Terminology: "Press over your arch"

[Lissbirds]

Hi all--

 

I've heard this term used a bit and I'm still a little fuzzy on what it means. Sometimes I hear people say, "tendu, make sure to press over your arch." What exactly does this mean? I thought it meant just to really push your tendu (in other words, to really push extend your ankle as far as it could go, while at the same time pointing your toes) but now I'm not so sure. Maybe all you ballet masters can shed some light on this!

 

--Melissa

[vrsfanatic]

This is not a term I use to describe anything in ballet. Your explanation sounds reasonable to me. Hopefully there are others who are more familiar with this description.

[davidg]

i think it means "stretch your instep"

[spinbug]

Normally it is a descriptive phrase used in pointe class when we are trying to stretch out our feet. We tendue to the front or side and sometimes the back and shift weight onto the pointe and push outward trying to bend the ankle at the top of the arch created. (In tendue derriere, ankle is stretched with the toes pointing at an angle to the floor,towards the back, pressing down.) The idea is to stretch your foot in the correct spot and not to "knuckle over" at the metatarsals where your toes begin. The arch in the line needs to be higher up where the the ribbons of most pointe shoes criss cross. In ballet flats this might be where your elastic comes across your foot depending on where it is placed. It could be that your teacher is noticing that your point comes more from your toes and not your whole foot. However, your description sounds very appropriate if you have the visual of what a stretched tendue looks like.

 

I have also heard people use it to ask for the highest demipointe while on releve. To get very high one must point from the arch as well as the foot in order to align the pointe in a balanced position.

 

On the other hand, people with very high insteps and who press over too much have to actually stretch upward to control the outward so their toes don't get too far under themselves. Good releves take both upward and outward movements of the foot and some people, depending on their foot structure, may struggle with one more than the other.

 

Candi

[Lissbirds]

Thanks, Candi--

 

Your explanation makes a lot of sense. The fact that you're shifting weight onto your free leg makes more sense, than say, keeping the weight off of it like we do in ballet slippers. For the most part, our teacher uses the phrase "Press into your arch" or "through" your arch, which gives me a nice image, too. I kind of like to think of a string pulling at my instep where my elastics cross--kinda helps me straighten out my leg, keep my toes from curling, and stretches the instep.

 

Thanks again for your lucid reply!

 

--Melissa

 

Normally it is a descriptive phrase used in pointe class when we are trying to stretch out our feet. We tendue to the front or side and sometimes the back and shift weight onto the pointe and push outward trying to bend the ankle at the top of the arch created. (In tendue derriere, ankle is stretched with the toes pointing at an angle to the floor,towards the back, pressing down.) The idea is to stretch your foot in the correct spot and not to "knuckle over" at the metatarsals where your toes begin. The arch in the line needs to be higher up where the the ribbons of most pointe shoes criss cross. In ballet flats this might be where your elastic comes across your foot depending on where it is placed. It could be that your teacher is noticing that your point comes more from your toes and not your whole foot. However, your description sounds very appropriate if you have the visual of what a stretched tendue looks like.

 

I have also heard people use it to ask for the highest demipointe while on releve. To get very high one must point from the arch as well as the foot in order to align the pointe in a balanced position.

 

On the other hand, people with very high insteps and who press over too much have to actually stretch upward to control the outward so their toes don't get too far under themselves. Good releves take both upward and outward movements of the foot and some people, depending on their foot structure, may struggle with one more than the other.

 

Candi

[spinbug]

Melissa,

...and thanks for saying my reply was lucid, I need to remind my husband who sometimes wonders about me ...

 

Candi