2 3 Wild Wednesday Number 4 | Ballet Webb

Wednesday, November 12, 2014

Wild Wednesday Number 4


Wild Wednesday Number 4

A common problem with retirés is the position of the working foot.  It needs to be placed high enough to avoid a droopy look – and we all know there is no drooping in ballet (Ballet Statute #18). 

In retiré there are three basic positions for the foot:  1. The little toe is placed in the under curve of the knee at the front of the leg; 2. The big toe is placed at the side of the leg, centered at knee height (or sometimes even higher); and 3.  The heel of the working foot is hidden behind the knee (as in piqué turns).

The foot should never hang (droop) below the knee, otherwise it looks like the number 4.  The only permissible time for the retiré foot to overcross is when the female dancer is working with a much shorter partner.  And even then, the foot is still placed and supported at the proper height – at the knee, not below the knee.

So today’s Ballet Secret is:  there are no number 4s in retiré.

From the Big Blue Book of Ballet Secrets:

Secret #14o:  
Avoid retirés that look like the number 4.

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“You better cut the pizza in four pieces because I'm not hungry enough to eat six.
-          Yogi Berra


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