Turnout Development for Your Ballet Dancers

Let's talk about one of ballet's most sensitive subjects: developing turnout. As teachers, we walk a delicate line—push too early, too hard, or too aggressively, and our dancers get hurt. Don't challenge our students' perception of their turnout capabilities, and they never develop their full potential.

I've been on both sides of this equation. As a young teacher, I was very much on team Don't Push It. But once I joined the faculty at a major ballet school, I quickly realized that my dancers weren't developing as much turnout as their peers in the same level but with a different teacher. Clearly, I had room to grow as a teacher.

That gap between what my students were accomplishing and what their peers were accomplishing led me to develop a systematic approach to identifying when students are ready for increased turnout challenges and when they need to solidify their current foundation first. I'm still on the conservative side, but my students are attending summer programs all over the country and their turnout is keeping pace with their new friends'.

Signs Your Dancers Are Ready for More Turnout Challenges

When students demonstrate these qualities, they're typically ready to be challenged to develop greater turnout:

• Tension-free upper body - They maintain their current level of turnout without creating tension in their neck, shoulders, arms, or fingers. This indicates they're not "borrowing" stability from unrelated muscle groups.

• Core engagement and proper pelvic alignment - Their core is consistently engaged during movement, and their pelvis remains well-placed without tucking or tilting. This stable center provides the foundation needed for healthy turnout development.

• Clear understanding of movement planes - Their movement shows a solid understanding of the sagittal and frontal planes. This spatial awareness is essential for properly isolating rotational movement. (Which is funny, because turnout is technically on the transverse plane!)

• Consistent turnout across positions - They maintain relatively consistent external rotation when transitioning between fundamental positions (first to fifth, for example) and in connecting steps, showing that they're working from appropriate muscle groups.

• Mental readiness - They demonstrate patience and body awareness, understanding that turnout development is a gradual process requiring consistent, focused work rather than immediate results. This is why I don't push my young kids.

Warning Signs: When Students Are Pushing Beyond Their Current Capabilities

Be on the lookout for these indicators that students are forcing turnout beyond what they can currently support:

• Lower back tension - Tightness or strain visible in the lower back, back of the waist, or top of the glutes often indicates difficulty maintaining current hip rotation.

• Incorrect knee tracking - During pliés, their knees fail to align over their second or third toes, potentially putting harmful stress on knee ligaments. This applies to the ascent as well as the descent.

• Forcing rotation from knees or ankles - Watch for students who place their feet in turned-out positions by bending joints and then straightening, who show less turnout in positions like retiré than when standing, or who roll onto the inner arches of their feet.

• Inconsistent weight distribution - Uneven weight bearing suggests they're manipulating their alignment to appear more turned out.

• Gripping toes - When toes grip the floor excessively, it often indicates the dancer is attempting to create the appearance of turnout without proper rotational support.

As I've examined my own teaching practices, I've found that once dancers reach the Intermediate Division they typically are ready to re-examine their understanding of turnout. Before this point, I emphasize proper placement, alignment understanding, and foundational strength—creating the conditions for healthy turnout development rather than pushing for increased rotation directly.

By following these guidelines and carefully observing your students, you can find that sweet spot where you're challenging them to grow without pushing them toward injury. Remember that turnout development is a years-long process, not a quick fix—patience and systematic work will yield better results than aggressive pushing.

How do you approach turnout development with your students? I'd love to hear your experiences in the comments below. For more detailed exercises and visual demonstrations, check out my related videos on turnout development on my YouTube channel.