Episode 11 ~ January 26th, 2021
Rond de jambe
Hey Dancer! Welcome to “Dance Tips with Brittany”
Today we are going to talk about one dance step that… to this day… is still one of the most difficult dance steps. Rond de jambe
Rond de jambe means “circle of the leg”
We focus on taking the leg from the front to the back, and vice versa. But if you are anything like me, I always heard the same correction. “Less movement in the body and stop wiggling your hips.”
I’m not trying to hula dance at the barre! If I had any idea how to keep my hips still I certainly would have done it. But there is so much to think about and hard work behind a rond de jambe. It is extremely difficult to keep the hips under control and not begin your bachata dancing at the barre. Let’s work an exercise today to help the stabilizer muscles on the supporting leg.
Today’s dance tip is:
Stabilize Supporting Leg
As I mentioned, I know how hard it is to fix this. It takes time, strength, and concentration. So let’s begin.
Let’s start in plié. Start the rond de jambe to the front, side, and back. Now reverse it. Back, side, front.
Starting in the devant position let’s do a body check. Ribs in, booty under and core engaged, knee over the toe, not rolling in on the supporting leg. Now squeeze the supporting glute as the working leg opens to a la seconde. Did you maintain the previous corrections? Ribs, booty, core, knee back, rolling in. Check.
Now squeeze the booty even harder and try to maintain the corrections as the leg goes to derrière.
Now reverse it. We are staying in plié because it is more obvious when the knee and foot roll forward. Practice front to back, back to front, front to back and so on. It will help strengthen the supporting side so you can then practice with a straight standing leg. Then of course closing to first or fifth position.
I hope that helps!
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Catch ya next week friends!
