The grace of a ballerina is undeniable.
Even when they’re not on the stage, ballerinas carry grace into their everyday demeanor. It can take years to develop the muscle memory to stand as tall and strong as ballerinas do, but these ballet basics can be easily learned without even signing up for a beginner’s class.
-
Stand tall
One of the first basic principles of ballet is to stand tall. Elongate the entire body by evenly lifting everything up. There is no frumpiness allowed in ballet and a good ballet teacher will re-enforce this with a cane! Seriously.
-
Keep your head up
If you look down, you will fall down, and the same is true in life. Unless it is written in the choreography, a ballerina is to maintain a long neck and keep her head up, nose to the sky. Even when the gaze turns downward, it is still done with a long, extended back.
-
Shoulders down
Shoulders tend to creep up when we are stressed or holding tension, but it is a ballerina’s job to make everything look as if it is effortless. So lift everything up except the shoulders. As you lift up, the shoulders push down away from your ears.
-
Belly in
Always lift up and in, especially in the midline. This is your center and power source for everything in ballet. It must remain active and strong at all times.
-
Discipline
Quiet, focus, no complaining, and practice until perfect. OK, so maybe we should have called this “8 Principles of Ballet”.
Acquire grace. Even when you fall, do it gracefully.
