A Very Brief History Of Ballet
December, 2021
The Beginning in Italy & France
Ballet has its origins in the Italian Renaissance, in the 15th and 16th centuries. The words 'ball' and 'ballet' come from the Italian 'ballare', which means 'to dance'.
Through Catherine de Medici of Italy (1519 - 1589), who married the French King Henry II (1519 - 1559), ballet reached the French court where it flourished, as we all know under Louis XIV (1638 - 1715).
With the establishment of the Académie Royale de Danse, today's Paris Opéra Ballet, in 1661, the basics of ballet technique was developed and codified.
Violin Accompaniment
I found it interesting to learn that originally, dance teachers were also accomplished violinists who accompanied their students. A gradual change to piano accompaniment began at the end of the 17th and beginning of the 18th century.
You can find it in Edgar Degas' 1879 painting 'The Dance Lesson'.
Style and Aesthetic
The unique aesthetic of ballet movements developed due to the fashion of the times: many-layered brocaded dresses, large flowing sleeves, heavy headdresses, and low-heeled shoes. It is easy to imagine how such clothes created the elegance and control of posture, port de bras, and delicate footwork.
Generally, the French style was based on nobility and the Italian Style on acrobatics and virtuosity. And since the beginning, the older generation decried the younger ones that they sacrificed nobility and artistry for showing off their virtuosity. In the 17th century, like today.
Development in Russia
The art of ballet began to decline in Europe after the peak of the Romantic period, think Marie Taglioni (1804 - 1884) in La Sylphide, and Carlotta Grisi (1819 - 1899) in Giselle.
Instead, Russia, especially St Petersburg, became the place of innovation and opportunities that attracted mainly French and Italian dance masters, e.g. Marius Petipa (1818 - 1910) and Enrico Cecchetti (1850 - 1928) and Italian dancers dominated until the first Russian-trained ballerinas took over, like Mathilde Kschessinska (1872-1971), and Anna Pavlova (1881-1931).
Return to Paris & Beginnings in America
The revolution in Russia (1917 -1923) brought ballet back to Paris, where Serge Diaghilev (1872 - 1929) succeeded with his Ballet Russe.
George Balanchine (1904 - 1983), born Georgiy Melitonovich Balanchivadze, joined the Ballet Russe as a choreographer where he started to create his neoclassical ballet style.
Balanchine moved to America in 1932 where he formed the School of American Ballet and popularised ballet in the US.
Dive Deeper
This is a very abbreviated overview of the history of ballet. I ignored too many developments to mention. If you are interested in delving deeper into the subject matter, though I assume many of you are already very knowledgeable, I highly recommend Apollo's Angels: A History of Ballet by Jennifer Homans.
I mentioned her book some time ago on social media. At first Homans' book, a very much appreciated gift from one of you, installed some fear as it looked like a data-packed, dry encyclopedia. However, once I started reading it, I could not put it down as it read like a fascinating novel. You would enjoy it!