Ballet - TV Tropes

The art of ballet is formalized performance dance that has evolved into a new concert dance. A ballet work itself comprises the choreography (the sequences and movements of the dancers' bodies), music, costumes, and setpieces.

A Brief History

Ballet got its start during the Italian Renaissance as a dancing pantomime for fencing, much different from today's perception of the art, and developed through French courts' social dances. France's early influence is made apparent through the "vocabulary of ballet", the steps and forms with their own names; regardless of country, French vocabulary is used exclusively for choreography. During the 18th century, its technicalities developed so that it became a dramatic art on par with Opera. By the 19th century, Russia had evolved its own style and continued to train even under Soviet rule.

Ballet received a major boost in the early 20th century, with Sergei Diaghilev's foundation of the influential Ballets Russes company. The company brought together many famous or soon-to-be famous names of the 20th century: dancers and choreographers like George Balanchine, Michel Fokine, Ninette de Valois, and Vaslav Nijinsky; composers like Claude Debussy, Igor Stravinsky and Sergei Prokofiev; artists like Pablo Picasso and Henri Matisse; and fashion designer Coco Chanel (who worked on the costumes). Touring throughout Europe and The Americas from 1909 to 1929, Ballets Russes brought ballet into the mainstream.

Since then, ballet has continued to evolve, influencing and being influenced by other dance genres.

---

Ballet styles

Over time, ballet has developed several distinct styles.

• Romantic ballet: Romantic ballet, as its name implied, was based around the ideals of Romanticism. Romantic ballets focused on an idealized image of the woman, more specifically, their innocence and sensuality. This was reflected in the choreography, which made women look almost supernaturally light, with flowing technique and emphasis on pointework, and long, light, bell-shaped tutus. Romantic ballet was popular in the mid 19th century, with notable works being Giselle, Coppelia, and La Sylphide.
• Classical ballet: Classical ballet can trace its roots to the 17th century, when Louis XIV of France established the Académie Royale de Danse, but actually came into its own after the Romantic era. Compared to Romantic ballet, classical ballet is more focused on technique and aesthetics, following specific training methods and styles while telling a story with a conflict and resolution. Classical tutus are much shorter and stiffer than Romantic tutus, to showcase the dancer's legs and technique. Classical ballet had its heyday in the late 19th century and early 20th century, with notable works like Swan Lake, Don Quixote, and The Nutcracker.
• Neoclassical ballet: Neoclassical ballet, similarly to classical ballet, is primarily focused on technique and aesthetics. Compared to previous styles, neoclassical ballet is far more abstract; costumes, sets, and story are either toned down or nonexistent, so that viewers are focused on the dancing itself. Many neoclassical ballets were made in the early to mid 20th century, pioneered primarily by George Balanchine, with works like Apollo, The Prodigal Son, and Serenade.
• Contemporary ballet: Contemporary ballet, like classical and neoclassical ballet, focuses on technique. Unlike classical ballet, however, contemporary ballet is far more flexible (literally and figuratively) with fewer restraints, allowing for a greater range of body movement and more choices of music. There is a great deal of overlap with contemporary dance.

---

Training

Ballet dancers typically begin their formal training at around 8 years old, ^note  and continue training into their late teens. Numerous ballet schools exist of varying size, quality, and style, from large ones run by the major ballet companies and universities to smaller hole-in-the-wall locatons established by former dancers. Many young dancers also participate in competitions, like the Youth America Grand Prix (YAGP) and Prix de Lausanne, which award scholarships to winners.

A number of different techniques and training methods exist. Examples include the Cecchetti method developed in Italy; the French or Paris Opera Ballet method out of France; the Royal Academy of Dance (RAD) method developed in the United Kingdom; the Vaganova method developed in Russia; the Bournonville method developed in Denmark; and the Balanchine technique taught in the United States.^note  These methods are used to varying degrees worldwide, and are not confined to the country in which they were developed. They are also not entirely distinct, with older methods like Bournonville and Cecchetti having influenced newer methods like Vaganova and RAD.

Although it looks like it, ballet isn't a dainty delicate art. Ballet techniques are very physically demanding, and making it look graceful and delicate requires a huge amount of focus, flexibility, and strength (both mental and physical). When not performed properly, ballet can result in crippling injuries, and even when performed properly, there's still the risk of repetitive strain injuries down the line, which is one of the reasons ballet dancers tend to have short careers. Combined with the expensive, time-consuming and intense training, the pressure to sculpt a 'Balanchine body', low pay, racism and sexism (sometimes to the extreme), and high competition for a limited number of jobs, ballet is a field where only the most dedicated (and lucky) will find success.

---

Ballet companies

Most organized ballet is done by ballet companies. These companies are usually based in major cities with suitable performing venues like theaters, though some may tour nationally or internationally. Most ballet companies perform a repertoire consisting of classical, neoclassical, and contemporary ballets, though often not in equal measure. The respective measure depends on the company's style and preferences.

Ranks vary depending on company and country; most European companies and those modelled on European companies (such as The Australian Ballet) have five ranks, while American companies generally have only three. In addition, many companies have trainee or apprentice dancers. In descending order, the ranks are:

• Principal dancers: Principals are the highest ranked and highest paid dancers in a company. Not only must they have years of training and mastery of dance technique, they must also be charismatic enough to get the audience to identify with the characters they play. In shows, they will primarily play main or major characters (like Siegfried, Odette, Aurora, the Sugarplum Fairy, etc.) Note that save for one-off or gala performances, these roles are always double-cast at minimum; if a company is putting on a run of Sleeping Beauty, there will be multiple Auroras, for instance. This is due to the demands these roles place on the dancers.
• First Soloists: A solely European rank, these dancers will dance only the most important solos and will often be cast in principal roles.
• Soloists: Soloists are dancers who manage to stand out technically. As their title implies, they typically dance solo roles that are more challenging (like divertissements in works like The Nutcracker and The Sleeping Beauty), albeit with not as much stage time as the principals. They may even have a chance to do principal roles, or at least understudy for principals.
• Coryphées: The other solely European rank, coryphées (or demi-soloists in some companies) are leaders of the corps de ballet and will often be cast in minor solo parts or small-group dances (such as a pas de trois or pas de quatre). In addition to taking more prominent dancing roles, they are also expected to serve as mentors and provide leadership to the young dancers of the corps.
• Corps de ballet: The corps de ballet are usually the largest group and lowest ranked of the company dancers, usually consisting of new company arrivals or recent ballet school graduates, though some dancers will spend their entire career in the corps. They primarily dance in ensembles, or play groups of background characters (like the swans in Swan Lake or parents in Nutcracker). Many principals and soloists have noted that being a corps dancer is actually the most busy of the three, as they are usually in every cast, every night (whereas soloists and principals often only do specific performances).

In addition to the ranks listed above, there are two other common ranks among companies worldwide which exist outside of the traditional structure. They are:

• Character Artists: A rank primarily composed of otherwise retired dancers, these play roles like Carabosse in Sleeping Beauty or Drosselmeyer in The Nutcracker — roles which primarily consist of character dancing and/or acting instead of traditional choreography.
• Apprentices: These are dancers who are just graduated from school. Apprentice contracts typically last one year; if successful they will then be asked to join the company as a full-time corps member. This system is relatively common in Western Europe and North America but virtually nonexistent in the former Soviet Union.

Finally, the rank of prima ballerina assoluta is bandied about far too often in fiction given that there have only been thirteen of them in the entire history of the art form. The term roughly translates to "absolute supreme ballerina" and is used to refer to those dancers who are considered the best of their generation, or the best in the history of their country. There is no universal way of earning the title; it is usually bestowed by either a company or a government. The first ballerina awarded the title was the Italian Pierina Legnani, who danced with La Scala and the Mariinsky; the most recent was her fellow Italian Alessandra Ferri, a veteran of La Scala, The Royal Ballet, and the American Ballet Theatre, in 1992.

The company itself is typically led by an artistic director (AD). Support staff may include ballet masters and mistresses who teach company class and rehearse the dancers for productions, and choreographers who create and teach dance choreographies. Larger companies may have their own in-house musicians, medical staff to help the dancers, and/or operate their own ballet schools.

Most ballet companies operate at a loss. Outside the United States, many companies are state-funded, and so, can benefit from state subsidies in addition to private donations. In the United States, ballet companies are considered non-profit organizations, and thus rely heavily on private donations.

---

Music

Ballet is primarily performed to classical music, though some newer works may feature contemporary music. Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky's pieces are probably the most well-known and successful (even if you know nothing else about ballet, you do know The Nutcracker and Swan Lake). Other famous composers of ballet music are Ludwig Minkus, Adolphe Adam, Sergei Prokofiev, Leo Delibes, Igor Stravinsky, Aaron Copland, Riccardo Drigoand Cesare Pugni.

---

open/close all folders 

Notable dancers 

Famous choreographers and their works 

Notable ballet companies 

---

• Album Cover Designers
• Useful Notes
• Belly Dancing