DICTIONARY featuring Ballet Video and Ballet Instruction

This interactive video dictionary is not meant to list, describe and show every step and every term in Ballet. Schools have different training methods and different terminology. Ballet steps have many variations and translations. Also, if the step is not named the way you heard it, remember that there are different ways to say some steps.

For example, deboules, chaines and petits tours all mean the same thing, and tour jeté and gran jeté en tournant dessus are the same. The way that you do the step is what really counts, not the way you say it. We deal with those we think are the most important--the ones we think are necessary to accelerate a young dancer and give them a head start in their dance careers. Please keep in mind this Dictionary is not a substitute for a knowledgeable and caring Ballet Teacher.

We know that some of the French words are confusing, similar and hard to say for Americans. Toward the end of this document is a section on some of these confusables and their English meanings.

Lots of times when we are teaching, we use the English wording--as in pas de bourrée over or under instead of dessus or dessous--use the American words until you can remember in French...it's OK.

Keep in mind that three Ballet Methods are commonly used in America:
The R.A.D. (Royal Academy of Dancing) Method
The Italian (Cecchetti) Method
The Russian Method or the Americanized Russian method

The Russians say they combined the best of the French and the best of the Italian and added their interpretation to make the best system.This Dictionary is based on the Russian Method.

When a dance step is on the screen, you can...
Hear the name of the step.
Use the action bar for complete movement control.
Place the step in the practice notebook.
Click on another step.
Choose AUTOPLAY to automatically play the entire playlist from the top to the bottom.
Stop AUTOPLAY by clicking the button again.

Every movie has an action bar under it, giving you complete and unbelievable movement control of every step...from slow motion to normal to fast and reverse.

CONFUSABLES

Everyone knows the universal language of Ballet is FRENCH. Remember, Ballet started in France, under King Louis XIV. That's why the names are all in French.

We know that some of the French words are confusing, similar and hard to say, so we have listed below some of the confusables and their English meanings.

A lot of times, when we are teaching, we use the English wording like pas de bourrée over or under instead of dessus (duh-shoe) and dessous (duh-soo), etc. It's easier for the dancers to understand. Just check out these confusables and don't be confused by the confusables. Use the English until you feel comfortable with the French...that's what everyone does.

Up, as in arms overhead: en haut (on-o)
Down, as in arms down: en bas (on-bah)
Side, to the side of the body: a la seconde (ah-lah-seh-gohnd)
Traveling to the side: de coté (deh-ko-tay)
Facing the audience: en face (ahn-fahs)
Front, in front of the body: devant (deh-vahn)
Back, in back of the body: derrière (deh-ree-air)
Traveling to the front of the body: en avant (ahn-nah-vahn)
Traveling to the back of the body: en arrière (ah-nah-ree-air)
Around, like front, side, back and side: en croix (ahn-krawah)
Around, like in port de bras, circling the body: arrondi (ah-rahn-dee)
Outside, like away from the supporting foot: en dehors (ahn-deh-ohr)
Inside, like toward the supporting foot: en dedans (ahn-deh-dahn)
Over, like over the supporting leg: dessus (duh-shoe)
Under, like under the supporting leg: dessous (duh-soo)
A position where the toe is touching the knee either front, back or side: retiré (ruh-tear-ray), sometimes called passé in America
When the pointed foot passes the supporting knee: passé (pa-say)

Port de Bras...
with a waist bend front: cambré (kahm-bray) devant (deh-vahn)
with a waist bend back: cambré (kahm-bray) derrière (deh-ree-air)
with a waist bend side: cambré (kahm-bray) a la seconde (ah-lah-seh-gohnd)

Beats are counted as follows:
Opening the legs count one beat.
Closing the legs count one beat.
Landing on one leg adds a beat.
See "JUMPS & BEATS" and "TRAINING SECRETS"

Battement (bat-mahn)
A beating action of the extended or beat leg. In French, this word, battement, precedes most barre steps. In this Dictionary, we have just used the main word, like tendu, etc.

A few basic steps and how this wording applies is as follows. Don't get confused. Remember...dessous (duh-soo) under... dessus (duh-shoe) over...

In Glissade, brushing to the sides:
If the back foot stays in back, it's derrière.
If the front foot stays in front, it's devant.
If the back foot changes to the front, it's dessus, over.
If the front foot changes to the back, it's dessous, under.

In Pas de Bourrée:
Back, side, front, means, dessous or under.
Front, side, back means, dessus or over,

In Assemblé, brushing to the sides:
Brushing the back foot front, or over means dessus.
Brushing the front foot back, or under means dessous.

In Jeté, brushing to the sides:
Brushing the back leg and landing on it means, dessus, over.
Brushing the front leg and landing on it means, dessous, under.

In Sissone, jumping to the sides:
Right foot front and changing while jumping to the right means, dessus, or over, toward your front foot.
Right foot front and changing while jumping to the left means dessous, or under, toward your back foot.

Just remember, when your legs travel in any direction, front, side, back or your body travels, in any direction, you run into a confusable. Confusables pertain mostly to the directions the legs move and directions the body moves, so just use the English until you feel comfortable with the French. Most dancers and teachers use English frequently. And remember, it's not so much how you say a step, what counts is the way you dance the step.