I strongly urge caution before using pointe shoes. The bones of the feet need to be hardened from the cartilage of childhood. No pointe shoes before age 11 and until completing 3 years of beginning ballet. This coincides with the beginning of the Intermediate Ballet Syllabi. Read the complete introduction to pointe work here.

Always take care to find your balance and strive for perfect placement while learning and performing on pointe.

For the 1st year only practice pointe work at the barre.

Center Practice Point Work - for Advanced Students 15 - 26

15. Pas de bourrée dessus et dessous - ending on 1 foot
5th RF front, picking up RF to back L ankle,
step RF back left in 5th,
step LF to 2nd, drop right in 5th front of left,
picking left foot up in back of right ankle -
reverse
16x

16. Pas de bourée endehors et endedans
5th position, RF back
demi plié, dégagé RF to low 2nd,
step to right point 5th front to left,
step left, half turn to left face front,
spring down 5th, LF front -
8x turn left
8x turn right
finish 5th front,
one R, one L

17. Glissade on pointe, assemblé on Pointe
glissade derrièrre to right, slide RF to side,
spring together on pointes,
brush RF to side and spring together in 5th on points,
spring down in 5th -
reverse 4x

18. Posé coupé balloné, coupé
RF back of left ankle,
spring back RF, LF front of RF, right arm fwd,
spring down right, left leg low 2nd, arms open,
bend left knee back of right ankle, right arm fwd - reverse

19. Pas de bourée
en avant (picking up back foot);
pas de bourrée en arrière (picking up front foot);
pas de bourrée R (picking up back foot);
pas de bourée L (picking up front foot)
bourrée fwd 5th, pick up back foot,
bourrée back 5th, pick up front foot,
bourrée right 5th, pick up back foot,
bourrée left 5th, pick up front foot - reverse

20. Échappé 2nd and Relevé 5th, travel forward and back
spring 2nd and 5th, épaulement on échappée

21. Soutenu turn
spring to right with RF extended left, quick cross front of right,
turn right with both feet and legs touching

22. Polka on pointe
hop on R pointe, chassé coupé chassé on pointe,
arms and body as in a regular polka

23. Posé, posé turn endedans and endehors
endedans -
step out on R pointe, left back of ankle, coupé,
step out on R pointe, turning right
endehors -
step out on R point, step across left,
right foot front of left ankle, step on R and turn on L

24. Posé turn endedans and endehors
face corner 2, RF 4th - small rond de jambe to L with R leg,
spring to RF, LF back of ankle, coupé back LF,
extend right fwd 4th, continuous right and reverse left - repeat all endehors

25. Petit tour
continuous even turns both pointes, use of head and arms

26. Pas de bourée couru in a circle
little steps on pointes in 5th, feet and legs touch, slow 1st port de bras

Homepage - Table of Contents
Key to Text
Pointe Work Introduction

Classical Ballet Beginning to Advanced by Susan Kramer. Preballet, beginning, intermediate and advanced levels of ballet with hundreds of combinations including a separate section of pointe work. 100 pages. Buy as an Ebook or Paperback Book


Article by Susan Kramer