Ballet

by Robin Rinaldi, Jacques D'Amboise (Foreword)

One of the most formal and demanding genres of dance, ballet has enthralled audiences with its grace, precision, and remarkable feats of dexterity. Its early roots can be traced back to the 16th century, when court dances were performed for Italian and French royalty. After spreading throughout Europe, ballet flourished in 19th-century Russia, the home of some of the world's greatest dancers and choreographers. Once these dancers traveled to America in the 20th century, ballet began to evolve as the style came in contact with the burgeoning modern dance movement. In this revised edition of Ballet, readers will learn how this precise dance form has evolved throughout the centuries through colorful photographs and illustrations and engaging text.

Genres: Nonfiction

119 pages, Library Binding

First published August 28, 2003

About the author

Robin Rinaldi has been a newspaper and magazine journalist for seventeen years. Her writing has appeared in The New York Times, The Atlantic, Oprah Magazine, and Yoga Journal, among others. She has been the executive editor of 7x7, a San Francisco lifestyle magazine, and written an award-winning food column for Philadelphia Weekly. She lives in Los Angeles.

Reviews

[mz · Rating 3 out of 5]

A simple introduction to ballet history and concepts. The anecdote in the foreword brought me to tears.

[Jo Oehrlein · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good first history of ballet. There are 6 relatively short history chapters that had interesting side bars on ballets. Nice to see a description of La Fille Mal Gardee, which isn't performed that much in the US.

There's a 7th chapter on a ballet class, then a glossary and other end matter.

It's well illustrated with drawings and photos, but this is NOT a picture book. The ratio of illustration to text is too low for it to be a picture book.

This book is probably best for students who already take dance and thus have a natural interest.

I have one quibble. I thought the photo used for releve was confusing. While technically, the students were on releve on one foot, the other leg was in a high back attitude. It would have been clearer to use a picture where dancers were standing with both feet in releve. Or, to show the dancers standing "flat" on the supporting leg and then up in releve on that foot in a second photo (so show a sequence).

[Lena · Rating 5 out of 5]

Super interesting! I love learning about ballet!