In
ballet
Ballet () is a type of performance dance that originated during the Italian Renaissance in the fifteenth century and later developed into a concert dance form in France and Russia. It has since become a widespread and highly technical form of ...
, ''pas de trois'' is a
French term usually referring to a dance between three people. Typically, a ''pas de trois'' in ballet consists of five parts:
#Entrée (the opening number for the three dancers, usually preceded by a short introduction)
#
Variation (or solo) for the 1st dancer
#Variation for the 2nd dancer
#Variation for the 3rd dancer
#Coda (a finale usually set to music of a quick tempo in which the dancers bring the piece to a spectacular finish)
Today, the most celebrated ''pas de trois'' in the
classical ballet
Classical ballet is any of the traditional, formal styles of ballet that exclusively employ classical ballet technique. It is known for its aesthetics and rigorous technique (such as pointe work, turnout of the legs, and high extensions), its ...
repertory are derived from the works of the great choreographer
Marius Petipa
Marius Ivanovich Petipa (russian: Мариус Иванович Петипа), born Victor Marius Alphonse Petipa (11 March 1818), was a French ballet dancer, pedagogue and choreographer. Petipa is one of the most influential ballet masters an ...
. Although the Balletmaster created many ''pas de trois'' for the near 150 ballets he created throughout his career in Russia, only three survive: the ''Pas de trois des Odalisques'' from his revival of the ballet ''
Le Corsaire'' (set to the music of
Adolphe Adam
Adolphe Charles Adam (; 24 July 1803 – 3 May 1856) was a French composer, teacher and music critic. A prolific composer for the theatre, he is best known today for his ballets ''Giselle'' (1841) and '' Le corsaire'' (1856), his operas ''Le pos ...
and
Cesare Pugni
Cesare Pugni (; russian: Цезарь Пуни, Cezar' Puni; 31 May 1802 in Genoa – ) was an Italian composer of ballet music, a pianist and a violinist. In his early career he composed operas, symphonies, and various other forms of orche ...
, choreographed for three women); the ''Paquita Pas de trois'' added to his 1881 revival of the ballet ''
Paquita
''Paquita'' is a ballet in two acts and three scenes originally choreographed by Joseph Mazilier to music by Édouard Deldevez and Ludwig Minkus. Paul Foucher received royalties as librettist.
History
''Paquita'' is the creation of French compo ...
'' (set to the music of
Ludwig Minkus
Ludwig Minkus (russian: link=no, Людвиг Минкус), also known as Léon Fyodorovich Minkus (23 March 1826, Vienna – 7 December 1917, Vienna), was a Jewish-Austrian composer of ballet music, a violin virtuoso and teacher.
Minkus is no ...
and
Eduard Deldevez, sometimes referred to as the ''Golden Pas de trois'' or ''Minkus Pas de trois'', and choreographed for two women and one man); and the ''Pas de trois'' from the first act of his 1895 revival of the ballet ''
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 failur ...
'' (choreographed for two women and one man).
Typically, Petipa fashioned the ''Entrée'' of a ''pas de trois'' in such a way so that the dancer who performs the first
variation exits the stage about three quarters of the way through in order to rest and prepare for his or her solo.
See also
*
Pas de deux
In ballet, a pas de deux (French language, French, literally "step of two") is a dance duet in which two dancers, typically a male and a female, perform ballet steps together. The pas de deux is characteristic of classical ballet and can be fo ...
*
Pas de quatre
''Grand Pas de Quatre'' is a ''ballet divertissement'' choreographed by Jules Perrot in 1845, on the suggestion of Benjamin Lumley, Director at Her Majesty's Theatre, to music composed by Cesare Pugni.
On the night it premiered in London (12 Ju ...
*
Grand pas
In ballet, a grand pas (; literally, big or large step) is a suite of dances that serves as a showpiece for lead dancers, demi-soloists, and in some cases the corps de ballet. It usually consists of an ''entrée'' (introduction), a ''grand adage'' ...
{{Ballet
Ballet terminology