History: Dancing 3

Learn about the History of Dancing 3

Classical ballet is constantly reshaping itself and stretching its boundaries to delve beyond the realm of classical ballet into more forms of contemporary dance. A few dancers even believe that very few elements of the classical ballet remain today, in fact, some believe the classical dance has been reduced to the turn out technique. (This is the basic principle of classical ballet that provides maximum mobility wherein the dancer practices to accomplish a 90 degree turn out of the leg from the hip, appearing to do this without effort or strain.)

Dancers at the beginning of the 20th century started to appreciate a whole new bevy of expressions in dance, such as the individual qualities, rituals, religion, and emotional expression. Thus began the growth in freedom of expression of modern dance. Dance was expressed in a new art form, which went beyond the costumes and tricks of the ballet dancers. Many of the well-known choreographers and dancers of the early 20th century took a negative approach to ballet. For example, Isadora Duncan viewed it as an ugly form and thought of ballet as a form of insignificant gymnastics. Martha Graham viewed it as a form of European Imperialism, which held no place in the lives of the American people. Although Merce Cunningham did use some basics of ballet in his teachings, he approached his choreography and dance performance totally different from traditional ballet. Everything that ballet had previously stood for was somewhat shattered by many well-known dancers (especially American dancers) of the 20th century. This era experienced a unique growth and change in creativity and the mind-set of the dancers and choreographers. The art of dance took on new meanings in its form and definition. The horizons of dance were certainly broadened as it took on new meanings. In fact, many dancers considered it a time of revolution in the art of dance.

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