Ballet and Modern Dance

Do you know anything about the History of Ballet? I am going to talk about the early history in the first paragraph. In the second paragraph I am going to talk about the middle history. The last paragraph I am going to talk about history now. I am hoping that you learn some things from all of the information that I have gathered. I now present the History of Ballet.

First, I am going to start with the early history. Ballet started in the Renaissance 14th century in France and Italy. Usually at this time, they only danced in royal palaces and it was usually for a celebration like a wedding or a baby shower. When they danced they would be flat footed and they performed in one line throughout the entire dance. In the 1400s ,the dancers started to wear contemporary court fashions which means ''full wigs and bloomers for men'' When they would introduce the dance they would always do it during the meal. The first ballet that was ever performed lasted 7 hours. Anna Pavlova was the first ballerina to bring the art of the ballerina to public. King LouisXIV and his son performed in lots of the ballets during parties.

Next, I am going to talk about the middle history. Now they would dance in courts and instead of wearing court fashions they would wear masks, costumes, and accessories. All of the women still wore huge wigs and some of the women wore tight corsets to make them look a lot taller than they really were. In 1661, King Louis XIV opened the very first ever ballet studio. After that had happened, they started to move the ballet performances from courts to stages. In the 1700s, King Louis XIV appeared on stage as a dancer. At this time there were still no tutus or pointe shoes. The dancers wore regular clothes as there costume. Usually, at the end of most ballets they would start to let people from the audience join into the dance. In the ,15th and 16th century, the dance finally became formalized. The songs that they performed to were comic, serious, or political. After the dance became formalized, the French Courts started to push the art of ballet aside and all of the courts of ballet started to disappear, and for a little bit there was no dancing.

The last thing I am going to talk about is what ballet is like now. In 1892, The Nutcracker was performed for the first time. In 1895, The Swan Lake was performed. In 1929, the dance studio that was opened by King Louis XIV reformed as the Paris Opera Ballet. Now when they danced, they would wear skirts cut right above the ankle. In 1937, American Ballet opened in NYC. In 1996, The Royal Ballet opened in England. Back then, they would dance in royal courts and now we dance on stages. Also now we wear costumes and point shoes when we dance now. Another thing is that when women dance now they do not wear wigs and men do not wear bloomers they wear tights. Something that has really changed is that we do not let people join into the dance toward the end, and we have to buy tickets to go watch the dance or show. We also now use ballet lessons to teach the ballerinas or the actors the dance or show. There are lots of ballet companies now that are huge and they make lots and lots of money daily or even hourly.

I could go on and on about all of the differences that we have today. Back then it was a lot different in a lot of different ways. One of the oddest ones is how they used to let people from the audience join the performance near the end. Another one of the major changes is how when they dance they just wore their regular clothes and shoes, but I think that is because all of those accessories cost money to buy them and there were not very many wealthy families in the 18th and 19th centuries. I have learned a lot from what I have found and all of the differences and changes that we have when we dance. I also hope that you have learned some things and I hope you enjoyed. 

Modern Dance is full of creativity. It allows the dancer to express themselves through dancing in their own way. Alvin Ailey is an African-American choreographer who founded the Alvin Ailey Dance Theater. One of his famous works was Revelations. “Revelations tells the story of African-American faith and tenacity from slavery to freedom through a suite of dances set to spirituals and blues music”. The piece of Alvin Ailey’s Revelations is divided into three sections; “The Pilgrim of Sorrow”, “Take Me to the Water”, and “Move, Members, Move”. The music was composed by various artists. The music style was traditional spirituals. The décor and costumes are by Ves Harper. Alvin Ailey sought to maintain the creativity and uniqueness of his own culture and at the same time enhance the American modern dance heritage.

Modern Dance creativity and uniqueness will live on. Dancers will continue to express themselves through a way many dancers are passionate about. Alvin Ailey’s impact on Modern Dance will never goes unnoticed as he opened doors for his culture to shine. Alvin Ailey will always be remembered for his strong passion and uniqueness he brought into the dance industry. Alvin Ailey Revelation will continue to inspire many artists to continue what he has started.      

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