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Ballet Blanc
A ''ballet blanc'' (, "white ballet") is a scene in which the ballerina and the female ''corps de ballet'' all wear white dresses or tutus. Typical in the Romantic style of ballet from the nineteenth century, ''ballets blancs'' are usually populated by ghosts, dryads, naiads, enchanted maidens, fairies, and other supernatural creatures and spirits. History A precursor of the genre was ''Ballet of the Nuns'', an episode in act 3 of Giacomo Meyerbeer's opera ''Robert le Diable''. The ghosts of cloistered nuns who, in life, were unfaithful to their vows are summoned from their graves to tempt the hero, Robert, with dancing, gambling, drink, and love making. Choreographed by Filippo Taglioni and first presented in Paris in November 1831, it starred his daughter, Marie Taglioni as Helena, the abbess of the ruined convent of Saint Rosalia. Costumes in modern productions are usually white dresses with black sashes and headpieces. The next year, 1832, Marie Taglioni appeared in the title ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ballerina Skirt
A ballerina skirt is commonly referred to as a Juliet skirt or a romance skirt. It can be defined as a full skirt that is worn by ballet dancers and is composed of multiple layers of fabric. Ballet dancers wear the longer version of the skirt, while for fashion purposes the skirt is worn shorter, like a mini skirt A miniskirt (sometimes hyphenated as mini-skirt, separated as mini skirt, or sometimes shortened to simply mini) is a skirt with its hemline well above the knees, generally at mid-thigh level, normally no longer than below the buttocks; and a ... for better dancing, the cocktail version. The standard ballerina attire is composed of fabric with a wire, in order for tulle to be visualized as stiff when it is around their waists. The Juliet styled skirt is free-flowing and covers the majority of their legs to place a high emphasis on the performer's legs. The ballerina skirt is typically made up of five to twelve layers of tulle fabric. A ballerina skirt is portrayed as ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sergei Diaghilev
Sergei Pavlovich Diaghilev ( ; rus, Серге́й Па́влович Дя́гилев, , sʲɪˈrɡʲej ˈpavləvʲɪdʑ ˈdʲæɡʲɪlʲɪf; 19 August 1929), usually referred to outside Russia as Serge Diaghilev, was a Russian art critic, patron, ballet impresario and founder of the Ballets Russes, from which many famous dancers and choreographers would arise. The active years of Diaghilev’s career can be divided into two periods: the one in St Petersburg (1898–1906) and the other in emigration (1906–1929). Biography Sergei Diaghilev was born in Selishchi to a noble officer . His mother died from childbed fever soon after his birth. In 1873, Pavel met and married Elena Panaeva, who loved Sergei and raised him as her own child. The in Perm was a local cultural centre, and the Diaghilevs housed a musical evening every second Thursday, Modest Mussorgsky being one of the most frequent guests. Sergei Diaghilev composed his first romance at the age of 15. When he enter ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Michel Fokine
Michael Fokine, ''Mikhail Mikhaylovich Fokin'', group=lower-alpha ( – 22 August 1942) was a groundbreaking Imperial Russian choreographer and dancer. Career Early years Fokine was born in Saint Petersburg to a prosperous merchant and at the age of 9 was accepted into the Saint Petersburg Imperial Ballet School. That same year, he made his performing debut in '' The Talisman'' under the direction of Marius Petipa. In 1898, on his 18th birthday, he debuted on the stage of the Imperial Mariinsky Theatre in ''Paquita'', with the Imperial Russian Ballet. In addition to being a talented dancer, Fokine was also passionate about painting and displayed talent in this area as well. He also played musical instruments, including mandolin (played on stage in ensemble led by Ginislao Paris), domra, and balalaika (played in Vasily Andreyev's Great Russian Orchestra). Transition to choreographer He became frustrated with the life of a dancer and began considering other paths, includin ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The Nutcracker
''The Nutcracker'' ( rus, Щелкунчик, Shchelkunchik, links=no ) is an 1892 two-act ballet (""; russian: балет-феерия, link=no, ), originally choreographed by Marius Petipa and Lev Ivanov with a score by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (Op. 71). The libretto is adapted from E. T. A. Hoffmann's 1816 short story "The Nutcracker and the Mouse King". Although the original production was not a success, the 20-minute suite that Tchaikovsky extracted from the ballet was. The complete ''Nutcracker'' has enjoyed enormous popularity since the late 1960s and is now performed by countless ballet companies, primarily during the Christmas season, especially in North America. Major American ballet companies generate around 40% of their annual ticket revenues from performances of ''The Nutcracker''. The ballet's score has been used in several film adaptations of Hoffmann's story. Tchaikovsky's score has become one of his most famous compositions. Among other things, the score is ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
La Bayadère
''La Bayadère'' ("the temple dancer") ( ru. «Баядерка», ''Bayaderka'') is a ballet, originally staged in four acts and seven tableaux by French choreographer Marius Petipa to the music of Ludwig Minkus. The ballet was staged especially for the benefit performance of the Russian ''Prima ballerina'' Ekaterina Vazem, who created the principal role of Nikiya. ''La Bayadère'' was first presented by the Imperial Ballet at the Imperial Bolshoi Kamenny Theatre in St. Petersburg, Russia, on . From the first performance the ballet was universally hailed by contemporary critics as one of the choreographer Petipa's supreme masterpieces, particularly the scene from the ballet known as ''The Kingdom of the Shades'', which became one of the most celebrated pieces in all of classical ballet. By the turn of the 20th century, ''The Kingdom of the Shades'' scene was regularly extracted from the full-length work as an independent showpiece, and it has remained so to the present day. Nea ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Swan Lake
''Swan Lake'' ( rus, Лебеди́ное о́зеро, r=Lebedínoye ózero, p=lʲɪbʲɪˈdʲinəjə ˈozʲɪrə, link=no ), Op. 20, is a ballet composed by Russian composer Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky in 1875–76. Despite its initial failure, it is now one of the most popular ballets of all time. The scenario, initially in two acts, was fashioned from Russian and German folk tales and tells the story of Odette, a princess turned into a swan by an evil sorcerer's curse. The choreographer of the original production was Julius Reisinger (Václav Reisinger). The ballet was premiered by the Bolshoi Ballet on at the Bolshoi Theatre in Moscow. Although it is presented in many different versions, most ballet companies base their stagings both choreographically and musically on the 1895 revival of Marius Petipa and Lev Ivanov, first staged for the Imperial Ballet on 15 January 1895, at the Mariinsky Theatre in St. Petersburg. For this revival, Tchaikovsky's score was revised by ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Giselle
''Giselle'' (; ), originally titled ''Giselle, ou les Wilis'' (, ''Giselle, or The Wilis''), is a romantic ballet (" ballet-pantomime") in two acts with music by Adolphe Adam. Considered a masterwork in the classical ballet performance canon, it was first performed by the Ballet du Théâtre de l'Académie Royale de Musique at the Salle Le Peletier in Paris on 28 June 1841, with Italian ballerina Carlotta Grisi as Giselle. It was an unqualified triumph. It became hugely popular and was staged at once across Europe, Russia, and the United States. The ghost-filled ballet tells the tragic, romantic story of a beautiful young peasant girl named Giselle and a disguised nobleman named Albrecht, who fall in love, but when his true identity is revealed by his rival, Hilarion, Giselle goes mad and dies of heartbreak. After her death, she is summoned from her grave into the vengeful, deadly sisterhood of the Wilis, the ghosts of unmarried women who died after being betrayed by their lo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Edgar Degas
Edgar Degas (, ; born Hilaire-Germain-Edgar De Gas, ; 19 July 183427 September 1917) was a French Impressionist artist famous for his pastel drawings and oil paintings. Degas also produced bronze sculptures, prints and drawings. Degas is especially identified with the subject of dance; more than half of his works depict dancers. Although Degas is regarded as one of the founders of Impressionism, he rejected the term, preferring to be called a realist,Gordon and Forge 1988, p. 31 and did not paint outdoors as many Impressionists did. Degas was a superb draftsman, and particularly masterly in depicting movement, as can be seen in his rendition of dancers and bathing female nudes. In addition to ballet dancers and bathing women, Degas painted racehorses and racing jockeys, as well as portraits. His portraits are notable for their psychological complexity and their portrayal of human isolation. At the beginning of his career, Degas wanted to be a history painter, a calling f ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Horst Koegler
Horst Koegler (22 March 1927 – 11 May 2012) was a German dance critic, journalist and writer. He was the editor and author of books on the ballet scene in Germany, as well as the author of essays in journals and introductions to illustrated books. As a reviewer of German and English-language books, he formed a bridge between American and German dance research. Life Born in Neuruppin, Koegler studied musicology, German and art history in Kiel from 1945 to 1946 and directing, dramaturgy and acting at the newly founded in Halle an der Saale from 1947 to 1949. He then received a three-year engagement at the as assistant dramaturg and director. Since moving to West Berlin in 1951, he worked as a freelance journalist and writer, increasingly for English-language magazines. A stay of several months in the US followed in 1964. He first gained access to his later focus on dance as a reporter of Berlin opera performances. From 1957 to 1959 he was a critic for '' Die Welt''. In 1959 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ballet Dancer
A ballet dancer ( it, ballerina fem.; ''ballerino'' masc.) is a person who practices the art of classical ballet. Both females and males can practice ballet; however, dancers have a strict hierarchy and strict gender roles. They rely on years of extensive training and proper technique to become a part of a professional ballet company. Ballet dancers are at a high risk of injury due to the demanding technique of ballet. Training and technique Ballet dancers typically begin training at an early age if they desire to perform professionally and often take part in international competitions such as YAGP and Prix de Lausanne. At these events, scholarships are being granted to the most talented dancers, enabling them to continue their training at renowned ballet schools around the world, such as the John Kranko Schule in Germany and the Académie de Danse Classique Princesse Grace in Monaco. Pre-professional ballet dancers can audition to enroll at a vocational ballet school such ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
La Sylphide
''La Sylphide'' ( en, The Sylph; da, Sylfiden) is a romantic ballet in two acts. There were two versions of the ballet; the original choreographed by Filippo Taglioni in 1832, and a second version choreographed by August Bournonville in 1836. Bournonville's is the only version known to have survived and is one of the world's oldest surviving ballets. Taglioni version On 12 March 1832 the first version of ''La Sylphide'' premiered at the Salle Le Peletier of the Paris Opéra with choreography by the groundbreaking Italian choreographer Filippo Taglioni and music by Jean Schneitzhoeffer, Jean-Madeleine Schneitzhoeffer. Taglioni designed the work as a showcase for his daughter Marie Taglioni, Marie. ''La Sylphide'' was the first ballet where dancing ''en pointe'' had an aesthetic rationale and was not merely an acrobatic stunt, often involving ungraceful arm movements and exertions, as had been the approach of dancers in the late 1820s. Marie was known for shortening her skirts ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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