Ballet Zone

for Betty Ballerinas!!! Betty Ballerinas The art of Ballet can trace its origins to the early seventeenth century, when dancers performed to entertain audiences between scenes of an opera. These short dances grew in popularity and importance until they became a form of theatre in their own right. In 1661, King Louis XIV of France founded the Académie Royale de Musique et de Danse, establishing Paris as the centre of academic ballet. This is where all the French words come from that we learn throughout Ballet training today. As ballet became more popular the Italians and the Russians became masters and it slowly developed in the UK too and today we enjoy going to see the famous ballets and it has even hit the UK movie scene with films like Billy Elliot. Children and Adults enjoy its structure and beautiful music everyday. Janis Anderson has been teaching classical Ballet for 36 years and has continues to put children and young adults through ISTD examinations with great success. Here is some of the basic things you need to know about classical ballet; Posture (the way that you stand) - It is very important to stand correctly with your body weight centred. Hips and Shoulders in line and square to the front, legs have to be pulled up with the tummy in and seat tucked under. Shoulders relaxed and head erect. Arms – ballet arms a very important as they need to have a feeling of sensitivity, a soft and gentle approach and they have to be placed probably in the set arm positions. Legs – throughout the grades development of strength in the legs is worked very hard on, the exercises get harder and more demanding. Footwork – there are 5 basic foot positions in ballet. Artistry – this is a vital part of ballet, to fill out the music and express yourself, making everything look beautiful.Therefore we need lots of smiles! Uniform Primary to Grade 2 : Blue leotard and chiffon circular skirt. Pink socks and ballet shoes. Grades 3 and 4 : Blue leotard and wrap-around skirt. Pink tights and ballet shoes. Grades 5 and 6 : Purple leotard and wrap-around skirt. Pink tights and ballet shoes. Blue cross-over cardigans or Janis Anderson T-shirts can be worn in class. Please Note : 1. Ribbons are to be worn on ballet shoes for exams. Please wear elastics for class and show work. 2. Hair to be tied back for class, and no jewellery to be worn. Please now click to your grade/level and find out all you need to know for your exams : Primary - Grade 1 - Grade 2 - Grade 3 - Grade 4 - Grade 5 - Grade 6 Primary Ballet All the way through a Primary exam the children are expected to hold their skirts out it is important that the arms are rounded and held forward slightly. French Terms Bras Bas –low arms Port de bras –use of arms Fondu –to bend on one leg while the other is straight and pointed (i.e. spring points) Music Section 2 pieces are played or the examiner asks children to clap Waltz – it has 3 beats, a 3/4 it is counted 1 2 3. Polka – it has 2 beats, a 2/4 it is counted &1 &2 Grade One Ballet French Terms .Plie – bend Demi – half Battements – beat Tendus – to stretch or point Grande – big Retires – draw up En Croix – shape of a cross Pose – to step Petit Jetes – small spring from foot to foot Temps Leve – to hop Devant – Front Derriere – Back En Avant – Forward De cote – to the side Sautes – to spring Changements – to change Arm Positions Bras Bas – Low arms En Avant – both arms at belly button height rounded En Courant – both arms above head picture framing your face….. smile! Attitude – one arm is held up and the other to the side A’la second – both arms held to the side rounded and held from the centre of spine. Demi bras – both arms held forwards as if your giving somebody a big boquet of flowers. Music Section 3 pieces are played or the examiner asks children to clap Waltz – it has 3 beats, a 3/4 it is counted 1 2 3. Soft and flowing. Polka – it has 2 beats, a 2/4 it is counted &1 &2. Quick and lively. March – it has 4 beats, a 4/4 it is counted 1 2 3 4. Strong and definite. Grade Two Ballet French Terms All terms from previous grades and; Assemble – to assemble, bring together Soutenus – to sustain, keep En de dans – inwards En de hors – outwards Ronds de jambe – round of the leg Releves – to snatch Arabesque – a straight line Demi detourne – half a turn Chasse – to slide Glissades – to glide Pas de chat – step of a cat Jete – to throw Balance – to rock Saubrasaut – spring in 3rd position without a change Arm Positions Bras croise – one arm rounded at the front and the other held out to second Attitude grecque – a Greek arm line 3rd Arabesque – two straight arms one low (waist height) and one high with eye line looking along. Music Section Semi breves holds for 4 whole counts Minims holds for two counts, there are 2 minims to each bar Crochets on every beat, 4 crochets to each bar Quavers there are 8 quavers to a bar Grade 3 Ballet French terms All terms from previous grades and; Battement – to beat Frappes – to strike Developes – to unfold En croix – in the shape of a cross Releve on demi point – snatch up on half point Port de Bras – carriage of the arms Attitude – curved line En l’air – in the air A’terre – on the ground Chasses – to slide En arriere – to travel backwards En avant – to travel forwards Pose – to step Pas de Basque – step from the Basque land, Northern Spain (character step) Sissone – a scissor like movement Ouverte – open Croise – crossed Echappe – to escape Coupe – to cut weight from one foot to another Grade Four Ballet French terms All terms from previous grades and; Fondus – to melt Tendus – to point or stretch Sur le cop de pied – on the neck of the foot Epaulement – use of the shoulders Releves – to snatch Passé – pass Contretemps – against time Demi – half Temp lie – to link together Petite Batterie – small beats Pas de bourrees – a running step Ballonnes – a balloon like spring Grade Five Ballet French terms All terms from previous grades and; Ronds de jambe en l’air – round of leg in the air Frappes – to strike Fouettes – to whip En arriere – to travel backwards En avant – to travel forwards Fermee – to close Overt – open En tournant – to turn Pirouettes – to spin Jete – to throw or leap Pas de Bouree – a running step Compose – with a step Entre chat – beat without changing feet Grade Six Ballet French terms All terms from previous grades and; Battement – to beat En cloche – bell like En ronde – round movement Fouette rond de jambe en tournant – whipping movement with a turn Releve – to snatch Pirouette en de dans – inward turn Pose turn – step and turn Waltz – 3/4 time Changement battue – beat and change feet Entredat trois derriere – a beat landing on one foot at the back in retiere Raccourci – to retrace Sissone Fermees – scissor like movement closing in (Note: Classical ballet diagrams above are reproduced courtesy of Don Gillan(Copyright), www.Stagebeauty.net)

Extra pre-exam practices - see News for times.