The different arm techniques of the competing Italian and French schools during her youth guided the St. Petersburg dancer Agrippina J. Waganowa towards her own system of classical dance, which is based on a meticulously developed theory of dance movement. Soon after, her fundamentals of classical dance became a manual for every classical ballet educator and dancer. The Waganowa method remains the foundation of training at nearly every German ballet school today and serves as a hallmark of quality in education.