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This definitive history of ballet charts the emergence of the dance in the Renaissance courts and follows its complex development to the remarkable explosion of ballet and modern dance in our time in Europe and America. First published 20 years ago, it has been fully updated for this new edition. Photos.
"Renaissance Italy was its birthplace; Elizabeth of England and the Sun King encouraged and developed it. First Camargo, then Taglioni, Elssler, and Grisi inspired generations of ballerina-worshippers and respect for the new profession of theatrical dancer. Champagne was drunk from toe-slippers as Paris of the Second Empire unveiled spectacles whose popularity is unimpaired to this day, while French choreographers, engaged in St. Petersburg, linked the dance heritage of Europe to Imperial Russia, where the Tsar's court proved a fertile climate for a new magnificence in stage production and technical advance. In the 20th century, the quixotic Diaghilev--who did not dance, choreograph, paint, or compose, but merely managed and inspired--almost singlehandedly brought the Russian masterpieces to the West, and two fellow émigrés, Pavlova and Nijinsky, captured imaginations and helped to spread the Imperial style around the globe. On this base--from France, from Russia, and distantly from Italy--Fokine, Massine, Nijinska, Balanchine, Rambert, Ashton, Tudor, Cranko, Robbins, and many others have diversely created an art form that is one of the most popular--and forward-looking--of our time. Mary Clarke and Clement Crisp recount the story in rich detail, aided by a wonderfully fresh selection of illustrations, covering not only dancers and dance design but attendant concerns of costume, scenery, technique, criticism, and theatrical taste. They pursue this enterprise 'with a smile,' and the reader, too, will be amused at the image of 19th-century ballerinas en travesti, forced to assume male roles because the classical danseur was held in such low repute; the overweight Louis XIV monopolizing leading parts; Renaissance dancing masters struggling to walk, let alone dance, while wearing some 40 pounds of magnificence. There are tales to inspire sympathy, too: Taglioni danced until she fainted; Pavlova continued on bloody toes; Balanchine fled Russia without a ruble or an advance booking. The lively treatment here accorded a splendid art, complemented by an extensive bibliography, will be an invaluable guide to those who are discovering the pleasures of ballet and want to know more of its background, as well as a useful companion for afficionados, all of whom will find something they did not know before."--Dust jacket.
This DK visual guide to ballet history goes beyond other ballet books, with beautiful photography that captures famous dancers and key stories. Discover more than 70 of the most famous ballet dances, from The Nutcracker and Swan Lake to The Rite of Spring. Learn the stories behind renowned companies such as The Royal Ballet and the Bolshoi Ballet. Explore the lives and achievements of dancers across the centuries, such as Margot Fonteyn, Carlos Acosta, and Darcey Bussell. Meet composers and choreographers, from Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky to Matthew Bourne. From its origins at court and the first national ballet companies, to the contemporary scene and extraordinary venues that stage the productions, this book covers an impressive history of ballet and provides an invaluable overview of the subject. Filled with rarely seen photographs covering all the key figures, pieces, and performances, and compelling facts about each dance--the sources they draw from, their production history, and their reception over time--Ballet: The Definitive Illustrated Story is an essential gift for all ballet enthusiasts.
A history of the development of ballet from the origins of dance through the 20th century.
The most comprehensive, beautiful book ever to be published on dance in America. "We look at the dance to impart the sensation of living in an affirmation of life, to energize the spectator into keener awareness of the vigor, the mystery, the humor, the variety, and the wonder of life. This is the function of the American dance." Groundbreaking choreographer Martha Graham deeply understood the power and complexity of dance--particularly as it evolved in her home country. American Dance, by critic and journalist Margaret Fuhrer, traces that richly complex evolution. From Native American dance rituals to dance in the digital age, American Dance explores centuries of innovation, individual genius and collaborative exploration. Some of its stories - such as Fred Astaire dancing on the ceiling or Alvin Ailey founding the trailblazing company that bears his name - will be familiar to anyone who loves dance. The complex origins of tap, for instance, or the Puritan outrage against "profane and promiscuous dancing" during the early years of the United States, are as full of mystery and humor as Graham describes. These various developments have never before been presented in a single book, making American Dance the most comprehensive work on the subject to date. Breakdancing, musical-theater dance, disco, ballet, jazz, ballroom, modern, hula, the Charleston, the Texas two-step, swing--these are just some of the forms celebrated in this riveting volume Hundreds of photographs accompany the text, making American Dance as visually captivating as the works it depicts.
Africans brought as slaves to North America arrived without possessions, but not without culture. The fascinating elements of African life manifested themselves richly in the New World, and among the most lasting and influential of these was the art of African dance. This generously illustrated history follows the dynamics of African dance forms throughout each generation. Early chapters discuss the African continent and the heritage of African American dance; the discrimination and marginalization of African Americans and the fortitude with which their dance forms survived; and black dance in the slavery era and later in the nineteenth century. Remaining chapters outline ten major characteristics that have consistently marked African American dance, and describe the various styles of black vernacular dance that became popular in America. The book concludes with a discussion of African dance at the end of the twentieth century and its important role in the flowering of African American arts. Instructors considering this book for use in a course may request an examination copy here.
Text and pictures show scenes and steps from "Sleeping Beauty," "Giselle," "Coppelia," "Swan Lake," and "The Nutcracker."
NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • NAMED ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR BY THE NEW YORK TIMES BOOK REVIEW, LOS ANGELES TIMES, SAN FRANCISCO CHRONICLE, AND PUBLISHERS WEEKLY For more than four hundred years, the art of ballet has stood at the center of Western civilization. Its traditions serve as a record of our past. Lavishly illustrated and beautifully told, Apollo’s Angels—the first cultural history of ballet ever written—is a groundbreaking work. From ballet’s origins in the Renaissance and the codification of its basic steps and positions under France’s Louis XIV (himself an avid dancer), the art form wound its way through the courts of Europe, from Paris and Milan to Vienna and St. Petersburg. In the twentieth century, émigré dancers taught their art to a generation in the United States and in Western Europe, setting off a new and radical transformation of dance. Jennifer Homans, a historian, critic, and former professional ballerina, wields a knowledge of dance born of dedicated practice. Her admiration and love for the ballet, as Entertainment Weekly notes, brings “a dancer’s grace and sure-footed agility to the page.”
Discover the tales which inspired famous ballets in this selection of twelve stories, retold especially for readers today. A perfect introduction to the famous ballets. Includes Swan Lake, Sleeping Beauty, Coppelia and Don Quixote. Beautifully produced, with stylish illustrations by Yvonne Gilbert Nanos.
This book showcases the stories of Ireland's unsung movers: actors, dancers, choreographers, playwrights, directors, and the few academics who dare to go where no words have gone before.