Mad Monday

Mad Monday Gargouillade Volé

I have written about gargouillade before: http://balletwebb.blogspot.com/search?q=gargouillade, but today I ran across a version of this step that I had never seen – or heard of: gargouillade volé.

You may remember that gargouillade means gurgling or rumbling, and volé means flown. Hmmm, a gurgling flying thing. Gotta love ballet! Anyway, this step is listed as a step of the Cecchetti method in Gail Grant’s book Technical Manual and Dictionary of Classical Ballet. It is described as follows:

“Gargouillade vole (Cecchetti method) [gar-goo-YAD vaw-LAY].

Gargouillade flown. Fifth position R foot back. Execute a double rond de

jambe en l’air en dedans a la demi-hauteur with the R leg and finish with the R

foot in retire at the side of the L knee. Spring off the L foot onto the R and land

in demi-plie sur place, turning the body efface. As the R foot comes to the

ground, draw the L point upward to the side of the R knee and open it to the

fourth position en Fair, pointing to the left front corner of the room.

Immediately lower the L foot to the fourth position, pointe tendue, body

remaining efface. “

Well, this doesn’t seem too clear to me, so I tried to find a demonstration on Youtube, but nothing came up except the standard gargouillade. So there you are. It’s a mystery.

From the Big Blue Book of Ballet Secrets

Secret #15rrr:

“A seldom seen step is gargouillade volé.”

Link of the Day (gargouillades at 2:04):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oQ-q---yf0o

Quote of the Day:

Actual artists are like mythological creatures,' she heard herself opine. 'You hear about them, but a sighting's pretty rare.”
― Garth Risk Hallberg, City on Fire

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Fun Friday Gargouillade

Fun Friday Gargouillade

On the short list of ballet steps that are seldom used we find gargouillade. Never heard of it? I’m not surprised. It isn’t a step for beginners and even advanced dancers find this step challenging.

A gargouillade is a jump with two double rond de jambes. The first double rond de jambe is done (usually) en dehors with one leg, then immediately followed by a double rond de jambe en dedans by the other leg. It takes a very accomplished dancer to perform this step and not have it look, well, like a couple of leg spasms.

However, when gargouillade is done to perfection, each rond de jambe is clearly shown and the effect is riveting.

Balanchine often used gargouillade in his choreography and that is where this step is most often seen today.

From the Big Blue Book of Ballet Secrets:

Secret #15ee:  

“A gargouillade is a step involving two double rond de jambes.”

                Link of the Day:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VM_91kZVQ1o

Quote of the Day:

““The brick walls are there for a reason. The brick walls are not there to keep us out. The brick walls are there to give us a chance to show how badly we want something. Because the brick walls are there to stop the people who don’t want it badly enough. They’re there to stop the other people.”
― Randy Pausch, The Last Lecture

                Help expand the knowledge base!

 Leave a comment about any instructions, ideas, or images that worked best for you!

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Mad Monday Gargouillade

Mad Monday Gargouillade

Gargouillade isn’t something I teach too often. But it can be fun for students to attempt. The French term means “rumbling” or “gurgling” and the step is rather tricky to perform well. The key lies in being able to do small, quick and accurate rond de jambes en l’air in both directions. While jumping. No problem, right?

It helps to begin by working on simple rond de jambes en l’air at the barre, concentrating on the circular nature of the movement. This prevents the in-and-out problem and avoids the appearance of a short-circuited, jerky leg movement. It is also fun to have students “draw” out the circle on the floor using their big toe.

Students then progress to the center by doing glissade, jeté, coupé – then gargouillade. This helps them create the accurate circles in the air with the assistance of the impetus from the leading steps. Fun!

From the Big Blue Book of Ballet Secrets

Secret #15sss:

“Gargouillade involves two double rond de jambes.”

Link of the Day:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zH6zmt2ELII

Quote of the Day:

“Simple can be harder than complex: You have to work hard to get your thinking clean to make it simple. But it’s worth it in the end because once you get there, you can move mountains.”
― Steve Jobs

Help expand the knowledge base!

Leave a comment about any instructions, ideas, or images that worked best for you!

My latest books are coloring books! They are available on Amazon.

https://www.amazon.com/Family-Tree-Coloring-Debra-Rogers/dp/0980191947/

https://www.amazon.com/Frames-Borders-Backgrounds-Color-Rogers/dp/0980191955/

Want to know more about me? Read my interview at Ballet Connections:

http://www.balletconnections.com/?s=debrawebbrogers

Or "Like" me on my Facebook Author Page:

https://www.facebook.com/Violet-Rightmire-256648280108/timeline/

Or visit my Pinterest page:

https://www.pinterest.com/debtutu/

For interesting articles involving mental health:

https://www.betterhelp.com/advice/