Basic Ballet Moves To Learn

Posted by | Posted on 2:01 AM

By Sarah Wilkiamson

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.

Ballet dancers use this basically as a stability tool. As they are working through the ballet positions and basic movements they tend to stabilize themselves with the use of 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.

Speaking of plie's this is definitely a move that you will need to master. A plie is basically a move where you bend the knees in the various ballet positions. Depending on how deep the knee bend is you may be doing a basic plie or a grande plie. Both are equally important, and should be mastered respectively.

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.

After working enough to be comfortable doing a tendu you can then start working on the rond de jambre. This move is not very different from the tendu, but you have to move your free leg on the floor in a semi-circle. Once again this move can be carried out during any of the five ballet positions and it is also among the best exercises you can do if you want to improve turnout. The circular motion is always done from front to back, but once you can easily do that you can start working on the jambe en dedans which is when you move from the back to the front.

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.

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