Dance is the first artistic expression of the human kind because it uses the body as an instrument to express itself; it is also the only art that uses together time and space. It has always used in rituals, festivities and in other forms of aggregations.
During the Renaissance in the 1600 in the Italian royal courts, where dancing in front of guests was always popular and for an elite only, a new form of dance was explored: there was now the need of creating a structured dance by adding rules to more complex steps giving birth to the first choreographed dances.
In the late’600, these dances get to a theatrical stage offering performances that are a mix of arts such as acting, singing, and dance. In France, King Luis XIV, dance lover and dancer himself was in fact named 'Sun King' for his eccentricity on the stage. He promoted the birth of the first Academy of Classical Dance in 1661 where the codification of the art of dance happens. It is from here that classical dance is called academic as from now on all the steps and movements are encoded. We now understand why the terminology in ballet is in the French language.
In the 1700 in theaters the public now seats in front of the dancers who perform along the diagonals of the stage filling up the whole space giving more attention to the cleanliness of the movements, to their elegance and their complexity. Dance is now a form of art that leans against its sisters arts painting and sculpting as in these years’ artists try to associate themselves to what nature offers attempting to reproduce it through art. We have a classical example of how the attitude, one of the most iconic steps in ballet has being inspired by the sculpted statue called Mercurio of the artist Giambologna.
During the Renaissance in the 1600 in the Italian royal courts, where dancing in front of guests was always popular and for an elite only, a new form of dance was explored: there was now the need of creating a structured dance by adding rules to more complex steps giving birth to the first choreographed dances.
In the late’600, these dances get to a theatrical stage offering performances that are a mix of arts such as acting, singing, and dance. In France, King Luis XIV, dance lover and dancer himself was in fact named 'Sun King' for his eccentricity on the stage. He promoted the birth of the first Academy of Classical Dance in 1661 where the codification of the art of dance happens. It is from here that classical dance is called academic as from now on all the steps and movements are encoded. We now understand why the terminology in ballet is in the French language.
In the 1700 in theaters the public now seats in front of the dancers who perform along the diagonals of the stage filling up the whole space giving more attention to the cleanliness of the movements, to their elegance and their complexity. Dance is now a form of art that leans against its sisters arts painting and sculpting as in these years’ artists try to associate themselves to what nature offers attempting to reproduce it through art. We have a classical example of how the attitude, one of the most iconic steps in ballet has being inspired by the sculpted statue called Mercurio of the artist Giambologna.
Mercury of Giambologna
In the 1800 the Romantic Ballet comes into the scene bringing a new human sensitivity, there is now a research for what the subconscious expressed by dreams, occult and magic. Ballets are now representations of fairy tales or legends that bring the attention in particular on the female dancer while the male dancer, once main protagonist, becomes a simple porteur (partner). A clear example of this new research is the ballet Le Sylphides represented for the first time in 1832 at the Opera de Paris which tells the story of the impossible love between a man and a ghost, this last one performed by the Italian ballerina Maria Taglioni, the first dancer to wear the real female dancer's footwear, the point shoe. The reason behind the creation/invention of the point shoes comes from the idea that the female dancer can now dance on her toes to create even more detachment from the earthly world. The skirts are now shorter, tutu, and the attention is focused on the lightness and grace of the movement in order to enphasise the beauty of the steps. Other important ballets that are born during these years are Giselle, Coppelia, and Le Corsaire.
While in Italy and France loads of theatres have prospered, in Russia the Zars are starting to have an interest in this art of dance and they start calling European dancers and choreographers to move to Russia to teach the principles of the classical ballet to the Russian dancers. A great choreographer of the time Marius Petipa goes to Russia and recreates great ballets this time centering the importance on the female protagonist. Marius Petipa's creations are: Don Quichotte, La Bayadere, Sleeping Beauty, Nutcracker, and Swan Lake.
While in Italy and France loads of theatres have prospered, in Russia the Zars are starting to have an interest in this art of dance and they start calling European dancers and choreographers to move to Russia to teach the principles of the classical ballet to the Russian dancers. A great choreographer of the time Marius Petipa goes to Russia and recreates great ballets this time centering the importance on the female protagonist. Marius Petipa's creations are: Don Quichotte, La Bayadere, Sleeping Beauty, Nutcracker, and Swan Lake.
"Dance class at the Opera" Edgar Degas
