pas
[pah]
Step. A simple step or a compound movement which involves a transfer of weight.
pas de basque
[pah duh bask]
Basque step. A characteristic step of the national dancers of the Basque that has been adapted to ballet use.
pas de bourrée
[pah duh boo-RAY]
Bourrée translates from French as drunk. Pas de bourrée is a transitional movement in ballet in which the dancer transfers body weight quickly from foot to foot in three small steps. It may be done in all directions or in a circle.
pas de chat
[pah duh shah]
Cat’s-step. The step owes its name to the likeness of the movement to a cat’s leap.
pas de cheval
[pah duh shuh-VAL]
Horse’s-step. This step is so called because it resembles the movement of a horse pawing the ground. When doing a pas de cheval, a dancer will start in fifth position, lift the front leg into cou-de-pied, then extend front into a tendu. It can also be done ending in a degage and to all three directions; front, side and back.
pas de deux
[pah duh duh]
Dance for two.
pas de quatre
[pah duh Ka-truh]
A dance for four.
pas de trois
[pah duh trwah]
A dance for three.
passé
[pa-SAY]
Passed. This is an auxiliary movement in which the foot of the working leg passes the knee of the supporting leg from one position to another or one leg passes the other in the air or one foot is picked up and passes in back or in front of the suppporting leg. Often passé is called retiré position.
penché, penchée
[pahn-SHAY]
Leaning, inclining. As, for example, in arabesque penchée.
piqué
[pee-KAY]
Pricked, pricking. Executed by stepping directly on the point or demi-pointe of the working foot in any desired direction or position with the other foot raised in the air. As, for example, in piqué en arabesque, piqué développé and so on.
pirouette
[peer-WET]
Whirl or spin. A complete turn of the body on one foot, on point or demi-pointe. Pirouettes are performed en dedans, turning inward toward the supporting leg, or en dehors, turning outward in the direction of the raised leg. Correct body placement is essential in all kinds of pirouettes. The body must be well centered over the supporting leg with the back held strongly and the hips and shoulders aligned. The force of momentum is furnished by the arms, which remain immobile during the turn. The head is the last to move as the body turns away from the spectator and the first to arrive as the body comes around to the spectator, with the eyes focused at a definite point which must be at eye level. This use of the eyes while turning is called “spotting.” Pirouettes may be performed in any given position, such as sur le cou-de-pied, en attitude, en arabesque, à la seconde, etc.
pirouette piquée
[peer-WET pee-KAY]
Pricked pirouette. A term of the French School. Same as piqué tour en dedans.
(This is a pirouette in which the dancer steps directly onto the point or demi-pointe with the raised leg sur le cou-de-pied devant or derrire, in attitude, arabesque or any given position. This turn is executed either en dedans or en dehors)
plié
[plee-AY]
Bent, bending. A bending of the knee or knees. This is an exercise to render the joints and muscles soft and pliable and the tendons flexible and elastic, and to develop a sense of balance. There are two principal pliés: grand plié or full bending of the knees (the knees should be bent until the thighs are horizontal) and demi-plié or half-bending of the knees. Pliés are done at the bar and in the centre in all five positions of the feet. The third position is usually omitted. When a grand plié is executed in either the first, third or fourth position croisé (feet in the fifth position but separated by the space of one foot) or the fifth position, the heels always rise off the ground and are lowered again as the knees straighten. The bending movement should be gradual and free from jerks, and the knees should be at least half-bent before the heels are allowed to rise. The body should rise at the same speed at which it descended, pressing the heels into the floor. In the grand plié in the second position or the fourth position ouverte (feet in the first position but separated by the space of one foot) the heels do not rise off the ground. All demi-pliés are done without lifting the heels from the ground. In all pliés the legs must be well turned out from the hips, the knees open and well over the toes, and the weight of the body evenly distributed on both feet, with the whole foot grasping the floor.
en pointe
[en pwent]
On the points. The raising of the body on the tips of the toes.
Polonaise
A processional dance in 3/4 time with which the court ballets of the seventeenth century were opened. It may be seen today in such ballets as The Sleeping Beauty and Swan Lake. The polonaise is a march in which two steps are taken forward on the demi-pointes and then the third step is taken flat with the supporting knee bent in fondu and the other leg raised in front.
port de bras
[pawr duh brah]
Carriage of the arms. The term port de bras has two meanings: (1) A movement or series of movements made by passing the arm or arms through various positions. The passage of the arms from one position to another constitutes a port de bras. (2) A term for a group of exercises designed to make the arms move gracefully and harmoniously. In the Cecchetti method there are eight set exercises on port de bras. In the execution of port de bras the arms should move from the shoulder and not from the elbow and the movement should be smooth and flowing. The arms should be softly rounded so that the points of the elbows are imperceptible and the hands must be simple, graceful and never flowery. The body and head should come into play and a suggestion of épaulement should be used. In raising the arms from one position to another the arms must pass through a position known in dancing as the gateway. This position corresponds to the fifth position en avant, Cecchetti method, or the first position, French and Russian Schools. In passing from a high position to a low one, the arms are generally lowered in a line with the sides. Exercises on port de bras can be varied to infinity by combining their basic elements according to the taste of the professor and the needs of the pupil.
promenade, tour de
[toor duh prawm-NAD]
Turn in a walk. A term of the French School used to indicate that the dancer turns slowly in place on one foot by a series of slight movements of the heel to the required side while maintaining a definite pose such as an arabesque or attitude. The turn may be performed either en dedans or en dehors. In a pas de deux, the ballerina on point holds her pose and is slowly turned by her partner who walks around her holding her hand.