Learn pas de chat: a sideways jump with the legs drawn up one after the other. With build-up via retiré and glissade, landing softness in numbers and mistakes.
The honest answer to “What is a pas de chat?”: it is a sideways jump in which you draw first one leg and then the other into the retiré position (toe at the knee) – and land in fifth. “Pas de chat” means “cat step”: you jump like a cat scampering over a puddle.
It looks bold but is a friendly jump. In a pilot study of 11 adolescents, impact acceleration for the pas de chat was 2.33 g – after the glissade (2.08 g) the second softest of nine steps. A changement reached 4.10 g and an entrechat quatre 4.32 g [1]. In other words: the pas de chat lands with a little over half the force of a changement. Important: small pilot study, adolescents; the values are orientation, not limits.
It still belongs to the intermediate level because it asks for many things at once: sideways movement, two legs going into retiré one after the other, and a calm landing. The preliminary steps are the glissade (gliding step to the side) and the retiré.
How hard is it really? You can understand the sequence in an hour. The gap between the two retirés, the height and the quiet landing take weeks (rule of thumb, no study evidence).
A retiré means: the toe of the free leg touches the knee of the supporting leg, the knee points to the side. Hold it for eight seconds, the pelvis stays level. Milestone: you stand in retiré without the hip tipping.
From fifth in demi-plié you take the leg to the side, glide across and close into fifth again. The glissade is the friendliest step (2.08 g) [1]: it teaches you how to transfer weight sideways.
In the pas de chat you jump not high but sideways and flat. The first leg goes into retiré in the air, the knee opens outward. The take-off comes from the plié of both legs.
In the air the second leg also draws up into retiré. For a moment both knees are open outward and the toes touch the knees, forming a diamond. Milestone: you manage both in the jump without the torso tipping.
In most schools the leg that went up first also lands first, in demi-plié. The second closes into fifth. The heels come down one after the other. For context: a study of 13 collegiate dancers found two-footed jumping from a neutral foot position higher than from turnout [2]. If you hold a clean fifth, that costs some height – get used to the flat jump.
Jumps in allegro are repeated hundreds of times. Jump only on a sprung floor, always with deep plié. In a study of 18 dancers, load and impact rose with movement type and supporting leg; two-footed was easier than one-footed [3] – so make sure you do not practise the one-legged landing without preparation. Stop at pain in the knee, ankle or shin. Strength work helps: a meta-analysis of 36 studies found large improvements in leg strength (g = 1.59) and leg power (g = 0.90) from strength and conditioning training in dancers over 16 [4]. Talk to your teacher first. This description explains and motivates; it does not replace supervised training.
Imagine a cushion on which you are to land sideways. The cushion gives way; you should not flatten it. This image leads to a deep, calm landing without you having to think about angles. Check with your phone: if you hear a “tock”, you land hard. (Practical experience, no study evidence.)
Mini practice plan (rule of thumb): Two to three times a week, eight pas de chat per side after the warm-up. First three rounds only with focus on landing, then one with focus on retiré order. When the landing stays quiet, increase the number.
“Cat step”. The name describes the movement: you jump sideways and draw the legs up one after the other, like a cat jumping over something. It is an intermediate-level jump in ballet.
In the pilot study with 11 adolescents the impact was 2.33 g, softer than the changement at 4.10 g [1]. That does not mean “no load”, but: with deep plié and knee over toe it is a good jump to practise landing. Stop if it hurts.
When glissade, retiré and sauté are secure (practice standard). Then the pas de chat is a logical next step. Start with low, sideways-flat jumps and increase only when the landing stays quiet.
That is the special feature of the pas de chat. The time-shifted drawing up gives the jump its cat character and trains timing. Drawing up at the same time would be more of a sauté or changement. Count “and one – two” until the timing sits.
Two to three times a week, eight jumps per side (rule of thumb, no study evidence). When the landing gets loud, take a break. Quality counts more than repetitions.
Petit Jeté: The “Thrown” Jump From One Leg to the Other