[Fr. ahn-truh-sha] 
[Fr. -sha] . Ballet. | a jump in which the dancer crosses the feet a number of times while in the air. |
| en·tre·chat (ŏn'trə-shä') n. A jump in ballet during which the dancer crosses the legs a number of times, alternately back and forth. [French, earlier entrechas, alteration (influenced by entre, between, and chasse, chase) of Italian (capriola) intrecciata, intricate (caper), feminine past participle of intrecciare, to intertwine : in-, in (from Latin; see in-2) + treccia, tress; see tress.] |
entrechat
(probably from Italian intrecciare: "to weave," or "to braid"), jump in ballet, beginning in the fifth position, during which the dancer crosses his straight legs at the lower calf. Numerous rapid crossings make the entrechat a spectacular jump. Numbers (trois, "three"; quatre, "four"; and so on) are affixed to the term to designate the amount of leg movement (entrechat-quatre has two crossings; entrechat-dix has five). The dancer lands on both feet for even-numbered and on one foot for odd-numbered entrechats. Vaslav Nijinsky's famous jumps reputedly included the entrechat-dix, and an entrechat-douze (six crossings) was performed more recently on English television as danced by Wayne Sleep.
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trəˈʃa