Guest tutuclouds Posted August 29, 2003 Report Share Posted August 29, 2003 hi can anyone help me, i've been working on my turnout, which naturally is shocking and was wondering if anyone could give me some tips or excersises, (i know its a gradual process) thanks rob Link to comment
Mel Johnson Posted August 29, 2003 Report Share Posted August 29, 2003 Hi, Rob, and welcome to Ballet Talk at Ballet Alert! Online! Teachers' Forum is for teachers to discuss among themselves the kinds of problems that they encounter in class. Now, you might be a teacher, and even still have need of improving your rotation and turnout, but we can help you better if this thread is in the correct forum. Are you an adult student? A late teen? Other? We can move topics to the right place to give the best help. Link to comment
Guest Ozzie Oz Posted September 1, 2003 Report Share Posted September 1, 2003 I think my turnout was the first thing I lost after stopping dancing for so long. I know it will never be what it was and I was never a natural, but some exercises I have found on this board have been very helpful. Link to comment
Guest grace Posted September 22, 2003 Report Share Posted September 22, 2003 just hoping that rob/ tutuclouds got the message, that there are qualified people here who CAN and WILL answer his query, if/when he makes it clear whether he is asking as a dance student, as a dancer, or as a teacher? rob - please, either answer that question, so this post can be moved to a thread where it will be answered, OR ask this question again, over in the appropriate section: maybe that would be in TEENS ? Link to comment
Mel Johnson Posted September 22, 2003 Report Share Posted September 22, 2003 I think I'll take the bull by the tail here and face the situation. Based on rob's other posts in Young Dancers 16-22, I'll just move it there and we can attack it there. If that's not right, we can move it again! Link to comment
Administrators Victoria Leigh Posted September 22, 2003 Administrators Report Share Posted September 22, 2003 I am still awaiting reply from Rob as to where this post belongs. The question was not revisited by the poster since Aug. 29, and I don't think I will take the time to answer it until I know whether this is a 13 year old person or 22 or somewhere in between. It does make a difference in terms of how one approaches an answer, therefore I am requesting that others not jump in here until Rob responds to my email. Link to comment
Marjolein Posted December 31, 2003 Report Share Posted December 31, 2003 My problem is the big difference in my rotation and my actual turn out. When i do the butterfly stretch and compare it to the pictures in "Classical Ballet Techique" I am definitely well within the acceptable range, and when i do the froggy, it is at least as good the other girls' in my classes, so it's definitely not a flexibiliy issue. They all have a perfectly closed fifth position. I however don't come even close to a closed fifth, not without rolling in. I haven't been taking ballet nearly as long as they have, but my teacher expects me to have a turnout as nice as theirs. I know the best way to improve this is taking classes, but I can't take a lot of classes right now, because I'm in college. Are there any excercises I can do at home to improve my turnout? Link to comment
Mel Johnson Posted December 31, 2003 Report Share Posted December 31, 2003 "Frogs" are more or less a passive exercise. They help build flexibility, but not the strength to engage the rotation muscles. Simply sitting on the floor and rotating the legs from neutral to turned out is a simple one. Ever thought of waiting for the bus while standing in fifth position? Link to comment
Administrators Victoria Leigh Posted December 31, 2003 Administrators Report Share Posted December 31, 2003 Having rotation and the ability to USE that rotation to the full degree when weight-bearing can be two different things. When you sit on the floor you are not dealing with maintaining your center of gravity and the alignment and placement of the whole body. Nor does the shape of your legs factor in. When you stand up, the leg shape and your alignment and weight placement come into the picture. If your legs are very hyperextended, this affects everything. If your back is swayed or even if you just don't have good control of your alignment and use of the rotators in the gluteus maximus, this will strongly affect your ability to achieve a good fifth position. You rotate from the hip, however the strength of the rotator muscles in the derrière is a factor in using that rotation. Do keep in mind, however, that not everyone will achieve a "perfect" fifth position, at least not without something else going wrong. This is not the end of the world and does not make it impossible for you to dance. It's a matter of degrees. You do have to come very close to a good fifth. Link to comment
Guest dancingforever Posted December 31, 2003 Report Share Posted December 31, 2003 You mentioned that having hyperextended legs can make a tight fifth harder to achieve. I have hyperextended legs, and I have definitely notcied that my fifth can be hard to get because when I close, my knees have to bend from their completely straight (which is hyperextended for me) position. I know that I need to pull up more, but is there anything else I can do to make my fifths look as normal as everyone else? Link to comment
Administrators Victoria Leigh Posted January 1, 2004 Administrators Report Share Posted January 1, 2004 Yes. Be sure that your pelvis is in the right place, learn to use your quad muscles to straighten the legs, don't let the knees go all the way back even if they don't feel straight, and leave a tiny...TINY...space between the front heel and back toe. Link to comment
Recommended Posts