Ballet is one of the oldest types of dancing. Originating in France, ballet was entertainment for the king, and has now further developed into the ballet we know today. A key component of ballet is the shoe. Pointe shoes are made to make it appear as if the dancers are floating across the stage. By the time a dancer is professional she is en pointe, meaning she is using pointe shoes. Only a few dancers out of the many that enter the competitive world of ballet, rise to fame. Those that do normally do not become famous until they reach soloist or principal status in their respective companies. Principal and soloist dancers almost always dance the leads in ballets, such as The Firebird and The Nutcracker. The Firebird and The Nutcracker are …show more content…
This is the most famous version of the show, and it is performed every single year in New York. The leading roles, Clara and the Nutcracker, or Prince, are performed by children, which is highly unusual. Other important roles include: the Sugar Plum Fairy, Dew Drop, Coffee, Candy Cane, Drosselmeyer, and Drosselmeyer’s Nephew (“The Nutcracker (Balanchine)”). It is the dream of countless dancers to perform in The Nutcracker. The lead roles in ballets need strong technique, which is why it is abnormal for the leads to be danced by children in ballets, such as The …show more content…
It is based on the Russian folktale about Prince Ivan, who wanders into the realm of Koschei the Immortal. He is chasing The Firebird, but in their final battle he does not kill her. As a token of thanks, The Firebird gives Prince Ivan a magical feather to summon her in a time of dire need. Prince Ivan meets 13 princesses who are under the control of Koschei. He falls in love with one princess, and then quarrels with Koschei. Koschei sends his minions after Prince Ivan, who summons The Firebird. The Firebird puts the minions into a deep sleep and shows Prince Ivan how to end Koschei’s control over his love. Prince Ivan breaks the spell, and lives happily ever after with his true love (“The Firebird”). The more modern of versions of The Firebird are seen as contemporary ballets rather than traditional ballets because they are choreographed with a more modern idea of technique and
Ballet traces back to the 15-century Italian renaissance court; Ballet is known as the mother of all dance due to its influence on any style of dance no matter how small. In the 15th century ballet was a form of entertainment for the Italian Renaissance court. These performances took place in balls and banquets. (“Ballet”) Ballet one of its first performances included aristocratic amateurs with poetry and song alongside the production. (“Ballet”) During the 15th century, France also became influence with ballet. (“A Brief History of Ballet - Illustrated by Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre.”) The influenced of ballet in France was because of Catherine de Medici in 1533. (“Ballet”) She married the French King Henry II which allowed from French and
Classical ballet is a traditional and a formal style that required a vigorous technique such as pointe work and turnout of the legs. Ballet can be combined with other types of music and movement like hip hop, jazz, tap and more. I believe that ballet is an elegant and flowing dance that can be combined with music and body movements. One of my favorite ballet dancer is Misty Copeland. She learned ballet very quickly when she stared, one technique that takes long time to learn is pointe, which is to support all the body weight in your feet, and Copeland learned to do it in just of three months.
The Nutcracker suite is a very jubilant piece of music. As you watch the scene you begin to realise that the animations the colors, etc. play a huge role in making that scene ‘pop.’ The way that the Fairies movements match up precisely to the music is very effective as it gives you a sense of calm. If Fantasia were to use all dark colors and no pops of vivid shades, then it would have given the song and setting a more darkened mood and atmosphere. Colors and the actions in the dance must be phenomenal in order to give the scene an energetic feel; Disney has done very well, giving this song a joyous, yet playful feel.
The Nutcracker is a magical story with many versions, including plays, ballets, stories, and movies. They might be different in ways, but the plot remains the same in all of them. In The Nutcracker, Clara, the main character, gets a nutcracker doll from her Uncle Drosselmeyer, also her godfather, her brother Fritz in some stories takes the doll and breaks it. In the end of all of them The Nutcracker turns out to be a prince, he and Clara dance in the Kingdom of Sweets, along with the sugar plum fairy, gumdrop people, and other candy people. The orgianal story
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Both Petipa and Tchaikovsky still did not like the story and refused to work on the project. Petipa did not think the story was right for ballet dancing. He did not feel that Marie, the main character, was a strong enough character to dance. He did try to write a scenario for the ballet, but he could not think of anything past the scene of what we know of as the kingdom of snow. After Petipa gave up, Vsevolojsky begged and persisted with Petipa to try again. He convinced Petipa and this time he created a new character called the Sugarplum fairy. This character was not in either of the original stories. She was to be the main character, rather than Marie, and she would be the ruler of the Kingdom of Sweets. Petipa felt that this character could dance the big scenes better than the character Marie.
Through hundreds of productions of The Nutcracker, that have thrilled several crowds, audiences have experienced the fear from oversized mice and the thrill of the Land of Sweets. Written by Tchaikovsky, The Nutcracker is danced around Christmas annually. The Nutcracker was inspired by and based on E.T.A. Hoffmann’s novel, The Nutcracker and the Mouse King (“The Story of the Nutcracker Ballet”). A girl named Clara receives a nutcracker as a Christmas present who comes to life to fight the Mouse King. Clara journeys through the Land of Sweets as audiences are mesmerized by the dancers with the extravagant, flamboyant, exaggerated, and bizarre costumes, props, and heavy make-up perform the famous piece. But why has this ballet maintained its mass appeal since its first performance in 1892? Perhaps it is because in an effort to outstage previous performances, directors continue to integrate elements of expressionism like plot distortion and stylized acting to create a fantasy world.
“The story and music are so classic. Everyone can relate,” said Annamia Rumley, owner of Tecumseh Dance Workshop. “The Nutcracker is the story of dreaming and of wonder and magic. It draws you in.” Rumley also serves as the creative director of Tecumseh Center for the Arts’ production of the Nutcracker Ballet. Every other year, for nearly 20 years, young dancers
According to the Children’s Development Institute, ballet can teach a child to be able to be in front of people and to be confident in themselves. On top of this it can help children learn to follow directions, work well with others, and have a sense of self-discipline.("The Benefits of Classical Ballet, 2015). This website does not support any medical facts. Childhood is where our minds are molded. Of course, there are always genetic mental illnesses, but who we are as a person often stems from how we were raised. Ballet can help our minds with so much. We learn and grow from its beauty and its discipline. I have only been dancing in a class since last fall and I already have learned so much. Ballet is not only the foundation for all dance forms, it is a foundation for confidence and self-awareness as
Russian ballet took a big hit with the defections of many stunning dancers. Now though, Russian Ballet has boomed with bigger, better dancers popping up all over Russia. All across the world little girls dream of being a ballerina dancing with their prince across a bright stage, their costumes glittering with jewels. The reality is it takes years of blood, sweat, tears, and hard work to even get a shot of being on that stage. Even if you get there, the fight to get to the top level is hard, and to stay there is even harder. Dancers need to stand up for their rights
I listened to Tchaikovsky’s Nutcracker Suite. Suites are different from Symphonies and Concerts because they functions as several short movements that all go together, sort of like a concept album or individual rooms in a hotel suite. This particular suite has 6 different movements: March, Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy, Russian Dance, Arabian Dance, Chinese Dance, and Reed-Flutes.
Another thing that is so special about the Nutcracker is the familiarity of the music. Anywhere you go, people can identify the music. It is kind of like a universal language. I also love how the music corresponds to the dancing so well. Like in the Russian dance. The music is so powerful, and the dancing is usually male dancers doing powerful jumps and turns. Then, the whole mood of the music changes when it comes time for the beautiful Sugar Plum Fairy. It livens up, and gives dainty bells only suitable for someone as regal as her.
Ballet first originated in Italy in the 1400’s, its purpose was to impress the nobility of other countries. The ballerinas would wear the fashion of the times, with big dresses, wigs, and shoes that were not good for dancing in. Ballet was brought to France when Catherine de Medicis married King Henri II. She brought the culture of ballet with her to Paris. Eventually Paris became the capitol of the ballet world. Up until 1681 all of the female ballet roles were played by men. Many people fell in love with ballet. George Balanchine brought ballet to America.
After I began to learn to dance ballet, I found out that these elegant movements actually require a lot of strength, flexibility of the bodies and brain’s participation to make it looked elegant. The dancers’ movements in the performance were so fluent and elegant and it is not hard to imagine how hard they had practiced, stretched and use the strengths to do all the ballet poses with their bodies look longer and longer. Their expressions also impressed me a lot. By looking at their expressions, the audience can easily understand the scenes and blend into the story. The performers actually not only are required to have good dancing skills but also are required to have some talents to be actors. Moreover, they also have to be good at expressing their feelings on the
As for men, they wore light clothing to allow them to move freely. The Ballet shoe the women wore was nothing like the contemporary ballet shoe; it had a small heel. Now a day, the pointe shoe is used in ballet. It is similar to slippers especially because of its comfort. This makes it easier for the dancer to move in these shoes and to perform most of the foot positions that are mostly done with the tip of the toe.