I have often been curious as to why certain ballet movements are named "pas", and others not. After all, aren't all movements a "step" when we think of ballet? In the title of this post I mention Pas Marché (in the manner of a march), Pas de Bourrée (adopted from a 3-step 17th C French dance called Bourrée), Pas de Basque (adopted from a 3-step sequence found in Basque dances), and a Pas de Chat (literally the step of the cat, though there is considerable debate about the actual movement this name was intended to define).
Rather than trying to describe these individual steps, I wanted to point out that each of them involves a transfer of weight from one foot to the other. And in the world of ballet, there evolved a very strict aesthetic that defined how a ballet dancer would move their weight from one foot and place it on another. Unless specifically directed, a ballet dancer wants to transfer onto a fully pointed foot where contact with the floor progresses through the toes, metatarsals, finally anchoring the heels on the ground. Similarly, when a foot leaves the floor it is most often accomplished by releasing the heel from it's earthly bond before extending it to a fully pointed foot. This specific articulation tends to color how we recognize well trained ballet dancers.
"Pedestrianism" in dance was coined and gained its popularity in the 1950's and 1960's. I recall my early auditions for modern and contemporary dance companies here in the USA in the mid-1980's resulted in a number of comments that my ballet training was hindering my ability to look "pedestrian" in my movement. This came as a real challenge to me, as I relied heavily on how the articulate transfer of weight through all parts of my foot that came from my ballet, had served me well, and helped me recover (and avoid) serious injury to the rest of my body, from the ankles up! Learning to move in a "pedestrian" manner, and allowing this to be a qualitative action "choice" continues for me to this day.
Paul Taylor once mentioned that it was a challenge for his dancers to apparently let go of their hard won training when he was looking for an elusive naturalness and unremarkable quality in his choreography. While Taylor was alive his auditions always started with having each dancer walk across the studio to a steady musical beat. From Paul I learned to see how much there is to tell about people by watching them walk! This has been most useful in my teaching, as well as when I have to stage a dance, and have little time to try and determine which dancer might be best suited to which role. Dancing isn't always just about technique, confidence and love of the form can be so evident in watching a person walk across the room.
The Paul Taylor Dance Company is preparing to have an audition for men on June 14th, 2025. They only audition when they need dancers, so it isn't an annual occurrence. When I saw the notice go up, it made me think about how the most basic of "steps" in ballet and in life is WALKING! To be a "Taylor dancer" is to be able to embody dance as a person and as a superhuman.
A famous spectacle of the "ballet walk" is Le Grand Défilé at the Paris Opera Ballet.
In 1975 Paul Taylor created "Esplanade", which is celebrating its 50th anniversary of perennial performances by Paul Taylor Dance Company and more than sixty other ensembles around the world.
With the expansion of the Taylor School in NYC, you can find me teaching open Adult Beginner Ballet on Tuesday evenings, and open Advanced Taylor Modern on Saturday afternoons! Please feel free to drop in, or shoot me a question here in the comments.
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