Ballet Essay

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Compare and Contrast Dance at the Court of Louis XIV with Classical Ballet Well, I think that Classical Ballet and Louis XIV court dancing has many things in comparison and in contrast. First of all, Classical Ballet originates from the French courts in the 17th century, under Louis XIV. He is known as the first stylistic ancestor of classical ballet. In the 17th century amateurs danced for King Louis XIV to gain political power and they also just danced for entertainment. Classical ballet is the most formal of the ballet styles and types. All though it originated in the French courts, as the centuries have passed classical ballet has varied relations of area of origin, such as Italian ballet, Russian ballet, British ballet, and of course French ballet. The French noble style uses the same classical ballet technique that was used both at theatrical ballet dance courts and at public theaters. Several changes in ballet occurred during the seventeenth century. The most important of them was that ballet moved out of ballrooms and halls and into proscenium theatres (Anderson 38). However, performance at courts and in Paris differed substantially. Performances at courts were often accompanied by suitably majestic music, especially for those ballet danced by the king. The lyrics usually conveyed royal power. On the other hand, parts played by the king no longer stood out from those of other performers when performed in Paris. In fact, the ballet that most overly promoted Louis’s royal image were not performed at all outside of courts. In Louis XIV’s day, when dancers wore heeled shoes and bulky costumes, the amount of turnout was less (Anderson 43). There were many musical scores for court ballets. They were composed by Jean

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