
Giselle uncovered – confessions of an Irish ballet dancer


I made my professional debut with Ballet Ireland in The Nutcracker last year. This season, we are working on Giselle which is choreographed by former Royal Ballet dancer Ludovic Ondiviela. Giselle is a story of love, betrayal and redemption; Ludovic’s vision is to bring the story into the 21st century. He said people still fall in love get their hearts broken, and I think the audience will be able to relate. It’s very special for me to be a part of this production and to be a part of the creation of new work. I am learning so much as an artist being in the studio and working, but also to be able to watch the other dancers and follow their storytelling of this ballet is really inspiring for me. There are moments that will make you smile, and moments that will break your heart.
In the build up to opening night, a typical day at Ballet Ireland consists of daily class at 10am. This is so important for a dancer, as it allows you to continue to build and grow on your technique, tune into your body and prepare your for the day ahead. We do class every day, followed by rehearsals until 6 or 7pm that evening. As a dancer, your body is your tool so you have to look after it to the best of your ability. There are a lot of things that have to be considered in order to insure that you can be at your best for performances and rehearsals. For me, I try to maintain a balanced diet and a balanced lifestyle. Outside of work, I go to the gym to condition and strengthen my muscles, eat good food and rest as much as I can. I will still go out and enjoy my free time with friends and I think it’s really important to have downtime and other interests and hobbies. In terms of my diet, I don’t follow any trends or fads; the food you eat is your fuel, so for me I try to eat foods that will give me energy and help me to recover. I try to keep things simple in terms of my meals: I eat a lot of protein and carbs as well as fruit and veg throughout the day. I eat a lot of meat, eggs, pasta, rice and bananas as well as milk, protein bars and shakes. I always have a bag of sweets in my bag throughout the day to give me a little kick if I need it, and I will admit that although I try to be healthy I still enjoy and indulge treat foods and snacks!
I have always been so incredibly proud to be Irish and it is so nice to be living back in Dublin – I feel a huge sense of pride to work here and to be in my home city. Going on tour is always a great buzz and I love getting to travel and see different places on the road. It’s really made me appreciate the beauty and culture of Ireland. It can be very long and tiring, but completely worth it. From travelling between venues and performing, I always try to squeeze in a little bit of sightseeing and one of my highlights last season was getting to see the Giants Causeway for the first time; it was just beautiful. What’s great about being on tour is getting to perform in front of local audiences, visiting different theatres and staying in different hotels. It’s really rewarding getting to perform in front so so many different audiences, and really making dance accessible to everyone.