32 fouettés en tournant facts for kids
A 32 fouettés en tournant is a special dance move in classical ballet. It means a dancer performs 32 fouettés en tournant turns one after another without stopping. It's a very difficult and exciting part of a ballet performance!
What is a Fouetté Turn?
A fouetté rond de jambe en tournant is a ballet turn. The dancer stands on one foot, called the supporting leg. This leg's knee bends slightly. The other leg, called the working leg, quickly whips out to the side. This whipping motion helps the dancer start to spin around.
As the dancer spins, the working leg quickly pulls back in to touch the supporting knee. At the same time, the dancer rises up onto the tips of their toes on the supporting foot. This is called dancing en pointe. Each fouetté turn helps the dancer keep spinning for the next one.
History of the 32 Fouettés
The amazing 32 fouettés were first performed by a ballerina named Pierina Legnani. This happened in 1893 in Marius Petipa's ballet called Cinderella.
A dance critic named Konstantin Skalkovsky watched the first show of Cinderella. He wrote that Legnani was incredible! He mentioned that another dancer, Emma Bessone, had done 14 fouettés in a different ballet. But Legnani performed 32 fouettés without stopping or moving from her spot. The audience loved it so much that they cheered and made her do the turns again! On the second try, she still did 28 fouettés. Counting her turns became a fun game for the audience.
Pierina Legnani performed these 32 fouettés many times in her career. She famously did them as the character Odile in the "Black Swan Pas de Deux" from the ballet Swan Lake in 1895.
Images for kids
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An illusion turn performed during an acro dance
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Pirouettes performed during a pas de deux
See also
In Spanish: Fouetté en tournant para niños
