'Movin' Out' without breaking a leg

Watch the dancers in the musical "Movin' Out" for just a few minutes and your heart rate starts to climb. Athletic, graceful men and women weave together sharp, quick dance moves punctuated by back handsprings, flips, leaps and jumps.

"In the industry, it's known as probably the most intense dance show," said resident director Sean Kelly. "Everybody knows, 'Oh, yeah, "Movin' Out" -- you've got to be a hard-core dancer to do that show.'"

Performers need a solid classical or ballet background, "but the movement is really a hybrid of karate, yoga, modern dance and ballet," Kelly said.

So how do the dancers -- who are also actors, as the story is told solely through Billy Joel songs and the movements choreographed by director Twyla Tharp -- prepare and stay healthy for such a demanding, athletic tour?

Kelly encouraged the group to amp up conditioning before rehearsals began.

"I said, 'With this particular show, cross training is vital, and doing the show alone is not enough. You need to keep your body toned so you can get through two shows a day and your body can handle six to eight shows a week. Start biking, swimming, and definitely go to dance, of course. Do yoga, do Pilates.'"

When "Movin' Out" comes to the Hennepin Theatre Trust's Orpheum Theatre Friday through Sunday, dancers will be in the middle of their tour, and caring for their bodies is "very, very important," Kelly said.

Eating well, downing water, getting rest and keeping in shape are essential for staying injury-free and giving top-notch performances, said lead dancer Marc Heitzman. But balance and compromise are also important, he said.

"When you stop for lunches out in the middle of nowhere and you're stuck with fast food, you have to be smart. You can't be eating a Big Mac every day -- you wouldn't do so well. I'll occasionally get a salad and some soup." When grocery stores are nearby, he stocks up on juice, fruit and granola bars.

"You have to do enough to stay in shape and get stronger, but when you have so many shows you have to make sure you're not doing too much," said Heitzman, who played varsity soccer and football for his high school in Ames, Iowa.

At least three times a week he gets on a treadmill or stationary bike. He does pushups and sit-ups daily. Then there's a 45-minute warm-up with all the dancers before each two-hour performance and a cool-down with stretching after.

And the dancers' final secret to staying lean and mean? P90X, a set of workout videos (as seen on infomercials) with intense cardio, strength, yoga and kickboxing regimens. "We've done it in hotel rooms, in the theater and in hotel workout facilities," Heitzman said.