- “FANTASY” dancer Kelsie McNutt credits Pilates for helping her stay healthy and maintain stamina for performing six nights a week.
- Behind the scenes of “FANTASY,” showgirls like Kelsie work hard with multiple fitness classes a week to ensure audiences see a flawless performance on stage.
The dazzling performances audiences see each night in ‘FANTASY‘ at Luxor Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas are powered by far more than just choreography and costumes.
Behind the scenes, the show’s dancers rely on rigorous fitness routines, strength training, and recovery practices to meet the physical demands of performing six nights a week. For “FANTASY” dancer and Pilates instructor Kelsie McNutt, Pilates has become an essential part of staying healthy, preventing injuries, and maintaining the stamina needed to take the stage night after night.
Ahead of National Women’s Health and Fitness Day, Kelsie sat down with The Blast to share how she started in Pilates, why she believes movement is so important, and some simple wellness habits that help keep both performers and everyday women feeling strong and confident.
‘FANTASY’ Dancer Shares Fitness Motivation Ahead Of National Women’s Health And Fitness Day
With National Women’s Health and Fitness Day approaching on September 30, “FANTASY” dancer Kelsie is sharing what helps her to stay in tip-top shape while performing six high-energy shows a week. In addition to being a showgirl for one of the city’s most popular shows, she also spends her time teaching Pilates and helping others during their fitness journeys.
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“When I was 16, I had some injuries as a young dancer and I was put in physical therapy because I was so young and they didn’t want to try anything crazy. They started me with Pilates exercises,” Kelsie told The Blast exclusively. “I started to love it. I was watching YouTube videos doing Pilates <a href="https://healthylife7.com/rams-mcvay-aaron-donald-looked-great-in-workout/” title=”Rams' McVay: Aaron Donald 'looked great' in workout”>workout and fell in love with it.”
She loved it so much that she decided to become a Pilates instructor and now teaches all forms of Pilates, including mat, reformer, and Cadillac.
A Peek Inside Kelsie’s Fitness Routine
With six nights of performing in front of audiences, you might think Kelsie wouldn’t be putting a lot of focus into her workouts, but you’d be wrong
“On Mondays, I love to start the week off with a heated mat Pilates class, just so I can start my week with sweating out anything from the weekend,” she said. “Tuesday, I take reformer because I have the show at night and that just kind of rejuvenates me.”
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She also explained why Pilates specifically complements the demands of performing six nights a week in “FANTASY.”
“It complements it so well. After I take a reformer or mat class, my body just feels so good,” she shared. “It feels like I could just go into a show and perform at my best.”
She added that without her Pilates workouts, she would feel more stiff and not able to move as well
Starting A Fitness Journey? Kelsie Of ‘FANTASY’ Has Tips To Share
For someone who’s just getting started on a fitness journey, Kelsie said Pilates is a great place to start.
“Bridging is so good for the pelvic floor for a woman. It’s stabilizing and makes it stronger,” Kelsie told The Blast. “It’s kind of the first thing you do in a class. Or another one would be the roll up for spine mobility and deep core connection.”
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Another tip she shared – getting your steps in. Kelsie said that her “biggest tip or hack.”
“As long as you are getting 10K steps in a day and drinking your water, you’re doing something right,” she added
Kelsie hopes that women looking to get more into fitness understand that it’s okay to feel intimidated about the gym
“Take a risk to just go to the gym. It’s okay if you might feel silly. Just take the risk,” she said. “We are humans, we’re supposed to be movers. So just as long as you’re moving your body, you’re doing it right.”
What Audiences Might Not Realize About Being A Showgirl
While audiences at “FANTASY” see all that happens on the stage, they don’t often realize all that happens behind the scenes. Being a showgirl isn’t all glamour and allure; there’s a lot of hard work that goes into the job.
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“So audiences may not realize the behind-the-scenes of it all. They get the perfect stage view, the girls all looking amazing, but the backstage is where we are running around, quick changing. It’s hard work,” Kelsie shared. “Backstage, we are working really hard to make sure that the front of the house sees the perfect show.”
In addition to all that goes on backstage, there’s so much more going on behind the scenes. Kelsie takes multiple fitness classes a week and is always moving to stay in shape and be stage ready
More About ‘FANTASY’ At Luxor
In October, “FANTASY” celebrated its 26 year anniversary and debuted its first-ever signature lingerie line, “Lingerie by FANTASY: The Strip’s Sexiest Tease.”
During the anniversary celebration, Anita Mann, the Emmy Award-winning creator, producer, director, and choreographer of “FANTASY” sat down with The Blast to exclusively discuss the show and the new lingerie line
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“We have a bustier and a corset that we’ve been wearing in the show in different numbers and after shows, we’ve always got people saying they want that corset,” she told The Blast. “I said to myself one day, okay, we can do it and extend the brand and tell the customers, okay, you can get one.”
And so the lingerie line was born
“FANTASY” has also had an annual calendar for 21 years. Mann said it’s “fun” for the dancers and that they love shooting for the calendar. She added, “It’s always a joy, and this year’s calendar is very classy, it’s romantic.”
“FANTASY performs nightly at 10:30 p.m. at the Atrium Showroom at Luxor Hotel & Casino. There is an additional show on Sundays at 8 p.m. Guests must be 18 and older with a valid ID. There are pre-show VIP experiences available for purchase. Full schedule and tickets can be found at FANTASYLuxor.com, at the Luxor box office, and by calling 702-262-4400
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The Inside The Fitness Routine That Keeps A Las Vegas Showgirl Stage-Ready first appeared on The Blast
