Choreographers/ Musicians in Russian Ballet

There were many people that influenced ballet and helped it grow into its profound art form. In this post, i'm going to mention a few of them. The individuals that will be mentioned are Marius Petipa, Igor Moiseyev, and Tchaikovsky.

First we start with Marius Petipa. Marius Petipa was a French choreographer and dancer. He, along with Charles Didelot, are considered the Fathers of the Russian Classical Ballet. He was a great deal of influence in the Imperial School during classical ballet's zenith. He collaborated with musical composer Tchaikovsky on the productions of Sleeping Beauty, Seasons, and Raymonda. His works would later inspire dancer, Georges Balanchine. Petipa would enter St. Petersburg in 1847 when he was invited to be a part of the Imperial School. He would stay in Russia for the rest of his life. In 1858, he would become Ballet Master of the school and then in 1862, he was appointed Choreographer in Chief which he would be until he retired in 1903

Marius Petipa

       

Peter IIich Tchaikovsky

Peter IIich Tchaikovsky- Tchaikovsky was a Russian born composer. He is mostly known for his huge collabroations with choreographer Marius Petipa. Due to the way his music appealed to the general public, he was able to help revise the decline of the Russian Ballet during the mid-nineteenth century with his compositions in Swan Lake, Sleeping Beauty, and the Nutcracker. His music appealed to the general public so much that it helped to drive the importance and power of the Russian Ballet.

Igor Moiseyev- Moiseyev was a Russian born choreographer that started off with heading a Soviet folk dance that gained a lot of popularity over the years. He was trained at the Bolshoi Theatre School of Choreography in Moscow. He was considered both as a classical dancer and character dancer. In 1930, he began choreographing ballets for the company. He was restricted by the USSR to just perform folk dances in various regions. From then on, he would make sure that every ballet and performaSnce he choreographed were very true to folk dances. His dance group would become known as the Moiseyev Dancers. His dancers would be the first Russian artists to be brought to tour the United States which they did in 1974 and then when they performed at Radio City Music Hall in 1991. In 1958, Moiseyev came back to the Bolshoi in order to choreograph the ballet Spartacus. He would go on to receive Russia's Order of Merit, a Lenin Prize, and three Stalin Prizes.

Igor Moiseyev

Sources:

Hering, Doris. "Petipa, Marius (1819–1910)." Encyclopedia Americana. Grolier Online, 2015. Web. 6 May. 2015.

Abraham, Gerald E. H. "Tchaikovsky, Peter Ilich (1840–1893)." Encyclopedia Americana. Grolier
Online, 2015. Web. 6 May. 2015.
"Moiseyev, Igor Aleksandrovich (1906–2007)." Encyclopedia Americana. Grolier Online, 2015. Web. 7 May. 2015.

Yahoo Images- Marius Petipa, Tchaikovsky
New York Times- Igor Moiseyev