This collection presents music from three of the most important scores of the Golden Age of ballet in Paris from 1830â "1870. The Romantic ballet had been inaugurated by Meyerbeerâ (TM)s opera Robert le Diable (21 November 1831) with its ghostly Ballet of the Nuns, risen from their graves and dancing in the moonlight, led by their spectral Abbess; a role created by Marie Taglioni (1804â "1884) to her fatherâ (TM)s choreography. La Sylphide (1832), inspired by this situation, was the first fully fledged Romantic ballet. Its graceful and atmospheric score was written by the first violinist at the OpÃ(c)ra, Jean Schneitzhoeffer. The story, devised by the great tenor Adolphe Nourrit, similarly introduces spirits and elemental beings, which dominated ballet scenarios for the following decades. Filippo Taglioniâ (TM)s creation provided the fullest realization of the Romantic ideal, especially in the leading character of the story, and its perfect incarnation in the original interpreter, Marie Taglioni, whose stage personality seemed to be made for the part of the Sylphide. The ballet became the source of theatrically romantic fantasies centred around the hopeless and fatal love between a human being and a supernatural creature. It was performed in Paris until 1860, when the work was abandoned. Only in the late 20th century was Taglioniâ (TM)s original version revived in a literal reconstruction by Pierre Lacotte at the Paris OpÃ(c)ra on 7 June 1972. Giselle is a central work in the ballet repertory all over the world. It is regarded as the absolute masterpiece of Romantic dance theatre; a wonderful synthesis of style, technique, and dramatic feeling, with an exceptional score. The ballet was devised in 1841 as a result of the collaboration of some of the major talents in literature, choreography and music in the Paris of the time. The author, critic and poet ThÃ(c)ophile Gautier, overwhelmed by the art of the ballerina Carlotta Grisi (1819â "1899), discovered what he felt would be the perfect theme for her while reading a translation of Heinrich Heineâ (TM)s book on German legend and folklore, Dâ (TM)Allemagne. Here he found the legend of the wilisâ "maidens who die before their wedding day and who come out of their graves at night in bridal dress to dance until dawn. Should any man be caught in the wood while the wilis are about their rituals, he is doomed to dance on and on until he drops dead from exhaustion. The choreography was created by Jean Coralli and Jules Perrot. The first act is on a realistic level, with an evocation of a medieval rusticity and emotional-sentimental intrigue, while the second act conjures up the supernatural, an ethereal world of magic symbolism. Both public and the critics greeted the work as a triumph. The score was praised for its â oeelegance, the freshness and clarity of the melodies, the vigour and novelty of the harmonic combinations, and the vivacity that pervades the musical texture from start to finishâ . The ballet has come down the years in a more-or-less unbroken tradition. Perrot emphasized his own special creative imprint in the productions he supervised in London (1842) and St Petersburg (1856). In Russia he collaborated with Marius Petipa who made his own reconstruction of the ballet in 1884. This version became the model for all later revivals in Russia, as well as for Mikhail Fokineâ (TM)s production for the Ballet Russes in Paris (1910). Byronâ (TM)s famous narrative poem The Corsair inspired several ballets, with Joseph Mazilierâ (TM)s proving the most important (1856). Jules-Henri Vernoy de Saint-Georgesâ (TM)s scenario was of a superior quality. Mazilier was maÃ(R)tre de ballet at the Paris OpÃ(c)ra between 1853 and 1859, the years of his fullest creativity. The solo parts were infused with an intense dramatic expressiveness, and there was a splendid mise-en-scène. But the great success of the work was due primarily to the quality of the chief performers: the ballerina Carolina Rosati (1826â "1905) and the mime Domenico Segarelli (1820â "1860). The spectacular shipwreck finale was a sensational feat engineered by the chief mechanist of the OpÃ(c)ra, Victor SacrÃ(c), and his crowning glory. Adamâ (TM)s scoreâ "consistently rich in melodic inspiration, engaging in the set dances, imaginative in the many extended mime sequences, and more richly symphonic than ever before in his workâ "reached a height of inspiration in this last music he ever wrote for the stage. Mazilierâ (TM)s ballet gained a world-wide popularity, and became a favourite of the leading ballerinas for decades. Marius Petipa produced his own version in St Petersburg in 1868, with additional music by Cesare Pugni and LÃ(c)o Delibes. In 1899 Petipa revived the ballet again, for the Maryinsky Theatre in St Petersburg, this time completely re-choreographing it for Pierina Legnani, with additional music by Riccardo Drigo. Performances in the USSR and contemporary Russia derive from this version. Drigoâ (TM)s music for the spectacular pas de deux in act 2 is still performed all over the world as an independent piece.

THE LURE OF PERFECTION: FASHION AND BALLET, 1780-1830 offers a unique look at how ballet influenced contemporary fashion and women's body image, and how street fashions in turn were reflected by the costumes worn by ballet dancers. Through years of research, the author has traced the interplay between fashion, social trends, and the development of dance. During the 18th century, women literally took up twice as much space as men; their billowing dresses ballooned out from their figures, sometimes a full 55 inches, to display costly jewelry and fine brocade work; similar costumes appeared on stage. But clothing also limited her movement; it literally disabled them, making the dances themselves little more than tableaux. Movement was further inhibited by high shoes and tight corsets; thus the image of the rigidly straight, long-lined dancer is as much a product of clothing as aesthetics. However, with changing times came new trends. An increased interest in natural movement and the common folk led to less-restrictive clothing. As viewers demanded more virtuosic dancers, women literally danced their way to freedom. THE LURE OF PERFECTION will interest students of dance and cultural history, and women's studies. It is a fascinating, well-researched look at the interplay of fashion, dance, and culture-still very much a part of our world today.

This book is among the first to examine French opera and ballet criticism during the first half of the nineteenth century both as a historical and a literary phenomenon. It thus provides a new and badly needed perspective for scholars and other commentators who have often been willing to treat the journalistic responses to such musical genres chiefly as a simple source of factual information. The essays, taken from a conference in Oxford in 1996, explore the kinds of problem encountered and the types of methodology that might be employed in trying to interpret these critical responses; they throw light on such aspects as the cultural attitudes underlying the writers' rhetoric, the aesthetic stances and ideological agendas at play, and how modes of production influenced content.

The private and performance lives of five female dancers in Western dance history

Kierkegaard’s Concepts is a comprehensive, multi-volume survey of the key concepts and categories that inform Kierkegaard’s writings. Each article is a substantial, original piece of scholarship, which discusses the etymology and lexical meaning of the relevant Danish term, traces the development of the concept over the course of the authorship, and explains how it functions in the wider context of Kierkegaard’s thought. Concepts have been selected on the basis of their importance for Kierkegaard’s contributions to philosophy, theology, the social sciences, literature and aesthetics, thereby making this volume an ideal reference work for students and scholars in a wide range of disciplines.

John Rich (1692-1761) was a profoundly influential figure of the eighteenth-century London stage. As producer, manager, and performer, he transformed the urban entertainment market, creating genres and promotional methods still with us today. This volume gives the first comprehensive overview of Rich’s multifaceted career, appreciation of which has suffered from his performing identity as Lun, London’s most celebrated Harlequin. Far from the lightweight buffoon that this stereotype has suggested, Rich—the first producer of The Beggar’s Opera, the founder of Covent Garden, the dauntless backer of Handel, and the promoter of the principal dancers from the Parisian opera—is revealed as an agent of changes much more enduring than those of his younger contemporary, David Garrick. Contributions by leading scholars from a range of disciplines—theatre, dance, music, art, and cultural history—provide detailed analyses of Rich’s productions and representations. These findings complement Robert D. Hume’s lead article, a study that radically alters our perception of Rich. Published by University of Delaware Press. Distributed worldwide by Rutgers University Press.