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Pre-Professional Ballet Dancers
5 TOP TIPS TO CHALLENGE YOUR BARRE WORK EVERYDAY!
24 June 2020
Gina Tse
Even after a 25 year career as a professional dancer, I was never bored doing the same routine at the barre in ballet class. Why..? And how you can maintain self-motivation?
I recommend that you challenge yourself in these exercises everyday, whether it's a simple plie or tendu there are always ways to improve it to condition the strength one needs in the centre.
© Vaiva Adomenaite
TIP #1
Try to give a different dynamic to a step, by finding the musicality in the exercise. Singing the exercise in your head can actually help to find a different dynamic and help you to use your breath with your movements. This, I believe, contributes a fuller and more purposeful value to each movement
TIP #2
Never undersetimate the power of allongé! All too often I see allongé beinge used juts to lower the arms but rarely do I see it actually used as a breathe! A real living preparation to a movement has to breathe! Give your allongé more meaning and use it to also prepare your legs.
TIP #1
Try to give a different dynamic to a step, by finding the musicality in the exercise. Singing the exercise in your head can actually help to find a different dynamic and help you to use your breath with your movements. This, I believe, contributes a fuller and more purposeful value to each movement
TIP #2
Never underestimate the power of allongé! All too often I see allongé being used just to lower the arms but rarely do I see it actually used as a breath! A real living preparation to a movement has to breathe! Give your allongé more meaning and use it to also prepare your legs.
TIP #3
Breathe out going down on the plie and breathe in when coming up. This may give you a more organic sensation to feel "pulled up" without holding your breath!
© Vaiva Adomenaite
© Karolina Kuras
Never "work" a balance!
One must catch it!"
TIP #4
Never "work" a balance! One must catch it! As a balance is always quietly breathing and growing. One must feel an opposition working, whether you are pulling up; the upper body (such as ribs and diaphragm) should be working down.
Everything in ballet is opposition! Find your oppositions...
TIP #5
Every possible time you do tendu or jete, really articulate your feet and try to go through your demi-pointe always. "Lick" the floor with your feet, this all contributes to stronger pointe work and stronger jumps.
Try and incorporate at least one of these top tips into your daily training.
Happy Dancing!