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The Body Physics Behind Turning: Pitfalls, Training Tools, and Tips for Successful Pirouettes
Intro
It would behoove me not to talk about turning, and the understanding of it has revolutionized my understanding of the physics behind turning. Realizing that turning constitutes very applicable techniques that one can use to improve not only the technique of their pirouettes but the number of rotations can be successfully executed as well. In this article, I will be addressing how I train turns, the pitfalls, and simple tricks to get kids turning with cleaner execution and/or understanding how to get dancers to that next rotation.
The Breakdown of Pirouettes
When training pirouettes, I like to train from the bottom up. Essentially, the more connections you establish pushing into the floor, the better it will be for the execution of the turn. This section will cover the six areas of turning that I like to address when training young dancers as well as correcting older dancers to gain the best possible pirouette. The breakdown goes as follows: feet/ankles, knees, pelvis, core, port de bras/arms, and spotting/tempo. Each section gives its own reasoning for the physics behind executing a pirouette.
Toe/Foot/Ankle:
It is quite important to separate these three aspects of the lower body because each one holds an importance that can collectively create a more solidified turn. Let’s start with the big toe. Its ability to keep you in high relevé, keep a straight leg, and prevent you from falling towards the pinky is amazing if you only press down through it. This small sense of pressure, connecting with the metatarsophalangeal joint that engages through the foot and ankle, can be a game changer for dancers.
Knees:
The way knees are trained during the preparation of a pirouette can often go unseen by teachers. Understanding knee-to-toe alignment is crucial when it comes to how the leg lines up during the preparatory position of a pirouette. You want the knee to stay in line with the first few toes starting from the big toe. You also want to create enough of a bend within the knee to activate inside the hamstring to assist in the grounding down of the leg in its entirety.
Pelvis:
The pelvis, in its ability to tip forward and back and side to side, really can make or break a dancer's ability to build consistent turns. In a prior article, “The Art of the Plié,” we discuss a concept known as “ribs and hips,” where the dancer focuses on rolling the hip bones up towards the bottom of the ribcage, creating a neutral spine within the body. This centering develops the proper axis for a dancer to be in the correct alignment. The other aspect of the hip to be focused on is the hip’s ability to move from side to side. The dancer will begin to “tip over” when the leg is lifted, if not paying attention to the alignment of the pelvis.
Core:
It is desired to have a strong core and execute many different types of core exercises to develop the obliques and especially the lower abdominal muscles. Without this, it can be difficult to hold the pelvis and keep it in alignment with the use of a strong core.
Port de Bras/Arms:
I tell students it is equally as important to have strong arms as it is to have a strong base during pirouettes. You must take your back with you while turning in order to be successful. Oftentimes, the arms are overlooked and can be the last thing that is focused on when it comes to turning. So much emphasis is placed on the lower half of the body. I have found that much of the reason turns become inconsistent is due to the lack of control within the back muscles to extend through the rest of the port de bras.
Spotting/Tempo:
When it comes to spotting, it is often forgotten that a dancer must use their eyes and head in order to spot. When a dancer only uses their head for spotting, you will notice that the head moves multiple times during a single turn, or the head gets locked in one direction and the chin gravitates towards the shoulder. Neither of these generates a good spot for a turn. The head's movements should not get locked into one direction or move multiple times during one rotation. Rather, the head should be practiced to move the head towards the diagonal sides of the body versus a full connection of chin to shoulder.
The head needs to be able to react quickly without obstruction of the chin. Simultaneously, the eyes should also react in a fast manner so as to be able to respond to what the head is doing and allow the eyes time to focus on the particular area the dancer has chosen for focus. We cannot lose sight of how much understanding the tempo of a turn can change the trajectory of the outcome. Dancers should develop an awareness that depending on the number of turns, tempo can change how fast or slow the turn is attempted. For a single turn, a dancer should think that there is less force to execute with, rather than a turn exhibiting three or more rotations, where more momentum is necessary.
Simple Reminders:
Here are a few reminders or concepts that I try to instill in my students so that they are able to learn and troubleshoot themselves by fixing rotations.
● Any time there’s hopping inside of a turn, it is a direct indicator that you've lost connection to the floor. Therefore, creating the concept of pressing down when that occurs is going to help save your turns.
● Consider when turns aren’t successful where your pelvis is during each failure. If you are falling forward, it is more than likely the pelvis is displaced and the hips are facing in a downward motion. Many teachers will address this as having a “swayback.” I like to encourage my dancers to lift/roll the pelvis into a lifted position that pulls upward towards the belly button. Also consider that if the right leg is pulling into a passé and the right hip is also up, you will have a tendency to fall to the left, and vice versa. Keeping the pelvis lifted will help the dancer maintain the centering over the supporting leg.
● The alignment of the foot is incredibly important. If you find yourself falling to the pinky side of the foot, this is breaking the line of the supporting leg and will minimize the success rate in turning. If the heel in relevé starts to lower, the dancer should be training their ankle strength to stay pressing through the front of the ankle. The last piece of advice I can offer with reference to the foot: learning to activate the big toe does a myriad of things—keeps your high relevé, prevents sickling or supinating the foot, and if the concept of a high relevé is reached, it will also maintain a straight supporting knee.
● Take your back muscles with you. The strength and consistency of engaging and pulling down the latissimus dorsi will allow the dancer to engage from the back all the way through the fingertips.
Advanced/Specialty Turns:
Outside of the turned-out or parallel turns, there are some turns that are a little more difficult than others. For instance, the front and back attitude turns, as well as fouettés or à la seconde turns, turns in arabesque, and lastly, turns that change positions and lead into a specialty trick.
Attitude Turns:
The front and back attitude are successful with the understanding of the placement of the pelvis. Whether transitioning into or out of, there should be an awareness of how the pelvis needs to tip back and forth to properly move through those positions.
Fouettés/À la seconde:
Grasping the concept of tempo in relation to how the arm pulls into first position is an aspect most dancers find difficult to comprehend. A dancer can increase or decrease the speed/ tempo of their turns by use of the arm. When the opposing arm is quickly pulled into first position this can increase the speed of the turn allowing for multiple rotations to be completed in a short time frame. However the slower that the “snap” is completed can decrease the momentum and make it harder during execution. Learning how to effectively use the opposing arm an create greater success for a la secondes/ fouettés.
Arabesque:
When it comes to arabesque turns, keeping the leg behind the shoulder in addition to engaging the gluteal muscles is going to be the trick in keeping your arabesque in the correct positioning. Much of the time, the arabesque is done as an inside or en dedans turn; therefore, the way the body is positioned during the prep matters. I have found that so many students set up an inside turn with the body facing the side to approach a turn that eventually is flat to the front, which can cause issues right from the beginning. If students consider placing the opposing shoulder, hip, and heel towards the supporting leg, then the turn is much more of a win.
Conclusion:
To finish this off, it is absolutely possible to be able to create consistent turns inside of your technique. As an educator or a dancer, beginners through advanced can utilize these concepts to build a strong foundation for pirouettes.
