What is in ballet technique you may ask? Classical Ballet Technique The Basic Principles of Classical Ballet Technique book has some great tips on how to improve your ballet technique and is written by an ex-dancer and teacher. It is a good resource to have for both teachers and dancers. Dance has never been as … Read more
In ballet developpe directly translated means developed or unfolded. When you do a ballet developpe, your working foot travels up the supporting leg, clearly going through the sur le cou-de-pied pointed position and then to a retiré position, before unfolding your leg out into a sustained extension. You could take the leg up to the … Read more
The word frappe means to strike or knock and in battement frappe in ballet, this is exactly what the dancer is doing with the working foot on the ground. What is a Battement Frappe in Ballet? Some people think of a coffee break when hearing battement frappe, but in ballet, it is a step that … Read more
Definition Adage If you type in ‘definition adage‘ or ‘definition adagio‘ you will be surprised that it means a proverb or short statement expressing a general truth: The old adage “out of sight out of mind.” If you are looking for the meaning within ballet you will need to specify further. The definition adage in … Read more
Let’s look at how to do a pirouette in ballet. A pirouette is a very quick spinning action on one leg and the word pirouette in French means Spinning Top. Pirouettes normally add excitement to a routine, but they don’t normally lead into another step like many of the other ballet exercises. All dancers dream … Read more
The term ‘Fondu’ in ballet means melted. Think of a fondue meal with melted cheese. Fondu in ballet is the melting or bending of the supporting leg with coordination. At the barre, dancers do an exercise called battement fondu. This is the bending and stretching of the supporting leg while coordinating with the bending and … Read more
Rond de jambe a Terre literally means ’round of the leg across the floor.’ Rond de jambe en L’air is a circular action with the working leg in the air but is different from what we are discussing today. A straight working leg moves in an arc while the toes lightly touch the floor. The … Read more
My pupils often ask me why we need to do battement tendu in ballet. Although it does seem like a mundane exercise, there are many good reasons that dancers should be practicing their battement tendu as often as possible. Balanchine quoted “If you just do battements tendu well, you don’t have to do anything else.” … Read more
Plies in ballet are a very important part of ballet training. Plie means to bend or fold, and in ballet, it is to bend the knees. ‘plié, (French: “bent”), knee bend in ballet. It is used in jumps and turns to provide spring, absorb shock, and as an exercise to loosen muscles and to develop … Read more
If you have been a dancer for any length of time, especially a modern dancer then you have probably heard of axel jumps or axel turning jumps. What exactly are they and how do you execute them neatly? Here is a visual of axel jumps in the form of a video. This is a preparation … Read more