Unfortunately, not enough ballet teachers teach their students to send energy and weight through their arms in order to facilitate the movements of the feet and legs. Most students who come to my NYC classes from out-of-town can pose in the basic positions of the body and arms but haven't been taught to move their shoulder blades and arms. They haven't been taught that as they dance in the center floor, each movement of a foot or leg must be opposed by a movement (usually backward) of at least one arm, if not both.
This is what prevents them from striding forward and covering space sideways - they don't have strong arms that move the feet and legs.
In this video, TEAM FINIS demonstrator Mayumi Omagari is making a tombé en avant. I want her to use her muscles so that her arms have weight as they reach back so she can really step out and travel the tombé.
I'm asking her to open her chest and press her elbows against my hands. If students would always work the weight and energy of their shoulders and arms, their legs and feet would reach out farther and each step would be properly placed and balanced.
Don't HOLD your arms. USE them! Push the air the same you push the water in order to swim. Think of pulling your shoulders down and reaching back in opposition to the forward movement of your hips and toes.
TRY THIS: Stand near a wall, round an arm in second position, and press against the wall first with your fingers, then your hand, the wrist, the forearm, the elbow, and shoulder blade. That is the degree of strength you should have in your arms when you dance.
Your arms and shoulder blades power the movements of your hips, feet, and legs.
See my instructional video USE YOUR ARMS & DANCE! Stream it from my website, or buy the DVD from my website or Amazon.
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