Visual and Performing Arts, Part 2

Question 1: Define dance.

Answer 1: an artistic form of nonverbal communication performers move in a graceful and rhythmical way a party of people assembled for dancing dancing: taking a series of rhythmical stepsand movements in time to music move in a pattern; usually to musical accompaniment; do or perform a dance

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Question 2: Discuss the history of dance and the emergence of ballet.

Answer 2: Dance is prominent throughout history. Traditions of narrative dance evolved in China, India, Indonesia and Ancient Greece. Theatrical dance was well-established in the wider arena of ancient Greek theatre. When the Roman Empire conquered Greece, it assimilated Greek dance and theatre along with their art and culture.While dance continued to be important throughout the Middle Ages, in spite of occasional suppression by the Church, the art of ballet did not emerge until the late 1400s in Italy. Italy began the ballet tradition, but it was the French that enabled it to blossom. Incorporating aspects of Italian ballet, French ballet gained prominence and influenced the dance genre internationally. To this day, the majority of ballet vocabulary originates from French.

Question 3: Discuss and describe ballet’s development as an art form.

Answer 3: During the 18th century ballet became a serious dramatic art form on a par with the opera. Central to this advance was the work of Jean-Georges Noverre, Lettres sur la danse et les ballets (1760), which focused on developing the ballet d'action, in which the movements of the dancers are designed to express character and assist in the narrative. At this time, women played a secondary role as dancers, Reforms were made in ballet composition by composers such as Christoph Gluck. Finally, ballet was divided into three formal techniques: sérieux, demi-caractère and comique. Ballet also began to be featured in operas as interludes called divertissements.The 19th century was a period of great social change, which was reflected in ballet by a shift away from the aristocratic sensibilities that had dominated earlier periods. Ballerinas such as Marie Taglioni and Fanny Elssler pioneered new techniques, such as pointework ,that rocketed the ballerina into prominence as the ideal stage figure. Professional librettists began crafting the stories in ballets, and teachers like Carlo Blasis codified ballet technique in the basic form that is still used today.

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