Throwback Thursday and the Paris Opera Ballet
Created during the reign of Louis XIV, what became the Paris
Opera Ballet started with the founding of the Academy of Dance in 1661. The
King decreed that this school would be free and no tuition would be charged. Its
aim was to train and promote the perfection of dance. Admission would be
through a selection process, and this method exists today in many renowned
dance training facilities throughout the world.
However, at the end of the Romantic Period, the school began
to have problems, due in part to the fact that ballet’s popularity had spread,
especially in Russia. It managed to survive due to the efforts of dancers like
Marie Taglioni, Carlotta Zambelli, Alber Aveline and Jacque Rouche who directed
the company from 1914 until 1944. Earlier, in 1930, Serge Lifar became the company’s
director and dancers included Marjorie Tallchief and George Skibine (see today's video link).
Today the Paris Opera Ballet remains as one of the preeminent
ballet companies in the world, and as of August 2016, its director is Aurélie
Dupont, a former dancer with the company. Here is what she says about her new
position:
“I look on my tenure from the
perspective of a woman, a French dancer, and the exponent of an ambitious yet
generous project. For me, it’s about finding the right balance between the
company’s illustrious past and its future at the epicentre of French innovation.
It will be period of constant development both in terms of the classical and
the contemporary. There will be an uncompromising emphasis on excellence, to
further enhance the Company’s international reputation. Of course, the dancers
and the young generation, at the very heart of my project, will be its driving
force.”
From the Big Blue Book of Ballet Secrets:
Dance History Factoid #128:
“The Paris Opera
Ballet is the oldest surviving ballet company in the world.”
Link of the Day:
Quote
of the Day:
“Only small minds want always to be right.”
- Louis XIV
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