A Freudian grand jeté

[toursenlair]

I was just searching the internet for some information about grands jetés, and I had to laugh when I saw a post that called a  "grand jeté en tournant" a "grand jeté en tourment". !!!

It reminded me of a friend of mine who suggested that an "arabesque penchée" could be called an "arabesque plancher" if you keeled over and fell on the floor while doing it.

So, balletco-ers, how about it... plays on words involving ballet terms? Over to you.

[LinMM]

Well I have seen pas de chat spelt(spelled) as pas de char which could conjure up pictures of someone leaping around the kitchen doing the chores!!

[swanprincess]

Can't think of any of my own right now, but I think it's fab when Posy Fossil (in Noel Streatfield's 'Ballet shoes') says "We did battlements again today, always battlements" to which Gum (I think!) replies "What funny words they use at your dancing!" She meant battements!

[Pas de Quatre]

My old teacher used to recount the tale of the little girl who went home and announced to her mother that they had been learning "padded bras". (Ports de bras).

[Dance*is*life]

I remember when I was first learning en dehors and en dedans, I turned them into on the horse and on the donkey - have no idea why that made it easier for me to remember which was inwards and which was outwards, but apparently it did!

[hfbrew]

A little pupil of mine proudly proclaimed that the patella was a fruitella!

 

 

Once found myself saying put your feet in bras bas....(it had been a long day!)

 

And my grade 1s call soubresauts  "super sauts"

[Picturesinthefirelight]

Dd has learnt something about en dedor through the door & something else for en dedan (I have no idea what either are)

[LinMM]

And just what they are when the RBS kids do them!!

[Anjuli_Bai]

After a very long day, I once asked a student to "please point her head!"

 

Fortunately, we were good friend.

[Thecatsmother]

I have turned pas de chats and battement frappes on their head before when brain dead-chat de pas and frappement bappe.

 

I also remember in the days when 6 year olds did polka asking in a slightly frustrated tone 'what does a polka start with?' Was expecting the response "a hop" but I did ask for it when one child turned to me a confidently said "a p". They always make you smile????

[Karen]

My non dancing husband asked dd what sautées had to do with little bits of fried potato!

[swanprincess]

My dance teacher (after a very long day of exam prep) once announced "Okay, battements developpes please"

[wildflowers]

A few years ago my littlest dd, watching her big sisters practise their JA metatarsal exercises decided to have a go and proudly shouted out  "Mummy, come and see my mini turtles". Been known as mini turtle exercises ever since! 

[Pas de Quatre]

The version I know is "out the door" for en dehors, which is a movement outwards, and "in again" for en dedans, inwards.  Although I do believe there is another version for en dedans.  Anyone know it?

[swanprincess]

A few years ago my littlest dd, watching her big sisters practise their JA metatarsal exercises decided to have a go and proudly shouted out  "Mummy, come and see my mini turtles". Been known as mini turtle exercises ever since! 

 

My little sister always refers to her calf muscles as her 'baby cows'- we were stretching together once, when she said "Stretch your cows." I of course understood what she meant, but my mum, mortified, screeched "Ellie!!!! That's horrible, you can't call your sister a cow!"

[taxi4ballet]

I remember hearing a story about little girls coming out of a class and complaining to their mums that they'd been doing exercises for boys... turned out it was actually exercises for poise!

[Pups_mum]

Not quite the same thing, but another example of how the mind becomes affected is that if I have my daughter in the front seat of my car I pretty much always drive to the studio, whether that is where we are meant to be going or not! She usually spots it and tells me, but there has been the odd occasion when I have pulled up in the car park and realized that we were actually supposed to be at Tesco!

[dramascientist]

en dedans.....in comes John!

[Anjuli_Bai]

The beginning of the dance school year was always difficult - 12 to 15 little girls - all with pony tails. 

 

One year they not only all had pony tails, but were blonde and all their names (but one) seemed to start with "K" -

 

Katie, Kathy, Kierdre, Kirsten, Kimberly, Kaitlin, Kelly, Karen, Kayla - etc.

 

After several classes I finally figured out which names belonged to which pony tail - except for two. And the "B" name seemed to come and go - sometimes becoming a "K" name!

 

It wasn't until I saw both of them greet the same mother that I realized - they were identical twins!!

 

Later, the mother told me she couldn't tell them apart either so one of them not only had a pony tail - but also bangs!  I asked the mother how she decided which one got the bangs  - and the mother said while one was named Kittie - it was Betsey who got the bangs.  The only non- K name in the room.

[Dance*is*life]

I taught a pair of identical twins some years ago and in my first year with them the only way I could tell them apart was by looking at their feet - their lovely mum had bought them ballet shoes in different shades - one had pink and one peach. My only problem was when they changed to character shoes

[LinMM]

What are bangs Anjuli?

[victoriapage]

Fringe! 

[Anjuli_Bai]

Yes, hair fringes.  I've never heard them called that here - but it makes sense.  Actually, makes more sense than "bangs."

[LinMM]

Thanks

[toursenlair]

Yes, hair fringes.  I've never heard them called that here - but it makes sense.  Actually, makes more sense than "bangs."

 

short for "bang-tail":

A (horse's) tail, of which the hair is allowed to grow to a considerable length and then cut horizontally across so as to form a flat even tassel-like end.

(the hair being cut "bang" off, "bang" in the sense of "exactly, thoroughly, completely" as in "bang on" etc. OK this is wandering way off the topic...)

[LinMM]

Wow thanks again

[Dance*is*life]

Really - I never knew that! How interesting! The differences between UK and US English can be very confusing! I remember one day that an American friend asked me to bring a ready cooked chicken - we were planning to have a picnic with our kids - and she asked me to bring some potato chips as well. They didn't have any left, so I bought a large bag of crisps instead. When I apologised for that - she said but that's what I asked you for! It was then that I learnt that crisps are chips in US speak and chips are french fries!!!!!!

[spooky]

As students we were in a pub with a visiting American friend and we were all munching on crisps so our American friend went to the bar to ask for some. She was most surprised to be told they would bring them over in a few mins and didn't understand why they didn't just pass her a packet from the display. Of course she had asked and duly got chips!

[Gingerbread]

I learnt that "bangs" meant "fringe" when I was quite little, because Laura Ingalls Wilder talked about them in Little House on the Prairie!

[taxi4ballet]

I learned it from watching 'Champion the Wonder Horse'!

 

(Does anyone else remember that?)

[hfbrew]

I learned it from watching 'Champion the Wonder Horse'!

 

(Does anyone else remember that?)

oh yes, every summer holiday along with Robinson Crusoe!!

[Loulabelle]

One of my favorite child hood tv programmes, along with White Horses!

[LinMM]

I remember the programme and introductory song that we would join in with....who sang the song...it wasn't Frankie Lane was it?

 

Don't remember about "the bangs" though.