dancehistoryshannonswift

[dancehistoryshannonswift]

remember when Hayden krumped

I for one am shocked that we have reached the end of these weekly(ish) blog posts. But we have! The great thing is, we still have a paper to write and a project to curate, SO, Dance History continues.

I will still say that hip-hop is not something I feel confident with. I will avoid having to physicalize it at all costs. But I am fascinated by the possibilities. Although I missed the first half of the weeks discussion, it was focused on krumping. I remember watching that one cheerleading movie with Hayden Panetierre where she falls for the guy and learns how to krump and that being the first I had ever heard of it. It is basically as I remember; an aggressive way of dancing or moving to work through struggles that could be solved through violence. It is much safer and a better way of expressing the self and identity.

House dancing was our discussion for Thursday. House dancing is what used to be club dancing. Unfortunately, my club dancing experience was nowhere near as cool as I’m sure house dancing was. It definitely didn’t have the vibe and the lights and the feeling of community as everyone danced together.

The community is I think the most important part of hip hop dancing. The other branches like voguing and whacking are so vital to the communities they came out of, the use of them in the media tends to turn them basic and lack reasoning. I could personally watch whacking all day, but I know that I have found it boring or overdone every once in a while, outside of the community that highly encourages it as part of expression.

Food for thought I guess.

Much love, xoxo.

#blog 10

[dancehistoryshannonswift]

exploration of self

As stated before, hip hop has very specific roots. These roots have created traditions and stereotypes that have been followed for years but are slowly being called into question as society progresses into more liberal ideas. Hip hop has been a succinctly male dominated and masculine profession for quite some time. So much so to the point of a man’s honor and position in his community and crew could be called into question should he lose. The comparison to women’s work is based solely on anatomy and gender roles that have been in place for years. While these are changing, hip hop is still used to define a personal self, often a strong masculine man. As the self is identified using dance and hip hop, those ideas are changing.

I would like to look at the use of discovery within dance. The comparison of being in the ‘present’ for hip hop can be compared to the use of improvisational scores within post-modern Avant guard dance work. I have an inkling that hip hop may be more authentic in its use of improvisation to discover solely based on the idea that improvisation is the mode of creation for hip hop in all its types (street, battle, concert). Something to compare and discuss later in the exploration of hip hop.

#blog 9

[dancehistoryshannonswift]

Hip hop y’all

Hip hop has a very set beginning. Sort of. The original breaking started in New York. It was a street style that allowed for nonviolent peace to come about. Locking and popping started in California, a very different setting and style within the genre of hip hop. The media had a large impact on hip hop; the media allowed for a spread of hip hop but also made it a very commercialized gentrified mode of dance. As we discuss hip hop this semester, I’m curious to see if the dance world should begin to relabel and specify street style and what I term pop style. I say this because breaking has a very specific criterion in the streets. I fully believe that it should.

Every part of breaking has significance. The clothing is not only for style but also for protection. The shirts provide traction and any netting provides protection as they spin. The shoes are used to emphasize footwork that is vital to winning a battle. The music used to tell the dancers what to do, but now provide a background to the overall experience.

Men and women have some differences as they battle as well. Due to the anatomical differences, women tend to focus toward footwork and athletic moves that require flexibility. Men focus on the super athletic movements and use of the upper body. In battling, the males tend to be much more aggressive but both sexes are aggressive as they do so.

I’m looking forward to learning more about hip hop even if I look like a lanky nerd flailing around space while I do so!

#blog 6

[dancehistoryshannonswift]

ballet is female...male?...?

I’m fascinated with the idea of gender. I’m very confident with my own gender. What I’m curious about is the in-between. I once took an international women’s studies class that discussed the matter of cultures that have a gender that would be the United States’ societal norm of non-binary. It is fascinating that humans need to have a description for every single detail and yet, some ideas are still so incomprehensible to other humans.

While at a ballet intensive in 2017, I met several ballerinos who were absolutely amazing. I was awed by their talent and their personalities. Kristoff is from South Africa and could very well be a principle dancer among several companies. When I first met him, I was very very VERY confused. He was dressed like a male dancer. His overall appearance was male. Until you got to his lips. And his voice. Especially his voice. He had a falsetto like no other, but that was how he was normally. If it weren’t for the fact that biologically, he is male and identified as male, he could be an amazing female dancer as well. That man could handle pointe shoes like no other.

It’s people like Kristoff that help me think and realize that dance shouldn’t really b gendered. The reality is that patriarchal society has dictated that the man leads therefore that is how it should be in every aspect. Even as ballerinas utilize men for support, it is often that the male role is still overly vital to the story in the end and needed in order to continue on the classical spectrum without becoming a comedy. I know I personally couldn’t support another female in a classical ballet sense, but that also is in part because I wasn’t trained in that way physically and mentally.

#Blog 7

[dancehistoryshannonswift]

So a ballerina walks into a barre...

Honestly, the title of this blog has nothing to do with what I’m about to write. I just really wanted to use the pun before we end the discussion on ballet for the semester.

I’m really interested in the idea that all stories have two sides that need to be told in order to be understood. This is especially important when white people try to discuss black history. But ballet wise, I’m super curious about the case of Nijinsky and his break from Diaghilev and the difference in re-creation of Le Sacre du Printemps. The dancers themselves had blocked out the choreography from Nijinsky and the notations were lost. Is it possible the dancers didn’t want to experience or admit that the original was a great new idea for the public to experience? Diaghilev wanted to re-create the experience but also had broken professionally with Nijinsky. Maybe it was a dislike of Nijinsky, maybe it was simply that people didn’t want to experience the same movement and refused to look for the notations. 

I also want to discuss how interesting it is that humans love the aesthetic of ballet, and tend towards ballet if they don’t have a wide range of dance exposure. Even my boyfriend prefers the viewing of a story ballet because it is so clear and has a point. I, at the moment, enjoy the abstraction of modern dance and how to tell a story with the body without the codified technique of ballet. I believe that its because ballet has such a long history and humans hate change of tradition. This is something to think about and consider as I look into my final paper for this class.

I love ballet but I am glad to moving on in the dance history world to learn more about the totality of the subject I’ve chosen to study and find a career in.

#Blog 6

[dancehistoryshannonswift]

The Americans take the Ballet!

Forward to Petipa [Deborah Jowitt] and Rise of the American Ballet [Ballet and Modern Dance: a Concise History]

‘Despite protests by strict religious groups’ (The Rise of American Ballet) ballet became a popular art of several types: Broadway, vaudeville, overall art. Because of society not appreciating the dancers and makers as much as the Russians had done, there was no money and often ‘little sustained creative development’. In the 19th century works, there was elementary steps and clear simple patterns. At the turn of popularity in ballet, generally the early 20th century (1900’s) that the minimal plot, costumes and much more patterns was effective in creating entertainment. Once ballet became popular in musical theatre, several schools were much more popular and of use to people.

American ballet was taken seriously by names like Pavlova, Morkia and Diaghilev and Lincoln Kirstein. Most historians (including myself) consider Balanchine the height of ‘American’ ballet. He was highly influenced by America itself, music and his female dancers. He often had minimal plot and utilized the whole body. He came at a time where modern was becoming more popular. He managed to combine some ideas and still utilize the ballet aesthetic and created the idea of a ‘typical’ ballerina for most serious companies.

Humans love the idea of ballet. We know the names of choreographers more so than the dancers themselves though. Our society still considers dance as a secondary job and although we have such a celebrated history I think it’s interesting we still don’t treat as many dancers as stars as we should, much like actors and musical theatre artists. American society draws such an interesting line between the creator of a work, and the doers of the work. Something to think about!

#Blog 5

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Russian[s] (dancing) in the HOUSE

In the Royal Image (Deborah Jowitt) and Astonishments from Ballet and Modern Dance: a Concise History

Despite the beginnings of ballet in France, the Russians are those that come to mind when discussing the technique overall. The Russians were strict but highly honored and encouraged the art form. This may have something to do with the fact that the Tsars practically owned all aspects of the art. The choreography was encouraged to reflect the court hierarchy and fantasy up until the time came for fancy footwork. Marius Petipa was highly recognized during the height of the beginning of ballet in Russia and he curated a lot of the ensemble imagery that is seen during ‘romantic’ ballets. What was nice about being a part of the Russian companies was the kind living. Unlike in the European countries, dance artists had no need for patrons and lived quite well without a rich partner.

Eventually, dancers and choreographers are likely to leave the nest, so to speak. We know of Balanchine only too well, specifically for his part in the New York City Ballet. Critics often claimed that he was too Russian or not enough. Western audiences are simply never satisfied, am I right?

The person I would like to discuss is Ballet Russe director Sergei Diaghilev. He was never a dancer, but a patron of the art and brought Russian ballet to the west, most specifically Europe. He was a monarch in his own way. During his reign he curated several Ballets still seen today and encouraged modernism in the works done. He had his favorites but was always working to have a great company. Several artists that joined post WWI took Slavic names to fit in. Unfortunately, he was almost always broke and the company was consistently in need of benefactors. It was a tough role, and so the company Ballet Russe died with him. Several fantastic artists came from his time as director, including Anna Pavlova, the direct opposite in terms of ideas to Diaghilev.

All of this to say that the practices and choreography in America are branches of several different techniques, but the most recognized is that from the Russians. They created a strict codified way of ballet that is recognizable almost anywhere thanks to those that decided to move on from Russia and bring their artistic spirits elsewhere.

#those russians #ballet #Blog 4

[dancehistoryshannonswift]

[Not so New] Romantic Ballet

In Pursuit of the Sylph and The Travesty Dancer in the Nineteenth-Century Ballet

Ballet is such a complicated subject and just has so much history, that we could talk about it for weeks at a time. So, we are! This time, we are taking a look at the start of the romantic era of ballet. This is actually my least favorite era of ballet, but still quite loved. Our class went through 2 readings this time around and, while related, they are on two different subjects within the ballet focus.

“In Pursuit of the Sylph” was an incredibly interesting read for me. For a while, I thought I was going to be an English major, which would require me to really break down the romantic era, but boy am I glad I didn’t do that. If I had, I would’ve realized that the ‘romantic’ ballets are actually Gothic ballets that just happened to be in that time period. There wasn’t much academic substance to the classification of this ballet era to be romantic, but it is a helpful way of keeping the history of ballet linear. The ballets during this time were actually much more supernatural and quite much more focused on the new age of heroines as the star. Pointe was becoming more popular and added to the fantasy affect that ballets were aiming for. This reading also began to shed light on how difficult it was to be a dancer at that time, and the struggle of mothers and families overall.

We have been asked to answer and look at a question posed by our classmates. The topic of pointe brings me to the perfect place to do so here! “In the article we read Tuesday, males would also do pointe like women. If men and women did pointe equally today, how do you think it would be viewed?” (Shoufler) I beleive men are actually beginning to do pointe today, we have an entire company dedicated to men doing so! I for one love the fact that men can do pointe work and would highly recommend it. Society though, loves that its happening but really only in the form of social media entertainment. It isn’t as well loved yet.

This brings me to the second reading, “The Travesty Dancer in the Nineteenth-Century Ballet”. Male dancers were much less popular because of the less than pleasing aesthetic they brought to the stage. Females dressed as men were much more pleasing to the eye and allowed for the gender roles to stay intact. This reading paints the scene of women being supported by men much like ‘sugar-daddies’. In exchange for their time and adoration, men would sponsor the ladies on stage. This greatly affected the Essler sisters in their act later on. The changes in technique and audiences required the change in use of men, leaving women to stay in the role of female overall.

Thankfully, gender roles onstage are slowly changing to be much more interchangeable. Women must be as strong as men, and men can be as graceful as the women. The modern techniques are pivotal to the strength of women onstage though, while ballet seems to be a source of grace for men and the change in dynamics overall. This is a fascinating connection, and maybe something to look into later!

#ballet #romantic ballet #blog 3 #holy cow ballet is crazy

[dancehistoryshannonswift]

Gotta get that Ballet

Ballet: A History in Broad Brushstrokes

Ballet has been a major part of my life since I was three years old. My mom was determined to have a ballerina, no matter which child it was going to be. Two of my brothers participated for a year or two; it was me who stuck with the training and fell in love with it. We were fortunate to have a family studio nearby that we had connections with to allow for smaller payments and that just so happened to have strong and encouraging teachers.

The struggle though is that ballet is expensive and has many pros and cons. It is rooted in tradition and old school aesthetic that is slowly changing for the contemporary world. Despite the need for change, ballet still enjoys looking back into history and re-staging iconic ballets that changed the trajectory of dance and music in society. It did change the roles of gender in performance and art during the romantic period, which I believe had an overall positive affect for dance and the world, but only slightly. In general, the ballet world is still struggling with gender equality in both creation and performance.

Ballet is changing but is also trying to keep its history because that is what general society has heard of and draws a crowd. It changed a lot from the use of miming, fencing and being led by men in performance, but has a lot of issues rooted in the old aesthetic and the gendered roles. I believe this is incredibly important to remember when studying ballet and trying to make an impact in the ballet world.

#ballet #blog 2 #i love ballet but man #its hard af

[dancehistoryshannonswift]

The Pennsylvania Ballet shared the following Facebook post

Pennsylvania Ballet

“A Facebook user recently commented that the Eagles had “played like they were wearing tutus!!!” Our response: “With all due respect to the Eagles, let’s take a minute to look at what our tutu wearing women have done this month: By tomorrow afternoon, the ballerinas that wear tutus at Pennsylvania Ballet will have performed The Nutcracker 27 times in 21 days. Some of those women have performed the Snow scene and the Waltz of the Flowers without an understudy or second cast. No ‘second string’ to come in and spell them when they needed a break. When they have been sick they have come to the theater, put on make up and costume, smiled and performed. When they have felt an injury in the middle of a show there have been no injury timeouts. They have kept smiling, finished their job, bowed, left the stage, and then dealt with what hurts. Some of these tutu wearers have been tossed into a new position with only a moments notice. That’s like a cornerback being told at halftime that they’re going to play wide receiver for the second half, but they need to make sure that no one can tell they’ve never played wide receiver before. They have done all of this with such artistry and grace that audience after audience has clapped and cheered (no Boo Birds at the Academy) and the Philadelphia Inquirer has said this production looks “better than ever”. So no, the Eagles have not played like they were wearing tutus. If they had, Chip Kelly would still be a head coach and we’d all be looking forward to the playoffs.“ Happy New Year!”

[dancehistoryshannonswift]

Ballet Corps Member Fixing Her Hair (c.1900-1902). Edgar Degas (French, 1834-1917). Pastel on paper, laid down on paper.

The audacity of Degas’s art during this period was often at odds with the narrowness of his life. In 1890 he took over a large studio on the rue Victor Massé, later moving into an adjoining apartment that was to remain his home until 1912. He never married but was a fiercely loyal friend, counting among his intimates a number of women, including Mary Cassatt.

[dancehistoryshannonswift]

Ballet and Modern Dance

Religion has played a large aspect in the popularity of dance over the ages. The movement was part spiritual worship and ceremonial acts for certain cultures. In general, it was both loved and hated.

I have found that worship movement is becoming much more acceptable in western religions and much more popular. People are finding an understanding of themselves therefor beginning to finding an understanding in their religion. I myself have performed in a church as part of a worship service, and heard of many places that are aligned with religious companies.

If it weren’t for the nobles of France though, dance would not be so popular as it is now. Ballet was an incredibly refined and important art as the french became more aristocratic and influenced by the arts. King Louis XIV shaped the path for ballet to become as revered as it is now. In order to be accepted by nobles and overall society, one needed to know how to dance. The only reason it was professionalized was because the monarchy has slowly died out and capitalism has reigned supreme.

The artistry in dance has become much more important as modern dance and experiments in movement has evolved to abstraction.

Ballet and religious movement have generally been opposites. Slowly but surely they are becoming closer and closer as dance overall is often a spiritual experience. 

#pgs 24-67 #blog 1