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
In this article, we are going to look at how to do a Grand Jeté and how to improve your leaps. A Grand Jeté is an awesome-looking ballet trick or movement in which the dancer leaps into the air and does a split. If done properly, it looks as though the dancer is hovering in … Read more
What is attitude in dance? Apart from the attitude a dancer is giving you, I am actually referring to the attitude step. Attitudes are derived from ballet, but other dance forms like jazz and contemporary also use the attitude leg a lot. What Is An Attitude? Here is an explanation of the attitude in dance, … Read more
As in rond de jambe a terre, in grand rond de jambe the foot describes an arc from the front to the back or the back to the front, but now your foot is lifted off of the floor. The working leg could be anywhere from 45 to 90 degrees or higher, as long as the dancer … Read more
When I think of turns in ballet, I think of the ballerina in a jewelry box turning round and round. You then realize that some of ballet’s enduring magic would be nothing without those impressive turns you see on the stage. Just like those soaring leaps, turns are what the audience loves to see, and … Read more
Cambre in ballet is a French term in ballet that means arched. It also means ‘to throw out one’s chest.’ In ballet, we don’t actually throw our chests out, as you would do some serious damage. Instead, the dancer would bend gently to the back, side, or front, or even in a circular motion. If … Read more