ONT Re: Ballet
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| Arabesque (cont.)
|
| The Cecchetti Arabesques (see illustrations, page 126).
|
| First arabesque. The body is held upright from the waist and is supported
| on a straight leg with the other leg extended and at right angles to the
| supporting leg. The shoulders are held square to the line of direction
| with the arms extended, palms down, so that the extended fingertips of
| the forward arm (which is the one on the same side as the supporting
| leg) are in a line with the centre of the space between the eyes,
| and the extended back arm slightly lowered so that the arms are
| in one straight line. The forward hand should be slightly
| turned outward.
|
| Second arabesque. The arms are reversed so that the forward arm is
| the opposite to the supporting leg. The head is slightly inclined
| and turned toward the audience.
|
| Third arabesque. Both arms are extended forward to the side of the
| supporting leg. The fingertips of the arm farther from the audience
| are in a line with the centre of the space between the eyes while the
| arm nearer the audience is in a line with the shoulder.
|
| Fourth arabesque. The supporting leg is nearer the audience and is in
| demi-plié. The arms and head are held as in the first arabesque with
| the arm on the side of the raised leg being forward.
|
| Fifth arabesque. The arms and head are held as in the third arabesque
| with the arm farther from the audience being the higher. The supporting
| leg is the leg nearer the audience and is in demi-plié.
|
| The fourth and fifth arabesques are usually taken facing the right
| front corner of the room or stage if the supporting leg is the left,
| or facing the left front corner if the supporting leg is the right.
| In the illustrations the position is shown sideways for the sake of
| clearness.
|
| Gail Grant,
|'Technical Manual And Dictionary Of Classical Ballet',
| Third Revised Edition, Dover, New York, NY, 1982.
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