Fantastic Fouettés from Osipova, Murphy, Rojo, Teuscher, Núñez, Semionova, Maximova and more!

A fouetté is a ballet term referencing a whipping movement. Grant (Technical Manual and Dictionary of Classical Ballet) lists 19 fouette variants, but the most popular and attention grabbing is called a fouette rond de jambe en tournant. This is a dramatic and iconic step for females, featured in Swan Lake, Don Quixote, Flames of Paris variations. For better or for worse, some ballet fans view the step as the ultimate testing ground of any ballerina. In this video, I provide some of my favorite clips demonstrating breathtaking athleticism and technique from the world’s greatest ballerinas, along with historical perspective. The importance of the step is much debated among ballet fans and, for final thoughts, I give my views on fouettes in the broader context of ballet.
Thanks to Stephen Nelson and Jocely Delifer for helpful comments, particularly on Russian variant fouettés.
Sources
Background Material On Fouettés:
32 Fouettés, 32 Thoughts, Bostonballet.com
The feat of the fouette, DanceAustralia.com, June 10, 2020
‘Swan Lake,’ and Its 32 Fouettés, Alastair Macaulay, New York Times, June 13, 2016
Videos
Marianela Nuñez, Swan Lake-Coda from the Black Swan pas de deux in Act III (The Royal Ballet), ‪@RoyalBalletAndOpera‬
Natalia Osipova fouettés, Natalia Osipova’s Amazing Versatile Fouettés, ‪@TheBunduBallerina‬
Paloma Herrera fouettés and José Manuel Carreño turns in second position, ABT Now DVD, Image Entertainment, 2002
Christine Shevchenko fouettés, Extracts from the second act of the Swan Lake with Christine Shevchenko & Calvin Royal, ‪@VictoriaaS20‬
Gillian Murphy fouettés, American Ballet Theatre Swan Lake DVD, Image Entertainment, 2005
Polina Semionova fouettés, Black Swan 2/2 Polina Semionova & Friedemann Vogel, ‪@StupeurAlice‬
Maria Kochetkova fouettés, Don Quixote Grand Pas (Daniil Simkin/Maria Kochetkova), 28.09.2018, @Axis
Tamara Rojo fouettés, Tamara Rojo and Yoel Carreño-Don Quijote Pas de Deux, @jsl1952
Akane Takada fouettés, Insight: Ballet Glossary-Fouettés, ‪@RoyalBalletAndOpera‬
Svetlana Zakharova fouettés, Svetlana Zakharova Amazing Fouettes, ‪@Balletomancom‬
Ekaterina Maximova fouettés, DON QUIXOTE (Maximova-Vasiliev, 1972), ‪@xxxFreyjaxxx‬
Devon Teuscher fouettés, from Devon Teuscher
Yuriko Kajiya, DON QUIXOT, American Ballet Theatre (2012-2013), ‪@LiceuOperaBarcelona‬
Lucia Lacarra Italian Fouettés, Lucia Lacarra-Amazing Italian Fouettés, ‪@TheBunduBallerina‬
Photos
Pierina Legnani portrait, 1891, Wikipedia, United States Public Domain
Pierina Legnani in Cinderella, 1893, Wikipedia, United States Public Domain
Marias Petipa, 1898, Wikipedia, United States Public Domain
All other photos from notmydayjobphotography.com