The Rockettes are an eminent dance troop hailing from the states. They perform a dance form called precision dancing. They are the most well-known and widely known as the best dance performers in this specific type of dance. Precision dancing does not put emphasis on an individual dancer. Rather, all the dancers coordinate their movements to create simple yet aesthetic rhythms. Since precision dancing showcases the coordination of movements more than the actual dance steps, the dance steps here are relatively simple. Although there is no hard and fast rule about a Rockette member being of a specific weigh, they generally weigh around 100 pounds.
To be a Rockette, even though being of a specific weigh isn’t mandatory, other physical parameters have to be strictly abided by. The most important of them is the height of each Rockette member. The Rockette members are required to be more than 5’’6and a half inches tall. They can be of a maximum height of 5 feet and 10 and a half inches. While performing, at a time, there are 80 Rockette members on the stage. The tallest ones perform in the middle of the troop. The height of the dancers decreases as one moves from the center to the sides. This creates the illusion that all the Rockette members are of the same height even when they are not.
The most important skill these dancers have to learn is the art of jazz dancing. Along with that, they must also be extremely proficient in ballet dancing and tap dancing.
A brief history of the Rockettes
The first account of the Rockettes can be found from the year 1925. In Missouri, there lived a certain Russel Market. He sponsored stage functions like operas or ballets. This profession is also called an impresario. Market had the idea of accumulating a group of female dancers and named them “Missouri Rockets”. Samuel Rothafel, who owned the “Roxxy Theatre” took a liking to them. He brought the same group of female dancers and added some of his choices as well. He then named the group the “Roxxyettes” about the name of his theatre. These Roxxyettes took over America by storm over the next few years and came to be called the Rockettes eventually.
Diet of a Rockette member
Rockette members dance their hearts out. It takes a lot of stamina to be able to perform with such precision on stage for durations of 90 minutes. Hence, they have to follow a proper diet to gain that stamina. Both their hard work and the food they eat influence their weigh. To gain stamina, Rockette dancers consume a lot of carbohydrates, In interviews, they have said that they consume a lot of chocolate since they give them an instant energy boost, Another thing they need to consume is protein, If they don’t, their muscle mass will start reducing due to their rigorous training regime leading to a decrease in weigh as well. Even though their weight is not specified, they need to maintain it as an increase in weight can lead to a decrease in flexibility- a trait of paramount importance in precision dancing. For proteins, they follow meat-based diets. They also don’t shy away from having high carb, high protein fast foods like pizza. Confectionaries also form an important part of their daily food habit.
Weight requirements categorized by the three basic dance forms incorporated in precision dancing:
- Ballet- Ballet is aesthetic to the eyes and soulful for the mind. However, behind every move of the dancers goes an enormous amount of practice, coordination, and maintenance of their body specifications. Ballet dancers typically weigh somewhere between 85 to 130 pounds. Part of this weight variation is due to age. However, they have to maintain their weight strictly. A loss in weight can lead to fatigue. An increase in weight beyond a certain measure can lead to a loss of flexibility.
- Jazz dance: jazz dance itself is a very good way of losing weight. Jazz dance works best when the body weight is distributed equally to every pressure point. Average weight of around 100 pounds can be found among professional jazz dancers.
- Tap dancing: tap dancing, like jazz, requires proper distribution of body weight across the entirety of all pressure points. The average weight of a tap dancer is more or less similar to a jazz dancer.
Conclusion
In conclusion, the Rockettes have mastered the art of precision dancing and it isn’t some ordinary feat. Incorporating three dance styles, the whole troop has to work on their individual and group coordination to bring out the perfect results. A key to doing that is to maintain proper body weight so as not to lose flexibility by being overweight or lose stamina by being underweight. A proper diet of the right amount of carbohydrates and proteins along with rigorous training programs and recovery sessions help the dancers maintain their body weight. Most Rockette dancers have a body weigh of around 90 to 100 pounds even though there is no strict weigh requirement to join the troop.
