How did ballet come about?

Classical ballet emerged in the Italian courts at the beginning of the 16th century, although it is not known for sure where the inspiration for its first steps and choreographies came from. It was the Italian term balletto (“little dance”, “little dance”) that gave rise to the French word ballet. At the time, it was a diversion much appreciated by the local nobility. Such admiration for dance led the Italian princess Catherine de’ Medici (1519-1589) to introduce ballet to a new court when she married King Henry II of France. Catarina also made a point of hiring the great Italian choreographer of the time, Balthazar de Beaujoyeulx. Here it is worth opening a parenthesis. The choreographer’s real name was Batazarini Di Belgioioso. The French form, not only of his name, but also of other Italians who were part of the history of ballet, became the best known because the dance only really developed when it arrived among the French, who spread their accent to everything that involved it. this art.

But back to Beaujoyeulx. In 1581, his company presented a performance quite different from the ballets of today, bringing together not only dance, but also poetry, singing and a musical orchestra. This varied format enthralled French nobles from the beginning, but the ballet would only reach its zenith in the following century, at the court of King Louis XIV. A great dance enthusiast, Louis XIV was also a dancer, so much so that he was nicknamed the Sun King because of his participation in the Ballet de La Nuit show, in which he wore a very bright costume, reminiscent of the great star. In 1661, Louis XIV founded the Accademie Royale de Musique, which housed a ballet school. There, under the direction of the Italian composer Jean-Baptiste Lully and his assistant, the French dance teacher Pierre Beauchamps, the ballet would become a more sophisticated show, known as “Opera-Ballet” for its combination of dance, dialogue and singing. It was Pierre Beauchamps who created the five basic positions that are still used in ballet today.

Around the 18th century, the shows underwent another transformation, focusing more on music and dancing. It was also at this time that ballerinas began to rebel against the dresses they had been wearing until then, which limited their movement. Because of this restriction, men were the ones who had the most prominent roles in the shows. As choreographies full of jumps and spins gained space, the women had to react. Belgian Marie Ann Cupis de Camargo lowered the heels of her shoes and shortened her skirts to better develop her dance. Not by chance, she was one of the first important ballerinas in history. The last defining moment in the origin of ballet occurred in the 19th century, when the Italian Marie Taglioni was the pioneer in dancing on tiptoe, today the movement most identified with classical ballet.