What You'll Learn
- The difference between traditional Vaganova second position and a wider warmup stance.
- Techniques for sliding the standing foot to maintain perfect alignment at the barre.
- How to use inner thigh engagement to pull the body back to center after a wide second position.
- Preventing the common technical error of moving too close to the barre during transitions.
- Applying proper foot placement to improve later exercises like fourth position and rond de jambe.
About This Video
Precision at the barre is what separates a beginner from an intermediate dancer, and often the smallest adjustments make the biggest difference. In this quick tip video from Broche Ballet, we dive into the technical nuance of foot placement when transitioning from first to second position during your plié sequence. Understanding how and when to move your standing foot is essential for maintaining proper distance from the barre and ensuring your hips are correctly aligned for deeper movement.
The instructor explores two primary stylistic approaches to this transition. First, we look at the traditional Russian Vaganova style, which utilizes a narrower second position—typically about one foot-length wide. In this classical placement, the weight remains centered, and no adjustment of the standing foot is required. However, many modern instructors and warmup-focused combinations advocate for a wider second position. This wider stance allows for a deeper demi-plié and greater hip engagement, which is excellent for warming up the joints early in class.
When opting for this wider stance, you must learn the 'slide' technique. As you tendu to the side, the standing foot must also slide slightly outward to keep your body centered between your legs. Without this adjustment, you risk leaning toward the barre or compromising your turnout. Perhaps most importantly, this video demonstrates how to recover from this wide stance. Using the power of your inner thighs, you must pull the standing foot back under your center of gravity as you close the exercise. This prevents the common mistake of 'creeping' closer and closer to the barre, which often results in a cramped fourth position or a restricted rond de jambe later in the sequence. By mastering these small shifts in weight and placement, you will find more stability in your center and more freedom in your movement.
