Ballet dancers number walls and corners in the ballet room (from point 1 to point 8), with point 1 facing forward towards the audience. When we face the front, point 8 is on our left side and points towards the front left corner of the room.
Point 2 is on the right side and points towards the front right corner of the room. The body and head are rotated to point 2. The left leg is the standing one. The entire foot may be placed on the floor, that is, the foot is flat on the floor. It may be demi-pointe, as if standing on tip-toe, or it may be fully en pointe. Ballet dancers use special shoes, called pointe shoes, which have a flat, hard box at the tip of the shoe. When the ballet dancer stands on the box, they are standing on the ends or the tips of their toes, which is why this technique is called “on the points”.
The right leg is the working one. The working leg is always behind the body and may be on the floor with the tips of the toes touching the floor, or may be raised at a 45 or 90 degree angle.
The left arm is raised and extended towards point 2. The right arm is extended to the side.
Our gaze is towards point number 2, towards the fingers.
This arabesque is referred to as the farewell arabesque.