Ballet as Ideology: Giselle, Act 2
Evan Alderson
Presented by: Michelle dePozsgay
Edited by Laura Pratt and Dr. Kay Picart
Aims
• To understand how art functions in society
• To understand how ideology is projected through aesthetic value in Giselle
• To explore the connection between Balanchine’s ballerina and the incidence of Anorexia
Key Terms
• What is IDEOLOGY:____________________________________________________________________________________________
Key Terms
• What is ROMANTICISM: ______________________________________________________________________________________________________
Key Terms
• What is the BOURGEOISIE:_________________________________________________________________________________________
Ballet Terms
• ADAGIO:____________________________________• ATTITUDE:
_____________________________________________
• BALLET BLANC: _______________________________• RONDS DE JAMBE: ____________________________• POINTES: ____________________________________
Theophile Gautier
1811 – 1872Libretto for
Giselle
“More than one eye which thought it was seeing only ronds de jambe and pointes found to its surprise its vision
obscured by a tear- whichdoes not often happen in ballet.” (123)
GiselleCHARACTERS:• GISELLE:___________________• ALBRECHT: ________________• HILLARION: ________________• PRINCESS BATHILDE:
___________________________• THE WILIS:
______________________________________________________
• QUEEN MYRTHA: ___________________________
GisellePLOT:• ACT1:
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
• ACT2: ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Alderson’s Giselle experience
• Second Act adagio, Giselle en attitude: “...Evelyn Hart’s virtuosity, the forms of grace given in ballet, the unfolding story, the music and the décor all seemed to become one thing. Criticism fell away; I was for that time seized by beauty.” (123)
Alderson’s Giselle Experience
• Act 1: _____________• Act 2: _____________
– ______________________________
FEMININE POWER: Act 2
The Wilis’ great revenge– ___________________________________
___________________________________– ___________________________________
___________________________________
Giselle’s forgiveness• _________________________________
The Bourgeoisie
• Gautier claimed to despise the bourgeoisie: ______________________________________________________________________________________________________
• Center of social value: ______________________________________________________________________________________________________
The Bourgeoisie
• Bourgeois values embedded in Giselle– “MASK:”
________________________________________________________________________
– “VEIL:” ________________________________________________________________________
Though he vows to oppose the “intolerable world of the bourgeoisie,” he has instead
become its ideologist. (127)
Maria Taglioni
• sexuality and chastity• first and foremost ballerina of the Romantic period• father, Fillipo Taglioni created La Sylphide for her
Taglioni
• Gautier, “The dancer for women”• ______________________________________
______________________________________• ______________________________________
______________________________________• ______________________________________
______________________________________• ______________________________________
______________________________________
More Key Terms
• ANOREXIA NERVOSA: ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
• ANORECTIC: ____________________________________________________________________
Balanchine
• “Ballet is woman” (129)• “Man is a better cook, a better painter, a better
musician, composer…Man is stronger, faster…And woman accepts this, It is her business to accept. She knows what is beautiful.” (129)
Balanchine and Anorexia
“The man who defeminized women”
• ___ percent of female ballet students are anorectics (130)
• Ballet training and Anorexia: ____________________________________________________________________
• ___________ sexuality
Balanchine and Anorexia
• “The anorectic pursues, with a vengeance, a particular ideal of feminine beauty.” (130)
• The ballerina invites women to embody her same image.
• “Anorexia is a cultural invasion of the body.” (130)
Ideology, Aesthetics, and Dance
• AESTHETICS: ____________________________________________________________________
• IDEOLOGY: ____________________________________________________________________________
• THE CONNECTION: __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Works Cited• Alderson, Evan. “Ballet as Ideology: Giselle, Act 2.” Meaning in Motion. Ed. Jane
Desmond. Durham: Duke University Press, 1997. 121-131• McKenzie, Kevin. “Ballet Dictionary.” American Ballet Theater. Ballet Theater
Foundation, Inc. 2003. 22 Mar 2005. http://www.abt.org/education/dictionary/index.html
• Shomler, Bob. “Giselle Act 2.” 1994. http://www.shomler.com/dance/giselle/• “Taglioni, Maria,” “Anorexia Nervosa.” Columbia Encyclopedia, sixth edition.
Highbeam Research, Inc 2005. 22 Mar 2005. http://www.encyclopedia.com/html/T/Taglioni.asp
• Garland, Kevin. “La Sylphide Note.” The National Ballet of Canada. 22 Mar 2005.
http://www.national.ballet.ca/Performances/Seasons/2005fall/sylphideNote.php• Hugo, Victor. “Theophile Gautier.” 22 Mar 2005
http://www.victorhugo2002.culture.fr/culture/celebrations/hugo/fr/contpg4.htm• Croatian National Theater, Multimedia. “Giselle.” 2004. 22 Mar 2005.
<http://www.hnk.hr/en/novosti.php>