How to Do a Grand Jeté: 3 Tips for Mastering Your Grand Jeté

In classical ballet, a grand jeté is a type of leap in which the dancer throws their working leg forward and extends the supporting leg backward, resulting in a full split mid-air. There are several types of grand jetés, including a tour jeté (or jeté en tournant, in which the ballet dancer turns as they jump). The grand jeté is considered an allégro movement, which means it should look bright, brisk, and elegant.

While a grand jeté may at first look similar to other ballet leaps, what makes it unique is that it is based on the jeté movement—a ballet step in which the dancer throws the front leg out, keeping it straight the entire time (called grand battement), rather than unfolding it in a two-part motion. This throwing technique is key to performing a grand jeté.

Ready to try out your first grand jeté? Here’s a step-by-step guide for each moment of the ballet technique:

1. 1. Engage your core. For every leap in ballet—and, arguably, for every ballet movement—an engaged core will give your limbs power and flexibility, helping you beautifully and safely do everything from an arabesque to a grand jeté.
2. 2. Start with your preliminary movement. You can’t just spring into a grand jeté whenever you like—there needs to be a preparatory movement that helps you build up the energy and momentum to get there. Start with a short run or a glissade to build up to your grand jeté.
3. 3. Begin your grand battement. The grand battement is the movement of your front leg, in which you throw it up from your hips, keeping it straight.
4. 4. Push off the floor with your back leg. Your back leg is what will give you the most power during a grand jeté—push off the floor with the forward momentum from your preliminary movement to get enough height in the jump to make it seem as if you are gliding.
5. 5. Keep your weight shifted slightly forward. In order to create the illusion of gliding through the air, keep your upper body weight slightly forward to keep your body moving along the jump’s natural arc.
6. 6. Reach the fullest split at the apex of your jump. If you want to make your grand jeté look as polished as possible, coordinate your leg movement with your jump so that your fullest split happens at the very moment that you’re highest in your jump. This will take a lot of practice to time just right—pay attention to your body in order to learn exactly when the right moment comes for you.
7. 7. Land on your front foot. Once your leap returns you to the floor, you want to land as gracefully as possible to make the grand jeté seem effortless and elegant. Absorb the impact with your front foot, first at your toe, then the ball of your foot, then the heel in one fluid motion. Your back foot should return to the ground with your back leg straight.

If you’re having a tough time getting your grand jeté just right, here are some tips to help:

1. 1. Limber up. As a split jump, a grand jeté requires a good amount of flexibility. If you’re having a hard time getting the right split, try doing flexibility training or warm-ups every day to stretch your hamstrings, glutes, and hip flexors on both your left leg and your right leg. Ballet steps like tendu jeté and deep pliés can help give you the flexibility you need, or a stretching routine that incorporates a ballet barre.
2. 2. Strengthen your core. Your core is the key to any leap in ballet, so adding in strengthening exercises will help you build a stable foundation for your grand jeté. Consider doing core exercises to develop your core strength.
3. 3. Wear the right clothes. Even if you’re a spectacular ballerina, you won’t be able to do a gorgeous grand jeté if you’re wearing jeans. Dress yourself in something comfortable and flexible, ideally skin-tight to avoid getting in the way. You don’t need expensive pointe shoes, but a comfortable pair of simple ballet shoes will help you with the range of motion you need.

Practice ballet with Misty Copeland, the principal dancer with the American Ballet Theatre. Get the MasterClass Annual Membership and learn how to put individual barre techniques together to create powerful performances and introduce artistry to your choreography.