Ballet emerged during the Italian Renaissance in the 1500s as a form of court entertainment, with the word “ballet” originating from the Italian word ballare, meaning “to dance.” When Catherine de Medici of Italy married King Henry II of France, she introduced early ballet to the French court.
Initially, most of the dancers in early court ballets were courtiers. The dancers wore elaborate and restrictive costumes with heavy ornaments, so their movements were simple, consisting of gentle turns and light hops. In the mid-17th century, the Sun King, Louis XIV, founded a formal dance institution to establish standards and improve the quality of dance instruction, from which the first professional ballet company, the Paris Opera Ballet, arose.
Following the French Revolution, ballet costumes shed their baroque trappings. The first pair of pointe shoes emerged as dancers began dancing on pointe to appear weightless.
By the late 19th century, the center of ballet activity moved from Paris to St. Petersburg, Russia. A distinctly Russian style emerged and became dominant in 20th-century ballet.
Hannah Kim For The Junior Times junior/1727231202/1613367831
1. Where and when did ballet first begin?
2. Who introduced ballet to the French court?
3. Why were early ballet movements simple?
4. Which country became the center of ballet in the late 19th century?
1. Have you ever seen a ballet performance? What did you think about it?
2. Would you like to try dancing ballet? Why or why not?
3. Do you think it's important for dance to have special schools or training? Why?
4. If you were a ballet dancer, would you prefer to dance in France or Russia? What makes you choose that?
Ballet emerged during the Italian Renaissance in the 1500s as a form of court entertainment, with the word “ballet” originating from the Italian word ballare, meaning “to dance.” When Catherine de Medici of Italy married King Henry II of France, she introduced early ballet to the French court.
