Dancing Courses - Ballroom Dancing Shoes - Salsa Lessons - Dance Instruction - Hip Hop Dancing

Walking into a ballet class where the students are poised with straight backs, one arm poised gracefully to the side, and one foot resting lightly in line with the barre may seem like something out of a dance movie, but it’s a common sight in all ballet classes. Barre work is the important foundation on which ballet technique is built. By learning not just the basic movements, but understanding how to perform them slowly and with correct posture and balance will help you become a better dancer. Barre exercises are especially developed to train and strengthen the muscles in both your back and legs so that the more complex ballet movements appear effortless. The grace, balance and poise of a ballerina doesn’t come from her clothing, or length of time she has danced, but rather the amount of focus she has put into her barre work.

The Basic Exercises

The first barre work exercise that most ballet dancers will learn is a plie. Performed in either first or second position, this is either a demi-plie where your feet hold position with your heels flat into the floor, while the knees bend outwards, or a grand-plie where you should raise your heels off the floor. The most important thing to remember here is to keep your back straight as your knees bend. Don’t be tempted to bend forward.

Tendu: Starting in third position, slide your foot forwards (Tendu front) keeping the tips of your toes in contact with the floor, and then return the foot to third position. You can also do this to the side (Tendu side) but when your foot returns to third, make sure that it comes behind the other foot.

Take the tendu a little step further and it becomes a degage. When you push your foot forward (in a tendu front) or to the side (in a tendu side), and your toes are extended and pointed, lift them 2-3 inches from the floor, then slowly replace the toes to the floor and slide them back into the third position.

The next step is to take the extended foot in a tendu, and instead of lifting it a few inches into a degage, you raise the leg (still extended and toes pointed) in line with your hips. This is known as a grand battement and it can be done to the front, the side and also behind. Keep a check that your back is always completely straight, especially with back grand battements where there’s a greater tendency to bend the body forwards as the non-supporting leg goes back and up.

Barre work may not seem the most exciting part of your ballet dance class, but it will help you build a body that can move with greater flexibility and balance. Focus on your posture and your breathing as you carry out the slow precise barre exercises - you’ll find you become a better dancer for it!