What You'll Learn
- Advanced techniques for executing a fondu fouetté combination without a barre.
- Strategies for maintaining upper body stability and opposition during à la seconde movements.
- Refining grand battement devant by using the back and elbows to prevent collapsing.
- Improving turn coordination by leading with the shoulders and stabilizing the core.
About This Video
Welcome to an intensive session at Broche Ballet designed to bridge the gap between traditional barre work and center artistry. This 37-minute advanced center barre class focuses on the ultimate challenge for any serious dancer: maintaining stability and precise technique without the support of a physical barre. Our expert instructor leads you through a series of rigorous exercises designed to build functional strength, coordination, and the "internal barre" necessary for professional-level execution and fluidity.
We begin by exploring the mechanics of center balance through complex fondu and fouetté combinations. A key focus of this class is learning to treat your own arms and port de bras as your structural barre. By visualizing this external support, you can maintain a lifted carriage and stable core even during the most demanding movements.
We delve deep into the mechanics of the fondu fouetté, teaching you how to maximize the standing leg's strength while coordinating the working leg's sharp, rhythmic rotation. Coordination and power are further refined through intentional grand battement exercises. You will learn specific technical cues, such as pressing the elbows back to engage the large muscles of the back, which helps lift the entire torso and prevents the body from collapsing forward during devant movements.
This lifting sensation is crucial for maintaining a long, elegant line and preventing common balance errors. Turning technique is also a major highlight of this training session. We address the common mistake of the legs leading the movement; instead, you will practice having the shoulders and upper body arrive slightly before the legs.
This subtle but powerful shift in timing creates the momentum needed for clean, controlled rotations and effortless-looking pirouettes. Throughout the class, we also emphasize the importance of physical opposition—specifically maintaining the relationship between the shoulders and hips during à la seconde work to prevent unwanted twisting. Whether you are preparing for a performance or simply looking to challenge yourself during your home practice, this class provides the professional technical corrections and insights needed to excel.
By the end of this session, you will have a deeper understanding of how to engage your core, find your true center, and move with the grace and power of an advanced ballet dancer.
