Fouette is a dance figure

2024 Author: Leah Sherlock | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 05:25

Fouette is a common short name for a movement in classical dance. It is played as a series of repeated tours at a fast tempo. When performing these movements, the working leg opens to the side after the end of each of the 360-degree turns.

Basic definition

Fouette means "beat, whip, whip" in French. With the Western technique of execution, the working leg reaches a level of 45 degrees and above. In performances that belong to the classical heritage of the fouette, this is usually one of the climaxes, which is performed on pointe by the ballerina. In the ballets Swan Lake, Don Quixote, Paquita and Le Corsaire, the main character performs 32 described figures in a row.

According to the terminology, in the classical dance of this kind of rotation, it is more correct to call Tours fouettés. A rare exception was the ballet La Bayadère. There, the dancer, playing the role of Gamzatti, performs the 20 described steps and a series of "Italian" fouettes. This movement on the stage is always performed en dehors, but en dedans is also possible. As a more scenic option, the alternation of the above describedapproaches. Single figures in any of the directions can be used for transitions to various poses. They are used in a variety of combinations as they are related to other movements that make up classical dance. In the terminology of ballet, there are also groups of movements that have the word “fuete” in their names. It's all about twists and turns.

Dictionary of Gallicisms

Let's clarify the meaning of the word "fuete" in this source. According to the information given in it, we are talking about a figure of classical dance, which consists of a turn on the toes of the first leg and a simultaneous circular movement in the air of the second. For this group, the pas is characterized by a whipping exercise that helps the rotation of the dancer. Also, thanks to this figure, there is a change in the direction of movement.

Other sources

According to the "Dictionary of Synonyms" by Trishina VN, the concept of "rotation" is equivalent in meaning to the term of interest to us. In the scientific publication of Efremova, it is indicated that fouettes are pas groups in classical dance. It is characterized by a sharp movement of the legs. The "Small Academic Dictionary" specifies that we are talking about the figure of a female dance. The word is neuter. Let's take a look at other sources. Similar definitions are found in the dictionaries of foreign terms of the Russian language, Kuznetsov and Ozhegov.