CROSS POINTE DANCE - IN THE NEWS
Book Dawn Smith Theodore for your next Speaking Engagement!
Dawn is available to speak to schools, organizations, dance companies, conventions to educate others on the prevention and treatment of eating disorders in dancers. Call (818) 679-6204 to schedule Dawn at your next event.
DST 2022 Speaking / Dance Schedule
April, 2022 - Festival Ballet - Providence, Rhode Island

May, 2022 - Sinai Akiba - Eating Disorder Prevention for parents - Los Angeles, CA

July, 2022 - Festival Ballet - Providence, Rhode Island
​Oct, 2022 - IADMS - University of Limerick, Ireland
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Past Events
/2021
January - American Ballet Theatre - JKO School
February - Puerto Rico Classical Dance Center
March - Grand Rapids Ballet
June 27 - Performing Arts Medicine Association - NYC, NY
American Ballet Theatre
JKO Ballet School
Puerto Rico Classical Dance
Bella Academy Mumbai
Steps School of Dance in Clearwater
Grand Rapids Ballet
PAMA Conference
October - IADMS Conference - Denver, CO
​In addition, Dawn appeared on Recovery Bites and Anyone Can Move Podcasts
on Dancers and Eating Disorders
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/2020
October - IAEDP
December - Steps School of Dance in Clearwater Beach
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/2019
Jan 5 - Brandywine Ballet West Chester, PA
Jan 12 - Kirov Academy of Ballet in Washington DC
Jan 15 and 16 - University of Oklahoma
March 1 - Debbie Reynolds Scholarship Dancers
March 30 - City Dance Bethesda Maryland
March 30 - The Washington Ballet School
Oct 25 - 27, 2019 - IADMS Montreal
/2018
January 2018 - LHQ Dance Force - Agawam, MA - ( Cross Pointe Dance and Dancer Wellness Workshop)
March 1, 2018 - Antioch University- Los Angeles, CA
May 7, 2018 - Ben Gal NFL Try OUTs - Cincinnati, OH
June 16, 2018 - Maria's Project - Milton, WI
July 26 - 28, 2018- Dance Life Teacher Conference - Phoenix, AZ
Sept 7, 2018 - Dallas Conservatory - Dallas, TX- (TuTu Thin Book Signing)
Sept 8, 2018 - G Force Dance Legacy, Dallas, TX - (CPD Master Classes)
Sept 14, 2018 - Steps on Broadway - NYC, NY
Oct 24 - 28, 2018 - IADMS - Helsinki, Finland - (Dancer Wellness Workshop)
/2017
-1.Dance Theatre of Harlem - Dancer Wellness Workshop - April 28, 2017
-2. En Arabesque - Book Signing - April 29, 2017
-3. Hollywood Connection, Anaheim, CA - 7/7/2017
-2. Cross Pointe Dance at G Force Dance Legacy in Ft Worth, TX- 8/19/2017
-3. Steps on Broadway Summer Intensive, NYC- 6/23/2017
-4. Steps on Broadway, NYC 7/28/2017
-5. Project Mar;a Art Jam in Milton, WI, 6/17/2017
-6. Dallas Conservatories- Park Cities Dance- 8/18/2017
-7. Got Dance - Book Signing - Sept 30, 2017
-8. Steps on Broadway - Oct. 27, 2017
The Language of Eating Disorders: Are you helping or harming? (part 2)
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Posted By IADMS Newsletter; Author: Dawn Smith-Theodore
Thursday, October 1, 2020
Updated: Wednesday, October 14, 2020
IADMS International Association for Dance Medicine & Science
Martha Graham said “Dance is the hidden language of the soul.” I believe that dance is a conversation between body and soul. Most dancers can execute the moves, but it is the expression of the emotions through the body that is so important.
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A dancer must step out of the comfort of technique to achieve humanness, which is what will allow the audience to connect with the dancer. Most members of the audience do not know about technique, but they want to understand the story a dancer is telling with their body. After all, the body is the instrument of the dancer, which expresses the language of the soul. Being a dancer is something very... [READ MORE]
Recovery Bites - Episode 24:
Tutu Thin & Dancing Around the Issues with Dawn Smith-Theodore, LMFT
by Karin Lewis, MA, LMFT, CEDS
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In this episode, I am joined by Dawn Smith-Theodore, LMFT a psychotherapist specializing in the treatment of eating disorders and addictions. Dawn has a private practice in Agoura Hills and Westwood, CA, and she was the Director of Day Treatment Services... [READ MORE]
The Reality of Eating Disorders in the Dance World
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Posted by Kirsten Kong on July 17, 2020
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HONG KONG – Dawn Theodore, a former professional dancer from Los Angeles, was 15 when she started to eat less and less.
“When I began comparing myself to others…the mirror became my enemy,” she said in a previous interview with Pointe Magazine. “The drill sergeant in my head…never stopped proclaiming that I wasn’t good enough.”
She developed anorexia, an eating disorder where people restrict food intake, consume laxatives, and induce vomiting. Those who suffer from the disorder often have a distorted perception of their body, overly focusing on their body weight, said Theodore, now a psychotherapist... [READ FULL ARTICLE HERE]
Weighing In on Eating Disorder Issues:
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Taken from:
The Eating Disorder Journal
(December 2019, Vol. 20, No.12)
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The Eating Disorder Trap: Dancers and the Illusion of Perfectionism by Dawn Theodore. I grew up in front of a mirror and as a dancer it was my best friend and my worst enemy. When I began comparing myself to others and listening to the drill sergeant in my head that never stopped proclaiming that needed to lose weight, then the mirror became my enemy. When I was 15 and my body started developing, I thought losing a few pounds would help me jump higher and look better in my leotard. Yet the less I ate, the louder my inner drill sergeant barked negative criticism. Soon, the drive to be perfect took over my thoughts. I spent hours planning my caloric intake and eventually developed anorexia nervosa where I did not see myself as thin no matter how much weight I lost... [READ FULL ARTICLE HERE]
Dawn speaks at IADMS 2019 Montreal
Dancers and Eating Disorders – Warning Signs and Helpful Resources by Dawn Smith-Theodore
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When you suffer from an eating disorder, you live with the mantra, never enough. Whether it’s the number on the scale that could always be lower, or feeling as though you can never get enough food when binging, or when you believe you can never exercise enough, this concept remains a familiar thread in the life of someone who suffers from an eating disorder.
There is always someone better standing next to you in the mirror—someone with a better physique or a higher extension or more perfect feet. The critical mind works overtime, and can inhibit dancers from being able to perform their best at auditions and even in class. Not all dancers develop eating disorders, but research shows that they are 20 times more likely to than the general population... [Read More]
The Whole Dancer Interview with Dawn Smith-Theodore
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Jess Spinner (JS): What’s your background in dance?
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Dawn Smith-Theodore (DS-T) :
My mom had a dancing school in Ohio so I danced before I was born. I moved to New York and danced for Henry Letang who at the time was doing a bunch of Broadway shows. And then I ended up going to Japan and performing at The Mikado Theater, I’ve danced at Carnegie Hall, and at the Sydney Olympics. After dancing professionally I opened my dance school in Los Angeles and ran it for 25 years. I still do a master class series around.... [READ FULL ARTICLE HERE]
POINTE Magazine: "The Perfect Storm," by Dawn Smith-Theodore
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Check out the August/September, 2018 Issue of POINTE MAGAZINE for my article on "The Perfect Storm," which discusses how, under the right circumstances, a dancer's perfectionism and a ballet culture of thinness can create a risky recipe for an eating disorder.
Is there really such a thing as too thin?
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Like drugs and alcohol, food can be a way of coping with emotions. "There’s an underlying reason why people develop an eating disorder," said Dawn Smith-Theodore, a specialist in the treatment of eating disorders. "It’s about the food and it’s not about the food. Somewhere along the line the... [Read More]
DANCE HEALTH:
How to prevent the thinking and behavior that leads to an eating disorder.
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We’ve seen it portrayed in movies, in literature, in art and in theater – the dancer who’s obsessed with her weight. Whether in secret or in public, many of us dancers have argued against this stereotype, contending that it supports a... [Read More]
FEATURE ARTICLE:
Is it safe to create a dance social media profile?
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In an effort to boost self-branding, build a professional network or to simply stay informed, many young dancers continue to invade social media platforms, particularly Instagram, by setting up profiles. While social media can be a... [Read More]
Dawn Smith Theodore Interview:
The Gina Pero Show - Living Life Full Out
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The Gina Pero Show inspires audiences worldwide to start living life full out with feeling. Her vast knowledge, valuable information, and real-life stories create an experience that will ignite awareness into your heart and soul.