History of Ballet

The History of Ballet

The first experience of watching a ballet, for me or any little girl, can be fascinating and exhilarating. Wondering how a dancer can be so steady on her toes as she spins in circles and leaps through the air. Watching a ballet, there is a feeling of wanting to be graceful, as well as the warm sensation felt by a little girl as she slips into dream land. My mom had taken me to my first ballet when I was 11 years old. When we returned home home, she signed me up for classes at the local dance center. The expectations to become a prima ballerina would involve much hard work and concentration. I knew when I started it would take years of steady practice and commitment. Learning the history of ballet and the famous dancers made me intrigued. I wanted to be like them. So I had set the goal, then I set the pace. To my misfortune I was unable to reach my goal. Gymnastics was another activity I enjoyed. I was unaware of the damage I was doing to my body until I found myself in a hospital bed being told by the doctors, no more dancing. I could no longer practice ballet, I could only watch. I have no regrets. Watching a ballet is just as much fun.

At my first dance lesson I was so excited and scared at the same time. We practiced as a group going in circles doing pirouette and ballon. A pirouette is done on demi-pointe by the male, on pointe by the female dancer and ballons are the spring of a dancer in leaping and jumping movements. Adagios, are slow and sustained movements; also, the section of pas de deux in which the ballerina, partnered by the dancer, displays her mastery of lyrical movement. The steps seam hard at first, but with practice they are actually fun to perform. A rond de jambe is perhaps the move that holds the most enjoyment for the smallest ballerinas to perform. To be really good at ballet is to understand the history and enjoy classical music. My first dance studio, the instructor taught the history of ballet as well as the meaning behind all the moves and steps.

My all time favorite ballet to watch is the Nutcracker, music wrote by non other than Tchaikovsky. In the 19th century, the ballet was regarded as the lowest kind of music. Famous composers did not write scores especially for ballets. A new phase in the development of the musical and choreographic culture of Russia and the world was started by Peter Tchaikovsky's ballets. A brilliant composer whose music is the "emotion" of a ballet. The opera and ballet companies are famous the world over. The repertoire includes such classics as TchaikovskyÐ''s "Eugene Onegin" and "Swan Lake" and works by Mozart, Verdi and Rossini. Other popular productions are MassenetÐ''s ballet "Manon" and the operas "Don Juan" by Mozart, "War and Peace" by Prokofiev and WagnerÐ''s "Das Rheingold". The latest productions are TchaikovskyÐ''s "The Nutcracker" PucciniÐ''s "La Boheme" and VerdiÐ''s "Macbeth". The most famous Russian ballet companies are; Tatchkine, St. Petersburg, Bolshoi companies just to name a few of the most famous.

The history of ballet dates back to the 18th century starting with Baroque dance. Fabritio Caroso da Sermoneta was a famous Italian Renaissance dancing master. He was born around 1526-1535 and died around 1605-1620. His dance manual "Ballarino" was published in 1581, with a subsequent edition, significantly different, NobiltÐ" de dame, printed in 1600 and again after his death in 1630. In the 19th century there was the pre-romantic, romantic and the classical ballets. Anthony Tudor deserves an honorable mention for his choreography and teaching. Pre-romantic ballet occurred sometime circa ?? up to 1831. The romantic