Romantic ballet

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Pas de Quatre: Carlotta Grisi, Marie Taglioni, Lucile Grahn and Fanny Cerito

The Romantic period in ballet occurred in the early to mid 1800s, and roughly corresponds to Romanticism movements in art and literature. Like these movements, 'Romantic ballet's focused on the conflict between man and nature, society and supernatural.

1 Cult of the ballerina
2 Design and scenography
- 2.1 Romantic Tutu
- 2.2 Special Effects
3 Important ballets

[edit] Cult of the ballerina

The Romantic era marked the rise of the ballerina as a central part of ballet, where previously men had dominated performances.

Taglioni became the prototypical Romantic ballerina, praised highly for her lyricism. The movement style for Romantic ballerinas was characterized by soft, rounded arms and a forward tilt in the upper body. This gave the woman a flowery, willowy look. Leg movements became more elaborate due to the new tutu length and rising standards of technical proficiency. Important Romantic ballerinas included Carlotta Grisi, the first "Giselle", Lucille Grahn, Fanny Cerrito, Marie Taglioni and Fanny Elssler.

see also: Cult of the ballerina

[edit] Design and scenography

[edit] Romantic Tutu

The costume for the romantic ballerina was the Romantic tutu. This was a full, white, multi-layered skirt made of tulle. The ballerina wore a white bodice with the tutu. In the second acts of Romantic ballets, representing the spiritual realm, the corps de ballet appeared onstage in Romantic tutus, giving the name to the term "white act" or "ballet-blanc".

[edit] Special Effects

Romantic ballets owed much to the new developments in theater effects, particularly gas lighting (Limelight). Candles had been previously used to light theaters, but gas lighting allowed for dimming effects and other subtelties. Combined with the effects of the Romantic tutu, ballerinas posing en pointe, and the use of wires to make dancers "fly," directors used gas lighting to create supernatural spectacles onstage.

the style of the romatic ballet was changed due to the fact that marie taglioni had very long arms and to show that they werent as long and lanky as they were her father, chreographer fillipo tagilioni curved her arms more to make them look shoarter and more gracefull.