What Are the 7 Movements in Ballet?

Ballet

Ballet is a classical dance form characterized by grace, poise, and strength. It is one of the oldest forms of dance and has been around for centuries. Ballet requires great physical and mental control, as well as discipline and dedication.

The movements in ballet are based on fundamental positions and steps that build to create sequences called combinations or phrases. These combinations are used to tell stories, create moods, and express emotions. There are seven basic movements in ballet – plié, tendu, fouetté, jeté, pas de chat, saut de basque and grand jeté.

Plié: Plié is a French term meaning “bent” or “bent knees”. This movement is used in almost all ballet steps.

The dancer bends the knees while keeping the feet flat on the floor and the torso straight up and down. This movement can be done with either both legs at once (grand plié) or with one leg at a time (petit plié).

Tendu: Tendu means “stretched” in French. The dancer brings one leg out to the side with toes pointed and then slowly slides the foot along the floor until it is fully extended without leaving the floor or changing direction. This movement can be done with either both legs at once (grand tendu) or with one leg at a time (petit tendu).

Fouetté: Fouetté means “whipped” in French. The dancer quickly turns her body from side-to-side while keeping one foot firmly planted on the ground before whipping her other leg out away from her body in an arabesque position. This movement is often used to end a combination or phrase of steps.

Jeté: Jeté means “thrown” in French. The dancer leaps off of one foot while throwing their other leg up into the air before landing back on two feet again. This movement requires strength and agility as well as good timing for maximum effect on stage.

Pas de Chat: Pas de Chat means “step of a cat” in French. The dancer jumps off of both feet while bending their knees slightly before pushing off again with their feet together like scissors cutting through paper before landing back on two feet again in fifth position (feet together heel to toe).

Saut de Basque: Saut de Basque means “jump of Basque” in French but is also known as a pirouette jump due to its similarity to a pirouette turn on one foot with an additional jump element added into it for extra height and speed when performing it on stage. The dancer jumps into the air from fifth position (feet together heel to toe), turns one full rotation before landing back down onto their starting position again all within one leap off of both feet simultaneously like scissors cutting through paper once more.

Grand Jeté: Grand Jeté (also known as Grand Jete En Tournant) means “big throw” in French but is also often referred to as just Grand Jeté due to its impressive size when performed correctly on stage by experienced dancers who have mastered this difficult step requiring great technical skill and physical control over their body movements during performance of this step along with perfect timing between each individual element that makes up this step such as preparation for takeoff, turning midair whilst still maintaining proper technique throughout all stages of performance until soft landing back onto stage floor after completion of entire step sequence within single leap off both feet simultaneously like scissors cutting through paper once more.

In conclusion, there are seven basic movements that make up ballet – Pliés, Tendus, Fouettés, Jetés, Pas De Chat’s Saut De Basque’s Grand Jetés – each requiring different levels of skill set depending upon which particular ballet step you would like to master during your practice sessions as you progress forward towards perfecting all seven fundamental movements required for proper classical ballet technique for overall best performance results when performing any variation thereof upon stage during any live performance showcase events attended by audiences worldwide alike who enjoy seeing this beautiful art form come alive right before their very eyes!