Margot Fonteyn Essay

The first experience of watching a ballet, for me or any little girl, can be fascinating and exhilarating. Wondering how a dancer can be so steady on her toes as she spins in circles and leaps through the air. Watching a ballet, there is a feeling of wanting to be graceful, as well as the warm sensation felt by a little girl as she slips into dream land. My mom had taken me to my first ballet when I was 11 years old. When we returned home home, she signed me up for classes at the local dance center. The expectations to become a prima ballerina would involve much hard work and concentration. I knew when I started it would take years of steady practice and commitment. Learning the history of ballet and the famous

During the Russo-American Era, Russian choreographers, such as, Michel Fokine, Anna Pavlova, Vaslav Nijinsky, Léonide Massine, and Bronislava Nijinska; benefited from the American audience and started to make dramatic changes to the classical ballet. Every single one of these choreographers implemented and transformed the way people view, danced and perceived ballet in the early 20th century. Several ideas for these innovations were from Michel Fokine. In 1914, he wrote a letter to the London Times, stating the five principles of ballet that befitted the 20th century ballet:

For the history of Russian Classical ballet, it originated in a group of dance academies in Moscow and St Petersburg in the eighteenth century. At first the dancers were from poor backgrounds - usually from orphanages - but the Tsars were particular ballet enthusiasts and so the profile grew. However, in the nineteenth century some of the best French and Italian dancers and teachers went to Russia and ballet developed considerably more than in Western Europe where opera was preferred. It was under this climate that Russian ballet led the way in classical dance with such famous stars as Anna Pavlova, Mikhail Foskine and the legendary Nijinsky, who all trained with the Frenchman Marius Petipa at the St Petersburg Imperial Ballet.

As world has changed over the last century or so, the ballet world has been changing with it. There are many people who have helped shape that change. The changes in style were mainly influenced by George Balanchine. George Balanchine, a Russian choreographer and ballet dancer, also known as the father of American ballet, was the man who was said to have changed the style of ballet forever. Along with these changes in style came changes in visual design elements, inspirational figures, and changes in what the ballets themselves tend to rely on. Many of the features given to ballet in Russia in the 15th and 16th century still remain to this day, but many features have been altered to fit . Let’s take a closer look at what features truly

Misty Copeland is a significant person in dance history because her confidence, independence, and perseverance have enabled her to break the color barrier in ballet, inspire young dancers by her troubled childhood, and make a comeback to save her

People can now be a talented dancer just like her by going to her dance studio and learning how to dance. People will give her credibility for teaching them how to dance.This gave her a historical credibility because when she died her dance studio will still be there and people will still going then as well. Also a dancer names Clarence Bradley went to her dance studio to start dancing and had a stage debut.People are going to her dance studio and are becoming icon and getter dancer like herself and Clarence Bradley. So no matter if she is still alive or not she will still be known as a dancing and having a dance studio that everyone goes

Graham is considered one of the major and most influential dancers in America. Graham's craving for dance gave her the strength and determination she needed to become one of the best. Her incredible emotions changed the dancing world, not only in her style as a dancer, but in her innovative style of choreography (182).

"Point your toes, do it again, straighten your legs!" "Turn your feet out!" "Let's go, do it right!" "One more time", these are some of the very wise words of dance teachers around the world. Misty Copeland is an inspiration to girls everywhere because she never thought she would amount to anything out of the ordinary. Misty Copeland is by far one of the most famous ballet dancers because of her humble uprising, through hard word and determination she strived to change the image of biracial women and overcoming prejudice and all the block out the haters and change the face of ballet.

When she was younger, it wasn’t hard for her to learn the new choreography.She was a natural dancer,but no matter how well of a dancer she was she knew that she could always improve her skills. She also became a local dancer and she performed at rodeos and county fair. One of instructor said “She didn't know learn the basics.” She needed to be taught the basics.

One of the most important and influential people in the world of ballet is George Balanchine. He became a legend long before he died. He brought the standards of dance up to a level that had never been seen before, and he created a new audience for ballet. Balanchine was one of the greatest and most prolific choreographers in ballet history, choreographing at least 300 ballets; he was rivaled in quantity only by Jules Perrot and Marius Petipa.

Betty Marie Tallchief had a dream to be a ballerina. She became a local star, but her instructor told her she needed to go over the basics again. She didn’t think she needed to, so she didn’t learn the basics again. After she moved, she was teased at school. She later became famous. This is the story of Betty Marie Tallchief.

Holding Onto the Air an autobiography by Suzanne Farrell takes the reader backstage in the dramatic life of the world-renowned Balanchine ballerina. From her childhood in Cincinnati to her retirement from ballet in 1989, Farrell's story is truly a remarkable one. The book describes at length her time with the New York City Ballet as well as her complex relationship with the legendary Balanchine. Although Mrs. Farrell goes a bit too far into the ballet descriptions, her beautiful imagery allows reader to experience the joy of performing on stage.

Anna Kingsley, a woman of strength and determination overcame many odds not expected of an African American slave. She married a slave owner, owned land, and was once a slave herself. She was well known in a free black community she helped establish.

Classical Ballet is the epitome of class and sophistication, it is known for its meticulous techniques

'It seems to me, my dear friend, that the music of this ballet will be one of my best creations. The subject is so poetic, so grateful for music, that 1 have worked on it with enthusiasm and written it with the warmth and enthusiasm upon which the worth of a composition always depends." - Tchaikovsky, to Nadia von Meck.