55-658: Michael Fokine (23 April [ O.S. 11 April] 1880 – 22 August 1942) was a Russian choreographer and dancer . Fokine was born in Saint Petersburg to a prosperous merchant and at the age of 9 was accepted into the Saint Petersburg Imperial Ballet School . That same year, he made his performing debut in The Talisman under the direction of Marius Petipa . In 1898, on his 18th birthday, he debuted on
110-635: A ballet school in 1921, and continued to appear with his wife, Vera Fokina. One of his pupils was Patricia Bowman . By 1924, he organized the American Ballet Company, which performed regularly at the Metropolitan Opera House and toured the United States. His first piece for the company was the comedy Bluebeard , set to a score by Jacques Offenbach . His ballet Les Sylphides was the first production at
165-414: A ballet to Ballets Russes set and costume designer Léon Bakst . His idea was based on " Le Spectre de la rose", a verse by Théophile Gautier, and Aufforderung zum Tanz , a work for piano by Carl Maria von Weber and orchestrated by Hector Berlioz in 1841. Diaghilev liked Vaudoyer's idea. He thought it could easily take the place of Faune . He put Vaudoyer's idea into development at once. Diaghilev liked
220-642: A calendar change, respectively. Usually, they refer to the change from the Julian calendar to the Gregorian calendar as enacted in various European countries between 1582 and 1923. In England , Wales , Ireland and Britain's American colonies , there were two calendar changes, both in 1752. The first adjusted the start of a new year from 25 March ( Lady Day , the Feast of the Annunciation ) to 1 January,
275-544: A change which Scotland had made in 1600. The second discarded the Julian calendar in favour of the Gregorian calendar, skipping 11 days in the month of September to do so. To accommodate the two calendar changes, writers used dual dating to identify a given day by giving its date according to both styles of dating. For countries such as Russia where no start-of-year adjustment took place, O.S. and N.S. simply indicate
330-488: A choreographer, he took ballerinas out of their pointe shoes when pointe did not serve any "artistic purpose". He believed that pointe should be used when the dancing body desires to express a soaring and upward theme, rather than to flaunt the strength of dancers' feet. He presented this new idea to the Imperial Mariinsky Theater 's management, but did not win their support. One of Fokine's requests
385-536: A feminine aura" to the character. Nijinsky's silk elastic costume was designed by Léon Bakst. The costume was covered with silk rose petals. Nijinsky was stitched into the costume for every show. After every show, the wardrobe mistress would touch up the petals with her curling iron. Nijinsky's make-up was an important part of the costume design. Romula de Pulszky , later to be his wife, wrote that he looked like "a celestial insect, his eyebrows suggesting some beautiful beetle". Ostwald writes that Nijinsky's costume
440-459: A letter dated "12/22 Dec. 1635". In his biography of John Dee , The Queen's Conjurer , Benjamin Woolley surmises that because Dee fought unsuccessfully for England to embrace the 1583/84 date set for the change, "England remained outside the Gregorian system for a further 170 years, communications during that period customarily carrying two dates". In contrast, Thomas Jefferson , who lived while
495-421: A method of utilizing ballet to communicate the natural beauty of Man. He did not believe virtuoso ballet techniques to symbolize anything, and thought they could be substituted with forms that better expressed emotions and themes. Fokine was a strong believer in the communicative power of dance and pushed for creativity that broke tradition, believing that tradition is often distinct from reality and fails to capture
550-514: A more cohesive artwork. Petrushka (1912), with music also composed by Stravinsky and set design by Alexandre Benois Petrouchka, was inspired by the Russian puppet which traditionally appeared at the Butter Week ( Shrovetide ) Fairs. In this ballet, Fokine included street dancers, peddlers , nursemaids , a performing bear, and a large ensemble of characters to complement the plot. The story
605-513: A program for this work about a young man and woman who meet, dance, and part at a ball. The quiet music at the opening of Aufforderung leads to some beautiful (and busy) waltz tunes before the work ends with the opening music. In 1841, Hector Berlioz orchestrated Aufforderung . This version of the music was used for a short ballet in Weber's opera Der Freischütz at the Paris Opéra . It
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#1732787402968660-911: A start-of-year adjustment works well with little confusion for events before the introduction of the Gregorian calendar. For example, the Battle of Agincourt is well known to have been fought on 25 October 1415, which is Saint Crispin's Day . However, for the period between the first introduction of the Gregorian calendar on 15 October 1582 and its introduction in Britain on 14 September 1752, there can be considerable confusion between events in Continental Western Europe and in British domains. Events in Continental Western Europe are usually reported in English-language histories by using
715-569: A trifle not worth notice, but the little ballet became one of the most loved productions of the Ballets Russes. Michel Fokine completed the dance in three or four rehearsals. He later wrote that the ballet was almost an improvisation. Grace Robert writes in The Borzoi Book of Ballets that Spectre is a pas de deux but not the sort of pas de deux that looks back to complex 19th-century technique and virtuosity. Instead, it
770-627: A verse by Théophile Gautier and used the music of Carl Maria von Weber 's piano piece Aufforderung zum Tanz (Invitation to the Dance) as orchestrated by Hector Berlioz . The ballet premiered in Monte Carlo on 19 April 1911, produced by the Ballets Russes ballet company. Michel Fokine was the choreographer and Léon Bakst designed the original Biedermeier sets and costumes. Nijinsky danced The Rose and Tamara Karsavina danced
825-536: Is 9 February 1649, the date by which his contemporaries in some parts of continental Europe would have recorded his execution. The O.S./N.S. designation is particularly relevant for dates which fall between the start of the "historical year" (1 January) and the legal start date, where different. This was 25 March in England, Wales, Ireland and the colonies until 1752, and until 1600 in Scotland. In Britain, 1 January
880-518: Is a forward-looking, modern dance of continuous movement and expressiveness. Fokine dropped the port de bras of classical ballet in designing the dances for Nijinsky. He used instead curving, tendril-like movements of the arms and fingers. Nijinsky became an androgynous character in this ballet, one showing masculine power in his legs and a feminine delicacy in his arms. Some of his gestures, Ostwalt writes in Nijinsky: A Leap into Madness , "lent
935-600: The American Ballet Theatre on 11 January 1940. In 1937, Fokine joined Wassily de Basil 's offshoot of the Ballets Russes, which was eventually named the Original Ballet Russe . Among the new works Fokine created during this period were Cendrillon (1938) and Paganini (1939). His choreography was featured with the company until 1941. Fokine staged more than eighty ballets in Europe and
990-609: The Russian Empire and the very beginning of Soviet Russia . For example, in the article "The October (November) Revolution", the Encyclopædia Britannica uses the format of "25 October (7 November, New Style)" to describe the date of the start of the revolution. The Latin equivalents, which are used in many languages, are, on the one hand, stili veteris (genitive) or stilo vetere (ablative), abbreviated st.v. , and meaning "(of/in) old style" ; and, on
1045-679: The United States . His best-known works were Chopiniana , Le Carnaval (1910), and Le Pavillon d'Armide (1907). His pieces are still performed internationally. The Mariinsky Ballet performed a retrospective of Fokine's work at London 's Covent Garden in July 2011. Fokine died in New York on 22 August 1942, aged 62. In tribute to his death, seventeen ballet companies around the world performed Les Sylphides simultaneously. Fokine aspired to move beyond traditional ballet, toward
1100-454: The 19th century, a practice that the author Karen Bellenir considered to reveal a deep emotional resistance to calendar reform. Le Spectre de la Rose Le Spectre de la rose ( The Spirit of the Rose ) is a short ballet about a young girl who dreams of dancing with the spirit of a souvenir rose from her first ball. The ballet was written by Jean-Louis Vaudoyer who based the story on
1155-539: The 4th century , had drifted from reality . The Gregorian calendar reform also dealt with the accumulated difference between these figures, between the years 325 and 1582, by skipping 10 days to set the ecclesiastical date of the equinox to be 21 March, the median date of its occurrence at the time of the First Council of Nicea in 325. Countries that adopted the Gregorian calendar after 1699 needed to skip an additional day for each subsequent new century that
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#17327874029681210-583: The Boyne was commemorated with smaller parades on 1 July. However, both events were combined in the late 18th century, and continue to be celebrated as " The Twelfth ". Because of the differences, British writers and their correspondents often employed two dates, a practice called dual dating , more or less automatically. Letters concerning diplomacy and international trade thus sometimes bore both Julian and Gregorian dates to prevent confusion. For example, Sir William Boswell wrote to Sir John Coke from The Hague
1265-462: The British Isles and colonies converted to the Gregorian calendar, instructed that his tombstone bear his date of birth by using the Julian calendar (notated O.S. for Old Style) and his date of death by using the Gregorian calendar. At Jefferson's birth, the difference was eleven days between the Julian and Gregorian calendars and so his birthday of 2 April in the Julian calendar is 13 April in
1320-410: The British colonies, changed the start of the year from 25 March to 1 January, with effect from "the day after 31 December 1751". (Scotland had already made this aspect of the changes, on 1 January 1600.) The second (in effect ) adopted the Gregorian calendar in place of the Julian calendar. Thus "New Style" can refer to the start-of-year adjustment , to the adoption of the Gregorian calendar , or to
1375-623: The Gregorian calendar. For example, the Battle of Blenheim is always given as 13 August 1704. However, confusion occurs when an event involves both. For example, William III of England arrived at Brixham in England on 5 November (Julian calendar), after he had set sail from the Netherlands on 11 November (Gregorian calendar) 1688. The Battle of the Boyne in Ireland took place a few months later on 1 July 1690 (Julian calendar). That maps to 11 July (Gregorian calendar), conveniently close to
1430-466: The Gregorian calendar. Similarly, George Washington is now officially reported as having been born on 22 February 1732, rather than on 11 February 1731/32 (Julian calendar). The philosopher Jeremy Bentham , born on 4 February 1747/8 (Julian calendar), in later life celebrated his birthday on 15 February. There is some evidence that the calendar change was not easily accepted. Many British people continued to celebrate their holidays "Old Style" well into
1485-430: The Julian and Gregorian dating systems respectively. The need to correct the calendar arose from the realisation that the correct figure for the number of days in a year is not 365.25 (365 days 6 hours) as assumed by the Julian calendar but slightly less (c. 365.242 days). The Julian calendar therefore has too many leap years . The consequence was that the basis for the calculation of the date of Easter , as decided in
1540-581: The Julian calendar had added since then. When the British Empire did so in 1752, the gap had grown to eleven days; when Russia did so (as its civil calendar ) in 1918, thirteen days needed to be skipped. In the Kingdom of Great Britain and its possessions, the Calendar (New Style) Act 1750 introduced two concurrent changes to the calendar. The first, which applied to England, Wales, Ireland and
1595-517: The Julian date of the subsequent (and more decisive) Battle of Aughrim on 12 July 1691 (Julian). The latter battle was commemorated annually throughout the 18th century on 12 July, following the usual historical convention of commemorating events of that period within Great Britain and Ireland by mapping the Julian date directly onto the modern Gregorian calendar date (as happens, for example, with Guy Fawkes Night on 5 November). The Battle of
1650-503: The Young Girl. It was a great success. Spectre became internationally famous for the spectacular leap Nijinsky made through a window at the ballet's end. In 1911, Ballets Russes producer Sergei Diaghilev hoped to present Nijinsky's ballet L'Après-midi d'un faune . It was not ready for the stage, so he needed another ballet to take its place. That ballet was the idea of writer Jean-Louis Vaudoyer. In 1910, he had sent an idea for
1705-416: The air and immediately shrouded him in warm towels. No one in the audience ever saw Nijinsky land, so the elaborate arrangements gave the impression that he soared on indefinitely. The illusion was helped by the conductor in the orchestra pit who held the penultimate chord . In doing so, the leap was given a sense of greater length and height. Since the ballet's creation, many male dancers have interpreted
Michel Fokine - Misplaced Pages Continue
1760-446: The ballet Acis and Galatea (1905) and The Dying Swan (1907), which was a solo dance for Anna Pavlova choreographed to the music of Le Cygne . Acis and Galetea included an acrobatic dance with young boys playing fauns , one of whom was Vaslav Nijinsky . Fokine later featured Nijinsky in ballets including Chopiniana (1907), which was renamed Les Sylphides in 1909. In 1909, Sergei Diaghilev invited Fokine to become
1815-720: The ballets Midas , Josephslegende , and Le Coq d'Or . The Paris premiere of The Golden Cockerel by Ballets Russes in 1914 was an opéra-ballet , guided by Fokine with set design by Natalia Goncharova . The outbreak of the First World War in August 1914, disrupted the established touring circuit, which included countries now on opposing sides. Many dancers, including Fokine, returned to their home countries. He moved to Sweden with his family in 1918, and later established his home in New York City , where he founded
1870-497: The body with the soul, bringing new life to the ballet as a language and an art. In 1923, he choreographed the ballet Ajanta Frescoes for Anna Pavlova after she had been inspired by her visit to the Ajanta Caves . Tribute To Ballet, with Prefatory poem To M. Michel Fokine, by John Masefield (1938) Old Style and New Style dates Old Style ( O.S. ) and New Style ( N.S. ) indicate dating systems before and after
1925-492: The combination of the two. It was through their use in the Calendar Act that the notations "Old Style" and "New Style" came into common usage. When recording British history, it is usual to quote the date as originally recorded at the time of the event, but with the year number adjusted to start on 1 January. The latter adjustment may be needed because the start of the civil calendar year had not always been 1 January and
1980-543: The end of the following December, 1661/62 , a form of dual dating to indicate that in the following twelve weeks or so, the year was 1661 Old Style but 1662 New Style. Some more modern sources, often more academic ones (e.g. the History of Parliament ) also use the 1661/62 style for the period between 1 January and 24 March for years before the introduction of the New Style calendar in England. The Gregorian calendar
2035-494: The entire spectrum of human emotions. He believed that unless movements are expressive, they are irrational and neither delightful nor tolerable. Fokine also sought to strip ballets of their artificial technicality and outdated costumes. He believed that many of the ballets of his time used costumes and techniques that did not reflect the themes of the ballets. Fokine studied Greek and Egyptian art, including vase painting and sculpture , and incorporated these into his ballets. As
2090-447: The floor. The Spirit of the Rose is seen at the window. He steps to the floor and nears The Young Girl. Still asleep, she rises and dances with him. He leads her back to the chair, kisses her, then leaps through the window and into the night. The Young Girl awakes and rises. She picks up the rose she dropped and kisses it. The curtain falls. In 1819, Carl Maria von Weber wrote a work for piano called Aufforderung zum Tanz . He also wrote
2145-406: The idea of a ballet based on Gautier's "Spectre" because it could be tied to the centennial of Gautier's birth. The curtain rises on a girl's bedroom. The Young Girl comes into the room dressed in a white bonnet and ball gown. She has returned to her home after her first ball. She holds a rose as a souvenir of the evening. She drops into a chair and falls asleep. The rose falls from her fingers to
2200-572: The lack of historical accuracy , the ballet was successful due to its brilliant colors, exoticism , and sexual overtones. The 1910 production featured Nijinsky in the role of the Golden Slave. The Firebird (1910), with music composed by Igor Stravinsky was also created by a "committee," a process inspired by the Wagnerian notion of Gesamtkunstwerk , which is the synthesis of elements such as music, drama, spectacle, and dance to create
2255-572: The leap through the window. Spectre was one of the first ballets Rudolph Nureyev danced in the West after leaving Russia. This was for German television in 1961. He first danced The Rose on stage (24 times) in New York City for the Joffrey Ballet 's Diaghilev program in 1979. Spectre was the last ballet Nureyev and Margot Fonteyn danced together. That was in June 1979, when the ballerina
Michel Fokine - Misplaced Pages Continue
2310-538: The life of a dancer and began considering other paths, including painting. In 1902, he was offered a teaching position at the Imperial Ballet School and was able to explore the artistic possibilities of choreography . In 1905, he created his first full-length ballet, Acis et Galatée , which was performed by his students and based on a Sicilian legend. Among his students were Desha Delteil and Bronislava Nijinska . Some of Fokine's early works include
2365-456: The other, stili novi or stilo novo , abbreviated st.n. and meaning "(of/in) new style". The Latin abbreviations may be capitalised differently by different users, e.g., St.n. or St.N. for stili novi . There are equivalents for these terms in other languages as well, such as the German a.St. (" alter Stil " for O.S.). Usually, the mapping of New Style dates onto Old Style dates with
2420-469: The resident choreographer of the first season of the Ballets Russes in Paris . At Ballets Russes, he collaborated with other artists to create a ballet of Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov 's Scheherazade , which premiered in 1910. The ballet was inspired by symphonic poems composed by Rimsky-Korsakov and the tale of the 1001 Nights . The sets designed by Léon Bakst matched the sexualized choreography. Despite
2475-419: The role of The Rose, but it is generally perceived that none have truly matched Nijinsky's brilliance, partly because the ballet had been specially designed to suit his particular talents. The Young Girl has been called "the forgotten woman of ballet", and, as time has passed, the part has become routine. By the middle of the 20th century, Spectre had become nothing but a stunt ballet: people paid only to see
2530-717: The stage of the Imperial Mariinsky Theatre in Paquita , with the Imperial Russian Ballet . In addition to being a talented dancer, Fokine was also passionate about painting and displayed talent in this area as well. He also played musical instruments, including mandolin (played on stage in ensemble led by Ginislao Paris ), domra , and balalaika (played in Vasily Andreyev 's Great Russian Orchestra). He became frustrated with
2585-413: The stage. Despite appearances to the contrary and Nijinsky's athletic grace and prowess, the height of the leap was an illusion. Nijinsky took five running steps from the middle of the stage and leapt through the window on the sixth step. The skirting board (base board) under the window was very low, giving the illusion that the leap was higher than it actually was. Behind the set, four men caught Nijinsky in
2640-731: Was 60. He danced The Rose in Paris in 1981 and 1982, and last danced the part in August 1987 at the London Coliseum with the Nancy Ballet. The ballet was first seen in Australia in 1936 when it was part of the Monte Carlo Russian Ballet program. In 1962, Margot Fonteyn danced The Young Girl as part of her 1962 tour of Australia. In 2006, The Australian Ballet presented the ballet as one of three showing
2695-480: Was altered at different times in different countries. From 1155 to 1752, the civil or legal year in England began on 25 March ( Lady Day ); so for example, the execution of Charles I was recorded at the time in Parliament as happening on 30 January 164 8 (Old Style). In newer English-language texts, this date is usually shown as "30 January 164 9 " (New Style). The corresponding date in the Gregorian calendar
2750-596: Was celebrated as the New Year festival from as early as the 13th century, despite the recorded (civil) year not incrementing until 25 March, but the "year starting 25th March was called the Civil or Legal Year, although the phrase Old Style was more commonly used". To reduce misunderstandings about the date, it was normal even in semi-official documents such as parish registers to place a statutory new-year heading after 24 March (for example "1661") and another heading from
2805-680: Was centered on the sinister Magician ( Enrico Cecchetti ) and his three puppets: Petrouchka (Nijinsky), the Ballerina ( Tamara Karsavina ) and the savage Moor (Alexander Orlov). Fokine's ballet Le Spectre de la Rose (1911) showcased Nijinsky as the spirit of the rose given to a young girl. Nijinsky's exit featured a grand jeté out of the young girl's bedroom window, timed so the audience would last see him suspended in mid-air. In 1912, Fokine created an adaptation of Daphnis et Chloé . He left Ballets Russes in 1912. In 1914, Diaghilev convinced Fokine to return to Ballets Russes, where he then created
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#17327874029682860-549: Was implemented in Russia on 14 February 1918 by dropping the Julian dates of 1–13 February 1918 , pursuant to a Sovnarkom decree signed 24 January 1918 (Julian) by Vladimir Lenin . The decree required that the Julian date was to be written in parentheses after the Gregorian date, until 1 July 1918. It is common in English-language publications to use the familiar Old Style or New Style terms to discuss events and personalities in other countries, especially with reference to
2915-399: Was like a ballerina's. Sometimes, petals would become loose and fall to the stage floor. Nijinsky's servant Vasili would collect the petals and sell them as souvenirs. It was said that he built a large house called Le Château du Spectre de la Rose with the profits from the sale of the petals. The ballet became famous for Nijinsky's leap through one of the two large windows at the back of
2970-514: Was the Berlioz version of the original piano piece that was used for the ballet Le Spectre de la rose . Spectre was premiered on 19 April 1911 by Diaghilev's Ballets Russes in the Théâtre de Monte Carlo , Monte Carlo . Tamara Karsavina danced The Young Girl and Nijinsky danced The Rose. Grace Robert writes that Spectre was an "immediate success". Diaghilev was surprised; he thought Spectre
3025-437: Was to have his dancers perform barefoot in his 1907 ballet Eunice . His request was denied, and Fokine had toes painted on the dancers' tights so they would appear to be barefoot. He also experimented with shifting the emphasis of movement away from the lower body and towards the whole body, with freer use of the arms and torso and using each muscle with clear intention. In doing so, Fokine sought to unify motion with emotion and
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