#MotivationMonday with ABT Principal Isabella Boylston
There’s nothing cooler (or more fascinating) than getting the inside scoop on a prima ballerina’s life. What does she eat before a performance? What’s her favorite workout? Does she have any guilty pleasures? Any pre-performance rituals? We need. to. know.
Thankfully, American Ballet Theatre principal Isabella Boylston is dropping tips everywhere these days (and just in time for #MotivationMonday). Boylston is currently ABT’s youngest principal and debuted as Juliet in Romeo and Juliet, just last week. So basically, when she doles out advice, we listen!
This week, she talked with The New Potato. The biggest takeaway? This ballerina loves her food. More precisely: her pasta (yes, girl!). “My favorite pre-show food is pasta,” she says. “If I’m on the road, I’ll order some spaghetti from room service. After a show I’ll eat anything—a burger, steak, fish, or more pasta!”
Isabella Boylston outside the Metropolitan Opera at Lincoln Center. (photo via The New Potato)
Boylston also dishes on her post-rehearsal routine, saying she doesn’t work out much outside of the studio, but that she always makes sure to roll out her muscles with a foam roller and takes hot bubble baths with Epsom salts. And for curing those pre-show jitters? “My biggest pre-show ritual is listening to music and drinking coffee. I always get really nervous before a big show, so it helps me stay in a positive state of mind,” she says. “Sometimes I take a hot shower at the last minute before I go onstage to get my blood going–and I give my rings to my dresser, Tomoko, for safekeeping.”
Plus, Bolyston’s biggest piece of advice: “Don’t limit yourself. You can do whatever you set your mind to, as long as you don’t let fear or worrying about your perceived shortcomings get in the way of working towards your goals.”
Inspiring, right? Head over to The New Potato to read even more about the principal and have a fabulously motivated Monday!
