More Movements of Ballet

Croisé

The crossing of the legs with the body placed at an oblique angle to the audience. The disengaged leg may be crossed in the front or the back.

En croix

Indicates that an exercise is to be executed the fourth position front , to the second position and to the fourth position back, or vice versa.

Effacé

One of the movements of ballet in which the dancer stands at an oblique angle to the audience so that a part of the body is taken back and almost hidden from view.

Écarté

One of the eight directions of the body

The dancer faces either one of the two front corners of the room. The leg nearer the audience is pointed in the second position a terré or or raised to the second position en lair. The torso is held perpendicular The arms are held en attitude with the raised arm being on the same side as the extended leg. The head is raised slightly and turned toward the raised arm so that the eyes look into the palm of the hand.

En face

Facing the audience

En avant

Used to indicate that a given step is executed moving forward, toward the audience.

En arrière

Used to indicate that a step is executed moving away from the audience

Port de bras

(1) A movement or series of movements made by passing the arm or arms through various positions

(2) A term for a group of exercise designed to make the arms move gracefully and harmoniously

Glissade

A travelling step executed by gliding the working foot from the fifth position in the required direction, the other foot closing to it

Pas de Chat

A ballet leap from one foot to the other in which the feet are drawn up and the knees are bent so that the legs form a diamond

Balancé

An alternation of balance, shifting weight from one foot to the other. Balance may be done crossing the foot either front or back.

Chassé

A step in which one foot literally chases the other foot out of its position; done in series

Tombé

This is a movement in which the dancer, with the working leg raised in the air, falls forward, backward or sideways into a fondu on the working leg

Pas de Bourrée 

A transitional movement in ballet in which the dancers transfers body weight quickly from foot to foot in three small steps.

Class Video Critique

Considering where we were at the beginning of the semester, we -as a class- have improved tremendously. In general, the class did well, however there were a few improvements that could be done on everyone's part- including myself. 

Posture
For critiquing the class as a whole, the primary issue was posture. Many of us need to work on finding our center, tightening the abdominal and back muscles, and pointing our pelvis down to obtain more balance and length. 

Plie
As in the posture section, the same goes for the plie- specifically the grand plie. As alot of the students got closer to the floor, they let their posture slip and began to lean forward. This also relates back to posture in that you must keep the back straight make sure the pelvis is facing downward.

Tendu
Many students were not stretching their legs as far as they can go. Improvements in the tendus can be made by fully extending the legs and fully turning out the heels when performing the tendu devant. Included in this section is also the execution of the degage, in which many people lost their energy when bringing the foot off the floor. One must used the energy that their body has to sweep the foot off the floor with energy.

Petit Battement
Petit battements were very good when compared to when the class was first introduced to them. However, there are still those that do not fully control the leg, thus allowing the whole leg to move rather that just below the knee.

Rond de Jambe
When performing the rond de jambe, many students did not fully complete the movement. they instead brought the leg in too short from the full half circle or did not stretch out completely to allow energy flow to make one smooth movement.

As stated before, the class has come a long way since the beginning of the semester, and we still have a long way to go. As with dance, it takes time, effort and years of consistent practice to become situated with the demands of ballet. 

The Five Types of Jumps

Jump (Saute)

A jump in which the dancer both jumps and lands with two feet

Hop (Temps Leve)

 A jump in which a dancer jumps from one foot and lands on the same foot

Leap (Jete)

A jump in which the dancer jumps from one foot to the opposite foot

Assemble

A jump in which the dancer jumps from one foot and lands on both feet

Sissonne

A jump in which a dancer jumps from both feet and lands on one foot

Classical Ballet

Piece: "Jewels"

Created By: George Balachine 

Performed By: The New York City Ballet

About George Balachine 

Balachine started his ballet career in Russia, absorbing and participating in the work of the famous Marius Petipa. As a teeenager, he had began choreographing others and traveled westward to the United States in the 1930s- his style ever steadily progressing. He became active in Broadway and Hollywood, and soon founded the New York City Ballet in 1946.

Overview

"Jewels" is a three-part classical ballet that premiered in New York in 1967, and has been called "the first full-length abstract ballet". This means that the ballet has no story line, and only focuses on the movement of the dancers. This piece has three movements: "Emeralds", "Rubies", and "Diamonds", with each of the pieces featuring music composed by three different composers- Faure, Stravinsky, and Tchaikovsky.


Emeralds:

     



Rubies:

  

Diamonds:
         

7 Movements of Dance

Terms & Definitions

Demi Plie

A movement done in any of the five positions in which the dancer bends the knees halfway, keeping the heels securely on the ground

Grand Plie

A full plie; a deep bend, down to where the thighs are almost horizontal. In all positions except second, the heels release from the floor

Etendre

To stretch; to gather energy and send it down and out, spreading through all joints until completely lengthened

Tendu

A move in which the leg and foot stretch to point in a particular direction, but the foot does not leave the floor

Degage

To disengage. A quick movement between tendu and grande battement in which the foot slightly leaves the floor 

Releve

A position in which the dancer rises from any position to balance on one or both feet on at least a demi-pointe, or possibly a fill-pointe

Glisse

The movement in which the weight is transferred from one foot, which is slid outward from the body and briefly extended off the ground, to the other, which is then brought to meet it

Saute

To jump; when this term is added to the name of a step, the movement is performed while jumping






Elancer
A quick, darting movement; to move in a different direction while in the air

Tourner
To turn, such as chaine or pirouette, and can be performed in a fixed position, across the floor or in the air







Devant
Facing or moving to the front

A La Second

A movement with feet to the side or in second position

Derriere
At or to the back side; to point or face behind