History and evolution of ballet

Ballet History

Ballet is a form of dancing that is performed for audiences in a theater. Just like many other forms of dance, ballet may tell a story, express a mood, or simply be a sign of the music. A ballet dancer's technique and special skills often differ greatly from those of other dancers. Ballet dancers perform many movements that are very unnatural for the body. However when these movements are executed just right, they look natural. It often looks as if Ballet dancers are ignoring the law of gravity as they float through the air in long, slow leaps. They maintain perfect balance while they spin like tops without becoming dizzy. Sometimes their feet move so fast that the eye can barely keep up with the movements. The women often dance on the tips of their toes, and the men lift them high overhead as if they were as light as feathers (Ballet History, 2006).

The dancers enjoy controlling their bodies, and ballet audiences share their feelings. Spectators feel as though they are gliding and spinning right along with the dancers. Simply by moving their bodies, ballet dancers are able to express many emotions including anger, fear, jealousy, joy, and sadness. The lines formed by the dancers' bodies form beautiful, harmonious designs. Ballet technique is often referred to as classical because it stresses this purity and harmony of design (Ballet History, 2006).

Ballets are dramatic performances put on by ballet companies. The artistic director of a company is the person in charge of staging a ballet. In some companies they are also the choreographer, who arranges a ballet's dance movements and teaches them to the dancers. The artistic director tries to produce a pleasant work of art by blending all the parts of the ballet. The parts include: dancing, music, scenery, and costumes. A ballet can be performed without music, scenery, or costumes, but most use all three parts. The choreographer, composer, and scenery and costume designer all work together as a team. The dancing is considered the most important part of a ballet. The designer must plan scenery and costumes that allow the dancers space and freedom to move (Ballet History, 2006).

Different ballet styles have developed in various countries over time. The predominant style that has developed in the United States tends to be energetic and fast. Ballet in Russia is frequently forceful and showy, and French ballet is generally pretty and decorative. Ballet dancers often travel throughout the world and take on different features of foreign styles. As a result of these international influences, all ballet is constantly being broadened and enriched (Ballet History, 2006).

The early development of ballet can be traced to Italy during the 1400's during the time of the Renaissance. Throughout this period, people developed a great interest in art and learning. Trade and commerce grew rapidly, and the dukes who ruled Florence and other Italian city-states grew in wealth. The dukes did a lot to promote the arts. The Italian city-states began competing for art centers as well as commercial centers. The Italian dukes competed with one another by giving costly, fancy entertainments that included dance performances. The dancers were not professionals, but were pleased to dance for their ruler and to stir the admiration and envy of his rivals (Ballet History, 2006).

Catherine de Medicis, who was a member of the ruling family of Florence, became the queen of France in 1547. She introduced into the French court the same kind of entertainments that she had known while she had been in Italy. These productions were staged by Balthazar de Beaujoyeulx who was a gifted musician. He had come from Italy to be Catherine's chief musician. Ballet historians consider one of Beaujoyeulx's productions, the Ballet Comique de la Reine, to be the first ballet. It was a wonderful spectacle of about 51/2 hours performed in 1581 in honor of a royal wedding. There wasn't much dance technique available and so Beaujoyeulx had to depend on spectacular costumes and scenery in order to impress the audience. To make sure that the audience understood the story that was being told he provided printed copies of the verses that were used in the ballet. The ballet was a great success, and was often imitated in other European courts (Ballet History, 2006).

The capital of the ballet world was soon established in Paris due to the Ballet Comique de la Reine. King Louis XIV, the ruler of France during the late 1600's and early 1700's, reinforced that leadership. Louis greatly enjoyed dancing and he took part in all the ballets given at his court, which his nobles performed. Louis founded the Royal Academy of Dancing in 1661 in order to train professional dancers to perform for him and his court. Similar companies began to be seen in other European countries. Considered one of the greatest was the Russian Imperial Ballet of St. Petersburg which was founded in 1738 (Ballet History, 2006).

These French professional dancers became so skilled that they began to perform publicly in many theatres. In 1760, the French choreographer Jean Georges Noverre complained that he thought the dancers cared too much about showing their technical skills, and too little about promoting the true purpose of ballet. He felt that the purpose was to represent characters and express their feelings. Noverre suggested that ballet dancers stop using masks, bulky costumes, and large wigs in order to explain the plot and characters. He maintained that the dancers could express these things using only their bodies and faces. He thought that as long as the dancers did not look strained or uncomfortable doing difficult steps, they could show such emotions as anger, joy, fear, and love. Noverre developed the ballet d'action, a form of dramatic ballet that told the story completely through movement (Ballet History, 2006).

Most of Noverre's ballets told stories that had been taken from ancient Greek myths or dramas. During the early 1800's, the romantic period began as people became interested in stories of escape from the real world to dreamlike worlds or foreign lands. Ballet technique was expanded, especially for women, to express these new ideas. It was during this time that women dancers learned to dance on their toes. This helped them look like heavenly beings that were visiting the earth but yet barely touching it. Romantic ballet often presented women as ideal and, for the first time, gave them superior importance to men. Male dancers became chiefly caretakers, whose purpose was to lift the ballerinas and show how light they were (Ballet History, 2006).

In 1832, the Italian choreographer Filippo Taglioni created the first romantic ballet. His daughter Marie danced the title role of the sylphide. The costume that she wore set a new fashion for women dancers. It consisted of a light, white skirt that ended halfway between her knees and ankles. The outfit left her arms, neck, and shoulders bare. This was the beginning of the costumes that we think of today (Ballet History, 2006).

Paris remained the capital of the ballet world during the early 1800's, but many dancers and choreographers who trained and worked there took their technique to cities in other parts of the world. It is thought that the most important of this group was Marius Petipa, who joined the Russian Imperial Ballet of St. Petersburg. He helped to formulate St. Petersburg into the world centre of ballet. Petipa's specialty was creating spectacular choreography for women. The leading roles in his Sleeping Beauty and Swan Lake, created in the 1890's, are still the parts desired most by ballerinas today (Ballet History, 2006).

Michel Fokine, who had worked earlier with the St. Petersburg Company, was the first choreographer of the Ballets Russes. His ideas had not been accepted well at St. Petersburg. He had urged that technique be a means to express character and emotion. He felt that a dancer's entire body, rather than separate mimed gestures, should tell the story. He also thought that all the arts involved in a ballet be blended into a harmonious production. With his new company, Fokine had the opportunity to carry out his ideas. "He created such brilliant works as Prince Igor (1909), the Firebird (1910), and Petrouchka (1911)" (Ballet History, 2006). The dancers and choreographers from this company strongly influenced ballet wherever they went (Ballet History, 2006). The Ballets Russes opened in Paris in 1909 and enjoyed immediate success. The male dancers were particularly admired because good male dancers had almost disappeared in Paris. "The company presented a broad range of works, including Fokine's compactly knit one-act ballets with colorful themes from Russian or Asian folklore: The Firebird (1910), Sh, h, razade (1910), and Petrushka (1911)" (History of Ballet, n.d.).

The growth of ballet in the United States was largely due to Russian influence. George Balanchine, who worked for Diaghilev's Ballets Russes as a young man, helped to cofound the company that became the world-famous New York City Ballet. A principal dancer from Moscow, Mikhail Mordkin started the company that eventually became American Ballet Theatre. American-born choreographers and dancers also added to the development of American ballet. "Choreographers such as Ruth Page, Agnes de Mille, and Jerome Robbins created dances to specifically American themes. American dancers who have gained fame in the 1900's include Maria Tallchief, Suzanne Farrell, Cynthia Gregory, Edward Villella, and Arthur Mitchell" (Ballet History, 2006).

Ballet became firmly established in Australia in the early 1900's soon after visits by the ballerinas Adeline Genee of Denmark and Anna Pavlova of Russia. Pavlova was the one in particular that inspired Misha Burlakov and Louise Lightfoot to found the first Australian Ballet Company. Many dancers who visited Australia while touring stayed on to form companies of their own. The best known include: Helene Kirsova, Edouard Borovansky, and the Austrian-born Gertrud Bodenwieser. The Australian Ballet opened in November 1962 for its first season. Among the most famous people linked with the company are Sir Robert Helpmann, Anne Woolliams, and Marilyn Jones. The first professional ballet company in New Zealand was founded in 1953 by the Danish dancer Poul Gnatt. The New Zealand Ballet Trust, formed in 1960 and renamed the Royal New Zealand Ballet in 1984, performs both classical and modern ballets (Ballet History, 2006).

During the mid-1900's, many choreographers founded their works on dramatic action. The Pillar of Fire (1942), by Antony Tudor of the United Kingdom, told a story of rebellion and repentance. Fancy Free (1944), by the American choreographer Jerome Robbins, featured three sailors that were looking for fun in New York City. In Germany, John Cranko created full-length ballets for the Stuttgart Ballet based on plots from works by William Shakespeare and Alexander Pushkin. Today, many choreographers prefer to exhibit dancing without a story. It is done either as an expression of the music or as a study in a particular style of movement. It is thought that the greatest influence in this type of ballet was George Balanchine of the New York City Ballet. His works included a series of collaborations with the Russian-born composer Igor Stravinsky. He also created choreography for more romantic music, such as Vienna Waltzes (1977). Sir Frederick Ashton of the United Kingdom's Royal Ballet also choreographed non-dramatic ballets, such as Symphonic Variations (1946) and Monotones (1966). Exceptional teachers of the art of ballet during the 1900's have included the Irish-born Dame Ninette de Valois, founder of the company that eventually became the Royal Ballet; the Polish-born British ballet director Dame Marie Rambert; and the gifted Russian-British teacher Vera Volkova (Ballet History, 2006).

Contemporary ballets are seen as showing a wide variety of different styles. It was during the 1970's, that some ballet companies began to perform modern dance works. It was during this time at most choreography settled into a formula. It was also during this time that the idea of pure dance also grew in popularity. It was in the 1930s that the symphonic ballet was created. This aimed to express the musical content of symphonies by the German composers Ludwig Van Beethoven and Johannes Brahms. Balanchine also began to create plot less ballets in which the primary motivation was movement to music. His ballet Jewels done in 1967 is considered the first evening-length ballet of this type (History of Ballet, n.d.).

In 1956 Russian ballet companies such as the Bolshoi and Kirov began performing in the West for the first time. The intense dramatic feeling and technical genius of the Russians made a tremendous impact. Russian influence on ballet still continues today, both through visits from Russian companies and the activities of defecting Soviet dancers. During this same time dance in general underwent an enormous upsurge in popularity beginning in the mid-1960s. Ballet also began to show the influence of a younger audience, in both themes and style. "The athleticism of dancing was enjoyed in much the same way as sports, and virtuosic steps were admired for their challenge and daring. Popular music such as rock and roll and jazz was used to accompany many ballets" (History of Ballet, n.d.).

Today's ballet collection offers great variety. New ballets and reconstructions and re-staging's of older ballets coexist with new works that have been created by modern-dance choreographers for ballet companies. Choreographers tend to experiment with both new and traditional forms and styles, and dancers constantly seek to extend their technical and dramatic range. The frequent tours of ballet companies allow audiences throughout the world to experience the full range of today's ballet activity (History of Ballet, n.d.).

Ballet can be traced back to the early Italian Renaissance period. This was when lavish dances that incorporated many arts were performed in banquet halls and based on the dances of the day. During the first ballets, poets recited their writings, artists painted and singers sang. It was more of a combined celebration of the arts. Ballet as we know it today was greatly influenced by the French. It was the French Pierre Beauchamp who developed the five positions of the feet, still used today as the basis for all ballet moves (Mcgee, 2006).

When professional ballet was established during the 1600's most of the dancers were men. The female roles that were present in ballet were performed by men dressed as women. The first female dancer in the history of ballet performed in 1681 in a ballet entitled "The Triumph of Love. It wasn't until the 1700s that the idea of ballet containing music came about when ballet was combined with opera. "Often, ballet would be performed between courses at an opera and eventually within the opera itself. Only later did the two separate and ballet become its own entity" (Mcgee, 2006).

French dancer Marie Camargo transformed ballet when she sent the costumes of the dance into history. Up until Marie shortened her skirts and wore slippers on her feet, dancers wore elaborate costumes and headdresses for ballet productions. Pointe shoes were brought in around 1830. These shoes permitted a woman to float in her dance, which was ideal, as many roles of the female dancer were that of spirits and other unearthly beauties. Russia quickly caught on to the beauty of ballet and soon, in the 1900s, dancers were attending ballet schools from a young age, training to be professional ballet dancers (Mcgee, 2006).

Today ballet is seen as a combination of efforts from history. The evolution of costumes, roles, music and story are now consistent in classical ballet. A classical ballet will always have scenery, often rotating throughout the story. A ballet will always tell a story. Usually, the story of ballet revolves around a tale of lovers with a problem that must be resolved. Often, as with the Nutcracker and Sleeping Beauty, the story is one that audiences are familiar with. Others, they are not. In ballet, the whole story is set to music; the music is created by a composer. and, while costume styles may change, the female ballet dancer, or ballerina, will always be seen in point shoes, allowing her to rise up on her toes as though floating on air (Mcgee, 2006).

The modern way of ballets was actually lead by Marius Petipa a Frenchman who was commissioned to be the chief choreographer of the Imperial Russian Ballet. He introduced the full-length, evening-long story ballet, combining mimed scenes with set dances. "He is best known for the Sleeping Beauty (1890) and Swan Lake, both of which were set to scores of Tchaikovsky" (20th Century Ballet, 2006). Ballet as seen today is a combination of efforts from throughout history. The evolution of costumes, roles, music and story are now consistent in classical ballet. A classical ballet will always have scenery, often rotating throughout the story. A ballet will always tell a story. Usually, the story of ballet revolves around a tale of lovers with a problem that must be resolved. Often, as with the Nutcracker and Sleeping Beauty, the story is one that audiences are familiar with. In ballet, the whole story is set to music; the music is created by a composer. and, while costume styles may change, the female ballet dancer, or ballerina, will always be seen in point shoes, allowing her to rise up on her toes as though floating on air (Mcgee, 2006).

For the dancers, technical ability is a means to an end, not the goal itself. They work to develop the skill to stay in balance while standing on one leg and extending the other backward. Ideal physical characteristics for a ballet dancer include long arms and legs, a long neck, and a comparatively short torso. The best body for ballet is flexible, slim, and strong. Dancers cannot change their body proportions, but they can develop most of the other desirable physical features through training. Every great dancer started with a less than perfect body for ballet. Ideal dancers should also have certain mental characteristics. They should have a feeling for rhythm and an understanding of music. They should be aware of the relationships between objects in space so that they can move exactly in any direction on the stage. Like actors they can express a mood and make a character believable. More than anything, they love ballet and dedicate themselves to it completely. Otherwise, they could not train their bodies to move beautifully and expressively in unnatural ways (Ballet History, 2006).

Ballet schools often do not accept beginners whose physical and mental characteristics differ from those of the ideal dancer. Most of these schools are operated by ballet companies, which train students to work in their organizations. The schools often give children a complete physical examination to make sure nothing is seriously wrong with their bodies. Most schools also test the beginners' feeling for rhythm and space relationships. Expressive abilities are very hard to discover (Ballet History, 2006).

When choosing a ballet teacher for their children parents should be careful. A poor teacher will not only be unable to teach ballet well, but also may cause the students physical harm. In order to please parents, the teacher may force beginners to learn the difficult movements and positions of ballet too soon. A girl should not be taught to dance sur les pointes or on her toes until her feet are strong enough. She should first have a few years of training to develop her foot and leg muscles. Short cuts in training can lead to serious and even permanent physical damage. Good teachers should go slowly. They want to produce good dancers, not to assure parents that their children are unusually gifted (Ballet History, 2006).