Adagio & positions
01 · Term and function
What is Attitude derrière?
A pose on one supporting leg with the working leg lifted behind and bent at the knee; hip, knee, foot, and upper body remain controlled and organized.
support · lift · place · hold · return
balance, hip organization, and control of shape
Interactive schematic movement analysis with its own movement logic
02 · Technical execution
What matters in Attitude derrière
The supporting leg carries weight with a stable foot, knee, and hip organization.
The working leg is placed or carried through a clear pathway without losing the supporting base.
Pelvic organization supports the line without forcing height or turnout.
Torso, head, and gaze extend the line while balance remains over the supporting base.
Height and range remain secondary to balance, clarity, and continuous control.
Body awareness: Notice which part of the body supports the movement, which part travels, and where the movement can remain clear without forcing range, turnout, speed, or height.
03 · Movement phases
Attitude derrière step by step
Organize weight, direction, feet, torso, and focus for the movement that follows.
Guide the working leg or body segment through the intended pathway without losing the supporting base.
Carry out this phase with a clear direction, coordinated weight organization, and controlled transition into the next phase.
Carry out this phase with a clear direction, coordinated weight organization, and controlled transition into the next phase.
Organize weight, direction, feet, torso, and focus for the movement that follows.
04 · For children and beginners
Observe and explore safely
Work in a small, controlled range first. Make the supporting leg, movement direction, and return position clear before increasing range or speed.
Which foot or leg is supporting you right now, and which part is moving?
Can you keep the direction and supporting organization clear while the movement changes?
Work only as large, fast, or high as you can control comfortably and without pain.
05 · Teaching and feedback
What teachers and learners can observe
Alignment, footwork, supporting/working-leg organization, and controlled return.
Graded use of force appropriate to the movement task.
Usable range without visible compensation.
Timing, duration, movement flow, and intentional accent.
Direction, focus, beginning, and finish remain clearly readable.
Maximum height, speed, turnout, or range is not a meaningful criterion on its own. What matters is controlled, physically coherent execution.
06 · Choreographic use
How the effect of Attitude derrière can change
A technical movement is shaped on stage by time, space, form, gaze, and relationship. These variables change perception without assigning a fixed psychological meaning to the movement.
Holding the position changes its weight in the phrase.
A lower or higher working leg changes scale without defining meaning by itself.
Facing, profile, diagonal, or changing épaulement alters the spatial line.
A held pose may invite, resist, support, observe, or remain independent depending on context.
07 · Feeling, need, and relationship
Possible readings — not fixed meanings
Feelings and needs are not derived from Attitude derrière itself. They are possible readings of a specific situation. Feeling, need, intention, and movement operation therefore remain separate.
Possible feelings: concentration, composure. Possible needs: orientation, stability. Possible intentions: prepare, organize, sustain a state.
Possible feelings: determination, tension. Possible needs: clarity, effectiveness. Possible intentions: set an impulse, mark a direction.
Possible feelings: connection, caution, resistance, or curiosity — depending on context. Possible needs: cooperation, autonomy, respect, or orientation. Possible intentions: respond, follow, avoid, support, or mark a boundary.
Choreographic guiding question: How does one person’s action change another person’s possibilities for action?
08 · Continue learning
From Attitude derrière to related movements
Promenade is a controlled turn on the supporting leg without the rapid rotation of a pirouette. The shape of the working leg is maintained while spatial orientation changes.
A pose and movement organization on one supporting leg with the working leg extended behind; torso, pelvis, supporting leg, working leg, and arms form one spatial organization.
A slow movement phrase that combines several technically independent elements into one continuous musical and physical task.
The working leg is first gathered through Retiré and then unfolded forward with control before returning through Retiré and closing.
The working leg is gathered through Retiré and then unfolded backward with control.
The turn is organized with the working leg in Attitude; balance, pelvis, and rotational axis must be controlled simultaneously.
Renversé combines an inclined or arched body line with turning and weight transfer; the form is technically detailed and varies between schools.
The body turns slowly around the supporting leg while the working leg is carried in Attitude.
Additional professional background
Books on learning and body awareness
The movement lexicon complements two book projects by Mathias Ellmann: The Ballet Teaching Tree for reflective, healthy learning and Leni and Oscar and the Secret of the Ballet Tree for younger readers.
The Ballet Teaching Tree
A model for healthy, reflective, artistically oriented ballet learning — with body awareness, motivation, self-respect, and long-term development.
About The Ballet Teaching Tree
Leni and Oscar and the Secret of the Ballet Tree
A story about body awareness, courage, learning, and the joy of development for younger readers.
About the children’s bookConcept · Ballet knowledge · Choreography
Mathias Ellmann
Mathias Ellmann develops the Ballet Movement Lexicon as a connection between classical ballet technique, body awareness, learning, and choreographic application.
Movements are first described in observable terms. Choreographic variables, relationship, and possible dramaturgical readings are added only afterwards.
In the contemporary ballet projects, classical ballet technique is used as a precise language of human relationships. The central question is: How does one person’s action change another person’s possibilities for action?