Sir Fredrick Ashton - Background Info

Sir Fredrick Ashton 1904-1988, was an important choreographer who restaged Giselle, his main aim was to concentrate on pleasing and entertaining the audience, eventhough he wasnt in the 'Romantic Era' he had the same themes running through his works. He was described as 'Graciously Lyrical' and his dance style was refined and polished to perfection, everything he did was perfect.


Ashton grew up in peru where he fell in love with dance when he saw the russian ballerina, Anna Pavlova in 1917, later on in his life he was sent off to england to go to school there, and in 1921 worked in an office, but his passion was to dance. His brother then paid for his classical training when Ashton was 17, this is a very old age to start training. He trained from 1925-1935, and Dame Marie Rambert, who trained with Enrico Cecchetti, she was convinced of his talent but steered him toward choreography as she though he was too old for a performer.


His first choreographed work was 'The tragedy of fashion', which starred he and rambert as a couturier and his cigar smoking partner.


In 1928-1929, Ashtons influences changed from Pavlova, when in paris to Bronislava Nijinska, she was a russian, petit and strong ballerina, successful with the Mariinsky Ballet, who also is the sister of Valslav Nijinski.


In the year 1935 Ashton moved from rambert to work with Ninette De Valois and The Vic Wells Ballet, which is now know known as The Royal Ballet.


Fredrick Ashton was heavily influenced in his dance technique and style by Enrico Cecchetti as Cecchetti either influenced or trained with the four ballerinas (Pavlova, Rambert, Najinska, Valois.) who influenced Ashton.

Some Of Petipas Other Works

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7vbVLo7Mhv4 this is a video link to a long section of a reconstrustion of Coppelia by marius Petipa for the Bolshoi Ballet.

Some Of Petipas Other Works

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vzXkZEg2Qa8&feature=related this is a video link to a section of a remake of Marius Petipas 'The Sleeping Beauty' this contains some of the original choreography by Petipa also.

Some Of Petipas Other Works

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uXUIOY8uZZk this is a video link to a small section of Swan Lake, this is obviously one of the more up to date versions, but it does contain some of the original choreography by Marius Petipa. 

More about Marius Petipa

http://www.russianballethistory.com/diaghilevchoreographers.htm
Petipa is noted for his long career as Premier Maître de Ballet of the St. Petersburg Imperial Theatres, a position he held from 1871 until 1903. Marius Petipa created over fifty ballets and is considered to be the most influential ballet master and choreographer of ballet that has ever lived. 

Petipa revived a substantial number of works created by other Ballet Masters. Many of these revivals would go on to become the definitive editions from which all subsequent productions would be based. The most famous of these revivals are Le Corsaire, Giselle, La Esmeralda, Coppélia, La Fille Mal Gardée (with Lev Ivanov), The Little Humpbacked Horse and Swan Lake (with Lev Ivanov).

http://www.nekropole.lv/lv/person/view?id=2113&l=en 

Petipa created over fifty ballets, some of which have survived in versions either faithful to, inspired by, or reconstructed from the original — The Pharaoh's Daughter (1862); Don Quixote (1869); La Bayadère (1877); Le Talisman (1889); The Sleeping Beauty (1890); The Nutcracker (which was most likely choreographed by Lev Ivanov, perhaps with Petipa's counsel and instruction) (1892); Le Réveil de Flore(1894); Le Halte De Cavalerie (1896); Raymonda (1898); Les Saisons (1900), and Les Millions d’Arlequin (a.k.a. Harlequinade) (1900).

Marius Petipa - The Choreographer - Background info

Marius Petipa, the choreographer of  Giselle was born in Brussels, Belgium in 1818 (11th March) His parents were both in the performing arts, his father was also a ballet master, so their family had travelled many parts of the world with their jobs. Petipa went to ballet lessons from the age of seven at first he really didnt like it but in time it grew on him and he discovered his natural talent of dance. During the revolution of Belgium no one had much money, the economy was poor and there were many fights breaking out etc. so the Petipas decided to relocate to Bordeaux, France. Here, he finished his training in 1843 and started becoming a choreographer, in 1869 he became a Ballet Master of the Russian Imperial Ballet, like his father. He was the choreographer who had the most impact on the formation of Russian ballet in St. Petersburg.

His choreographic style was simple and clean, less narrative. Motifs were often repeated but gaining intricacy with less narration each time. Also Russian folk dance was often incorporated into his choreographies.

Romantic Ballet Era

These are a few pictures from the romantic ballet era containing the ballerias that were famous at this time:

Filippo Taglioni

(left), Marie Taglioni (center), Lucille Grahn (right back), and Fanny Cerrito (right front) in the Perrot/Pugni Pas de Quatre

 Marie Taglioni

Romantic Ballet

Romantic Ballet was an era in ballet, where the dance style was affected by the vast romance in art and literature. This was called 'The Romantic Period' which started in the 19th century due to INDUSTRIALISATION, and  industry revolution. This was where people wanted ESCAPISM from the hard life of constant work, migrating to the city, money problems and factories taking over country life. Even children were being put to work to earn their family money from a very young age. Writers choreographers and artists fought back against this to give people a quick fix of escapism from their hard lives by introducing romanticism into their art. And this is how the romantic era started, with people wanting to read about and see beatiful pretty things, fantasy things, often like faries, the supernatural and nature etc.

Giselle

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZbMogtezO7k - this is the link to a small section of
Giselle, which was a Romantic Ballet choreographed originally by Marius Petipa, and staged in the year 1884 for Maria Gorshenkova. Petipa then made his final touches to the work, for 1903, Anna Pavlova's debut.