A retired professional dancer, acrobat and singer, Christy was the line captain for the Folies Bergere at the Tropicana in Las Vegas. She was a featured dancer at Busch Gardens (Tampa) and has performed with Carnival Cruise Lines , Star Pointe Dancers, Tampa Bay Arts and the Lexington Ballet .A choreographer, judge and instructor for Dance Masters of America, Christy teaches gymnastics, tap, jazz and ballet and is safety certified by USA Gymnastics. Christy now runs her own web-based businesses Showstrings and YoYoMonkey.

Working on an Injury

Dancers by nature are very tough individuals. We have to fight for almost everything we have in our lives. Imagine your next job interview as an audition. You go into a small room that is filled with mirrors and about a hundred beautiful girls.

These girls are not just beautiful faces either, we are talking perfect bodies and what was not given to them naturally can now be purchased for a reasonable price at the nearest plastic surgeon. Being now what is referred to as 'an older dancer' I have to ability to ignore all of this and focus on my own strengths. I, luckily, have been blessed with extreme flexibility and that will get me a job quicker than someone's good looks. This is a fact that I learned after many years of being severely intimidated by all of the hoopla of an audition.

Every move you make is scrutinized by two or three people - not always with great qualifications but we'll get to that later - sitting at the front of the room with pencil and paper in hand. You stay in that room, sometimes for hours, performing the same dance combination over and over and over until these people decide something. Its very stressful and can shatter your confidence and your self esteem. When it is all said and done, if you get the job, you usually learn that the people who chose you know nothing about dance. For example, one of the three people who judged me for my last job was the Entertainment Director. I later learned that she has never danced, never been an acrobat, knows nothing about performing and held the most weight in the decision making process at the audition. My point? I'm getting to it, I promise. Fighting for everything sort of sets a precedent for a dancer's life; therefore, giving up is not something we do naturally or well.

In February, 2004 I decided that it was time for me to hang up my shoes. After fighting extreme fatigue and a knee injury for about five months, my decision was not that difficult. I have had a very exciting fourteen year professional career without any substantial injuries and have made it into my thirties doing what I love. Lucky, Lucky, Lucky. For me, making this decision was fairly simple. I felt like the little bird on my shoulder turned into a large crow and began to scream in my ear, "Hello! Anybody home? Be happy with what you have achieved!" I guess that's what it is all about.

If you are contemplating hanging up your dancing shoes, try to answer the following questions:

1. Have you accomplished what goals you set for yourself?
2. If you are performing daily or nightly are you fatigued more than usual?
3. Does performing feel more like a job now as opposed to what you love to do?
4. Have you lost your passion for dance and everything feels like work

If you answered yes to all of these questions maybe you should either consider changing gigs or retiring. Remember that you don't have to retire completely because there are always many other venues. I plan to continue performing part time through dinner theatres, community theatre or small dance/charity events. The end does not always have to be such a dead end. Keep your options open and find your passion again!

Advice given here is just that -- advice. If you are suffering from an Irish dance injury, please see your doctor for treatment.

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