One of the most famous and widely-practiced dance form is ballet. Almost everyone around the globe knows what ballet is, regardless of whether you are into the art, know someone practicing ballet, have seen it on television or movies, in musical plays or stage presentations. Ballet is the predominant dance art that has enjoyed global appeal.
Of all the dance arts or forms that are being practiced, aside from the territorial or regional ethnic dance forms- ballet enjoys a reputation a notch above the rest since it is associated with prestige and sophistication.
Simply put, ballet is the finer form of a universal dance art and considered as pretty dancing.
Ballet first started in Italy back in the early 1600's.
The first ballet school opened in France in 1661 started by Louis XIV, and only men were allowed to dance.
Louis was so into the dance form that he sometimes cast himself as the lead performer in most of the plays and presentations that he produced to entertain guests in the palace.
It was only in 1681 that women came into the picture and were allowed to dance the ballet, but unlike the ballerinas of today, they wore ankle-length dresses.
At the beginning until 1789, the ballet performers were more like actors in a musical stage play since they not only danced, but also sang songs and recited poems.
As the years passed, the dance art evolved to what is now known today as ballet, but the dance steps that have been practiced so long ago in France are still being used today and most steps still have their original French names.
The five basic ballet positions were created by a French ballet teacher named Beauchamp's in the 1600's.
The basic arm and leg positions were intended to help the dancers to balance their bodies while still looking graceful and most of the ballet steps and combinations begin with one of the basic positions.
Here are some of the most commonly used primary ballet terms,
Devant, means in front, Glissade means to glide, Pas, means step, Pas de chat, which means cat step, Pas de deux, means steps for two (dancers) , Pas jete means throwing step, Releve means raised , Rond de jambe, which means round of the leg, En premiere or first position and En seconde, for second position.
For the third, fourth and fifth positions en troisieme, en quatrieme, and en cinquieme.
All the basic positions require the dancers to turn out their legs and feet and takes years of training and practice.
So unlike many of the dance forms that exist today, you will know why ballet stands out among the rest.
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