Pointe classes in Vienna

Première Pointe is the ARTIS introduction to pointe work for adults: one forty-five-minute class a week, at most eight dancers, taught by ballerinas who have danced on pointe on the stages of the Mariinsky and the Bayerisches Staatsballett. No previous pointe experience is required; a foundation of classical technique is, and the teacher looks at every new dancer’s feet, relevé and alignment in the first class before the first rise.

The length of the class is chosen on purpose. Forty-five minutes is enough to strengthen the feet, find the alignment and take the first controlled rises without the fatigue that causes injuries. Health, safety and sustainable progress come before the photograph on pointe. That comes too.

• Foot and ankle strengthening on the floor and at the barre: relevés, rises through demi-pointe, articulation of the foot.
• Correct alignment on pointe: weight over the box, knees straight, hips and back placed, no sickling.
• The first controlled rises with two hands on the barre, then with one, then the first steps: échappés, pas de bourrée, sous-sus.
• Care of the feet and of the shoes: fitting, ribbons, padding, and when to replace a pair.

Pointe work needs strength before it needs shoes: a stable relevé on demi-pointe, straight knees, a placed pelvis and regular classical training behind you. Adults are usually ready sooner than they think and later than they hope. If you are not ready yet, the teacher tells you what to build in the ballet classes or in Floor-Barre, and how long that typically takes.

Do not buy shoes before the first class. We recommend a fitting in a specialist shop in Vienna and tell you which models suit your feet; until then you take the strengthening part of the class in soft shoes. Première Pointe can be booked as a single class first, and combined with any adult membership afterwards.

• Première Pointe: Saturday at 15:00, 45 minutes