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Brittanica definition + more

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dance, the movement of the body in a rhythmic way, usually to music and within a given space, for the purpose of expressing an idea or emotion, releasing energy, or simply taking delight in the movement itself.

Dance is a powerful impulse, but the art of dance is that impulse channeled by skillful performers into something that becomes intensely expressive and that may delight spectators who feel no wish to dance themselves. These two concepts of the art of dance-dance as a powerful impulse and dance as a skillfully choreographed art practiced largely by a professional few-are the two most important connecting ideas running through any consideration of the subject. In dance, the connection between the two concepts is stronger than in some other arts, and neither can exist without the other.

Although the above broad definition covers all forms of the art, philosophers and critics throughout history have suggested different definitions of dance that have amounted to little more than descriptions of the kind of dance with which each writer was most familiar. Thus, Aristotle's statement in the Poetics that dance is rhythmic movement whose purpose is "to represent men's characters as well as what they do and suffer" refers to the central role that dance played in classical Greek theatre, where the chorus through its movements reenacted the themes of the drama during lyric interludes.

The English ballet master John Weaver, writing in 1721, argued on the other hand that "Dancing is an elegant, and regular movement, harmoniously composed of beautiful Attitudes, and contrasted graceful Posture of the Body, and parts thereof." Weaver's description reflects very clearly the kind of dignified and courtly movement that characterized the ballet of his time, with its highly formalized aesthetics and lack of forceful emotion. The 19th-century French dance historian Gaston Vuillier also emphasized the qualities of grace, harmony, and beauty, distinguishing "true" dance from the supposedly crude and spontaneous movements of early man:

The choreographic art . . . was probably unknown to the earlier ages of humanity. Savage man, wandering in forests, devouring the quivering flesh of his spoils, can have known nothing of those rhythmic postures which reflect sweet and caressing sensations entirely alien to his moods. The nearest approach to such must have been the leaps and bounds, the incoherent gestures, by which he expressed the joys and furies of his brutal life.

John Martin, the 20th-century dance critic, almost ignored the formal aspect of dance in emphasizing its role as a physical expression of inner emotion. In doing so, he betrayed his own sympathy toward the Expressionist school of modern American dance: "At the root of all these varied manifestations of dancing . . . lies the common impulse to resort to movement to externalise states which we cannot externalise by rational means. This is basic dance."

A truly universal definition of dance must, therefore, return to the fundamental principle that dance is an art form or activity that utilizes the body and the range of movement of which the body is capable. Unlike the movements performed in everyday living, dance movements are not directly related to work, travel, or survival. Dance may, of course, be made up of movements associated with these activities, as in the work dances common to many cultures, and it may even accompany such activities. But even in the most practical dances, movements that make up the dance are not reducible to those of straightforward labour; rather, they involve some extra qualities such as self-expression, aesthetic pleasure, and entertainment.

This article discusses the techniques and components of dance as well as the aesthetic principles behind its appreciation as an art. Various types of dance are discussed with emphasis on their style and choreography. The history of dance in various regions is treated in a number of articles; see dance, African; music and dance, Oceanic; dance, Western; arts, Central Asian; arts, East Asian; arts, Islamic; dance, Native American; arts, South Asian; and arts, Southeast Asian. The interaction between dance and other art forms is discussed in folk dance.

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Dance | Definition, Characteristics, Types, History, People, & Facts

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Dance, the movement of the body in a rhythmic way, usually to music and within a given space, for the purpose of expressing an idea or emotion, releasing energy, or simply taking delight in the movement itself. Learn more about the history, styles, and aesthetics of dance in this article.

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History, facts, origins, etc.

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Scroll through a brief ballet history from its where ballet originated in the 15th-century Italian renaissance courts to what ballet dance looks like in the 21st century.

Origin of Ballet

Ballet originated in the Italian Renaissance courts of the 15th century. Noblemen and women were treated to lavish events, especially wedding celebrations, where dancing and music created an elaborate spectacle. Dancing masters taught the steps to the nobility, and the court participated in the performances. In the 16th century, Catherine de Medici - an Italian noblewoman, wife of King Henry II of France and a great patron of the arts - began to fund ballet in the French court. Her elaborate festivals encouraged the growth of ballet de cour, a program that included dance, decor, costume, song, music and poetry. A century later, King Louis XIV helped to popularize and standardize the art form. A passionate dancer, he performed many roles himself, including that of the Sun King in Ballet de la nuit. His love of ballet fostered its elevation from a past time for amateurs to an endeavor requiring professional training.

By 1661, a dance academy had opened in Paris, and in 1681 ballet moved from the courts to the stage. The French opera Le Triomphe de l'Amour incorporated ballet elements, creating a long-standing opera-ballet tradition in France. By the mid-1700s French ballet master Jean Georges Noverre rebelled against the artifice of opera-ballet, believing that ballet could stand on its own as an art form. His notions - that ballet should contain expressive, dramatic movement that should reveal the relationships between characters - introduced the ballet d'action, a dramatic style of ballet that conveys a narrative. Noverre's work is considered the precursor to the narrative ballets of the 19th century.

The 19th Century

Early classical ballets such as and La Sylphide were created during the Romantic Movement in the first half of the 19th century. This movement influenced art, music and ballet. It was concerned with the supernatural world of spirits and magic and often showed women as passive and fragile. These themes are reflected in the ballets of the time and are called romantic ballets. This is also the period of time when dancing on the tips of the toes, known as pointe work, became the norm for the ballerina. The romantic tutu, a calf-length, full skirt made of tulle, was introduced.

The popularity of ballet soared in Russia, and, during the latter half of the 19th century, Russian choreographers and composers took it to new heights. Marius Petipa's The Nutcracker, The Sleeping Beauty and , by Petipa and Lev Ivanov, represent classical ballet in its grandest form. The main purpose was to display classical technique - pointe work, high extensions, precision of movement and turn-out (the outward rotation of the legs from the hip)-to the fullest. Complicated sequences that show off demanding steps, leaps and turns were choreographed into the story. The classical tutu, much shorter and stiffer than the romantic tutu, was introduced at this time to reveal a ballerina's legs and the difficulty of her movements and footwork.

Ballet Today

In the early part of the 20th century, Russian choreographers Sergei Diaghilev and Michel Fokine began to experiment with movement and costume, moving beyond the confines of classical ballet form and story. Diaghilev collaborated with composer Igor Stravinsky on the ballet The Rite of Spring, a work so different -with its dissonant music, its story of human sacrifice and its unfamiliar movements - that it caused the audience to riot. Choreographer and New York City Ballet founder George Balanchine, a Russian who emigrated to America, would change ballet even further. He introduced what is now known as neo-classical ballet, an expansion on the classical form. He also is considered by many to be the greatest innovator of the contemporary "plotless" ballet. With no definite story line, its purpose is to use movement to express the music and to illuminate human emotion and endeavor. Today, ballet is multi-faceted. Classical forms, traditional stories and contemporary choreographic innovations intertwine to produce the character of modern ballet.

What's Next?

Choreographers continue to create diverse styles of ballets, and ballet companies are giving dance audiences a wide range of experiences in the theater. What do you think will be the next phase for ballet?

Learn More!

Or, check out the following at your local library or bookstore, or at Amazon.com:

Apollo's Angels: A History of Ballet, by Jennifer Homans, 2010

Ballet: An Illustrated History, by Clement Crist and Mary Clark, 1992

Ballet and Modern Dance: A Concise History, by Jack Anderson, 1993

Ballet in Western Culture: A History of its Origins and Evolution, by Carol Lee, 1992

Experience ballet for yourself with classes for all ages, including adult beginning ballet classes. Or, introduce your little ones to ballet with Dance the Story at Home!

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A Brief History of Ballet - Illustrated by Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre

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Get a brief history of ballet from its origins in the 15th-century Italian renaissance courts to what it looks like in the 21st century.

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How its evolved, facts, types of moves, etc.

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Jazz, the dance, is as experimental, free form and fluid as jazz, the music. It’s fusion, it’s inventive, it’s exuberant. And, like the music, jazz dance is…

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Origins, forms, history, etc.

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Since it first appeared in the public, tap dancing immediately enchanted the public in the North America, becoming a vital part of Jazz music culture and broader mainstream musical culture that even managed to popularize tap dancing as a hobby for many millions of people.

Tap dancing can be separated into two distinct styles - Jazz/Rhythm dance that is focused on musicality and tradition of tap dance, and Broadway that is used by stage performers who weave the dance into the theater stories.

The origins of the tap dance can be tracked all the way back to the mid-1800 and the clash of the musical influences across North America. There, a mix of African tribal, English, Scottish and Irish music and dances brought to life many new genres, including the dance style that was focused on the creation of tap sounds using shoe heel, toe and sliding of the shoes across the ground.

Tap dance was first featured to the wider public during minstrel shows (traveling musical groups) by one of the first black performers ever permitted to dance on stage to white audiences - William Henry Lane, also known as Master Juba. He became famous as the dancer who can outperform all his white competition in the United States, and was able to attract significant fame in England which he visited with musical troupe "Ethiopian Serenaders". His tap dance became instantly very popular in Victorian England, and his influence pushed many other black and white dancers on both sides of Atlantic to start practicing tap dance. He sadly fell away from the limelight after his return to the United States and remained mostly forgotten until modern historians began promoting his contribution to the history of jazz and tap dance.

While Master Juba was responsible for the initial spreading of tap dance, the true mainstream acceptance came during the life of Bill "Bojangles" Robinson (1878 - 1949). This African American entertainer managed to distinguish himself on the North American and English Vaudeville circuit firstly as a part of a dancing duo with George W. Cooper in 1902, and then as a solo performer (which was unheard of at that time) after 1908. Despite being a black man, he achieved tremendous success in both the dancing scene and in the Hollywood, where he became internationally known for the string of performances he did in Shirley Temple films and his starring musical film Stormy Weather (1943). His signature dance move was tap dancing up and down set of stairs in a very complex way. Popular dancers during 1930s were Nicholas Brothers (Fayard and Harold) who popularized highly acrobatic and demanding "flash dancing" which mixed tap dancing with choreographed jumps and even leapfrogs above each other.

While tap dancing entered into decline after the 1940s and 1950s when entire music genre of Jazz went into decline with the arrival of modern rock and pop music, tap dance continues to evolve. The Recent resurgence of tap dance can be attributed to the documentary film "No Maps on My Taps" and the highly successful animated film "Happy Feet".

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History of Tap Dancing - Origins of Tap Dance

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Since it first appeared in the public, tap dancing immediately enchanted the public in the North America, becoming a vital part of Jazz music culture and broader mainstream musical culture that even managed to popularize tap dancing as a hobby for many millions of people.

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Origins, variations, etc.

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Compared to many other dance forms, hip hop has a relatively short history. The beginnings of this dance form date back to the 1960s and 70s, but of course the movements and the music have roots dating back much further in time.

Early History of Hip Hop Dance

Hip hop dancing is thought to have officially begun in New York City during the late 1960s and early 70s. During this time, individuals without professional dance training but with a natural instinct for movement brought dancing to the streets. A dance form meant to be popular in the original sense of the word, meaning that it was for the people and not for the academy, hip hop moves were inspired by complex rhythms and the down-to-earth movement style of African dancing. Music and movement came together to form a new art. While vestiges of modern, tap, swing, and African dancing can all be found in hip hop, this dance style is really in a class of its own when it comes to improvisation and an edge of competition.

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The roots of hip hop on the East Coast are widely known, but there is also a West Coast hip hop history from which many of the most well-known hip hop moves originated.

East Coast Hip Hop

Hip hop didn't develop only on the East Coast, but New York City artists invented a musical style and a dance culture that went viral decades before there was an internet. While it wasn't yet called hip hop dance, this art form really began to develop when DJ Herc moved to Brooklyn at the age of 12, and started an informal performance career that would quickly turn him into one of the most popular DJs in New York City.

Moving to New York City from Jamaica, Kool DJ Herc was the first DJ to make unique music by playing two record machines with the same record on both. The rhythms he created were one of the important founding elements of hip hop; he also extended the dance section of songs so the dancers could show off their moves for a longer interlude, laying the foundation for a significant dance culture.

West Coast Hip Hop

On the West Coast, hip hop dancing borrowed from the Bronx but developed its own style. The Jackson Five's music and performance is the '60s and '70s was one inspiration for roboting. Robotic moves were based on popular TV shows and films about aliens and robots. While the East Coast b-boys were Freezing in power moves in their breaks, West Coast hip hoppers were mimicking department store mannequins in theirs. Wanting to replicate the movement of artificial life, the following pioneers shaped hip hop on the West Coast.

Boogaloo Sam: The creator of popping, Boogaloo Sam was an important influence in hip hop evolution. Contributing to the early West Coast hip hop scene in the 1970s, he had an innate gift for music and movement and was the founder of the dance group Electric Boogaloo.

Don Campbellock: While his real name was Don Campbell, his invention, locking, influenced his name. Known as Don Campbellock, this important figure in hip hop dancing created the dance group The Lockers, and his iconic dance shaped the early West Coast scene.

American Hip Hop

While for hip hop dancers, the popping and locking of the West Coast and the breaking of the East Coast are two very separate dance styles, the two regional variants often get blended and grouped into the genre 'hip hop.' As the dance form continued to evolve, many dancers retained the original styles respective to each region, while other artists brought in not only several different styles of hip hop dancing, but also additional existing dance styles such as swing.

1980s Evolution of Hip Hop

When hip hop first started it was a performative, but informal, dance culture. B-boys and b-girls (terms introduced by DJ Herc) would be invited to show off their moves by other people on the street, on the basketball court, or wherever the group happened to be. As the moves became more institutionalized (for example, breaking, popping, and locking), and more and more dancers got caught up in the rhythms of the music, the street scene shifted to more formal dance venues. The choreography developed recognizable moves, but the innovative and competitive nature of hip hop remained. It was often danced as a "battle" or one-on-one face-off in a circle of cheering fans.

In the 1980s and 90s more clubs featured hip hop DJs, especially in the larger cities, and dancers of all skill levels would hit the dance floor. Both informal and formal competitions often arose. Informal competitions started when a few truly exceptional dancers were noticed on the dance floor; the rest of the people would back off and allow the leaders to duke it out. As these informal competitions became increasingly common and popular, announced competitions became part of a night out at hip hop clubs. Whether they arose organically or they were advertised in advance, this competitive nature helped hip hop retain the battle culture that has existed since the beginning. This type of competition can also be seen in other dance forms, perhaps most notably in tap dancing of the early 20th century.

Now You See 'Em

There are so many innovators in the dance form it's hard to keep track of them. Famous names include Dan Karaty, Brian Friedman, Chucky Klapow, Robert Hoffman, Michael Jackson (early adopter and memorable moves), Comfort Fedoke, tWitch Boss, Soulja Boy, Cyrus "Glitch" Spencer, and Napoleon and Tabitha D'umo -- choreographers who work as Nappytabs for high profile shows like So You Think You Can Dance and Cirque Du Soleil.

21st Century Hip Hop

Nowadays, street hip hop is likely to be an orchestrated flash mob, and hip hop fusion wins Tony's on Broadway.

The roots of hip hop were informal and group-based instead of audience-based, but that's evolved, too. Hip hop is so powerful it jumped from the curb to center stage in the 1990s and just keeps gobbling up performance turf. Popular hip hop dancers can rock a club scene, but they can also mesmerize a competition jury of dance experts or wow national television audiences. Choreographer Wade Robson created his television show, The Wade Robson Project, to select upcoming hip hop dance talent, while dance crews like Diversity and iCONic Boyz were busy impressing television audiences with their moves and styles.

Since the advent of music television and social media, hip hop has dominated music videos. 21st-century hip hop is a compilation of classic b-boy breaking, popping, locking, tutting and other refinements, and freestyle forms such as the animatronic hip hop of performers like tWitch and Fik Shun.

Hip Hop Pop

Hip hop may be the new kid on the block, but it owns the block. Little kids pop and lock at kindergarten recess -- fitting, as DJ Herc and his boys used to steal electricity from light poles and set up their neighborhood dance parties in Bronx schoolyards. You can tick off that See-Venice bucket list item as you visit Piazza San Marco and catch a flash mob hip hopping in between the acqua altas. It's New Year's Eve in Times Square, back-up for Beyonce, cheerleading squad at your high school homecoming, happening in 5-inch stilettos at Senior Prom. Just surrender. Work on your pelvic isolations, your shoulder rolls, and your take-no-prisoners game face. You can't waltz your way out of this one. But you can throw up your fists, stick out your chest, step fast and fancy in your sneakers, and just add hip hop to your party repertoire. You know how it's done now -- so get down and make a little dance history of your own.

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History of Hip Hop Dance: Facts About a Powerful Genre | LoveToKnow

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The history of hip hop dance is unique and inspiring. Learn more about the facts behind this powerful genre of dance. Get an overview of hip hop dance history here!

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Most famous types of folk dances across the world.

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There is certainly more to dance than its literal meaning. It is a source of enjoyment, a stress buster or simply, an exercise. When in the form of folk dance it also connects to the ethos of the land. Folk dances are about history; about traditions and exotic beauty of the land it is associated with. Free from shackles of anything mundane and thus critically praised, here is a list of top 10 most popular folk dances in the world.

5. Kabuki (Japan)

Kabuki isn't merely just a dance, it combined the art of drama, singing and dancing. Kabuki began in the streets of Kyoto in the 17th century by only female performers who played both female and male roles. Kabuki translates to 'out of the ordinary'.

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Top 10 Most Popular Folk Dances in the World. | Dance Buzz

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There is certainly more to dance than its literal meaning. It is a source of enjoyment, a stress buster or simply, an exercise. When in the form of folk dance it also connects to the ethos of the land. Folk dances are about history; about traditions and exotic beauty of the land it is associated with.

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Variations, origins etc.

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ABOUT MODERN DANCE (A very brief & condensed history)
Modern Dance is a term that describes many types of dance techniques. It's a category of dance styles, often referred to as a of dance. Many of the main styles in this genre are credited to specific choreographers who pioneered new and unique ways of moving and created new movement vocabularies based on their personal philosophies; their views of how dance functions as an artistic tool. Dancers trained in private dance studios often tend to associate or refer modern dance with the terms or contemporary dance. While these studios and competition forms may have some movements in common with professional concert modern dance, lyrical dance actually refers to a quality of movement. Contemporary dance usually means that it has been created recently, is performed to contemporary music, and is a fusion of ballet, jazz and modern styles.

What then makes something Modern Dance? There are no absolute lines drawn in the world of professional dance, but for purposes of this class, here are limited definitions of modern dance forms that have at least one of the following characteristics:

Based on one of the codified techniques of the early masters, such as Graham, Humphrey, Limón, Dunham, Horton or Cunningham

Based on movements created by use of breath, articulation of the torso (such as aligned, titled, or contracted), use of the floor, or improvisation, without the need for turned-out positions of the legs or pointed feet

A fusion of dance styles that use the movement vocabulary of ballet, jazz, modern, hip-hop, Afro-Caribbean, capoeira and post-modern dance in the same choreography

A strong association with the ground in movement choices; an emphasis on grounded movement when standing and a vocabulary of movements done while lying or seated on the floor.

Rather than a concise definition of what Modern Dance is, perhaps more important to you is what it can contribute to the enrichment of your life. It can introduce you to a new form of technique in which you experience the joy of movement. It can heighten your appreciation of music, other various arts and movement forms. It can increase your respect and understanding of the dancer's profession. It can also expand your awareness and appreciation of the way you and others move.

Every artist is a product of the time in which he or she creates. While early modern dance artist were frequently on the cutting edge of change, many also reflected the social and political prejudices and circumstances of their time. The driving force for many artist in the beginning of the 20 th century was their search for elements of dance.

While it is not possible to give adequate recognition to all of the choreographers, producers, educators and dancers who have shaped modern dance, several prominent individuals can help in tracing the development of the art form as it is practiced in the studio and often performed today.

1900 - 1920: The Matriarchs, Loie Fuller, Isadora Duncan and Ruth St.Denis

1920 - 1940: The Pioneers, Ted Shawn, Doris Humphrey, Martha Graham, Mary Wigman, Katherine Dunham

1940 - 1960: 2nd Generation, the Legacy Builders, José Limón, Hanya Holm

1940 - 1960: 2nd Generation, the Iconoclasts, Merce Cunningham, Lester Horton, Alwin Nikolais

1960 - 1980: Synthesizers, Alvin Ailey, Paul Taylor, Twyla Tharp

1980 - 2000: Collaborators, Pilobolus, Bill T. Jones

In the past, 'Modern Dance' represented the viewpoints and movement concepts of each of several dancers or choreographers. .. Martha Graham technique, Doris Humphrey Technique, or Lestor Horton Technique. As the horizons of the dance artist have widened, so have the movement forms, which look more alike, than uniquely different. Modern dance is a younger art form than ballet and the movement style centers on the dancer's own interpretations instead of the standardized movements and structured steps of classical or traditional ballet. However, Modern dance does use many of the classical vocabulary and terminology. Today many 'ballet' choreographers utilize the movement concepts of the modern dancer and exercises of the ballet dancer are now used in the 'modern' techniques. Modern dance is known for its independence, invention and non-traditional attitude. Many choreographers now include in their work not only the elusive modern dance techniques, but also the principles of Jazz, African, Ballet, and other ethnic dance.
Modernism versus Realism
The development of Modern dance as an art form came about by breaking the 'rules' of what dance was 'supposed' to be. During the 1900's European dancers began rebelling against the rigid rules of classical ballet, the structured techniques, costumes and ballet shoes. Toward the end of the 19 th century dedicated individuals like Loie Fuller, Ruth St. Denis, Isadora Duncan and Ted Shawn were performing regularly. For want of a better name "classic" dance was affixed to the work of those artists who patterned their works on idealized Greek or Roman models. These new dancers favored a more relaxed, free style of dancing. Modern dance pioneers danced in bare feet and free flowing often revealing costumes.

Many artist engaged in a deliberate departure from realistic depiction in art to what became known as modernism. This new style explored subjective experience, such as one's feelings and perceptions rather than observed real life. The work looked abstract as opposed to realistic. For example; the works of painter Pablo Picasso, which contain recognizable body parts but not the realistic face of a woman, are an example of this modernist movement in art. The new dance, or modern dance as it later become known, was interested in depicting the abstraction of the human experience rather than a realistic retelling of a story. The new dance form explored persona feelings about the world through abstracted, uncluttered, and nonliteral movement. Just as modernism in art, modern dance manifested itself as a rebellion against the artistic traditions of the past.
By the second decade of the 20th century the name "Modern Dance" had begun to be used to describe the work of Denishawn successors such as Martha Graham, Doris Humphrey, Charles Weidman, Hanya Holm, Helen Tamrisis and Lester Horton. The main characteristic of modern dance is that it encourages dancers to use their emotions and moods to design their steps, combinations and dances instead of following a structured code of technique as in the ballet. Schools of movement were being formed based on the individual choreographer's vocabulary of movement which were derived from their own conception of where the movement impulse originated and how it was to be developed logically.
St. Denis and Ted Shawn came together professionally and established a school in the Westlake district of Los Angeles that attracted students from around the country. St. Denis was the muse, role model and sometimes teacher, while Shawn focused primarily on the details school. Their company, named Denishawn toured on the popular vaudeville circuits and was the most important serious dance company in the country.

Graham, Humphrey and Weidman rejected the aesthetic of Denishawn, terming it "Dancing Gods and Goddesses," and opted for personal or social themes, performed in costuming closer to contemporary dress than the exotic gowns worn by earlier performers or the traditional classical ballet tutus. The choreographers of this generation developed movement styles that were percussive and virtually devoid of dramatic "silent movie" gesture that characterized the previous generation as well as the rigid rules of classical technique. Another characteristic of modern dance in opposition to ballet is the deliberate use of gravity. Whereas in classical ballet, the dancer is constantly striving to be light and airy on their feet at all times. Weighted movement was desired by the modern dancer, as they considered the floor on which they danced to be a source of strength to be courted rather than a support from which to be liberated. They often use their body weight to enhance movement. The modern dancer rejects the classical stance of an upright erect body, often opting instead for deliberate falls and rolls on the floor.

Starting in 1934, the Bennington College Summer School of Dance offered students the opportunity to study with the "big four": Graham, Humphrey Weidman and Holm. (Hanya Holm emigrated from Germany and opened a studio in New York in 1933 founded on the principles developed by Mary Wigman.) In addition to technique, classes in composition, stagecraft and music history were offered. The student body drew heavily from teachers in physical education departments (very few schools offered a degree in dance) around the country.
On the west coast, Lester Horton, whose initial interest in Amerind culture (a group of indigenous native American Indians) brought him to modern dance. He established a company and a theater devoted entirely to dance presentation in Los Angeles. He also utilized his choreographic talents in a variety of movies. Colorblind in his training of dancers, Horton had the first integrated modern dance company in the United States. He encouraged the work of Alvin Ailey, Carmen de Lavallade and Janet Collins, among others. Ailey, like Pearl Primus and Katherine Dunham before him, addressed themes of racial equality, social injustice and religious fervor that stemmed from the black experience. Stylistically they found the narrative structure of the post-Denishawn period most useful for their work as did later choreographers like Talley Beatty, Donald McKayle, George Faison, Garth Fagan and Bill T. Jones.
Public acceptance came slowly during the 1930's but increased in the 1940's when this generation of choreographers were invited to choreograph musicals for the popular theater and present their own company in more popular theatrical venues.

In the 1960's, choreographers disassociated themselves from all the theatrical conventions of their predecessors and concentrated primarily upon body movement, trained or untrained. They performed indoors, outdoors, from rooftops to street locales, almost everywhere except in proscenium arched theaters. Everyday clothing was often favored as costuming as well as nudity at times. This movement had its root in the early 1960's with a course in composition taught by pianist, accompanist and composer Robert Dunn at the Cunningham studio. It was non-judgmental teaching that encouraged those taking the course to understand the logic of their own choices and to explore them fully.

Modern dance has been and continues to be taken up as a liberated form of serious dance expression in each country that has been exposed to it. The influence of the vigorous creative life of American companies broadly stimulated modern dance development throughout the world in the second half of the 20 th century. This influence has encouraged choreographers to develop the movement language that speaks most directly to their audiences. Modern dance from its inception has encouraged individual expression in choice of themes and means of performance.

Martha Graham, a former student of Ruth St. Dennis, is considered one of the foremost pioneers of American modern dance. In order to express the passion, rage and ecstasy of humans she developed her very own language of movement. She created a new dance technique similar to ballet but with several differences. She focused heavily on basic human movement, concentrating on the movements of contracting and releasing. Instead of long fluid movements, Graham's movements were sharp and jagged. Her dancing aimed to expose basic human emotions through movement. "Movement never lies." Graham's brave and bold vision for modern dance earned her many awards, honors and worldwide recognition.

The history of modern dance is tied to the social, political, and artistic trends of the era in which it was created. Beginning as new dance in the early part of the 20 th century, modern dance was shaped by the women's movement, new trends in visual arts and a growing love of the scientific approach. The matriarchal generation of Isadora Duncan, Lorie Fuller and Ruth St. Denis inspired the imaginations of the dance world as it pulled away from the traditions of the previous century.

As each era of the 20th century changed, so did modern dance. The 1920s to 1930s were the pioneering era of the art form. Luminaries like Martha Graham, Doris Humphrey and Katherine Dunham began to shape and define what this new genre of dance would be. The 1940s and 1950s saw the successors to the pioneers, give rise to such new stylistic variations through the work of artistic giants such as José Limón and Merce Cunningham. From 1960 through the 1980s, choreographers and dancers synthesized and re-examined the work of the pioneers, bringing new kinds of movement vocabulary to the modern dance idiom. Icons such as Alvin Ailey and Twyla Tharp are emblematic of this time. The last portion of the 20 th century brought forward the value of collaboration through the work of truly inventive creators, including Bill T. Jones and Pilobolus.
SIMILARITIES:
One can see the similarities and differences between traditional modern dance and post-modern dance:
DIFFERENCES:

Both presented dances that displayed innovative movement.

Both utilized themes that were social, political and global.

Both utilized the elements of space, time and energy in a way that was different from ballet.

Some post-modern dances were plotless and devoid of narrative; many traditional modern dances had strong narrative lines.

Traditional modern dances employed trained dancers; some post-modern choreographers used untrained dancers.

Traditional modern dances more often than not, utilized costumes; post-modern dances were often presented in everyday street clothes.

Traditional modern dance was often presented in theaters; post-modern dance was presented in a number of different places.

The contributions that the post-modern artist made to the dance world have had a profound effect on the way that people choreograph and view dance.

Modern dancers today use dancing to express their inner most emotions, often to get closer to their inner-selves. Before attempting to choreograph, a combination or dance, the modern dancer decides which emotions to try to convey to the audience. Many modern dancers choose a subject near and dear to their hearts, such as a lost love or a personal failure. The dancer will have music composed or use already composed music that reflects or relates to the story they wish to tell or they may choose to use no music at all. In addition, they choose a costume to further reflect their chosen emotions.

Modern dance continues to be a relevant and vibrant art form in the 21 st century. Its uniting characteristics are its response to the times in which it is being created, its resistance to past traditions, and its constant re-evaluation of its relevance and significance. The traditions and techniques of Modern dance continue to evolve as new gifted artist change the rules.
Modern dance has and always will be about the world in which we live, reflecting all that the world encompasses in the form of movement.
Such change is a healthy thing. An art form can only grow when new ideas and modes of expression come into it!

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ABOUT MODERN DANCE (A very brief & condensed history) Modern Dance is a term that describes many types of dance techniques. It's a category of dance styles, often referred to as a genre of dance. Many of the main styles in this genre are credited to specific choreographers who pioneered new and unique ways of ...

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This list is a big one.

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Dance Professions: Who's Who?

There are many different professions within a dance company. In addition to the artistic team, including dancers, choreographers, designers and composers, there are also many individuals who work behind the scenes.

Members of the production team work in the theatre, wardrobe and workshop. They ensure the construction, support and facilitation of aspects of the performance. Members of the administration team work at the company offices and studios or at related organizations. They manage and coordinate the day-to-day operations of the company at home and on tour.

In large companies, a different individual fulfils each specific role. Depending on the company, there may be other roles required as well. In small companies, individuals may take on more than one role.

Artistic Professions

Accompanist/Rehearsal Pianist

An accompanist or rehearsal pianist plays for daily class and rehearsals. Accompanists or rehearsal pianists are usually professional pianists or drummers/percussionists familiar with the specific protocol for dance classes and rehearsals. Pianists may learn a score for an upcoming performance so that the dancers can rehearse without the full orchestra.

Apprentice/Intern

An apprentice or intern is a dancer who works alongside the regular company dancers, learning repertoire and understudying roles. An apprenticeship or internship is seen to bridge the transition from dance student to professional dancer.

Artistic Director

An artistic director oversees and directs the artistic activities of a dance company. The artistic director hires artistic staff, such as dancers, choreographers and designers, and plans the season based on his or her vision for the organization. He or she is the driving force behind the organization. The artistic director may also be the resident choreographer.

Ballet Master/Mistress

In a ballet company, the ballet master or mistress fulfils a similar role to the rehearsal director, but may also teach daily ballet class, rehearse the corps de ballet and character parts, advise on proper technique and assist with auditions.

A choreographer creates and sets original movement on the dancers based on a theme, image, story, piece of music or movement idea. Many choreographers are also dancers or were formerly dancers. Choreographers may work collaboratively with the dancers through improvisation. They may also specify music, costumes, sets or props.

Choreologist

A choreologist is specifically trained to notate and document a finished piece of choreography for future remounting and archiving. The most common methods of notation are Benesh and Laban.

Composer

A composer creates an original musical score for dance. He or she may collaborate on the composition with the choreographer, or the choreographer may select music that the composer previously created.

Conductor

Corps de ballet

A corps de ballet is a supporting ensemble of ballet dancers, who perform background roles such as peasants, party guests, swans or fairies in story ballets. In abstract or "pure dance" works, these artists perform ensemble roles. In hierarchical companies, dancers traditionally begin their careers as members of the corps de ballet before being promoted to soloists.

Costume Designer

Critic

A critic is an accredited journalist with a reputation and expertise in a particular field, such as dance, music, theatre or visual art. He or she is often familiar with particular artists' careers and the development of the field. A critic attends a performance and writes a critique, in which they analyze, contextualize and evaluate the work. Once published, a critique can affect public opinion about the production.

Dance Captain

In some dance companies, a dance captain is a senior dancer who is appointed to direct rehearsals, coach new dancers and give notes or corrections after performances. He or she can also be called upon to substitute when another dancer is injured. Dance captains are most common in musical theatre and in productions with large ensembles.

A dance writer is an individual with a strong knowledge of dance, who writes about the work in a number of possible ways. A dance writer may be: a critic; a journalist, who writes previews, reviews and other articles for the media; a researcher/historian, who writes articles, books, reports and other documents about dance for the public or for specific organizations; a creative writer, who participates in the creative process and produces written texts that may be used by the dancers or the choreographer in process or in performance.

Dancer

A dancer is an individual who interprets and performs the movements set by the choreographer. He or she may also participate in the development of the movement. A dancer may work independently, as a freelance or guest artist, or as a member of a company or ensemble.

Dancer Representative

Danseur Noble

First Soloist

Lighting Designer

A lighting designer creates lighting states that complement or highlight the movement. A sequence of lighting states are then made into lighting cues and plotted on a diagram. The lighting plot specifies the type and number of lights to be used, their position, colour and intensity. Once the lights have been hung and adjusted, individual lighting cues can usually be programmed into a computerized lighting board. The lighting designer works closely with the choreographer.

Prima Ballerina

A principal dancer is a dancer who has reached a very high level of technical ability and artistic maturity. A principal dancer performs starring roles in a company's repertoire.

Rehearsal Director

A rehearsal director schedules and supervises rehearsals to ensure that the dancers know and interpret the choreography as set by the choreographer. The rehearsal director also gives notes (corrections or changes) after a performance. Rehearsal directors are often former dancers with the company or the choreographer. A rehearsal director is different than a repetiteur in that he or she is not necessarily an expert on the work of the choreographer and is generally not authorized to teach or rehearse a work in the absence of the choreographer.

Repetiteur

Resident Choreographer

A resident choreographer is a choreographer who is "in residence" with a dance company or dance institution and who is engaged to create works for that company over a specified period of time.

Second Soloist

Set/Décor Designer

A set or décor designer researches and designs sets that complement or respond to the theme, storyline or setting of the choreography. The set designer will also advise on the materials to be used and the colour scheme for the décor. The set designer works closely with the choreographer.

Props Designer

A props designer researches and designs or sources props that respond to elements of the theme, storyline or setting of the choreography. Props are manufactured to look authentic but are often larger or lighter in weight than they would be in reality. The props designer works closely with the choreographer.

Production Professions

Assistant Stage Manager

An assistant stage manager supports the stage manager in preparing for performances. He or she communicates with the stage manager by headset backstage during the show to ensure that sets, props and performers are ready for their cues. The assistant stage manager may be one of many stagehands working backstage during a performance.

Cutter

Dresser

A dresser helps dancers get into and out of costumes. A dresser may assist dancers during quick costumes changes and may also help with additional pieces, such as hats, headdresses, gloves and shoes.

Front of House Manager

Head Carpenter

Head Electrician

A head electrician wires and installs the lights and sound equipment according to safety standards. He or she is also consulted about the purchasing, upgrading and maintenance of the lights and sound equipment.

Head Flyman

A head flyman rigs and flies (secures and suspends) lights, props and sceneries in the fly gallery above the stage, according to safety standards.

Head of Properties

A head of properties supervises all sets and props created and used during the season. He or she ensures that the sets and props are built, installed or available, in good repair and stored properly between performances. The head of properties keeps a catalogue of all sets and props so that they may accessed, recycled for other productions or rented by other dance companies.

Milliner

A milliner creates, repairs and maintains hats and headdresses according to the costume designer's directions.

Seamster/Seamstress

A seamster or seamstress sews, mends and alters costumes. He or she "builds" costumes from scratch or creates new costumes by modifying existing street wear or vintage clothing items. The seamster/seamstress knows how to make costumes look authentic but still accommodate movement and be breathable, easily removed and maintained.

Shoe Coordinator

A shoe coordinator sources, purchases, fits, stores and maintains shoes for the dancers. This is especially important in ballet companies, where dancers require several pairs of expertly fitted pointe shoes per performance or multiple changes of footwear such as character shoes or boots.

Stage Manager

A stage manager "calls" cues in the show. He or she usually wears a headset during the performance and directs members of the cast and crew to ensure that all aspects of the production - sound and lighting cues, the placement of sets and props on-stage and off, and the exits and entrances of the performers - are executed at the right time and in accordance with the choreographer's directions. The stage manager is also responsible for the safety of the performers and crew while in the theatre.

Technical Director

A technical director oversees all technical aspects of a production and has knowledge of many aspects of stagecraft, such as lighting, sound and rigging. He or she is often required to problem-solve in the days leading up to opening night. The technical director writes the technical rider for the show. A technical rider details what facilities and equipment are required to make the show happen. The technical director may also adapt the lighting designer's plot to suit other theatres when the production goes on tour.

Usher

An usher works for the theatre and takes tickets, distributes programs and seats audience members. An usher also monitors audience behaviour during performances, escorts audience members in and out of the theatre and ensures that fire exits are not blocked.

Wardrobe Assistant

A wardrobe assistant supports the wardrobe manager in carrying out his or her work. The wardrobe assistant may also work backstage during a show assembling and steaming costumes, assisting dancers with costume changes and making last minute repairs or alterations. He or she may also be responsible for ensuring that costumes are collected and laundered after each performance.

Wardrobe Manager

A wardrobe manager supervises all costumes, including shoes, hats and headdresses created and worn during the season. He or she ensures that the costumes are available for use, clean, fitted to the dancers, in good repair and stored properly between performances. The wardrobe manager keeps a catalogue of the contents of the wardrobe so that costumes may be easily accessed.

Wig and Make-up Supervisor

A wig and make-up supervisor sources, purchases, fits, stores and maintains wigs, make-up and body paint for the dancers. He or she also advises on how wigs should be worn and attached to the head and how the dancers should remove make-up.

Administration Professions

Archivist

An archivist collects, catalogues and preserves all ephemera associated with a dance company, such as programs, newspaper clippings, posters, designs, flyers, photographs, slides, videos and sound recordings for posterity. He or she has an in-depth knowledge of the best preservation techniques and practices.

Board of Directors

A board of directors is a group of interested individuals who ensure that a dance company is soundly governed, sufficiently funded and adheres to good business and fiscal practices. Board members may be business professionals such as lawyers and accountants who will lend their expertise, supporters of the organization's artistic director and donors or patrons of the dance company. The board assumes ultimate legal and financial responsibility for the organization.

Box Office Manager

A box office manager works for the theatre administration and coordinates the box office. He or she tracks ticket sales, manages box office staff, deals with patron complaints and reports box office earnings to the dance company.

Business Manager/Bookkeeper

A business manager or bookkeeper maintains the books and financial records for a dance company. He or she manages accounts payable and receivable, payroll, banking and investments and reports to the managing director and to the auditor.

Company Manager

A company manager goes "on the road" with a dance company and oversees the smooth day-to-day administration of a tour. He or she ensures that all performance obligations are met and that the company receives payment after each engagement. The company manager's main concern is the welfare of the dancers and production team.

Development Manager

A development manager oversees fundraising for a dance company. He or she researches and applies to foundations and funding bodies for support, directs fundraising events such as galas or auctions and executes direct mail campaigns to solicit donations. The development manager also liaises with donors, issues tax receipts and maintains the donor database.

Managing Director/General Manager

Marketing Manager

A marketing manager coordinates the marketing and promotions of a dance company. He or she aims to brand the organization through consistent and eye-catching media campaigns, the company's website, newsletter and house programs, as well as its logo and letterhead. He or she will book advertisements in the print and broadcast media, arrange and distribute posters and flyers and coordinate photo shoots and media calls.

Promoter

A promoter develops opportunities for and increases access to dance events in his or her community. A promoter aims to raise the profile of dance by working with venues and presenters to build relationships and nurture an audience for dance. A promoter may create local dance festivals and competitions, highlight dance programming within other community events, or invite dance artists into the community to teach and perform.

Producer/Presenter/Curator

A producer/presenter/curator has an established relationship with a performance venue, festival or presenting group. He or she invites artists and companies to perform as part of the venue's season or as part of a dedicated festival. A producer, presenter or curator selects artists whose work he or she considers entertaining, innovative, appropriate to the size and technical specifications of the venue and suited to the tastes of the target audience. Depending on the budget and mandate of the venue or festival, he or she may travel internationally in search of artists to present or may focus specifically on presenting artists from a particular region. The producer may provide the entire fee for the artist or may co-present with the artist or other partners and share the costs.

Watch a video interview with Cathy Levy, Producer, Dance Programming, National Arts Centre

Production Manager

A production manager oversees the entire production, including coordinating and setting the production schedule with the designers and the choreographer, hiring technicians and troubleshooting the production. The production manager works to keep the entire production on track and on budget.

Publicist

A publicist is hired to promote a performance or tour. He or she writes and distributes press releases and photos to the media, creates press kits, recommends appropriate avenues for promotion and ensures that journalists and other invited guests receive complimentary tickets to the performance.

Scheduler

A scheduler coordinates the daily schedule, usually in a large dance company. He or she must balance the availability of artistic staff - dancers, choreographers, production staff, rehearsal directors, repetiteurs and accompanists - and studio space, with the need for adequate time for classes, rehearsals and breaks throughout the workday.

Tour Manager

A tour manager plans and organizes a tour. He or she books accommodation and transportation, ensures the signing of performance contracts and technical riders, and coordinates the itinerary between the company and the presenter.

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There are many different professions within a dance company. In addition to the artistic team, including dancers, choreographers, designers and composers, there are also many individuals who work behind the scenes. Members of the production team work in the theatre, wardrobe and workshop. They ensure the construction, support and facilitation of aspects of the performance.

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The profession explained in detail.

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Essential Information

Dance directors typically oversee the production of a dance performance, whether on stage or in film. They are in charge of hiring dancers and choreographers, running rehearsals, and making decisions regarding creative and practical elements of the production. Dance directors are typically expected to have performed as dancers earlier in their lives. While there are no education requirements, fine arts degrees in dance are offered in schools across the country.

Required Education

Bachelor of Fine Arts (BFA) or Master of Fine Arts (MFA) in Dance may be helpful

Required Experience

Experience as dancer

Projected Job Growth (2014-2024)*

6% (for choreographers)

Median Salary (2015)*

$45,940 (for choreographers)

Source: *U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics

Duties

Most dance directors, also called artistic dance directors, have themselves been dancers in the past. However, by their late thirties, their bodies have become too old to endure the arduous physical demands of continual dancing. Some retired dancers choose to apply their vast experience in the field towards a position as a dance director. They might direct ballet companies, university dance programs, and regional dance companies, as well as the dance segments in operas, musical theater, videos, commercials, movies, and television shows. Dance directors usually specialize in a particular type of dance, such as classical ballet, jazz, folk, or modern.

Specific Responsibilities

Typically, dance directors develop and implement dance programs. They often choreograph, which involves creating new dances or rewriting existing ones. They may also dance in a production. They frequently teach, hire guest artists and arrange for master, or advanced, classes. They may also develop and oversee budgets. If dance directors are working for university dance programs, they may collaborate with other department heads and work on developing community interest in their dance program.

Salaries

Although there are no specific studies on salaries for dance directors, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) groups dance directors with choreographers ( www.bls.gov). The reported median annual wage in 2015 for this group was $45,940, with the middle 50% of choreographers earning between $28,980 and $68,220. The highest 10% earned more than $95,100.

Job Growth

In 2014, there were approximately 7,000 individuals employed as choreographers, according to the BLS. In 2014, a total of 20,100 persons worked as choreographers and dancers, and about 1 in 7 of those individuals were self-employed. Between 2014 and 2024, the number of people employed as choreographers is expected to grow at about 6%, which is as fast as average when compared to all occupations. Competition is expected to be severe since the number of applicants will be much higher than the number of job openings.

Requirements

Training as a dancer begins very early in life, usually between the ages of five and 15. Typically, training - often more important to aspiring dancers than secondary education - continues until the age of 17 or 18, when dance auditions begin. Training is usually done with a private teacher or in a ballet school. Teenagers who show the greatest potential are likely to acquire more intensive and specialized training.

Degrees

While many dance directors have a Bachelor of Fine Arts (BFA) or a Master of Fine Arts (MFA) degree, they are not necessarily a requirement for success as a dancer or choreographer. Experience is the more important requirement. Many dance aspirants, however, continue their training at one of the 74 college dance programs accredited by the National Association of Schools of Dance. Colleges and conservatories seeking dance directors generally prefer candidates with an MFA degree.

Dance directors hire dancers, oversee their training and rehearsals, and prepare them to perform live or on film. They are not required to have a degree, but may benefit from formal postsecondary training before entering this career field.

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Dance Director: Duties, Salary and Requirements

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Dance directors typically oversee the production of a dance performance, whether on stage or in film. They are in charge of hiring dancers and choreographers, running rehearsals, and making decisions regarding creative and practical elements of the production. Dance directors are typically expected to have performed as dancers earlier in their lives.

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Similar to the basic art elements, this makes dance as an art form easier for artists to understand.

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As the level changes, the dancer can support himself or herself on different body parts to create different effects.

A symmetric position is identical on the right and left sides of the body. It looks and feels stable, balanced and resolved. Think of a pyramid, the Buddha or a mirror image.

A symmetric sequence is one in which movements to the right are mirrored by movements to the left, and vice versa.

By contrast, an asymmetric position is different on the right and left sides of the body. It suggests mobility and potential loss of balance. Think of actions that are unstable, lopsided or unbalanced.

Positions and movements can be performed on a small to large scale. In small-scale actions, the limbs and torso are drawn inward: they contract, flex, fold and bend. In large-scale actions, they extend and stretch out to their fullest length.

Classical ballet positions most often use elongated lines and curves, whereas modern dance includes a range of shapes from contracted to extended.

Basic geometric forms include straight lines or rows that extend from wing to wing or from upstage to downstage. Choreographers may modify these by changing the direction the dancer faces or by adding turns. Other interesting shapes and paths include the zig-zag, square, curve, circle, figure eight, in-out spiral, serpentine and free-form or random pattern. Paths can progress clockwise or counter-clockwise.

In addition to horizontal patterns along the stage floor, choreographers explore vertical space through movements like lifts and jumps. Some, like the Montréal-based Cirque du Soleil, use platforms and scaffolds to extend the vertical range of spatial design.

For example, placing a dancer at the centre of centre stage makes a strong impact, as does moving a dancer along a straight line from upstage centre to downstage centre. The diagonal line from upstage left to downstage right makes the longest line on stage and is also a strong path.

The choreographer experiments with these different spatial forms to underpin the idea or feeling being expressed.

Tempo can be either steady or changeable, that is speeding up (accelerando) and/or slowing down (ritardando).

Many ballet movements are categorized by their characteristic tempo. For example, slow, sustained movements are called adage, while quick, light jumps are called allegro.

This excerpt from The Holy Body Tattoo Our brief eternity shows dancers moving at slow, medium and high speed.

Video credit: our brief eternity
The Holy Body Tattoo, 1996
Choreographers: Noam Gagnon, Dana Gingras
Dancers: Chantal Deeble, Noam Gagnon, Dana Gingras, Video: film elements: William Morrison, Steven R Gilmore, text elements: Chris Halcrow with William Gibson, Music: Jean-Yves Thériault, Lighting: James Proudfoot, Camera: William Morrison, Editor: William Morrison

In dance we talk of movement phrases, which dancers may or may not count in musical beats corresponding to bars.

Basic time signatures include: 2/4 (" 1, 2 ") ; 3/4 (" 1, 2, 3 ") ; 4/4 (" 1, 2, 3, 4 ") ; and 6/8 (" 1 and a, 2 and a ").

Music for dance can also be polyrhythmic, having two simultaneous tempos and metres.

Time signatures each have a unique feel. For example, 2/4 and 4/4 underscore even, regular, march-like movements whereas 6/8 and 3/4 highlight more uneven, lyrical ones.

Step-hops in 2/4 time. This has an even feel: 1+2+, 1+2.

Step-hops in 6/8 time. This has a lyrical feel, like a skip: 1 and a, 2

Country pas de basque in 2/4 time: 1+2 1+2 1+2 1+2

Balancé waltz in 3/4 time: 123 223 323 423

A phrase in 5/4 time: 1,2,3,4,5; 1,2,3,4,5.

Rhythm refers to the pattern and emphasis of beats and sub-beats in a phrase.

The rhythmic accent may be regular, following the strong beat of the musical bar, or syncopated, shifting to the weak beat.

Steps hops done evenly (1+2+3+4+5+6+7+8+);
Step hops syncopated (1 u2 u3 u 4 u5 u6 u7 u8 u).

This ballet phrase with balancés and grands jetés has its own 3/4 rhythm:
1&u 2&u 3&u 4&u 5&u 6&u 7&u 8&u.
When a dance is performed in silence or to a soundscape, its movements embody their own rhythm.

Waltz music gives this phrase a lyrical feel.

Notice how does this gentle soundscape affects your perception of the movement.

The dancer's waltz movements take on a different quality with this contemporary soundscape.

A section of Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui's Foi is performed to a sound collage.

Video Credit: Direction/Choreography: Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui, 2003
Dancers: Christine Leboutte, Joanna Dudley, Lisbeth Gruwez, Ulrika Kinn Svensson, Erna Ómarsdóttir, Laura Neyskens, Darryl E. Woods, Damien Jalet, Nicolas Vladyslav, Nam Jin Kim, Marc Wagemans, Coaching: Christine De Smedt, Isnel da Silveira
Music: Capilla Flamenca, Musical Supervision: Dirk Snellings, Set Design: Rufus Didwiszus, Technical Supervision: Koen Bauwens, Sound: Eddy Latine, Lighting Design: Jeroen Wuyts, Stage Manager: Wim Van de Cappelle, Costume Design: Isabelle Lhoas, Photography: Kurt van der Elst, Production Tour Management: Lies Vanborm, Production Assistant: Veerle Gevaert

Percussion accompaniment best emphasizes the rhythmic element in dance.

Choreographers may work with the musical rhythm to accentuate the shape of a dance phrase, or against it to juxtapose aural and visual effects.

They may create movements that correspond with the start and end of a musical or sound phrase, or those that cross phrases.

The upstage dancer's arms move with two steady drum beats. The downstage dancer moves with the syncopated rhythm of the sticks.

Weight-related action words: force, power versus delicacy, finesse.

Time-related action words: luxuriating versus rushing.

Space-related action words: unswerving, undeviating versus roundabout, circuitous.

Flow-related action words: constrained, guarded versus uninhibited, unconstrained.

Laban's theory combines the three elements of weight-space-time to produce eight basic effort actions.

Think of action words that capture the essence of each quality:

If a dance phrase uses any one effort for too long it loses impact and becomes monotonous. Choreographers vary and contrast dynamic qualities to add excitement and retain audience interest.

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As the level changes, the dancer can support himself or herself on different body parts to create different effects. A symmetric position is identical on the right and left sides of the body. It looks and feels stable, balanced and resolved. Think of a pyramid, the Buddha or a mirror image.

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Details on how to get experience.

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A mural artist produces a work of functional or decorative design, such as abstracts, company logos, advertisements, landscapes or portraits, on walls or ceilings. Muralists are often fine art painters and tile artists. The Bureau of Labor Statistics found that surveyed fine artists made a median salary of $44,600 per year in 2011, and tile and marble setters made an estimated $37,080 per year. To become a mural artist, you will need to learn as much as possible about different art forms and mural styles and techniques.

Study art history and art basics, such as composition, perspective and color usage, in high school. Although you do not need a high school diploma to become a mural artist, high school art classes can expose you to major artists and artworks including murals. It also will provide you with some basic knowledge and skills mural artists need to succeed.

Pursue advanced academic study of artists and types of fine art or mural art that interest you. Study online or in a library; or take a private class, workshop or college-level course at a local studio, art center, university or museum. Additionally, consider improving your knowledge and skills by earning a post-secondary bachelor or master of fine art degree.

Acquire hands-on experience as a mural artist by working as a helper, intern or apprentice under a professional mural painter, or a tile artist or setter who has experience designing tile murals. Use the experience to learn the tricks of the trade, such as ways to estimate the quantity and cost of materials needed for a project, and to gain job hunting or business start-up advice.

Practice sketching mural art designs, or creating them using computer software, to help you improve your skills and find your style. Additionally, practice with various tools and materials commonly used in mural art. For example, you might practice working with indoor and outdoor paints; or practice cutting and shaping tile or attaching tiles to different types of wall or ceiling surfaces.

Create offline and online portfolios that feature your mural designs and, if possible, videos of murals you have created or murals you have worked on with professional muralists. Show off your best work, as employers and potential clients want to see proof of your artistic ability and skills even if you don't have paid experience.

Search for art jobs via online job boards and networking sites, such as Indeed, Simply Hired, Monster or LinkedIn. Offer your services as a muralist to decision makers at organizations and business that often use murals, such as local museums, hospitals, zoos, theaters, advertising agencies, construction companies and restaurants.

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How to Become a Mural Artist. A mural artist produces a work of functional or decorative design, such as abstracts, company logos, advertisements, landscapes or portraits, on walls or ceilings. Muralists are often fine art painters and tile artists. The Bureau of Labor Statistics found that surveyed fine artists made ...

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How to get involved in production as an assistant.

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The road to a successful career behind the scenes in Hollywood is a long one, but one way to get a great start is by landing a job as a production assistant. While it's a demanding (and sometimes thankless) entry-level job, it's also a crucial launching pad for anyone serious about working in the industry, providing an up-close and personal view of how a production runs.

If you want to break into the business, learn all you can about every department on set, have the opportunity to climb the ladder and pursue bigger and better crew jobs, and are passionate about filmmaking, becoming a PA should be your goal. Read on for all you need to know about how to get started in this exciting, invaluable position.
A production assistant provides support and assistance to any and all areas of production to ensure a shoot runs smoothly. This may include moving equipment, setting up props, managing extras, handling paperwork, cleaning up the set, and taking food and coffee orders-among various other daily tasks.
The PA is on set to do whatever is needed in the moment that other crew members can't be worrying about. He or she regularly bounces between the production's numerous departments and has the opportunity to wear many different hats on a set-if the art department needs a hand dressing the set, the PA becomes a set dresser; if the costume department has an assortment of clothes that needs labeling, the PA jumps over to that job; if the camera crew can't operate a dolly shot with cords and cables in the way, the PA is tasked with wrangling alongside the camera operators.

In other words, they're "doing everything that no one wants to do," according to Kaitlin Cornell , a PA for Marvel Entertainment. " When someone calls 'all hands on deck!' those are the hands that arrive...Personally, I've had a wide variety of odd jobs, from office work to making sure that shipments go out on time to just plain old sweeping. If you start as a [PA] then that's the baseline for breaking in as a crew person. No matter what department, they all need PAs."

Depending on the production size, there are three main types of PAs:

Set PAs (aka Field PAs, a.k.a) are the most common. They work during principal photography and bouncing between specific departments; they know the set better than anyone

Office PAs take care of any and all clerical work in the production office: answering phones, organizing scripts and other paperwork, etc.

Post-production PAs help the team that assembles footage after shooting, like editors and post-production supervisors. They usually work to organize and group footage, keep edit bays tidy, deliver hard drives of footage, scrub through takes, etc.

There's no such thing as a "typical day" for a PA. Their responsibilities change day-to-day, hour-to-hour, minute-to-minute, and are generally dictated by key PAs, ADs, and heads of individual departments.

The only guarantee is that you'll be waking up early, on your feet, running around, juggling many different tasks on a daily basis, and getting lots of use out of your "walkies." There's no getting around a hectic schedule full of long hours and sometimes-stressful conditions, but there's never a dull moment and you'll play an integral part in bringing stories to life on screen.
There's no one way to get a PA job, but networking and putting yourself out there are crucial first steps.
The go-to advice for those who want to be , , production designers , costume designers , , and just about every film crew job is to start out as a PA-but how do you do that? Unsurprisingly, it's an extremely competitive gig, one that thousands of budding filmmakers, actors, and industry leaders aim for. Because of this, production teams rely heavily on recommendations and networking when it comes to hiring PAs-prompting the age-old conundrum of "how do I get experience for a job that requires experience?"

Depending on your location, these projects should be easy to find, especially with the advent of job boards like as Backstage, Production Weekly, Production Bulletin, US Production News, Mandy, and Production Hub , and social media groups like Film Production & Jobs and Paid Film/TV Production Jobs: Los Angeles Area .

It also can't be stressed enough how, in order to advance in this job and get more work, you must network and make connections.

Cornell advised, "If someone is interested in PA work, they should let their friends and family in the area know that they are looking for work...Opportunities often come from odd connections. I was looking for a solid production assistant job for about six months when my old roommate's boyfriend mentioned that the production company he worked for was looking to hire a PA. A person doesn't need to be union, just recommended by someone who has a connection to whoever is hiring. Often when a post goes up on a hiring website there are so many people that apply, it's the people with connections who get interviewed and potentially hired first."

Jordan P. Anderson , a cinematographer, content strategist, and former PA, echoes this sentiment. "The PA is the lowest position so that means it's the most expendable. If a PA is acting up, if a PA is bringing down the whole cast and crew or distracting them somehow, or interrupting the process, I have no problem firing a PA...But a good PA can really help the production move forward. Be an active participant on set, but at the same time, don't be in the way."
Most of a PA's training happens on the job, on set.
While film school is a common and advantageous background for PAs-providing a clear and hands-on understanding of the production process already-a degree or prior experience is not specifically required as it's an entry-level job. That's not to say that any sort of preliminary film production training wouldn't be wise to consider, especially if your goal as a PA is to maneuver into a specific department. Many develop their production skills working on their friends' short films, student and/or independent films, and commercials, as well as college TV stations.

Additionally, there are PA workshops and boot camps that strive to prepare you with firsthand experience and familiarity with the kind of work expected on set, including the "Made in NY" PA Training Program (NYC) and P.A. Boot Camp (LA) .

A PA job is a stepping stone. If you prove yourself worthy, you'll be hired again and again, land more and more projects, and have opportunities to explore other roles on set.

PAs who have put in the hours and hard work commonly have the ability to request working in certain departments where they can shadow and learn from the best in the business. The common advancement from PA is to become key PA, who supervises and manages the team of PAs and reports directly to the ADs and production manager. Then, they might climb the ladder within the AD's department or, if they have a knack for production, might ascend to production manager, line producer , or creative producer. Over the course of the job, he or she might gravitate toward camera operation or special effects makeup or foley work. Regardless of the chosen path, being a PA helps narrow down exactly what one wants to do in the industry.

Production assistants make an average of $34,000 annually.

However, the money you make will depend on many factors: your level of experience, the size and budget of the production, how frequently you work, and your location. Since it is, in fact, a freelance position, income is on a project-to-project basis. According to Studio Binder , it's common for PAs on feature films and TV shows to make between $200 and $250 per 12-hour day. Those working on independent films or music videos might expect between $150 and $200 per 12-hour day. According to Careers in Film , the median annual salary for a PA is approximately $34,300. In this job, the real compensation is the hands-on experience on a set and contacts made with industry professionals.
Production assistants are not represented by a union, which means their responsibilities can vary greatly depending on whether a production is union or non-union.
On a union production, every job is highly-regulated by that production's agreement with a union (or unions), which means a PA would have less variety in their duties. A non-union production can ask a PA to perform any number of jobs and at any level (within reason).
If you're serious about rising from a PA to an industry professional, Los Angeles, New York City, and Atlanta are where you want to be for the best opportunities.
"I graduated film school, packed up my car, [and] without knowing anybody, I drove straight out to California," says Sklar. "I was fortunate enough to meet an assistant director who worked on independent movies, trained me, and then I was able to work on independent projects as an assistant director. When you're working and it's so fast-paced, and you get so caught up in it...but there's that one moment where it all comes together. I like to call it the magic moment...when you get to see all your hard work. We get to do something that's pretty amazing and I wouldn't give it up for the world."

For more on how to get work on a film crew, visit Backstage's crew hub!

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auditions | casting calls | open casting calls | casting call | open casting call

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The road to a successful career behind the scenes in Hollywood is a long one, but one way to get a great start is by landing a job as a production assistant. While it's a demanding (and sometimes thankless) entry-level job, it's also a crucial launching pad for anyone serious about working in the industry, providing an up-close and personal view of how a production runs.

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Details on how to become a dance choreographer.

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Many dancers begin training when they are young and continue to learn throughout their careers. Ballet dancers begin training the earliest, usually between the ages of 5 and 8 for girls and a few years later for boys. Their training becomes more serious as they enter their teens, and most ballet dancers begin their professional careers by the time they are 18.

Some dancers and choreographers pursue postsecondary education. Many colleges and universities offer bachelor's and/or master's degrees in dance, typically through departments of theater or fine arts. Most programs include coursework in a variety of dance styles, including modern dance, jazz, ballet, and hip-hop. Most entrants into college dance programs have previous formal training.

Some choreographers work as dance teachers. Teaching dance in a college, high school, or elementary school requires a college degree. Some dance studios and conservatories prefer instructors who have a degree; however, they may accept previous work in lieu of a degree.

Discover some of the courses you will take pursuing a degree in Dance.

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Learn everything you need to know about how to become an dancer or choreographer: What is this career like? What skills are needed? What is the pay? What is the career outlook? What education is required? Plus, watch videos of Career Girls role models in related careers.

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How to become a costume designer.

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How to Become a Costume Designer | Academic Invest

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Many employers prefer to hire candidates that have at least some form of industry experience, or a university-level education in a related field. If you want to become a costume designer and you do not have such credentials, you can always work your way up to it by gaining experience in an entry-level position, such as a wardrobe assistant or costume maker.

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The ins and outs of stage management and how to get involved.

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Experience

Working as an assistant stage manager may be necessary

Key Skills

Excellent communication skills, understanding of theatrical terms and concepts, patience while working with directors and actors

Sources: American Association of Community Theatre (AACT); Job postings; Payscale.com

Step 1: Enroll in a Bachelor's Degree Program in Stage Management

A Bachelor of Fine Arts (BFA) degree program in stage management provides individuals with the necessary skills and experience to work in the field. These types of programs allow students to explore different areas of theater, from costuming to scene design and stage management. A bachelor degree program in stage management typically consists of academic coursework combined with hands-on theater experience. The first year usually covers subjects in general education, production, and design. During the last few years of the program, students have the opportunity to participate in the school's stage productions.

Success Tip:

Consider a Master of Fine Arts program. Although it's not required, a Master of Fine Arts (MFA) degree program in stage management may help individuals improve their knowledge in theater and arts, while also providing networking opportunities that may translate to future employment. Graduates may qualify for a number of jobs, such as teaching, production, or different areas of stage management.

Step 2: Gain Experience

Graduates may want to consider an internship or assistant stage manager positions to obtain work experience. Schools and independent theaters may offer paid internships to graduates from stage management programs. Internships typically require full-time work for a certain period, from several weeks to months. Assistant stage managers may find work on larger productions and help the production stage manager or director with cuing actors, assisting with rehearsals, and keeping the production process running smoothly.

Success Tip:

Join the Stage Managers' Association. Joining the Stage Managers' Association offers aspiring stage managers an opportunity to network and gain theatrical experience. Members can develop job contacts and gain access to career opportunities.

Step 3: Consider Joining a Union

Stage managers may benefit from joining the Actors Equity Association (AEA). Unions typically provide benefits, such as minimum salaries, health insurance, credit union memberships, fair work hours, and members-only job opportunities. Unions generally require individuals to work on an approved project before becoming a member. Members usually have to pay union dues, including a percentage of income earned from employment.

Step 4: Pursue Career Advancement

Through experience and training, stage managers can transition to specialist roles including theatre lighting director, sound manager, or wardrobe manager. Additionally, the experience and skills gained in theatre work can lead to work in production jobs in television or film.

Hopeful professional stage managers should earn a bachelor's degree in stage management, then get experience working in the field before thinking about joining a union and pursuing specialized positions.

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become a professional stage manager: step-by-step career guide

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Become a Professional Stage Manager: Step-by-Step Career Guide

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Experience Working as an assistant stage manager may be necessary Key Skills Excellent communication skills, understanding of theatrical terms and concepts, patience while working with directors and actors Sources: American Association of Community Theatre (AACT); Job postings; Payscale.com A Bachelor of Fine Arts (BFA) degree program in stage management provides individuals with the necessary skills and experience to work in the field.

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Biography of Marius Pepita.

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Victor Marius Alphonse Petipa was born in Marseille, France on the 11th March 1818. His parents were Jean Antoine Petipa (1787-1855), a renowned Ballet Master and teacher, and Victorine Grasseau-Maurel (1794-1860), a tragic actress and drama teacher, both of whom were employed in Marseille at the time. The infant Marius was born precisely at 9 'o'clock in the morning at the Petipa home of 6 rue Dumarsais; at the time of his birth, a rehearsal of his father's staging of Jean-Baptiste Blache's ballet The Birth of Venus and Love was taking place at the Marseilles Opera House. He was the third of six children - his siblings were Joseph Lucien (1815-1898), Elisabeth Marianne (1816-unknown), Jean Claude Tonnerre (1820-1873), Aimee Victorine Anne (1824-1905) and Adélaïde Antoniette (1826-unknown).

Early childhood
When the young Marius was one year old, his parents were invited to Brussels when Jean Petipa was offered the position of Ballet Master at the Théâtre de la Monnaie. Despite having three young children, Jean accepted the offer and the Petipa family left Marseille for Brussels in April 1819. The young Marius received a general education at the Grand College, but he also attended the Music Conservatoire where he studied music and learned to play the violin. On the 19th March 1823, days after his fifth birthday, Marius made his first appearance on stage when he played a little Cupid in his father's staging of Pierre Gardel's Psyché et l'Amour; his father had also appeared in this ballet as a child. Petipa began dancing at the age of 7, studying under his father. At first, however, he resisted as he cared little about the art form, but with convincing from his mother, he accepted that it was his duty to obey and follow his father's will. He eventually fell in love with the art form of ballet and after his stage début in 1823, there came more débuts in the years that followed. On the 25th August 1826 at the age of 8, he made his début in his father's staging the Gardel ballet La Dansomanie. In 1830, the Belgian Revolution broke out during a performance of the opera Fenella, or La Musette de Portici, which put a huge strain on the Brussels theatres. The theatre activities were discontinued for fifteen months and Jean Petipa was suddenly without a position. In 1834, after a twelve year stay in Brussels, the Petipa family relocated to Bordeaux after Jean Petipa was invited as Ballet Master of the Grand Théâtre de Bordeaux. The family spent five years in Bordeaux where the 16 year old Marius Petipa completed his ballet training.

Nantes
In 1839, at the age of 21, Petipa received his first employment when he was appointed Premier Danseur at the Ballet de Nantes. Petipa writes in his memoirs that he and his father embarked on a tour to the United States with a small troupe of European dancers led by his former danseuse Eléonore Lecomte. However, this is false because Petipa did not go on this tour, only his father did and Petipa was busy performing in Nantes at the time. He was engaged at Nantes for three seasons from 1839 to 1842 and it was during his time in Nantes that Petipa first began to show his abilities as a choreographer. It seems that it was on the 16th July 1840 that he made his professional début as a choreographer when he presented a two-scene ballet called The Scatterbrain, or The Love Affair. There are also traces of other dances that he choreographed for himself and two sisters in the company, Armande and Thérèse Ferdinand, including a pas de trois in the opera La Favorite on the 25th April 1841, Une nouvelle Tyrolienne on the 9th December 1841 and a Saxon dance in the style of a Cracovienne on the 14th March 1842. Petipa writes in his memoirs that he choreographed three ballets of his own creation for the Bordeaux company, the three ballet he names - Le Droit du Seigneur, La Petite bohémienne and La Noce à Nantes - but according to his biographer Nadine Meisner, these ballets have not been found. Petipa also writes in his memoirs that he broke his leg on stage during the second season and the absence of his name on theatre bills during February and March 1840 suggests that he did indeed sustain an injury. During the six weeks of recovery, he discovered 'how the majority of impresarios treat the actors whom they exploit'. Although his injury had been sustained while performing, he learnt that, without performances, his salary would be withheld. At some point during his time in Nantes, Petipa spent two months in Paris, where he took classes with his old teacher Vestris and on the 27th October 1842, he and his brother Lucien participated with Carlotta Grisi in a benefit performance for Lucinde Paradol, a retired actress of the Comédie-Française.

Bordeaux
In 1843, Petipa returned to Bordeaux where he was invited to be Premier Danseur at the Grand Théâtre. For his first performance on the 13th May, he danced the role of Albrecht in Giselle with the Prima Ballerina Elisa Bellon, who had returned to Bordeaux after dancing for a year at the Paris Opéra. However, Petipa's time in Bordeaux got off to a rocky start. His début performance received mixed reviews, with one publication, La Sylphide, describing him as "young, with good physique, light and with good schooling, but a rigid and inexpert... work will make him acquire what he needs." Another publication, L'Indicateur, reported: "M. Petipa is a very young dancer who shows excellent abilities; his dancing is rather weak, it is true, but his bearing is good; he mimes and gestures well." The mixed reception he received ultimately led to Petipa receiving a demotion and after two more performances, which were not met with a kind response, he was accepted into the company as Deuxième Danseur. After a bad start, things began to improve for Petipa. During his time with the Bordeaux company, he became partner to the ballerinas Joséphine Delestre and Célina Mouliníne and by May 1843, his repertoire had expanded to include roles in The Village Sleepwalker, The Millers, La Sylphide, La Fille mal gardée, La Tyrolienne and Spanish Intrigues. He danced Osvald in Nathalie, or The Swiss Milkmaid and also danced in Auber's opera Le Dieu et la Bayadère. He also danced in character dances, with Mouliníne often as his partner, especially in Spanish dances, such as the cachucha, bolera and jota aragonesa.

Petipa claimed that during his second tenure in Bordeaux, he staged his own stagings of four ballets - La Jolie Bordelaise, Les Vendanges, L'Intrigue Amoureuse and Le Langage des Fleurs. However, like the three ballets he claimed to have staged in Nantes, no evidence has been found for the four he names for Bordeaux, though that does not mean that these four ballets never existed. According to the posters of the Grand Theatre, however, La Jolie Bordelaise appears to have been the same ballet as Grisette de Bordeaux, which is recorded, but not attributed to Petipa. By the end of the season, however, after only eleven months in the theatre, Petipa was forced to join the stream of dancers leaving Bordeaux after, on the 13th May 1844, the theatre enterprise was declared bankrupt. Petipa's departure was announced by the press on the 15th June and three days earlier, his passport had been issued for travel to Madrid.

Spain
After Bordeaux, Petipa was invited to Madrid where he was appointed Premier Danseur at the Teatro del Circo under Jean Baptiste Barrez and was engaged as the partner of the renowned French Prima Ballerina Marie Guy-Stéphan in some of the famous Romantic ballets. For his Spanish début on the 24th June 1844, he and Guy-Stéphan danced the leading roles in Giselle to success. In a subsequent performance, they danced a polka and an allemande in Albert's ballet La Jolie Fille de Gand. Petipa also danced the leading roles of Luis in Jean Coralli's La Tarentule and Frédéric in Joseph Mazilier's Le Diable amoureux. On the 12th November 1844, Petipa danced a pas de quatre in the second act of Coralli's La Péri, while Guy-Stéphan danced the titular role. As the months passed, the reviews of Petipa's performances gained more and more enthusiasm and when the company was reorganised for the 1845-46 season, only Petipa and Guy-Stéphan were chosen of all the existing dancers to remain for another year, while new dancers from Bordeaux, Joséphine Delestre and Frédéric Montessu, were invited for the new season. Montessu was soon praised as the best dancer in the city of Madrid, accomplishing what Petipa lacked in classical dance, but Petipa was praised for his character and ballroom dancing, his acting and his abilities as a partner. What Petipa's pre-Russian career has taught us is that he was more of a character dancer than a classical dancer and was a highly accomplished actor and mime artist and a good partner.

In the spring of 1846, Petipa and Guy-Stéphan were invited by the impresario of the Teatro Principal of Seville, Fernando Millet to tour Andalusia with Millet's company. They began their tour on the 21st April in Seville and travelled to seven other cities, including Cádiz, Málaga and Granada, where they performed extracts of the Madrid repertoire. For example, in Seville, Petipa and Guy-Stéphan danced a pas de deux from Ondine, a polka and a jalero de Jerez and elsewhere, they performed extracts from La Esmeralda, a pas de deux from the ballet Aurora and a tambourine dance. The tour also coincided with an annual festival in Sanlúcar de Barrameda, an account of which Petipa gives in his memoirs:

During the tour, we happened to be present at the big festival in San-Lúcar, where were gathered all the well-known cuadrillas, the picadors, and others who followed the toreadors, for the bullfights which take place in the biggest Spanish arenas.

All the richest, most noble Spaniards gathered there, to enjoy for three days the best-loved show in Spain. There was a bullfight every day for three days. In the evening, all the visiting and local families fill the streets or gather on the big hotel balconies. In every street, masked students give concerts on their guitars and mandolins. As soon as they start to play the famous fandango, the couples form, and all is forgotten in the whirlwind of dancers.

I wore a Spanish costume, I felt just like a Spaniard, and audaciously invited an attractive Spanish woman to dance; and together with three other couples we tempestuously, madly did this characteristic Spanish dance. - (Russian Ballet Master: The Memoirs of Marius Petipa, pg. 14-15)

It was during his time in Spain that Petipa acquired good knowledge of traditional Spanish dance, knowledge that he would later showcase in some of his most famous ballets, especially Don Quixote. Again, like he did with his time in France, Petipa claimed to have created new ballets while in Spain - Carmen and her Toreador, The Pearl of Seville, The Adventure of the Daughter of Madrid, The Flower of Granada and The Departure for the Bullfight - but these ballets have not been found, though that does not necessarily that they never exited. Some of them may have been ad hoc divertissements for special occasions or for the Andalusian tour.

In 1845, Petipa's father Jean was appointed Ballet Master of the Teatro del Circo, possibly at the recommendation of his son, replacing Barrez. On 26th December 1845, Jean created and staged a ballet called The Milliners of Paris for a corps de ballet benefit performance, but the ballet did not survive its première performance. Probably the most significant contribution Jean Petipa made during his time in Madrid was his staging of two of Jules Perrot's recent ballets. On the 18th November 1845, Jean staged La Esmeralda, in which he played the role of Quasimodo opposite Guy-Stéphan as the titular gypsy girl and Marius danced a Waltz of Madness. Months earlier, on the 30th July 1845, Jean had staged Ondine, ou La naiade, of which Guy-Stéphan had been an original cast member in the 1843 London production, originating the role of Giannina. For the ballet's Spanish première, however, she was upgraded to the role of the titular naiad and Marius Petipa danced the role of the bewitched fisherman Matteo. In the second act of Ondine, an interesting incident occurred. In accordance with the ballet's libretto, Petipa was required to kiss Guy-Stéphan, but at the time, kissing a woman on stage was forbidden in Spain. Nevertheless, Petipa, his father and Guy-Stéphan defied this censor and staged the kiss, which landed Petipa in some hot water with the Spanish authorities. In his memoirs, Petipa amusingly describes this event:

Spain is a country of love and adoration of women, but at the same time, it has customs sharply at variance with the free, open-hearted display of passion which is characteristic of all Spanish dances. On the stage, an artist is strictly forbidden to kiss a woman, even if it is required in the course of the action.

In one of the Tyrolian character dances, which I did with Mme Guy Stéphan, the dancer begs a kiss of his partner, but is met with refusal. Still a second time he perseveres, begs the same - again a refusal. The third attempt of the lover softens the lady, she agrees, and I, getting into the role, take advantage of the received permission with such a realistic reproduction of the intended act, that even the worshippers of the school of Mr Stanislavsky would be filled with satisfaction. As soon as I left the stage, and withdrew to the wings, I found myself in the presence of the chief of the Madrid police, who had left his box and rushed to the stage, in order to announce to me the strictness of the prohibition of kissing a lady on the stage. - (Russian Ballet Master: The Memoirs of Marius Petipa, pg 16-17)

At a later performance, the kiss was banned on the orders of the Chief Police, which only ruined the pas. Luckily, after intervention from Salamanca, the Director of the Teatro del Circo, who had to explain its significance to the authorities, the kiss was reinstated and was met with a very enthusiastic response from the audience. On top of all that, Petipa avoided any kind of criminal prosecution over the matter.

The Madrid stagings of Ondine and La Esmeralda were huge successes and Jean Petipa also contributed his own creation, a three-act ballet called Farfarella, or The Daughter of Hell, which premièred on the 3rd March 1846, with Marius in the leading role of Fablo the painter. The careers of both father and son had grown with success; Marius Petipa was now a celebrity and he and Marie Guy-Stéphan were now on the same breath as Carlotta Grisi, Perrot and his teacher Vestris. However, in 1847, Petipa's time in Spain came to an abrupt end after an incident involving his personal life.

Within the months following his arrival in Madrid, Petipa met and fell in love with Carmen Mendoza y Castro, the 23 year old daughter of a Spanish nobleman, Maria de la Concepción, Marquesa de Villagarcia. It seems that Carmen started dancing lessons with Petipa and the two soon began a romantic relationship. However, Carmen's mother was informed of the relationship by the Count de Gabriac, a French politican who was the Marquesa's companion and ardent admirer. The Marquesa did not approve of the relationship and banished Petipa from her house and even offered him a large sum of money to leave Spain. Petipa, however, refused to leave Carmen and the Count threatened him with a violent beating, after which, Petipa challenged him to a duel, despite the fact that by that time, duels were illegal in Spain. Petipa writes in his memoirs that when the duel took place, the Count was the first to shoot, but his pistol misfired. Petipa suggested he try again, but while the Count was reloading, Petipa took the opportunity to fire his own shot, shattering the left side of his opponent's jaw. The bullet also penetrated the Count's neck, but a skilful surgeon successfully removed it. The duel apparently became widespread gossip, but just days later, Petipa reappeared on stage and he was never charged or prosecuted for the incident. Even though Petipa writes in his memoirs that this duel was the reason he left Spain, the research of Laura Hormigón has proven that this is not the case since the duel seems to have occurred between September and October 1844.

Despite the duel, Petipa and Carmen continued their relationship, despite her family's disapproval, and eventually, they decided to elope. In January 1847, the couple fled Spain together and headed to France, but the authorities were informed and were tasked with searching for them. Petipa and Carmen travelled onto England, where they stayed until the end of February. They then returned to France and hid in a village near Rouen, but they were sussed out. The police discovered them and arrested Carmen on the 13th March 1847, in keeping with the request of the Spanish authorities. No marriage had happened, Carmen was returned to Spain and Petipa returned to his family in Paris. The failed elopement probably left him depressed and penniless, but his luck was about to change for the better.

Arrival in Russia
Within the following months, Petipa received an invitation from the Ballet Master Antoine Titus, who at the time was based in Saint Petersburg, to come to the Russian Imperial capital and join the Imperial Ballet as Premier Danseur, for the company's current danseur, the Frenchman Emile Gredelue was returning home to France after ten years in Russia. According to the critic Alexander Pleshcheyev, Petipa received the invitation after his brother Lucien sent an inquiry to Titus, who had recently visited Paris to see Giselle, recommending his brother to join the Saint Petersburg company. Petipa was offered a one-year contract as the new Premier Danseur, which ran from the 24th May 1847 and included the option of a two-year expansion. Petipa was quick to accept the invitation and arrived in Russia on the 9th June [O.S. 30th May] 1847, where he would live the remainder of his life. He grew to love his adoptive country, in his own words, "with all his heart and with all his soul", eventually became a Russian citizen (while retaining his French citizenship) and adopted a more Russian name - Marius Ivanovich Petipa. However, he never mastered the Russian language, but it was arguably not necessary for him to learn and master Russian since, at the time, many Russians spoke French as a second language, including the Imperial family and many of Petipa's Russian colleagues and dancers.

For his Saint Petersburg début, Petipa performed the leading role of Lucien d'Hervilly in the Russian première of Joseph Mazilier's Paquita, which took place on the 8th October [O.S. 26th September] 1847. Gedeonov had commissioned Pierre Frédéric Malevergne to stage Paquita for the Imperial Ballet and the ballet could not been a better choice for Petipa since the role of Lucien d'Hervilly (originally created by his brother Lucien) was largely a mime role and the ballet contained Spanish gypsy dances, an area that Petipa knew very well. It seems that during rehearsals, his knowledge and helpfulness became apparent and he was named as co-producer with Frédéric. Petipa's Russian début was a success, with the critic Rafail Zotov praising him as "a most excellent acquisition for our troupe". Zotov also wrote of Petipa:

... [Petipa] danced in the pas de folie and the jaleo, which is say two character dances. His lightness and vigour were astonishing, but we await his future débuts in dances of a noble and serious genre before giving a detailed assessment - (Severnaia pchela, 6th October 1847, no. 225, p. 897-98)

In his memoirs, Petipa writes that Tsar Nicholas I attended his début performance and that a week later, the Tsar presented him with an Imperial gift of a ruby and diamond ring, the first Royal gift he received in his career.

Paquita would later go onto play an important role in Petipa's career and this was just the beginning of Petipa's great contributions to the Imperial Ballet repertoire. Gedeonov was clearly impressed with Petipa's work on the production, enough to keep an open mind for more ballets to be staged and produced by the newcomer. The next ballet that Petipa would stage for the Imperial Ballet was another ballet by Mazilier, Le Diable amoureux, probably at Petipa's own suggestion, but, like with Paquita, he would not stage the ballet alone. On the 24th October [O.S. 12th October] 1847, Jean Petipa arrived in Saint Petersburg, having been offered a three-year contract with the Imperial Theatres as teacher of the boys' classe de perfectionnement at the Theatre School. Shortly after his father's arrival, Petipa made his Russian débuts in two other roles that had been created by his brother: Ahmet in La Péri on the 7th November [O.S. 26th October] and Duke Albrecht in Giselle on the 5th December [O.S. 23rd November], with Elena Andreyanova dancing the titular roles in both performances.

In 1848, Petipa and his father staged Le Diable amoureux under the title Satanella. This was followed by revivals of many other Parisian ballets, especially after the arrival of the great French Ballet Master Jules Perrot in Saint Petersburg in 1849. Petipa collaborated with Perrot on the Saint Petersburg stagings of ballets such as Giselle and Le Corsaire. Throughout his first eight years in Saint Petersburg, Petipa staged many dances for opera and revived dances for Perrot's revivals of older works.

First marriage
In 1850, Petipa became a father for the first time when his son, Marius Mariusovich Petipa (1850-1919) was born following a brief liaison with a woman named Marie Thérèse Bourdin, who died in 1855. Marius Mariusovich was raised by his father and his first stepmother; he attended a commercial school, but inherited his father's artistic genes and went onto become a very successful actor at the Alexandrinsky Theatre. In her memoirs, his youngest sister Vera, who met him when she was 12, writes that her parents often spoke of Marius Mariusovich and goes onto say: "He had a lot in common with my father, especially a great delicacy in his relations with people and an enormous joie de vivre." Marius Mariusovich had three children, all of whom followed him to the stage, with his son Nikolai Mariusovich Radin (1872-1935) becoming as equally a well-known actor as his father.

In 1854, at the age of 36, Petipa met Maria Sergeyevna Surovshchikova (1836-1882), an 18 year old student at the Theatre School. She first came to his attention thanks to Perrot, who, as teacher of the senior girls' class, had chosen the best pupil to dance the role of Martha, a new ingenue role he was creating for the Russian staging of his ballet Faust. Petipa was drawn to the enchanting young dancer and would find pretexts to stay on at the school and everyone saw how he would kiss her hands. However, since Maria was still a student at the time, she was not allowed to meet Petipa outside the school, but flirting inside the school was tolerated, with the staff always turning a blind eye. After Maria graduated from the school into the company a few months later, Petipa was free to court her and on the 27th May [O.S. 15th May] 1854, Petipa applied for permission to marry Maria without relinquishing his French citizenship. To support the request, his father Jean and Perrot both submitted written testimonials confirming that Petipa was a bachelor. A special dispensation allowed Petipa to retain his French citizenship, but he had to undertake to raise all his children in the Russian Orthodox faith, despite the fact that he was a Roman Catholic. The marriage also meant that Maria and their children would receive French citizenship. Petipa and Maria were married during the summer holidays; the marriage certificate is dated the 10th July [O.S. 28th June] 1854, but the religious ceremony took place on the 16th July [O.S. 4th July], first in the Trinity Church, which was linked to the Imperial Theatres, and then in the Roman Catholic Church of Saint Catherine on Nevsky Prospect. Among those who attended were Jean Petipa, Maria's mother Agrippina and Agrippina's own new husband Mikhail Bekker, a former dancer at the Imperial Theatres and teacher at the Theatre School. Maria took the name Surovshchikova-Petipa, or was simply known as Maria Petipa.

Maria was now Petipa's wife, but she was also his first muse and for whom he created many of his early original ballets in Russia. The couple had two children - Maria "Marie" Mariusovna Petipa (1857-1930) and Jean Mariusovich Petipa (1859-1880s). Marie received a general education from tutors at home and was taught by her father in a home studio. Although Marie never accomplished great classical technique, she grew up to become one of the Imperial Ballet's most renowned artists, creating a vast repertoire in her father's works like her mother. Jean did not follow in his parent's theatrical footsteps and attended cadet school, probably in Moscow, and became an officer. He died young, unmarried and childless, though the exact year of his death is unclear. After thirteen years, the Petipa's marriage became troubled, broke down and the couple separated in 1867; the marriage was never officially dissolved due to the complications of divorce at the time. Maria Surovshchikova-Petipa died of smallpox on the 16th March 1882.

In 1874, Petipa set up home with the ballerina Liubov Leonidovna Savitskaya (1854-1919), who was thirty-six years his junior. They married in 1882 because they were unable to wed until after the death of Maria Surovshchikova-Petipa. The couple had six children together - Nadezhda "Nadia" Mariusovna Petipa (1874-1945), Evgenia Mariusovna Petipa (1877-1892), Victor Mariusovich Petipa (1879-1939), Liubov "Louba" Mariusovna Petipa (1880-1917), Marius "Mari" Mariusovich Petipa II (1884-1922) and Vera Mariusovna Petipa (1885-1961). Like their brother Marius Mariusovich, Victor and Mari became actors. Victor enjoyed a thirty-five year career and was made an Honoured Artist of the Soviet Socialist Republic of Ukraine and Mari took to the stage after a career in the military, serving in the Calvary. Vera writes that her brother Mari was a prankster, who didn't always recognize boundaries. She describes an occasion when, playing the part of a sentry, he arrived wearing such ludicrously hideous makeup that he provoked long laughter in the audience, hindering the actor who, as the King, was trying to deliver a sombre monologue. Mari had a son named Valeri and died at the young age of 38 following surgery for a hernia.

Petipa had not wanted dance careers for his sons, but it was the opposite for his daughters, for he wanted to see his artistic ideals flourish in them. However, although Marie enjoyed a long and successful career with the Imperial Ballet that lasted over twenty years, the same cannot be said for her sisters. Like Marie, Nadia and Evgenia received a general education from tutors and ballet lessons from their father at home in a ballet studio installed in their apartment with a raked floor. Even with his children, Petipa was an unsparing teacher, never fearful to give criticism, which was often challenged by Nadia. Nadia was accepted into the Imperial Ballet in 1892, but she was deemed as the least talented of Petipa's daughters, often facing criticism for her weak classical technique, which resulted in her concentrating on purely mimed roles. She married Konstantin Chizhov, the son of Matvei Chizhov, a famous sculptor, and had five children, among whom were Nadia Konstantinonva Petipa-Chizhov (1896-1977), who became an actress, and Xenia Konstantiononva Petipa-Chizhov (1905-1975), who became a dancer. Nadia later became a teacher and moved to Kazan, where she opened a school in 1912. She died in 1945, aged 71.

For Evgenia, things had started better and she has been labelled as the most talented of Petipa's daughters. Petipa was more than hopeful that she would grow up to enjoy a long and successful career in which she would express great technique and artistry, but his hopes were dashed by tragedy. In 1892, Evgenia was diagnosed with sarcoma (bone cancer) and had to have her leg amputated, but in the end, the amputation could not save her life. She died on the 26th August [O.S. 14th August] 1892 at the tragically young age of 15. Left distraught by his daughter's death, Petipa dismantled the home ballet studio and enrolled Louba and Vera at the Imperial Ballet School. Like Evgenia, Louba proved to have great potential, impressing even Ekaterina Vazem, who was teaching by then. In her memoirs, Vazem wrote of Louba: " She undoubtedly had great ability and all the qualities to become an exceptional classical soloist and, probably, a ballerina with a soft, light style of dancing." Louba graduated in 1899 and was given her first major role as Myrtha, Queen of the Wilis that same season, for which she received great praise and enthusiasm. It seemed Louba had a great career ahead of her, but that was not meant to be. Just a year after her graduation, she threw away a promising career when she retired early to get married. The marriage, however, proved to be ill-considered and miserable and Louba was left to live an unhappy life before dying in 1917 at the young age of 37.

Petipa's first muse had been his first wife and his last muse was his youngest daughter Vera, whose artistic abilities he tried hard to develop and his hard work seems to have succeeded. In his diaries, Petipa writes with pride that Vera "was the best" at her graduation performance on the 15th May [O.S. 2nd May] 1903, after which she was accepted into the company. In 1904, she was cast as the White Cat in The Sleeping Beauty, in which she was encored, and was given a featured role in Harlequinade. However, in the summer of 1905, Vera fell ill with tuberculosis and although she recovered, it permanently weakened her health and forced her to take early retirement from dancing, ending what had started as a promising career. Vera did not depart from the theatre, however, and became an actress in 1907. She eventually began performing with her brother Victor and later her brothers Marius Mariusovich and Mari and her great-nephew Nikolai. Vera's acting career took her to different regions of Russia, including Moscow, but her delicate health always remained an issue. Nevertheless, she lived a long life before dying in 1961, aged 76.

Premier Danseur and Second Ballet Master
In 1855, Petipa choreographed and staged the first of his own ballets for the Imperial Ballet - his ballet divertissement, The Star of Granada. This also marked his collaboration with Cesare Pugni, with whom he would create many of his early original Russian works. The success of The Star of Granada was followed by many other one and two act ballets of Petipa's creation, all of which were choreographed especially for his wife and muse Maria, including The Rose, the Violet and the Butterfly (1857), A Marriage During the Regency (1858), The Parisian Market (1859), The Blue Dahlia (1860) and Euterpe and Terpsichore (1861).

Although Petipa was a very gifted and skilled choreographer, he had yet to gain the rank of Ballet Master. When Jules Perrot left Russia in 1858, Petipa anticipated succeeding him as Premier Maître de Ballet of the Imperial Theatres, but his hopes were in vain. Instead, the rank went to his fellow Frenchman, Arthur Saint-Léon, who would become Petipa's rival.

Petipa remained Premieur Danseur of the Imperial Ballet for another four years, still making choreographic contributions to the repertoire. Finally, it was in 1862 that Petipa's breakthrough as a choreographer came when he staged one of his most successful and colossal ballets of all time - The Pharaoh's Daughter, a four-act ballet that told the story of a young English Lord who falls in love with an Ancient Egyptian princess in an opium-induced dream. It was in this ballet that Petipa danced his final role as a dancer, for the ballet's colossal success won him the rank of second ballet master under Saint-Léon, who answered Petipa's success of The Pharaoh's Daughter with his 1864 ballet The Little Humpbacked Horse. Petipa's years as second ballet master saw the stagings of his first and second lavish revivals of Le Corsaire in 1863 and 1868 respectively and the creations of his grand ballets Le Roi Candaule in 1868 and Don Quxiote in 1869, which was his first collaboration with Ludwig Minkus. Saint-Léon eventually left Russia for good in 1870, following the expiration of his contract.

Marius Petipa became Premier Maître de Ballet of the Imperial Theatres on the 12th March [O.S. 29th February] 1871. From then on, Petipa's ingenious imagination and creative abilities gave way to the golden age of 19th century ballet - the Classical Era.

Premier Maître de Ballet
The Classical Era has been labelled as one of ballet's most powerful eras as it was here that the most famous classical ballets known today were born from Petipa's creation. From 1871 to the early 1900's, the stage of the Saint Petersburg Imperial Theatre was flooded with many of his best works. With Minkus as Ballet Composer to the Imperial Theatres, the Imperial Ballet repertoire further expanded with new works such as La Camargo (1872) and The Daughter of the Snows (1879) and revivals of Jacques Offenbach's Le Papillon (1874) and Adolphe Adam's La Fille du Danube (1880). But the greatest masterpiece ever created by Petipa and Minkus' collaboration was premièred in 1877 - La Bayadère, the exotic ballet most famous for its celebrated scene The Kingdom of the Shades.

In 1881, Ivan Vzevolozhosky was appointed Director of the Imperial Theatres, who transferred the Imperial Ballet from the Imperial Bolshoi Kamenny Theatre to the Imperial Mariinsky Theatre in 1885. The era of Vzevolozhosky's rule of the Imperial Theatres was perhaps the best era in Petipa's career. The early to mid 1880s saw Petipa staging lavish, grand revivals of many older works, including his 1881 revival of Paquita, for which Minkus composed the Grand Pas Classique, Pas de trois and Mazurka des enfants, and his first revivals of Giselle and Coppélia in 1884 and La Esmeralda in 1886. In 1885, Petipa collaborated with Lev Ivanov for the first time on a revival of Paul Taglioni's version of La Fille mal gardée. With the arrival of the Italian ballerinas and danseurs in the late 1880s came new grand creations from Petipa, including The Vestal in 1888 and The Talisman in 1889, which was created for the Italian Prima Ballerina, Elena Cornalba.

The late 1880s and the 1890s is a time period that is considered by many as "the Golden Age of Russian Ballet". Not only did Petipa flood the Imperial Ballet repertoire with some of his greatest works; the Saint Petersburg stage was dominated by some of the greatest dancers the world had ever seen. Among these great names were Pierina Legnani, Pavel Gerdt, Olga Preobrazhenskaya, Nikolai and Sergei Legat, Matilda Kschessinskaya and Enrico Cecchetti. The 1890s made way for some of the greatest classical ballets ever created, including The Sleeping Beauty (1890), The Nutcracker, choreographed by Lev Ivanov (1892), The Awakening of Flora (1894), Petipa and Ivanov's restaging of Swan Lake (1895) and Raymonda (1898). This time period also saw Petipa's final revivals of older works and some of his own, including his final revivals of Coppélia (1894), The Little Humpbacked Horse (1895), The Pharaoh's Daughter (1898), Le Corsaire (1899), La Esmeralda (1899) and La Bayadère (1900).

Final years
After a successful career spanning six decades, Petipa's final years with the Imperial Ballet were difficult. The turn of the 20th century saw new innovations imposed onto classical ballet, but it was Petipa's bitterest enemy, Colonel Vladimir Telyakovsky who made things unbearable for the old Maestro. Despite having little knowledge of the performing arts, Telyakovsky was appointed Director of the Imperial Theatres in 1902 and one of his main objectives was to de-throne Petipa. His first attempt was when he invited Alexander Gorsky to stage his revival of Don Quixote at the Imperial Theatres. Indeed, Petipa was furious, but still showed no signs of slowing down, even at his elderly age of 83. Telyakovsky's next attempt was when he apparently sabotaged Petipa's 1903 ballet The Magic Mirror by allowing it to have the most appalling of stagings, which resulted in the ballet being deemed as a failure. In spite of this, Petipa continued to attend rehearsals and make changes to variations and other passages for dancers taking on new roles.

In 1903, he revived Giselle for Anna Pavlova and coached her for her début as Paquita in 1904. The year 1903 also saw Petipa creating what was meant to be his final ballet, The Romance of the Rosebud and the Butterfly to music by Riccardo Drigo and a libretto by Vzevolozhosky. For this ballet, Petipa cast the 14 year old Vaslav Nijinsky in his first stage role. The Romance of the Rosebud and the Butterfly was meant to have its première on the 5th February [O.S. 23rd January] 1904 at the Hermitage Theatre, but just two weeks before the scheduled première, Telyakovsky abruptly cancelled the ballet. His official reason for the cancellation was the Russo-Japanese War, but he neglected to inform Vsevolozhosky first. Petipa was left distraught by the cancellation; for him, it was the last straw and in his diaries, he writes in relation to the cancellation of the ballet: "My work is wasted." In the aftermath, Petipa was rarely seen in the theatres, having become depressed and withdrawn. His sixty year-long career at the Imperial Theatres had come to an abrupt end.

Petipa remained in Saint Petersburg until 1907 and by then, his health was badly failing. On the advice of his physician, he and his family relocated to the resort in Gurzuf in the Crimea, where he spent his final years.

Marius Petipa died on the 14th July [O.S. 1st July] 1910, aged 92. In her memoirs, his daughter Vera wrote this very moving dedication to her father:

his trembling hand, guiding me towards the entrance on stage, when I, disoriented and frightened, hesitated before the dark chasm of the auditorium and shrank back. In my youth, when I was appearing before the public for the first time as a professional artist, in the ballet Harlequinade, I can never forget my father's agitation and his whispered blessing in the wings. When I fell ill in Yalta and lay in a serious state with tuberculosis, my father, although an old man, somehow immediately stood alongside my mother as she bustled around me, and not knowing how to help me, whispered gentle words, stroked my head, and looked into my eyes, and offered to read to me- there was much, much reading.

Finally, the last sad memory- his death in Gurzuf, when we were all crowded round his bed and he says my name faintly and his fingers, growing cold, grip my hand. - Vera Petipa, Moia sem'ia, RGALI, fond 1945, op. 1, ed. khr. 66, l. (p. 32- 33)

His body was brought back to Saint Petersburg and his funeral was held on the 17th July [O.S. 4th July] 1910 and among those who attended were Olga Preobrazhenskaya, Anna Pavlova, Pavel Gerdt, Riccardo Drigo and Alexander Glazunov. According to one eye witness, however, no one from the Imperial Theatre administration attended. Petipa was originally buried in the family plot with his father, brother and daughter in the Volkovo Lutheran Cemetery in Saint Petersburg, but in 1948, his remains were transferred to the Alexander Nevsky Monastery, the burial place of his colleagues Tchaikovsky and Glazunov. Petipa left behind him a great legacy and his ballets still continue to dominate every classical ballet company repertoire to this day.

Meisner, Nadine (2019) Marius Petipa, The Emperor's Ballet Master. New York City, US: Oxford University Press

Petipa, Marius, Russian Ballet Master: The Memoirs of Marius Petipa. Translated ed. by Helen Whittaker, introduction and edited by Lillian Moore. London, UK: Dance Books Ltd (1958)

Petipa, Marius, The Diaries of Marius Petipa. Translated ed. and introduction by Lynn Garafola. Published in Studies in Dance History 3.1. (Spring 1992)

Hormigón, Laura (2010) Marius Petipa en España (1844-1847) Memorias y otros materiales. Madrid, Spain: Danzarte Ballet

Photos and images: © Dansmuseet, Stockholm © Большой театр России © Victoria and Albert Museum, London © Государственный академический Мариинский театр © CNCS/Pascal François © Bibliothèque nationale de France © Musée l'Opéra © Colette Masson/Roger-Viollet © АРБ имени А. Я. Вагановой © Михаил Логвинов © Михайловский театр, фотограф Стас Левшин. Партнёры проекта: СПбГБУК "Санкт-Петербургская государственная Театральная библиотека". ФГБОУВО "Академия русского балета имени А. Я. Вагановой" СПбГБУК "Михайловский театр". Михаил Логвинов, фотограф. Martine Kahane.

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Victor Marius Alphonse Petipa was born in Marseille, France on the 11th March 1818. His parents were Jean Antoine Petipa (1787-1855), a renowned Ballet Master and teacher, and Victorine Grasseau-Maurel (1794-1860), a tragic actress and drama teacher, both of whom were employed in Marseille at the time.