The History of Ballet

      For my more "generalized" book I read The History of Ballet by Judith Steeh. It goes from the very beginning of classical dance up to the mid 1900's. I knew quite a bit of what the book covered already, but not in such detail. It was interesting to read a source that compiles all of ballet's history into one place. It also had really amazing photographs that I wish I could share here. It would be impossible to condense all of the history of ballet into under five paragraphs so I'm just going to go in detail about a few key points.
    The book begins with the conception of ballet at Louis XIV's court in France. He used it as entertainment by linking the dances in small ways to create a story-- this provided a basis for many ballets popular today. They wore elaborate costumes and golden, mesh masks and were originally danced in a ballroom. Throughout his rein from 1643 to 1715 it moved to the stage and matured. It slowly became more refined and difficult, causing the first "professionals" to emerge. In the beginning, only men could dance. It took several decades until women were given small parts that were more akin to acting than dancing. This was because of the clothing they had to wear (it's hard to do a pas-de-chat in ankle-length petticoats). Louis XIV was an accomplished dance, but he struggled with some beats and small jumps. A step practiced today, the "royale", is an easier version of the tricky entrechat-quatre and was made especially for the king.
    The ballet dancer herself/himself has changed significantly from the early days. In the past, dancers were not paid well and often had to find rich lovers to support them. Now, dancers are paid fairly well and have all expenses (costumes, shoes, travel, etc.) paid for them. They are now respected artists and members of society. In the past, they were treated as outcasts who wanted to live in a fantasy world. For men, the public opinion has flipped. In Louis XIV's time, men who danced were seen as very masculine and desirable. Today, there is the unfortunate stereotype that all male ballet dancers are gay. This is, for the majority, not true. In fact, male ballet dancers are very smart-- they get to spend hours on end with pretty girls in leotards. With the help of powerful male dancers such as Nureyev, male dancers are beginning to be taken more seriously.
   The history of ballet is an intriguing topic, one I'm happy I get an excuse to learn more about. I was lucky enough to be able to visit the birthplace of ballet (Versailles Palace right outside of Paris) and I could just imagine it there. All the extravagantly decorated halls and ballrooms yearn to be filled with classical dance. Here are some photos to help clarify my post:

Inside Versailles, the bithplace of ballet:

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A typical female dancer in the 1800's:

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