Ballet lessons are a wonderful way for both kids and adults to reap the health benefits of dance as well as learn self-discipline and body control. Anyone can enjoy the beauty and grace of ballet dancing, regardless of age, body size or fitness level.
Even if you’ve never stepped foot into a ballet studio, these lessons will enable you to explore the world of ballet as an absolute beginner. You will be introduced to everything beginners want to know about ballet, including the first steps and basic positions. Let’s get dancing!
How to start learning ballet
Find or make a barre. A barre is simply a rail to help you keep your balance when doing warm-up.it should be at a comfortable height, just above (or at) your waist.
Practice your positions. Do this daily – you are training your body for life. Even those who cease dance as adults tend to hold their bodies better than those who have never danced and retain a high level of flexibility and body awareness. So, even if you do not go on to make a career of ballet, you are doing your body a good turn. Just make sure you hold your posture correctly during dance, or you may well damage your body instead of doing it good.
Find a class. You need a ballet teacher to help you know if you are doing it correctly. This is very important as there is only so much you can teach yourself at home off the internet or from a book. Get a good teacher; keep looking until you feel a “click” with the person teaching you.
Participate in the class. This is important because you won’t know if you are doing it right if you don’t participate. Take all criticism constructively. You will never learn anything if you aren’t told how you are doing something incorrectly.
Teaching ballet
Teaching ballet – just as dancing is passion. Being a ballet teacher is hard work. A lifestyle and a special way of thinking instead of just having a job.
I see that it is the foundation of all other forms of dance, and students will always be better in other dance forms if they had a good training of basic ballet technique. Of course, most people are not built to be ballerinas, but it can save a lot personally, spiritually and physically taking dance classes from ballet.
This is definitely a profession that most do it for the love of art. Rather than becoming rich business, we have become emotionally rich – which is not a bad thing :).
Five positions – feet and arms
In the 17th century, Pierre Beauchamp a French ballet teacher and choreographer created the five basic ballet moves.
These positions are the foundation for more advanced ballet moves and are the beginning of a child’s ballet education. Students usually hold onto the barre when learning the foot positions. The barre is a wood railing used for balance.
Proper body alignment and good posture are necessary when learning these moves, which are simply named first position, second position, third position, fourth position and fifth position.
First position for the feet places the heels together and the toes pointed out in opposite directions. It can be difficult to achieve this ideal 180 degree line with your feet and should not be forced. Make sure your legs are turned out right from your thighs, not just below your knees or you could get serious knee injuries.
In the second position the feet remain turned out as in the first position, but they are spaced out about a shoulder width apart. Keep the toes turned outwards.
Third position has the heel of one foot touching the arch of the other foot while maintaining a turned out position. This position is like first, but cross the front foot’s heel at the middle (instep) of your back foot.
Fourth position is similar to third, but the feet are spaced about a foot apart with one foot directly in front of the other. The toes are still pointed in opposite directions, and this also has two variations depending on which foot is in front.
Fifth position has the heel of one foot lining up with the toe of the other, and both legs and feet are touching. Again, there is a left foot and a right foot variation. These ballet positions should be practiced until they are mastered.
Learning these ballet moves while grasping the barre allows for minimal arm movement; however, there are five basic arm positions used throughout ballet. The arm positions can be performed with the feet in any of the five positions. The first position of the arms looks as if you are hugging a giant beach ball. The arms are gracefully rounded with the fingers almost touching.
In the second position the slightly rounded arms are raised to the sides with the elbows slightly below the shoulders. The third arm position depends on which foot is in front. If the left foot is in front, the right arm is raised over the head while the left arm is to the side at waist height.
In the fourth position the arms work opposite the legs as in the third position. If the left foot is forward, the right arm is out in front like it was in first position. The left arm remains in third position. Arms in the fifth position are symmetrically rounded above the head.
When you are learning ballet, it is very important to master these basic ballet moves.
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