New York versus Philly: Dance Edition Athletes and the Arts

Our biggest episode yet brings together the medical professionals in New York and Philadelphia who care for some of the biggest companies in the dance world. They give us insight on how they keep those performers on stage. We talk about what it's like to work in small, medium, and large-sized programs, how their dancers access care, and the challenges of pushing the boundaries of choreography without pushing physical boundaries. Brought to you by the American Medical Society of Sports Medicine. Our guests:

From Philadelphia:

Christine Cox, founder and artistic director of Ballet X (Instagram: @christineccox)

Marc Harwood, MD: Rothman Orthopedic Institute and consultant Ballet X and Pennsylvania Ballet

From New York:

Melody Hrubes, MD: Rothman Orthopedic Institute and medical director Radio City Rockettes (Instagram: @melodyhrubes)

Sheyi OjoFeitimi, PT, DPT: Director of Therapy Services, Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater. #drsheyipt #dancereadyproject

For more information on Athletes and the Arts, go to https://www.athletesandthearts.com

For American Medical Society of Sports Medicine, go to https://www.amssm.org

For Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, go to https://www.alvinailey.org

For Ballet X, go to https://www.balletx.org

Bios:

Christine Cox: Christine Cox co-founded BalletX, America's premier contemporary ballet company, with Matthew Neenan in 2005. The BalletX team has produced over 100 world premiere ballets by nearly 60 renowned and emerging choreographers to date, reaching more than 150,000 dance patrons. Under her leadership as Artistic & Executive Director, the company has performed at prestigious national stages including The Kennedy Center, Jacob's Pillow Dance Festival, Vail International Dance Festival, and The Joyce Theater. In 2013, she and her team launched The X-Process, an engagement program that invites audience members to participate in pre-show conversations with choreographers, an interactive lecture series about contemporary ballet, and open rehearsals. Through the Dance eXchange education program, she has partnered with elementary schools from the Philadelphia School District to emphasize dance as a means to promote self-confidence and acquire valuable life skills, reaching more than 2,000 local students in its first six years. Cox also led a TEDx talk at the George School about innovation in the field of contemporary ballet, from the art form's historical traditions to today's world of evolving definitions and globalization.

As an arts leader, she has served on review panels for the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation and New Jersey State Council on the Arts, and currently sits on the Advisory Board of the Philadelphia Arts & Business Council. Christine has been recognized with two Rocky Awards for Outstanding Achievement in the Arts, as well as fellowships from the Independence Foundation and Pennsylvania Council on the Arts.

Cox was a full-time company member with the Pennsylvania Ballet from 1993 until her retirement from the stage in 2006. Some of her featured roles included Rum and Coca Cola in Paul Taylor's Company B, Vortex in Alvin Ailey's The River; Choleric in George Balanchine's The Four Temperaments, Eve in Margo Sappington's Rodin, Mis En Vie the Cowgirl in Agnes DeMille's Rodeo, and principal female roles in Jerome Robbins' Fancy Free and The Concert. During this time, Cox served for ten years as the rehearsal assistant of the children's corps for Pennsylvania Ballet's annual production of Balanchine's The Nutcracker. Prior to joining the Pennsylvania Ballet, she danced with BalletMet (Columbus, OH), as a guest artist with Ballet Hispanico (New York, NY), and with the American Repertory Ballet (Princeton, NJ). Cox is the proud mother of two young boys, Warren and Wesley.