Fabulous Feet Dance Studio
and Academy of Ballet
Academy of Ballet
Learn more about the class levels offered throuh our ballet program
Fabulous Feet Academy of Ballet is the Fabulous Feet Dance Studio’s dedicated ballet program that is offered to recreational, competitive, and pre-professional students. FFAB classes are focused on skills required to progress through a high level of ballet training. Fundamentals such as postural alignment, weight placement and turn out are the beginning stages of a dancer’s development. Once these are achieved, dancers learn how to work through their limbs, and begin transferring their weight into steps and movement. Tempo, agility and muscle control become intermediate steps and turns. As skill and technique progress, the dancers are able to safely execute more advanced steps. Please be aware that students progress at different paces. Each child has a natural pace of growth- there is no “right” or “wrong” pace. It takes time and repetition to build muscle memory and can often take more than one year in a class for the muscle memory to set in. Have faith and know training your child(ren) safely is on the forefront of their instructor’s mind. Ballet training is slow, tedious and repetitive, but essential to form a solid foundation for all other styles dance.
Beginning Ballet
For young dancers’ first introduction to ballet training, this class teaches musicality, the wonders of imagination in dance, emotional expression, basic rhythm and counting, beginning stretches and beginning ballet exercises and traveling steps. This class meets once a week and focuses on the building blocks of ballet training. In order for steps to be safely executed, the correct placement, muscle use and posture must become muscle memory. Students will learn how to support their spine through use of their core, use the correct turn out muscles, where to place their weight to activate correct muscle groups, how to work through their feet with safe alignment, stretching through the joints, and muscle use in preparation for steps.
Rockstars (Advanced Beginning) Ballet
This class reinforces the skills developed in Beginning Ballet, and builds upon its strong foundation, as students begin to set the fundamentals into action. Tempos, preparation for turns, and more advanced exercises are incorporated into the syllabus. As the challenges increase, two days a week are needed to maintain strength and the muscle memory needed for more advanced steps. For members of our competition team, this class is a requirement for the Rockstars group.
C3 (Intermediate) Ballet
With the strength, placement and technique gained in the Rockstars Ballet, dancers with postural alignment and consistently engaged turn out are now ready to execute more challenging movements. Center combinations and intermediate steps are introduced, muscle memory and technique refined through repetition. Students gain balance through increased center-work, pirouettes, and side barre exercises. Hip placement and pelvic strength begin to develop in this level for extensions and more advanced steps requiring specific muscle use. Stretching draws emphasis, and previously learned steps at the barre are now practiced in center. For members of our competition team, this class meets two days a week and is a requirement for the C3 group.
C2 (Advanced Intermediate) Ballet
As the body is now fully trained to begin more intermediate/advanced steps, syllabus continues to move even faster. Extensions now rise above demi-hauteur. Adagio and allegro become longer, finessing students’ muscle control, balance and creating endurance. Performance presentation is molded in this level as artistry is developed within movement. As students become more advanced, students will train three days a week. For members of our competition team, this class is a requirement for the C2 group.
C1 (Advanced) Ballet
This class is dedicated to our most advanced group of ballerinas and ballet danseurs. At this point in training, adagio and allegro become longer, petite allegro combinations become quicker, and pointe work becomes a main focus. Students must be technically efficient and have a high work ethic to safely execute advanced ballet steps. This class meets three days a week and is considered our highest most elite group of dancers.
Pre-Pointe/Pointe
Having developed the necessary ankle strength to properly and skillfully control transitions into relevé at the barre and in center, dancers may begin training en pointe per instructor discretion. At this point in their training, dancers will focus their training at least once a week in addition to their regular sessions to hone their skills and strengthen their muscles. Dancers may begin pointe training near the intermediate ballet level (Please note- this is subject to instructor discretion and this does not apply to all students. Some students may begin pointe sooner, while others may require more training to ensure adequate strength to avoid injury).