Figures 68 and 69 trace the over-turning of the body, without interruption to the movement of rotation. A rapid pas de bourrée intervenes between 70 and 71.
Another variation of the pirouette is based on the rond de jambe described on a previous page. The rond de jambe pirouette is executed with the aid and embellishment of a horizontal leg. It usually starts with a developpé, like the fouetté tour. A pirouette à la seconde is so called by reason of the active foot’s continuance in raised second position. If the heel is touched at the half-circles for equilibrium, the turns can be continued ad libitum. Still another tour is the pirouette en arabesque, the pose being entered into (usually) on completion of a half-circle of a rond de jambe tour, the revolution being kept continuous while the necessary changes are made in the position of the body. A turn in the air that may be included among pirouettes is a jeté en tournant; and it may be adorned with an entrechat, a brisé, or whatever “beats” may suit the artist’s taste and abilities.
The words “arabesque” and “attitude” do not refer to steps, but to postures. Their composition is as exactly defined as that of any step. Figure 56 shows a typical arabesque.