BETTER. OTHER DANCERS WHO DON'T WORK HALF AS HARD HAVE GREAT TURNOUT WHILE I CAN'T MAKE A GOOD FIFTH POSITION WITHOUT TWISTING MY KNEES IN PAIN. IT JUST DOESN'T SEEM FAIR. FRUSTRATED DANCER, NAME AND ADDRESS WITHHELD Of course, it isn't fair! I know many wonderful dancers who struggle with their bodies because of anatomical deficits or significant differences between their right and left sides. While some of these problems are minor, turnout is a particular problem in ballet where the ideal is ninety degrees of external rotation in the hips. In the past, most dance teachers believed that students could achieve perfect turnout with a lot of hard work over time. While this creates a great work ethic in dancers, it can also do a lot of damage. Fortunately, with the latest advances in dance medicine, more teachers understand that the hip, foot, and ankle joints react differently to prolonged training. Although it's possible to see improvements in the foot and ankle in adolescence, the hip joint is least likely to change after age 12. Why? Because turnout depends on how the head of the upper thigh bone (also known as the femur) fits into the hip socket.

Basically, people are born with three kinds of hips that determine the orientation of their legs: normal (moderate turnout), pigeon-toed (turned in), and duck-footed (turned out). Early training, combined with natural flexibility, can stretch the capsular structure of the hip and improve turnout to some degree. However, no amount of hard work will change your basic anatomy. This means that if you're born pigeon-toed, there's no way to create a comfortable fifth position. Dancers who compensate for poor turnout by forcing their knees risk injuries to the back and lower extremities. A physical therapist or orthopedist can evaluate your natural turnout by manipulating your hip joints in the passive position. Working within your natural range of motion will reduce injuries. It's also possible to dance beautifully without achieving perfection.

Former New York City Ballet dancer Linda Hamilton, Ph.D. is a lecturer, a psychologist in private practice, and the author of Advice for Dancers (Jossey-Bass). She has been offering advice to DANCE MAGAZINE readers since 1992.

SEND YOUR QUESTIONS TO: Linda Hamilton, Ph.D., at 2000 Broadway, PH2C, New York, NY 10023.