« Rococo
Ballet
Ballet dates back to the 16th-century French courts. In 1581 Catherine de Medici brought a group of Italian dancers to the court to provide entertainment for a wedding; the spectacle was called Le Ballet Comique de la Reine (The Comic Ballet of the Queen). Based on the kind of performances given in Italy since the Renaissance, ballet caught on as a favorite court entertainment in France. For its first 100 years ballet was performed by male courtiers as an amateur entertainment.
In 1661 French king Louis XIV—a major supporter of ballet—established an Academie de Danse to train professional ballet dancers, appointing Jean-Baptiste Lully (1632–87) its first director; women also entered the profession at this time. In 1588 Thoinot Arbeau’s book Orchésographie was published, the first French book on ballet technique, and in 1725 Pierre Rameau’s Dancing Master outlined the “five positions,” the basics of ballet technique. The last great 18th-century book on ballet, Letters on the Dance by Jean-Georges Noverre, appeared in 1760, emphasizing the importance of dramatic movement. In 1786 choreographer Jean Dauberval created La Fille Mal Gardée, the first ballet with a plot drawn from “peasant” life, and the oldest ballet still in the repertoire.
Meanwhile, news of the development was spreading through Europe. After making a tour of Europe in the late 17th century, Czar Peter the Great returned to Russia and began a process of introducing the contemporary arts to his homeland. French ballet teacher Jean Baptiste Lande came to Russia, and in 1738 established the first school there, the Imperial Theatre School in St. Petersburg. Several French masters followed in his wake, and the seeds of the great age of Russian ballet were planted.
This will be the last entry of Essential Knowledge of the Day. We hope you enjoyed it. For more essential knowledge, grab yourself a copy of The New York Times Guide to Essential Knowledge, 2nd Edition.