Definitive history of a fantastic, refined and exquisite artform. Dancers shape and perfect the highest form of the human physique, morality in muscle, the body eclectic.
Ballet is the body divined.
It all began at royal court in 16th century France, the dance of Kings - Louis XIII designed costumes and Louis XIV studied ballet daily ... "all the misfortunes of mankind, all the disasters of which history is full, the bungling of politicians and the mistakes of great generals, all come through not learning to dance."
Pierre Beauchamps formulated the five positions of the body allowing for that "crucial leap from etiquette to art" and are still today a beautiful base of outward rotated feet and legs from which classical ballet rises and expands. Auguste Vestris, French dancer favoured by Marie Antoinette "pried the feet open 180 degrees" where they have remained and emphasized fully pointed feet in soft flat shoes and ribbon wrapped ankles.
Marie Salle, mid 18th century ballerina revered by Voltaire and Montesquieu, insinuated with sensual movement the idea that all women not only men and kings may dance. The history of ballet is a story of class, a language of upright ascent and substantial nobility. "Ballerinas acted like aristocrats even when in real life they most emphatically were not."
Marie Taglioni is still recognized as the first ballerina, born in Stockholm in 1804 of a dynasty of Italian dancers, acquired immortal fame considering her prodigious shortcomings. She represented the dream of a fully expressed life, the dream of all girls - to dance - they know within a confined tutu lies untold freedom.
Attributed to Russian master Balanchine in his letter to Jacqueline Kennedy, "Ballet is woman,.... Man takes care of the material things and woman takes care of soul. Woman is the world and man lives in it."
Ballet like prayer is ritual repitition, the closer to perfection, the closer to God.
Ballet seems always to be ending and has been finished many times, sliding into "empty and meaningless virtuosity" but now it is feared to be decidedly near its ultimate death.
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/home/you/article-1333021/Former-ballerina-Jennifer-Homans-asks-ballet-breaking-pointe.html
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