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. We rotate the body and head to point 8. The left leg is the standing one. The entire foot can be placed 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, she is standing on the ends or the tips of her toes, which is why this technique is called “on the points”.
The left 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 raised at a 45 or 90 degree angle.
The right arm is raised and pointed towards point number 8. The left arm is extended to the side.
The gaze is towards point number 8 in the direction of the fingers.
This arabesque is referred to as the coquettish arabesque.