Floor Warm-Up Part I

This is part one of the floor warm-up we do every day in my ballet class.  I love this warm-up because it gently works all the major muscle groups and helps improve flexibility. 

The first benefit of the opening floor exercises is to teach you to hear your body, so you can understand and respond correctly.  The floor should feel like a gentle ironing or a giant yawn as opposed to the torture rack from the Dark Ages. 

ON YOUR BACK

Ballet Sit-Ups – Awaken the spine, shoulders, neck, torso, and hamstrings.  Lay flat on your back with your legs together and arms at your sides.  Inhale as you raise your arms over your head into 5^th high, then exhale as you sit up, keeping your arms in 5^th high.  Lay over your legs and wrap your hands around your feet with your thumbs over your arches.  Hold for an 8-count.  Sit up with arms in 5^th high, then lower arms to 2^nd as you lean over slightly and look to the right.  Return to upright position, then repeat to the left.  Place teeth together as arms go to 2^nd and lift your chest and chin to the ceiling.  Return to 5^th high, then contract the center and roll down to the floor. 

Repeat, this time looking to the right, and then the left while lying over your legs, holding each for a 4-count.  When in the upright position, turn the torso to look over the right and left shoulders with arms extended, returning to 5^th high in between. 

Repeat a third time, this time alternating over the right and left legs, slightly bending each leg as you lean over it for a 1-count.  When in the upright position, turn the torso to the right and place the left hand on the outside of the right knee and apply a slight pressure as you look over your extended right shoulder and arm.  Return to 5^th high, then repeat to the left.  Contract the center and roll down to the floor.

Leg Raises – Work hips and awaken knees, ankles, metatarsals, and toes.  Lay flat on your back with your legs together and arms at your sides.  Raise both legs, then extend them straight up so your body forms an “L”.  Flex your feet, then point through.  Bring the knees back down, and lower legs so you are once again in the starting position.  Repeat three more times.

Fourth Front Extensions -- Lay flat on your back with your legs together and arms at your sides.  Bring right knee to your nose, and raise your head to meet it, keeping left leg lengthened on the floor.  Extend your right leg as the shoulders and head are returned to the floor, trying to bring your right knee down to meet your nose.  Relax at the ankle and knee, then extend.  Repeat three more times, then switch to the left leg.

Front Lifts -- Lay flat on your back with your legs together and arms behind your head.  Bring the left leg to parallel passé with the foot flat on the floor.  The right leg lengthens from the hip, then pushes up in 4^th front extension.  Repeat with a flexed foot, a pointed foot, and a flexed foot.  Change to right leg in parallel passé and repeat on the left.

Front Developpé and Rond de Jamb -- Lay flat on your back with your legs together and arms at your sides.  Bring legs to double turned out passé, then developpé the right leg to 4^th front extension.  Rotate leg to à la seconde, flex and point through the foot, then return to double passé and repeat with the left leg.  Be sure to keep a pulled out energy in the hip as you perform the rond de jamb movement and keep the hips from rolling to the right and left as the leg works.  Continue to repeat until each leg has gone through the exercise four times. 

À la Seconde Extensions – From the double passé of the previous exercise, lift both legs off the floor, keeping the position.  Extend both legs out à la seconde, flex and point through the foot, then return to the double passé.  Use the arms to aid in the stretch.  Repeat three more times.  On the last time, keep the legs in à la seconde with a flexed foot and give them either a gentle pulsing motion or gently rock from side to side.  Point through the foot and return to double passé.  Lower the toes to the floor, and slowly straighten the legs, holding the turnout for as long as possible.

Another Useful Site

This site is one I've used extensively in the past as a source for school papers, a technique reference guide, and a source for this blog. It's called Andros on Ballet, and is a veritable goldmine of information.

Andros on Ballet is a collection of articles about ballet history and classical ballet technique written by Dick Andros, a ballet teacher and writer who was based in New York City and provided this site to share the knowledge and stories he accumulated through his long career as a dancer and teacher.

Andros on Ballet also has a collection of over 130 biographies of persons who were significant to the history and progression of ballet and its technique. 

Unfortunately, Mr. Andros passed away in 2009, so the site will not be updating any longer.

Jules Perrot

Jules-Joseph Perrot was born in France in 1810. He first drew attention to his talent in his native Lyon by imitating the antics of the comic dancer Charles Mazurier. This led to an engagement at the Gaîté Théâtre in Paris in 1823. Moving to the larger, more prestigious Porte-Saint-Martin Théâtre, he became a pupil of Auguste Vestris, who prepared him for his successful debut in 1830 at the Paris Opéra.

Despite the period's prejudice against male dancers, Perrot was highly applauded for both his classical and his mime dancing. Within a year, he was promoted to the top rank of premier sujet (principal dancer) and selected to partner Marie Taglioni in Flore et Zéphire. A combination of knee trouble and the professional jealousy of his partner led to his resignation from the Opéra in 1835.


Perrot then toured Europe as a dancer and choreographer and was joined by the young ballerina Carlotta Grisi in Naples. As her teacher, mentor, and suitor, he accompanied her to London in 1836, and then to Vienna, where he produced his first important ballet, Der Kobold (1838). He hoped to marry Grisi, but although a daughter was born as a result of their liaison, she was reluctant to enter into such a commitment.


In 1841, Grisi was engaged at the Paris Opéra, but no offer was forthcoming for Perrot. He was, however, to be closely involved in her first Paris creation, Giselle. Most of the action was devised by him, but any hope he might have had that his contribution would be formally acknowledged was dashed because he was not officially on the payroll. As a result, the choreography was long credited solely to the Opéra’s ballet master, Jean Coralli.


Perrot and Grisi went their separate ways and Perrot began his seven-year association with London's opera house, Her Majesty's Theatre. He started in 1842 as assistant to the aging ballet master, André Deshayes, but gained full control by 1843. This was to be the most productive phase of Perrot's career. Working with nearly all the most celebrated ballerinas of the time, he produced 23 ballets of varying importance, including several lasting masterpieces, each skillfully crafted to highlight the particular qualities of its ballerina. For Fanny Elssler, he produced Le Délire d’un peintre (1843); for Fanny Cerrito, Ondine (1843) and Lalla Rookh (1846); for Grisi, La Esmeralda (1844); and for Lucile Grahn, Eoline (1845) and Catarina (1846). He also staged an extraordinary series of multi-stellar divertissements, among them the sensational Pas de quatre (1845).


Pas de quatre was particularly amazing because it was the first effort in the history of ballet to persuade four of the most famous ballerinas of the day to appear together. The ballet displayed the artistry of Taglioni, Cerrito, Grisi, and Grahn, without any one of them feeling disadvantaged. This was quite a feat considering the professional rivalry between these ladies. The performance left the public and critics speechless and was discussed for a long time after.


Pas de quatre was followed by other divertissements of the same type: Le Jugement de Pâris (1846), Les Éléments (1847), and Les Quatre Saisons (1848).


Perrot left for Russia in 1849, where he was engaged as principal ballet master of the Imperial Russian Ballet in St. Petersburg until 1860. There he produced expanded versions of Esmeralda and Catarina and a series of major new works, including The Naiad and the Fisherman (1851), The War of the Women (1852), and Gazelda (1853), all for Grisi, and Armida (1855) for Cerrito.

Perrot retired after a disappointing season in Milan in 1864. In later years, he gave classes at the Paris Opéra, where he was immortalized by the Impressionist artist Edgar Degas in paintings such as The Dance Class (1874). Perrot died in France on August 24, 1892.

A Useful Site

As I was searching for useful information to post on this blog, I came across this particular website.  It's the official site for Gaynor Minden, but don't let that throw you off.  There is far more to this site than product promotion. 

On the second half of the side menu bar, there is a section entitled "Info For Dancers".  This section has links to articles on the history of pointe work and the funtionality of pointe shoes; health and safety tips; advice for parents and teachers; dancer biographies; and much more. 

I was particularly intrigued by the "All About Pointe" section.  It tells you how a pointe shoe works, what the different parts of a pointe shoe are, and what exactly is inside a pointe shoe.  For that section, Gaynor Minden took 12 different brands of pointe shoes, in addition to their own, and cut them in half lengthwise.  It was rather enlightening.