If you ask most dance instructors they will tell you that ballet is the basis and at the core of all other dance forms. Training in ballet technique with concurrent training in the young dancer’s style of choice will make him or her a more proficient performer.
Ballet training focuses on four key areas that help a student succeed in other styles like jazz, tap, and hip hop. They are:
1. Posture and Body Awareness
2. Strength and Flexibility
3. Footwork and Body Control
4. Discipline
POSTURE AND BODY AWARENESS
To execute difficult turns and jumps a dancer needs a strong core to support good posture. Body awareness helps the dancer to adapt their movements to various styles of dance. If they understand how their muscles work to move each part of their body, they can create the lines and shapes of modern and lyrical as easily as they can execute the isolations used in hip hop and jazz.
Ballet has a strictly regimented class structure that begins with a slow and methodical use of individual muscle groups. This concentration on the tiniest movements of the body helps develop extreme control through body awareness and develops strong posture.
STRENGTH AND FLEXIBILITY
All dance styles spend time developing a student’s strength and flexibility. Ballet, more so than others, works the whole body while stretching the muscles simultaneously. This leads to dancers with balanced strength and flexibility without push-ups, crunches, and extensive stretching.
FOOTWORK AND CONTROL
Ballet includes slow, controlled movements requiring sustained balance and extremely fast footwork. By working the feet for speed in soft shoes, dancers gain more control over the use of their feet. This helps dancers create fast and articulate tap sounds. Dancers will also transition into the fast footwork of hip hop faster than most students with no ballet training.
DISCIPLINE
Discipline is one reason most students dislike ballet, but this is also one of the most important qualities any child can gain from a ballet class. Self-discipline is a skill that they will carry through their life. At ArtWorks Academy we strive to make ballet enjoyable. We know that not all students want to become professional ballet dancers, but they can all gain valuable skills for dance and life from ballet class.
