Time changes, and the style and form of communication between men and women is transformed. This article will discuss such a term as “curtsy”. What is it, when you need to apply this body movement and how to do it right - I’d like to tell you all about it.
About the concept
First of all, you need to understand the concepts that directly relate to this article. So curtsy - what is it? Everyone, probably, saw films where still show tsarist time and the most beautiful noble balls. So, to say hello to a man, women did a little smooth squat - such a gesture of greeting. As for the vocabulary designation, curtsy is a bow with a squat, when a woman smoothly moves from one foot to her foot from “demi pli” to the 4th position. As for history, this is the most important element of court etiquette that has persisted for three centuries - from the 16th to the 19th. Now most often it is a dance element, greeting a guy and a girl before joining a dance.
Nuances
Having figured out the curtsy - what is it, it is worth mentioning that at the same time, the girl should pretty skillfully handle a long dress. And the position of the head also remains important. If this body movement was used in dance, the head practically did not tilt. If it was a noble greeting, the head bent as low as possible. The degree of her inclination showed the level of respect that a woman shows this man.
Simple curtsy
Having understood the meaning of the word "curtsy", it is worth saying that even a modern girl should be able to do it. After all, who knows, maybe someone will someday manage to get an appointment with the Queen of England? And there they still practice this form of greeting. So, it is best to start training with a simple curtsy, which is not so difficult to complete. To do this, you need to do some pretty simple manipulations.
- Head. You need to tilt it a bit, first make a nod and hold it in this position during the entire curtsy.
- Skirt. If it is magnificent, it must be carefully taken with the thumb and forefinger (the little finger is elegantly set aside), slightly raised and set aside. If the skirt is narrow, the arms are simply lowered the will of the body.
- Legs. The right leg extends slightly and starts for the left, most of the weight should go to the front leg.
- Knees. Next, the legs need to be bent at the knees, making a small squat. The knees do not look forward, but to the sides, the back is always straight.
- After all, you need to gracefully return to a normal position. In this case, the girl’s body should not sway, hands fall along the body, the head rises proudly.
Deep curtsy
At the same time, it’s also good if the girl knows how to do royal, that is, a deep curtsy. You can also learn this.
- Royal curtsy involves a full squat on one knee. To do this, the right leg needs to be extended behind the left, resting on the patella. The knees must be spaced apart, the back is straight, the head is tilted to the maximum.
- You need to go down until the knee touches the floor. In this position, you need to stay for about 3-5 seconds, after which you can start to rise.
- All movements should be smooth, without swaying. Also in this option, you need to be able to skillfully handle the dress.
Ballet curtsy
I would like to talk about such a concept as ballet curtsy. What it is? This is a kind of bow of a girl to a guy before they enter a dance. Also, a ballet curtsy can be used at the beginning and end of the play, as a thank you to the musical accompaniment, teacher, etc. The algorithm of actions in this case will be as follows:
- The starting position is the first.
- Next, with your right foot you need to take a small step to the right, while the sock should look exclusively to the side.
- The next point: the weight should be transferred to the right leg, which at the same time is slightly behind the left.
- Now the weight is transferred to the tips of the fingers of the left foot.
- The back is straight, the legs are bent, the knees look exclusively to the sides (and not forward), the hands are in the first position, the head is slightly lowered.
- The position of the legs remains the same, but the hands move smoothly into the fourth position. The head also rises smoothly.
- To completely complete the bow, the same gestures are repeated in the opposite direction.
