Estudio de los tamaños absolutos de bailarines profesionales de elite de ballet

Abstract

The similarities and differences in the body dimensions of a group of ballet dancers compared with those of modern or folklore dances are indicators of corporal heterogeneity or homogeneity and of the spatial volume occupied by a group of dancers. The present study aimed to analyze the kinanthropometric similarities and differences among elite professional ballet dancers compared with modern and folklore dancers. The anthropometric profiles of dancers from the National Ballet, National Dance and National Folkloric companies in Cuba were determined. Following the selection criteria of expert teachers on figure and technical-artistic performance, the best dancers, aged between 18 and 40 years, were measured. To determine body dimensions, an anthropometric protocol of 16 measurements was applied. There was lesser variability in stature in both male and female ballet dancers than in modern and folklore dancers. Female ballet dancers occupied a smaller physical space than female modern and folklore dancers, while male folklore dancers occupied a larger physical space than male ballet dancers. The differences found among the three kinds of dancers revealed greater corporal homogeneity among ballet dancers.