Wild Wednesday Angles and Circles

Wild Wednesday Angles and Circles

One of the most difficult things to achieve when learning beats is to make the path of the foot angular and not circular. The first beats are taught at the barre as petit battements and students are instructed to take the foot out in a straight line and bring it back in a straight line. But the natural tendency is to curve this pathway, destroying the angular nature of the step.

Instead, imagine drawing a sideways “V” (like this: >) with the working foot. The beat starts at the normal beginning point of the letter V and goes out slightly to the point of the V before returning to the normal ending of the letter V, being careful to trace a straight line in and a straight line out.

This pathway is practiced with the understanding that no circular movement is allowed to take the place of the angular path.

From the Big Blue Book of Ballet Secrets:

Secret #15v:  

“Beats are always angular, not circular.”

                Link of the Day:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m_TqVbtnzKs

Quote of the Day:

“If you do not change direction, you may end up where you are heading”
― Gautama Buddha

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