The Secret of Fouette Turns

How can ballerinas do turns on pointe?

You’ve seen dancers do the 32 fouettés in Swan Lake, but why don’t they get dizzy? David McAllister, Artistic Director of the Australian Ballet, is here to teach us how to turn like a dancer. ©FB Australian Ballet

Swan Lake’s 32 fouette turns are considered to be one of the hardest, most challenging sequences in ballet. Odile, the dangerous but seductive black swan, returns to the stage near the climax of her grand pas de deux with the hero, Prince Siegfried, and revolves on one leg 32 times. Her raised leg, never touching the ground,  propelling the dancer as she spins around on pointe. The ideal sequence of 32 fouettés never travels from a single spot which needs virtuoso technique.

If you want to learn all about the 32 fouette turns, watch this video!