How to Keep Your Shoulder Back in Arabesque

Perfect the ballet move called the arabesque through practice and patience to achieve this elegant position. The arabesque is a traditional stance in ballet where one arm is generally positioned to the front of the body, while one leg is stretched out and raised to the back of the body. This position can be modified in many different ways by changing the positions of the arms and the angles of the legs, but in all circumstances, it requires good posture to be graceful.

Things You'll Need

  • Full-length mirror
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Instructions

    • 1

      Perform back stretches regularly to improve your flexibility. Do the cobra stretch by lying on your stomach with your arms near your body and your hands positioned by your shoulders with your palms on the floor. Gently push your hands while raising your upper body off the floor to stretch your back. Hold the position for up to 30 seconds at a time.

    • 2

      Reach your arms forward from your elbow instead of your shoulder when moving into an arabesque. This will help keep you stabilized, which leads to your shoulders being back in the proper way.

    • 3

      Practice your arabesques in front of a full-length mirror, so that you can see your shoulder positioning. Pull your shoulders back into the proper posture while watching yourself. Repeat this until the position feels comfortable when you are not in front of a mirror.