Ballet 1
Passed
Carriage of the arms
Port de bras
step of the cat
pas de chat
to glide
Glissade
To spin or whirl
Pirouette
Inward
En dedans
Releve
To rise from bent legs
To Melt
Fondu
chain-like
Chaine
Outward
En dehors
Crossed
Croise
Assemble
assemblé
To throw
Jete
Soutenu
Sustained
cut or cutting
coupe
Balancé
is a step where a dancer moves while alternating balance between their feet. The rhythm is usually in three counts like a waltz and has the motion of going “down, up, down” with their legs.
Rocking step
Soubresaut
sudden spring
Beating
Battement
Royale
is a classical ballet term that describes when a dancer jumps in the air and beats their legs once before changing the position of their feet and landing. When the dancer lands this jump, the leg that started in front should now be in back.
Arabesque
is a position where the body is supported on one leg, with the other leg extended directly behind the body with a straight knee.
The standing leg can be straight or in plie, but the back leg must always be straight. Arabesque can be found in almost every aspect of a ballet, both contemporary and classical, as well as other dance forms. Arabesque can be done with the back leg either on the ground (a terre) or raised in the air (en l’air).
Allongé
Lengthen
En bas
low position
arched
Cambre
Separated
Ecarte
Whipped
Fouetté