Learn to Dance Ballet - The First Steps to Become a Ballerina , Sunday, July 19, 2009 at 3:37 AM, in

It is a delight to watch ballet dancers moving on stage with such elegance and grace. Ballet indeed is a great form of classical dance that puts grace, elegance and strength together. Although it is said to be one of the most difficult dance to learn, it does not mean you can't enjoy it. You can learn to dance ballet by knowing the dance itself and starting out with the basics.
One good thing about ballet dancing is that, it develops flexibility of the body and it enables you to do just any kind of dancing if you start with ballet. Ballet can however be enjoyed at any age. You can also enjoy this dance as an activity to promote good posture and flexibility as well as tone and sculpt your body.
Whether you or your child wants to learn to dance ballet, there are important things that you need to prepare before going to ballet classes.



With so much resources available today, it is not impossible to learn the dance by yourself, considering there are lots of video tutorial that are readily available for you to learn the dance.
Here is a simple guide on how to start of with your ballet dance lessons.
* Know what the steps are called. You may encounter a lot of French terms when you learn to dance ballet so you may want to learn the terms in advance so you will not be overwhelmed on learning the dance steps together with pronouncing the step's names. Take extra time beforehand to know the terms, the theories and the basic positions in a ballet dance.
* Master the basic steps. Ballet dancing has five basic positions that make the foundation of ballet dancing. Here are the five basic feet positions that you should master if you want to learn to dance ballet:
1. First position is done by standing straight with your heels together and both your toes turned out that your feet will form a straight line.
2. Second position is done by separating your feet apart (from the first position) for about one foot apart.
3. Third position is done by starting with the first position then making the heel of the right foot touch the instep of the left.
4. Fourth position is done by starting with the third position but separating the right foot about 6 to 12 inches apart.
5. Fifth position is done by starting with the fourth position and bringing your right foot closer to the left until its heel touches the toes of your left foot.
This steps may however be effectively taught through videos or pictures to make the execution perfect and correct. It is important that you do the positions well to prevent injuries.
* Practice the basic moves. After mastering your five basic feet positions, you can also start practicing with some basic ballet moves like the posse, plie and the demi plie. Remember to master the basic feet positions as you will use these in the proper execution of the ballet moves.



If you are attending classes, you will also be given instructions based on the basic positions so it is indeed important to master the basics.
A little patience and hard work indeed is needed to learn to dance ballet, but you can also make it fun and enjoyable. If you or your child wants to pursue a career in ballet dancing, you can enroll in ballet classes to ensure you have proper training and you can supplement it with some training at home.

Carolyn Anderson loves to perform ballet when she was young. For a complete manual of becoming a prima ballerina, check out Ballet Bible Another recommended resource is the Perfect Pointe, where you can find a step-by-step course through the whole perfect pointe process.