Ballet Term of the Week

 Brisé [bree-ZAY]

Broken, breaking. A small beating step in which the movement is broken. Brisés are commenced on one or two feet and end on one or two feet. They are done dessus, dessous, en avant and en arrire. Fundamentally a brisé is an assemblé beaten and traveled. The working leg brushes from the fifth position to the second position so that the point of the foot is a few inches off the ground, and beats in front of or behind the other leg, which has come to meet it; then both feet return to the ground simultaneously in demi-plié in the fifth position.

 Brisé volé [bree-ZAY vaw-LAY]

 Flying brisé. In this brisé the dancer finishes on one foot after the beat, the other leg crossed either front or back. The foundation of this step is a fouetté movement with a jeté battu. In the Russian and French Schools the raised leg finishes sur le cou-de-pied devant or derrière and the brisé volé is done like a jeté battu. In the Cecchetti method, the working foot passes through the first position to the fourth position, the calves are beaten together and on alighting the free leg is extended forward or back with a straight knee.

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Ballet Term of the Week - Pas de bourrée

It consists of three quick steps. A demi plié with extension of the first leg, closing the first leg to the second as the second rises to demi pointe or pointe, extending the second leg to an open position while both legs remain on demi or full pointe, and closing the first leg to the second in a demi plié. If the pas de bourrée is very quick or is the final step of an enchainement, the concluding demi plié may be omitted and the step will end with stretched knees. It means 'Step of Bourrée', Bourrée being an Auvergne dance. The name also translates as "stuffing step" with the initiating foot "stuffing" itself into the space occupied by the other foot and thereby forcing the other foot to move away. There are different kinds of pas de bourrée:

• pas de bourrée devant - "in front"
• pas de bourrée derrière - "behind"
• pas de bourrée dessus - "over"
• pas de bourrée dessous - "under"
• pas be bourrée en avant - "travelling forwards"
• pas de bourrée en arriere - "travelling backwards"
• pas de bourrée en tournant en dehors - "turning outwards"
• pas be bourrée en tournant en dedans - "turning inwards"
• pas de bourrée couru - "running" also "flowing smoothly as a river"
• pas de bourrée ouvert - "open," this is an "open->closed->open" sequence
• pas de bourrée piqué - "pricked"

"Dessous" (under) means initially closing the working foot behind, "dessus" (over) means initially closing the working foot in front. "Piqué" ("pricked"), in today's vocabulary means the working leg is sharply picked up to cou de pied or knee height (depending on the requirements of the step) as if the toes had trodden on a needle point.

Ballet Term of the Week - Pas de basque

Pas de basque

"step of the Basques". Halfway between a step and a leap, taken on the floor (glissé) or with a jump (sauté); it can be done moving toward the front or toward the back. This step can also be found in Scottish highland dance.

The dancer starts in fifth position croisé and executes a plié while brushing the front leg out to tendu front. The front leg does a demi rond de jambe to the opposite corner in the back while the dancer turns to face the other front corner. The weight is quickly transferred onto the working leg (the one that was front). The dancer brushes the supporting leg through first position and then executes a chassé forward onto the supporting leg and closes in croisé.

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Ballet Term of the Week: Battement en cloche, grand

Battement en cloche, grand

[grahn bat-MAHN ahn klawsh] Large battement like a bell. A term of the French School and the Cecchetti method. Grands battements en cloche are continuous grands battements executed from the fourth position front or back en l'air to the fourth position back or front en l'air, passing through the first position. Same as grand battement jeté balancé, but the body remains upright as the leg swing.

Ballet Term of the Week - Passe'

Passé

As a position passé means when a foot is placed near, on, or below the other knee.

As a movement passé refers to the working foot passing close to the knee of the standing leg. When the foot arrives by the knee, it passes from the front to the back or back to front, and continues either to return to the floor by sliding down the supporting leg or into an arabesque or attitude etc.

Ballet Term of the Week - Chasse'

Chassé
[sha-SAY] Chased. A step in which one foot literally chases the other foot out of its position; done in a series.

Ballet Term of the Week - Glissade

Glissade
[glee-SAD]
Glide. A traveling step executed by gliding the working foot from the fifth position in the required direction, the other foot closing to it. Glissade is a terre à terre step and is used to link other steps. After a demi-plié in the fifth position the working foot glides along the floor to a strong point a few inches from the floor. The other foot then pushes away from the floor so that both knees are straight and both feet strongly pointed for a moment; then the weight is shifted to the working foot with a fondu. The other foot, which is pointed a few inches from the floor, slides into the fifth position in demi-plié. When a glissade is used as an auxiliary step for small or big jumps, it is done with a quick movement on the upbeat. Glissades are done with or without change of feet, and all begin and end with a demi-plié. There are six glissades: devant, derrière, dessous, dessus, en avant, en arrière, the difference between them depending on the starting and finishing positions as well as the direction. Glissade may also be done sur les pointes.

Ballet Term of the Week - Temps lie'

Step to connect; to thicken; a movement where the legs transfer the weight of the body from one leg to the other - it can be done front, side or back.

["joined movement"]. This is a term for a whole series of conventionally connected movements executed in the center of the room, often during an adagio. However, it is also the term for an independent form of a step.

In the basic form of the temps lié, stand in 5th position croiseé, arms in preparatory position. The working leg is drawn, without taking the toe off the floor, into croisé devant, while the supporting leg bends into demi-plié; simultaneously, the arms are raised into 1st position with the head slightly inclining towards the shoulder corresponding to the supporting leg. Then, the weight is transferred through demi-plié to croisé derrière onto what was the working leg. Here, both legs are completely stretched with the now working leg stretched toe to the floor in back. At the moment of weight transfer, the arm that corresponds to the now working leg is raised overhead, while the other arm opens sideward; the head turns towards the sideward arm. Finally, the working leg closes in 5th back; arms may remain or stay.