The Journey of Ballet: From Courts to Proscenium

- Harsh Ghoshal

Ballet, one of the most esteemed art forms in the world, has a long history of
significant evolution in form, style, and technique, adapting to cultural shifts,
artistic innovations, and the oft-changing tastes of audiences. Ballet has grown
from its aristocratic origins in the courts of Europe to a global theatrical form
performed in grand proscenium stages. This voyage through history offers a
glimpse at the transformation of ballet through the years, which helps understand
the form in its present state.

Ballet’s Beginning: Courtly Entertainment

Ballet has its origins in the 15th-century Italian Renaissance, a time of significant
advancement in art and literature. It came to be performed in the courts and halls
of the royalty and nobility who viewed ballet as a symbol of refinement, grace,
and cultural sophistication. The nobility, under the guidance of dancing masters,
were often the performers, combining dance, poetry, music, and spectacle to
depict important political and social issues.

Soon, ballet extended from the Italian courts to France with the Italian
noblewoman Catherine de’ Medici’s marriage to King Henry II of France.
Catherine’s patronage allowed ballet to flourish in the French court, where she
commissioned grand ballet performances that combined many of the arts. One
such performance, the “Ballet Comique de la Reine”, is regarded as the first true
ballet in the world, which laid the foundations for future developments.

Later, under the reign of King Louis XIV in the 17th century, ballet was codified
and began to go beyond mere courtly entertainment. Louis XIV was an avid
dancer and was part of several performances, most notably, “Le Ballet de la Nuit”
which earned him the title “The Sun King”. He founded the Académie d’Opéra,
which extended the reaches of ballet to public theatres, encouraging the
participation of trained dancers and not just the nobility.

Thus, ballet came to be performed in proscenium stages, which offered a framed

view of the performance, unlike the open courts. This led to greater theatricality
in ballet performances as well as innovations in scenic design and lighting.
Choreographers began to mould their pieces in accordance with the front-facing
audience and experimented with depth and perspective through various
formations.
Ballet-operas gained widespread popularity during this time, with ballet being
seen as a compulsory part of French opera performances. However, by the middle
of the 17th century, under the influence of French ballet master Jean Georges
Noverre, the opera-ballet tradition began to be overshadowed by narrative ballets,
which used the form as a storytelling medium.

This notion of “ballet d’action” prioritized emotion and character-driven stories

over elaborate costumes and spectacle. An attempt was made to make ballet more
expressive and dramatic such that it would convey a narrative and exemplify the
relationships between various characters. This period also witnessed the rise of
female dancers like Marie Camargo, who broke traditional norms and gained
prominence despite remaining fewer in number than their male counterparts.

After the onset of the French Revolution in 1789, opera declined further. It moved
away from the court, while ballet gained a renewed popularity due to the efforts
of the ballet master, Pierre Gardel. He staged numerous ballets in Paris across a
variety of genres, such as comedy, fiction, and classical. Paris soon came to be
held in high esteem throughout Europe for its grand ballets, talented dancers, and
exemplary teachers. Meanwhile, ballet also flourished in Vienna and Italian cities
like Naples and Milan.

Figure 1: Ballet in a European Court

The Winds of Romanticism

The early 19th century witnessed a buzz about the Romantic Movement in contrast
to the neoclassical artistic preferences of earlier years. During this period, ballet
often featured supernatural elements, fantastical themes, and expressive
storytelling. Marie Taglioni’s performance as a sylph in the ballet “La Sylphide”
set the stage for numerous ballets with a spirit as its heroine. Ballerinas gained
renown during this period, and their technique came to be held above that of the
male dancers, who were now given more secondary roles.

A major development during this era was the introduction of pointe shoes, and
ballerinas came to engage in pointe work (dancing on their toes), a technique that
was lauded for its grace and ethereal appearance. Moreover, the tutu, a calf-length
skirt made of tulle, was introduced for dancers for the first time during this period.

London became an important centre of ballet, but it lacked its own style and
tradition of ballet, primarily following the French style. However, in the latter
half of the 19th century, Russia became the centre of a new ballet movement. With
ballets such as “The Nutcracker” and “Swan Lake” choreographed by Marius
Petipa, Russia developed a unique Classical style of ballet. The Classical Era
involved grand productions, intricate formations, spectacle, and pointe work. The
structure of ballets was also formalized, with clearly defined acts, duets, and
variations. The elevation of ballet in Russia cemented its place in the global
landscape as a popular art form.

Figure 2: Pointe Work

The Ballets Russes: An Enduring Legacy

In the early 20th century, ballet experienced a creative renaissance under Serge
Diaghilev’s Ballets Russes, who developed ground-breaking productions with
new kinds of music, choreography, and scenery. The company, which comprised
expert dancers from Russia’s Imperial Ballet, introduced a bold, modern style that
challenged conventions. Ballet came to be viewed by not just the regular public
but also connoisseurs of art, which changed its prior image as a somewhat
disreputable art form. This new audience’s emergence was likely due to the
increasing involvement of well-known composers, designers, and artists in
various aspects of performances. The Ballets Russes allied itself with many of the
Parisian modern art movements and remained prolific until Diaghilev’s demise.
Moreover, although the company retained an essentially Russian style, it was
joined by dancers of various nationalities, including French, Irish, and English
dancers.

Anna Pavlova, a prolific ballet dancer of this era, toured the world and performed
ballet in places where no one had witnessed it before. She had a significant
interest in ethnic dances and intently studied Indian and Japanese dance forms
upon her visit to these countries. She also performed Polish and Mexican dances
during her tour of the world. Other dancers from the Ballets Russes went on to
settle in Paris and propagate the Russian style of ballet in other parts of Europe.

The Ballets Russes thus exerted a profound influence on ballet in Western

Europe, while ballet in the Soviet Union followed its own course. Soviet-era
ballet emphasized the multi-act form as opposed to one-act ballets and involved
a natural style of acting, strong plots, and elements of folk dance. St. Petersburg
and Moscow competed as prestigious centres of ballet in Russia, while Leningrad
also gained importance. Soon, Western European and Russian ballets began to be
influenced by each other. Hence, Russian practitioners attempted to choreograph
one-act ballets while also reviving some of the classical ballets of bygone years.

The legacy of the Ballets Russes was the emergence of numerous national ballet
schools in Europe and North America. The Paris Opera gained newfound
popularity after performances by the Ballets Russes on one hand, while on the
other, their performances in London set the stage for an essentially English
tradition of ballet. The Vic-Wells Ballet in London gained royal patronage under
Queen Elizabeth II in the middle of the 20 th century, allowing for more lavish
performances as well as foreign tours.

Ballet schools and companies sprung up in the United States of America too, and
while the country did not have a unique national style of ballet, its ballet
institutions stood at par with the much older schools in Europe.
Figure 3: The Ballets Russes

Ballet in a War-torn World

In the 20th century, ballet became deeply intertwined with historical and political
changes. After World War II, ballet also witnessed a divide between the Capitalist
West and the Communist East. In the West, for instance, in the United States of
America, ballet practitioners focused on artistic expression, creativity, and
individual freedom, while in the East, particularly in the Soviet Union, ballet was
used as a medium to convey socialist ideals and other political ideologies.
The State exerted strict control on the art in the East, limiting experimentation
and tying ballet to political themes that were approved by the State. While the
technicalities of the form remained the same in the West and East, Western ballet
enjoyed the luxury of being able to innovate and express individuality. Later in
the century, a Russian who immigrated to the United States, George Balanchine,
laid the foundations for neoclassical ballet, which in turn paved the way for
modern ballet forms that don’t feature structured plots and focus more on
conveying human emotion in tandem with the music.
Figure 4: Ballet in Soviet Russia

Ballet in Today’s Age

Ballet has now become a reputed and ever-evolving art form that combines both
classical traditions and contemporary innovations. Modern technology has
allowed ballet to grow in scope and spectacle and enthral audiences worldwide
with beautiful costumes, lighting, and sets. Meanwhile, ballet today still retains
many links to the structures and traditions established in previous centuries.
Ballet companies feature a productive division of labour that allows the effective
management of various functions such as scheduling, management of rehearsals,
marketing, and budgeting. In London, the state continues to champion art
institutions and ballet companies, while organizations in the United States
generally depend on private funding by individual donors. For several decades,
ballet was taught primarily to middle- and upper-class white children as opposed
to children of colour. Learning ballet was seen as a way to instill values like
refinement, discipline, posture, and manners into children.
Ballet companies have increasingly found that old ballets are more successful in
drawing large audiences than contemporary pieces. Thus, they develop a
repertoire of works that are regularly performed by the company, with new works
being added occasionally.
Figure 5: A Contemporary Ballet Production

Bridging Worlds: Ballet in India

Ballet has a fairly recent history in India, where the form owes its introduction to
colonial expansion. British colonization exposed Indians to Western performing
art forms such as ballet. However, ballet performances occurred primarily for
elite British officials rather than the wider Indian public. After independence,
however, ballet, along with other Western dance forms, garnered interest in
metropolitan cities such as Delhi, Mumbai, and Kolkata. The first ballet schools
sprung up in India, and they typically followed Russian, French, or American
ballet styles.
This proliferation of ballet, particularly in the late 20th and early 21st centuries,
led to dancers and choreographers exploring its merging with classical Indian
dances such as Kathak and Bharatanatyam to create rich fusion pieces. They
combined the technical sophistication of ballet with the expressiveness of Indian
storytelling and developed unique performances. Ballet was further popularized
by its emergence in Indian cinema, particularly Bollywood. Choreographers
incorporated elements of ballet in dance numbers in films as well as in theatre
productions, thereby expanding its reach.
Ballet still remains a niche art form in India when compared to our traditional
classical dance forms. However, due to the growing number of ballet schools,
online ballet classes, and social media publicity, the reach of ballet is ever-
growing. Several Indian ballet dancers have gained international recognition and
performed with foreign ballet companies. This highlights the importance of a
continuing effort by ballet schools and companies to attract more students and
audiences and demonstrate the beauty of ballet to the public.

Figure 6: Bharatanatyam and Ballet Fusion

Ballet itself continues to evolve, as it did during its long history of navigating
Italian, French, Russian, and other national styles and traditions. It combines
elements of both traditional and contemporary techniques to create a form that is
highly refined, elegant, and precise and is held in high regard across the globe.

1. What is the main goal of this blog post? (eg: educate, inform, entertain,
inspire, promote)
Answer: This blog post aims to educate readers about the long history and
evolution of ballet over the centuries and promote ballet in its current form, which
is a conglomerate of diverse traditions and styles that have developed over the
years.

2. Why are we writing this post?

Answer: It is useful to learn the history of an art form to understand and appreciate
its present form accurately. Moreover, we, as Indians, pride ourselves on the rich
history behind classical dance forms such as Kathak and Bharatanatyam. Hence,
perhaps more Indians would appreciate ballet if they learned about its evolution
over more than five centuries from court entertainment to the grand proscenium
stages of today.
3. Who is the target audience?
Answer: This post targets both current and aspiring students/performers of ballet.
Since it contains a lot of factual information, it is ideally suited for people who
already have some knowledge and interest in ballet.

4. Why should they care about this content?

Answer: People currently pursuing ballet can develop a deeper understanding of
the art form by examining its rich history and the changes it has endured. They
may find it interesting to note how specific practices or techniques (for instance,
pointe work or the tutu) originated. People aspiring to be trained in ballet can
similarly develop a greater appreciation for it and gain insights about possible
careers in ballet, apart from performance (such as choreography, teaching, and
backstage work).
5. What should the reader feel? What action do you want the reader to take
(CTA)?
Answer: Readers should feel more enlightened about the evolution of ballet
across the world. Aspiring ballet students will hopefully feel inspired and
encouraged to pursue ballet. People currently pursuing ballet should feel curious
enough to delve deeper into the history of ballet and perhaps even explore
combining different styles of ballet and fusing it with traditional Indian dance
forms.