BALLET(TECHNIQUE AND STYLE)

The basis of ballet technique is the turned-out position of the legs and feet: Each leg is rotated outward from the hip joint so that the feet form a 180° angle on the floor. This turned-out position is not unique to ballet; it is used also in many Asian dance forms, including bharata natyam, the classical dance of India. Ballet comprises five specific, numbered positions of the feet, which form the basis of almost all ballet steps. Corresponding positions exist for the arms, which are generally held with gently curved elbows.

Ballet technique emphasizes verticality. Since all the movements of the dancer’s limbs flow from the body’s vertical axis, all of the dancer’s body parts must be correctly centered and aligned to allow maximum stability and ease of movement. Verticality implies resistance to gravity, a concept that is carried further in steps of elevation, such as jumps and leaps. Ballet possesses many such steps, including those that require the dancers, while in midair, to turn, beat their legs or feet together, or change their leg position. The more demanding steps of elevation traditionally are considered the special province of male dancers, but they can be performed by virtuosos of both sexes.

The idea of spurning gravity culminated in the invention of toe dancing, also called dancing sur les pointes, or pointe work. Toe dancing was developed early in the 19th century but did not become widely used by ballet dancers until the 1830s, when Swedish Italian ballerina Marie Taglioni demonstrated its potential for poetic effect. Pointe work is almost exclusively performed by women, although male dancers may use it.

The term line in ballet refers to the configuration of the dancer’s body, whether in motion or at rest. Good line is partly a matter of the physique a dancer is born with, but it can also be developed and enhanced by training. In ballet, certain relationships of the arms, legs, head, and torso are considered particularly harmonious, while others are not, although they may be perfectly acceptable in different forms of dance. Large movements of the whole limb are preferred to small, isolated movements of individual body parts. Ballet is often described in terms of moving upward and outward; ideally, the dancer’s limbs should appear to extend into infinity.