nPostednon March 2, 2016
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nInam a bit surprised that the first ballet in Britain was in the 1700s.nAfter all, ballet developed as a kind of performance dance in Italynin the 1400s and as a form of concert dance in France and Russia innthe mid-1500s and 1600s. It seems surprising that it took centuriesnfor the art form to reach Britain!
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nApparently,nmost classical ballet up to and in the early 1700s lacked any sort ofnstory. English choreographer John Weaver not only wanted to bringnballet to his nation but wanted to bring drama to ballet. He createdna ballet based on a play, which in turn was inspired by Greeknmythology; both the play and the ballet were called The Loves ofnMars and Venus. n
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| Drury Lane Theatre |
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nWeavernattempted to portray the plot and the emotions of the play throughndance – through movement, pantomime, etc. Nobody spoke lines;nnobody even sang lines. n
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nThenballet was popular enough to inspire a parody version by anninfluential producer.
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nOnnthis date in 1717, The Loves of Mars and Venus premiered in DrurynLane Theatre in London.
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nBalletsnthat tell stories are so common now, I think of ballets that do NOTndo so as experimental, but back in 1717, Weaver was the one doing thenexperimentation! n
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- WoodnTV tells how the Grand Rapids Ballet company tells stories – herenabout a World War II hero, and there about Beethoven.
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- ArtsEdge has a lesson about how to tell a story through movement, andnSEDL offers another, similar three-session lesson.
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nAlsonon this date:
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Anniversary of Massachusetts ratifying the Bill of Rights – 150 years late!
Anniversary of Massachusetts ratifying the Bill of Rights – 150 years late!n
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nTexasnIndependence Day
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nDr.nSeuss Day
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nPeasants’nDay in Myanmar
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nPlannahead:
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nAndn here are my Pinterest boards for:
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nApriln holidays
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nApriln birthdays
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nHistoricaln anniversaries in April
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