Wacky Wednesday Toothpaste
If a survey were taken to determine which ballet step is the
most hated by dancers, it might be rond de jambe en l’air. Or not. But the rond
en l’air is challenging and tiring, and so it probably will never win the Most
Loved Step Award.
One of the problems with this step occurs at the point of
full leg extension. The working leg is at 90 degrees (the most difficult place
to sustain), and if the dancer is tired there is a tendency to “snap” the leg
out quickly. This is not good for a number of reasons: stress on the knee
joint, disruption in placement, and probably an appalling lack of musicality.
Ugh.
To stop this horrible cascading series of unfortunate events,
imagine squeezing toothpaste out of a tube. One would never smash the tube;
rather, it would be gently squeezed to get the toothpaste out without making a
mess. It is the same for rond de jambes en l’air: the leg extends outward by
squeezing, not smashing or snapping.
From the Big Blue Book of Ballet Secrets:
Secret #11k:
“A rond de jambe en l’air should have the feeling of squeezing
toothpaste out of the tube.”
Link of the Day:
Quote
of the Day:
“The word "frustration" is
defined as the unfortunate tendency of lessening one's destiny. Rise up and
take all frustrations away! Stop squeezing your dreams into a small size... You
were not created to settle for less!”
― Israelmore Ayivor
― Israelmore Ayivor
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http://balletconnections.com/DebraWebbRogers
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