ballet

training

Different systems of ballet training have evolved, named after countries (Russia, France) or teachers (Italian dancer Enrico Cecchetti, Danish choreographer August Bournonville). These systems, however, differ more in style and emphasis than in the actual movements taught.

The best age to begin a serious study of ballet is eight to ten for girls; boys may begin somewhat later. Younger children may be harmed by the strenuous physical demands of a ballet class, and older children gradually lose the flexibility required to attain good turnout. Girls usually begin pointe work after three years of training. If training is begun after the late teens, it is probably unrealistic to hope for a professional career.

All dancers, no matter how experienced or proficient, take daily class to keep their bodies supple and strong. Most ballet classes begin with exercises at the barre, a round horizontal bar that the dancer holds onto for support. These exercises warm up and stretch the muscles, work the tendons to make them supple, and loosen the joints. The second part of the class is done without the support of the barre and is called center practice. It usually begins with slow, sustained exercises that develop the dancer's sense of balance and fluidity of movement. Slow exercises are followed by quick movements, beginning with small jumps and beats and progressing to large traveling steps, turns, and leaps. Class generally lasts an hour and a half.

As the dancer grows more proficient, the exercises at the barre become more complicated, although based on the same movements taught to beginners. The steps performed in the center become quicker or slower, larger, more complex, and more physically demanding. Eventually dancers go to class not so much to learn new steps as to maintain their performing standards.

Some frequently seen positions include the arabesque, in which the dancer extends one leg backward in a straight line, and the attitude, a leg extension forward or back with a bent knee. Turning steps include the pirouette, a turn on one leg with the other leg raised; and the fouetté, in which the free leg whips around to provide impetus for the turns. Among the steps of elevation are the entrechat, in which the dancer jumps straight up and beats the calves of the legs together in midair, and the jeté, a leap from one foot onto the other. These steps include many different variations.

Besides the basic class, women often attend classes in pointe work. Men and women learn to dance together in pas de deux, or partnering, class. Some ballet schools also teach mime, the conventional hand gestures used to tell the story in older ballets such as Giselle and Swan Lake. These hand gestures have become codified (for instance, an invitation to dance is indicated by circling the hands above the head) and are less realistic than the type of mime popularised by French pantomimist Marcel Marceau.

Main picture: Alessandra Ferri

Contributed by Susan Au, M.A., Dance historian. Author of Ballet and Modern Dance.