Dec 20, 2009
Basic Moves In Ballet You Have To Learn
Ballet has something magical about it and once ballet dancers start to move around a stage then a whole new fantasy world opens. This is a world defined by romance, beauty and grace, one that many want to belong to. It is in fact, not as far out of reach as you might at first believe.
In order to really get off to a good start with ballet dancing, you should begin with the basic moves that all ballet dancers need to have mastered. The ballet barre is one of the best ways to master these techniques. There are many ballet barres to choose from, but if you cannot afford a real bar then you can always substitute the back of a high chair, which is just as good and effective.
The barre is used by ballet dancers as a tool for stability. A dancer is able to stabilize their body when working on basic positions and movements of ballet by using the barre.
The eleve is a simple move and also the first one you should work on. This move is just when a ballet dancer raises their body up on the balls of the feet, and it will also do a lot to greatly strengthen important body parts like the feet, ankles and calves. You will need to work on doing an eleve with all five basic ballet positions and once you are capable of that you can start working on a releve in those positions too. The releve is different, because it is when a dancer raises themselves onto the ball of a foot while in a deep plie position.
There are two moves that you must master and they are the plie and a grand plie. A plie is simply the bending of the knee found in many ballet positions and depending on how deep the knee bend, a grand plie.
Another basic move in ballet you need to know and which can be mastered using a barre is the tendu. When working on this move you just have to stand firmly on one leg and stretch out the other one. It is important to keep in mind that when working on a tendu that the stretched out foot is in a strong point at the end of the move and before you bring it back to the starting position. This move is great for increasing flexibility overall and strengthening turnout.
Once you have become confident in your tendu you can move onto a rond de jambre. This is similar to the tendu, but it actually involves your free leg making a semi circle on the floor. This can be done in all five of the ballet positions, and it is one of the best exercises to improve your turnout. The circular movement of this step always moves from front to back, but after you have acclimated yourself with the rond de jambe you can progress to the jambe en dedans which takes the circle in the opposite direction.
Learning these basic ballet steps gives you the foundation to build on as a dancer and although ballet is complicated it has its roots in the basics.
If you are considering taking ballet lessons in Arlington VA, one of the places you might consider is found at this website, with more info about dance class.
