Episode 9 ~ January 12th, 2021
Hello dancers and welcome back to “Dance Tips with Brittany”!
Last week we talked about how to use the resistance in your plie so it can help you learn to work harder but smarter. That is our lesson, teaching yourself how to get more out of class to improve at a faster rate. This week we are continuing on to the next barre exercise, tendus.
First off, Tendu means to stretch. I’m sure you are already practicing pointing your toes and striving your best to stretch through the ankle. But I find the part where a lot of dancers relax, is when we retract the foot; bringing it back into 1st or 5th position.
Today’s Tip is:
Close attention to the tendu Close
Often, we focus so much on the first movement that we forget to stay connected to the end of the action. But if we focus on the action coming back into first position, we are going to get a lot more out of the exercise. This will fire up our inner thighs allowing us to improve our petit allegro in the center. Why just think about pointing your toes, when you can multi-task!
Let’s look at a la seconde tendus from first position. Try it with me.
First try it without engaging the upper leg and groin area. Your knees probably have a slight bend and everything gets a little jiggle on the close.
Now, when you close into tendu, do not let the working leg bend. This will force the inner thighs to take over when bringing the heels together; as opposed to stepping the foot in.
One more thing… did it knock your hips back? Before you close the tendu, squeeze the supporting butt cheek to flatten the hip and now close to first position. Keep trying it until you can keep your body stacked. Then you can start to increase your tempo.
This isn’t a magical fix that makes ballet easier… this is an important fix that helps you learn how to work harder but smarter at the barre. So here is some homework. Practice these slow tendus at home focusing on closing because more often than not you have a faster tempo in the dance studio, right? And when that music comes on, you better be ready. So I dare you to practice this 5 times before your next ballet class, and see how that helps you at the barre.
That’s it guys!
Close attention to the tendu Close
Great work today and I can’t wait to hear how this helps you in class. If you want to see about working with me personally to improve your technique, click on the link in the description below.
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