Miami City Ballet’s Ella Titus Shares Her Daily Routine
“Get ready, because my days are really packed!” says Ella Titus, a corps de ballet dancer at Miami City Ballet. Titus has been dancing with MCB for over 10 years and works for its marketing department as a social media content creator. In addition, she maintains her own social media channels (with over 100K followers between TikTok and Instagram), teaches Pilates and ballet sculpt classes, and co-founded a virtual book club called Books with Benefits. But once she gets home after a long day, Titus says, “I prioritize cuddle time with my pets”— her cat, Gatsby, and dog, Theo (she affectionately nicknamed the duo “The Orange Boys”).
Below, Titus takes us through a typical day in her work life:
7 am: Wake up. “I start working in the morning for the marketing department, usually with breakfast and my cat on my lap,” she says. Working from home usually includes answering emails and creating and scheduling posts.
9 am: Walk to the studio. Titus lives just five minutes away from MCB’s Miami Beach studios. “I leave around the same time my fiancé, Matt, takes the dog out for a walk, so we get to walk together.”
9:10 am: Once she arrives at the studio, Titus prepares for class by doing her hair and warming up. Sometimes, she uses this time to film content for MCB’s Instagram if other company members are available.
10–11:30 am: Company class
11:30 am–2:30 pm: Rehearsal. Titus is currently rehearsing Balanchine’s La Valse and Walpurgisnacht Ballet, which MCB will be performing in Miami, Fort Lauderdale, and West Palm Beach during February and March.
2:30–3:30 pm: Lunch. Titus will sometimes multitask with some marketing work or squeeze in a physical therapy appointment. “But it’s okay because I am constantly snacking! My co-workers know I always have a protein bar in my hand.”
3:30–6:30 pm: Second rehearsal block
7 pm: Teaching at Fuze House Miami Beach location. Titus usually teaches a Pilates class in the evening, but on some days she teaches at 7 am, before work.
8 pm: Drive home. “Matt usually cooks dinner, which is amazing,” she says. After dinner, the couple spends time together with their pets, and Titus works on her personal social media. “I like to work on my own Instagram at the end of the day because it’s more fun and relaxing for me,” Titus says. “Also, if I have time, I try to take care of my body and roll out or use the e-stim (electronic muscle stimulation) machine.”
10 pm: Bedtime
Performance Days
MCB performs in Miami and surrounding cities. During performance days, “I pack a lunch and a lot of snacks and plan to stay at the theater all day,” she says. Titus still begins her day around 7 am and starts with her marketing work. “Usually during performances, I post in the morning before I go to the theater.”
If MCB has a double show day, company class is onstage from 11 am to 12:30 pm. “Sometimes the class is only an hour if we need more time to rehearse,” Titus says. After the 2 pm performance, there is a three-hour break, during which Titus will go to the physical therapist for dry needling, then eat a carb-heavy lunch— “I need all the carbs before that second performance,” she says, laughing. “Then, if I can fit in a nap I will. Otherwise, I’ll redo my makeup before the second performance.” The evening show starts at either 7 or 7:30 pm, and, after the performance, Titus drives home right away. “I finish my night by responding to all the messages on MCB’s Instagram page,” she says. She loves to see and respond to posts from patrons. “I’m always onstage and never see who’s in the audience. It’s nice to see people dressed up and enjoying the performance or some cute little girl in a tutu watching us.”
Days Off
Titus likes to stay active on her days off, starting either with a Pilates class or by taking Theo for a walk. Sometimes, she will go to the Coconut Grove neighborhood in Miami for shockwave therapy treatments and a snack from her favorite bagel shop, El Bagel. “I am a huge foodie, so on days off I have a long list of restaurants I love and want to go to or new places I want to try,” Titus says. Her passion for food also inspires her Instagram page with recurring “What I Eat in a Day as a Professional Ballerina” posts. “I think it’s important to show how we fuel our bodies, because a lot of people still think that dancers don’t eat.”
Titus spends time on her days off creating content and scrolling on Instagram and TikTok for inspiration. She doesn’t spend all day on her phone, though. “We have a pool, so if I can go outside and get some sun, I’m happy,” she says. “It makes me remember how lucky I am to live in Miami.”
