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Home / Issues / № 6, 2016

Culture and art

ABOUT GENRE-STYLE CHOREOGRAPHIC WORKS
Portnovа T.V.

The article is devoted to the principles of genre and style define the choreographies are traced the relationship between them at the level of the structural elements of a composition. Discusses the semantic consistency and artistic genre and style solutions ballets and choreographic numbers based on examples of staged decisions XIX, XX century.

Key words: genre, style, khoreodramaturgiya, the theatrical solution, the unity of the form and content, the language of the ballet master

Directing work of a choreographer implies various forms and genres of choreographic repertoire. Creation of a scenic character requires mastering all different choreographic forms and genres that have emerged up to modern days in performing practice of professional ballet troupes and choreographic collectives.

Researching genre-stylistic principles in modern choreography seems complex due to relatively rapid undergoing changes in creativity, multiplicity of the existing schools, directions, and styles of choreography. Lack of a single developed methodic of teaching modern choreography also complicates studies, undertaken in this area. This fact defines the urgency of the article. Touching upon the question of problem development, we should underline that popular works by E. Esaulov, I. Smirnov, R. Zakharov, critical articles by I. Slonimskiy, secondary researches in field of scenic ballet by Y. Bakhrushin, V. Krasovskaya, memoirs and recollections by M. Petipa, M. Fockin, K. Goleyzovskiy, F. Lopukhov, A. Messerer, R. Nuriyev, works on modern art by G. Fon-Becker and other authors describe theory of art for ballet master in classic performance, but almost don't touch upon special questions on genre-stylistic solution in figurative structure of ballet spectacle. The main part of this article consists in analyzing uniqueness of thematic, figurative, stylistic features of the best production solutions if XIX-XX century that can be applicable or useful for modern choreographic practice.

In art genres are defined not only as whole performances, but also separate components of them if they are finished in their form and possess qualities of certain genre characteristic. Thus, in ballet separate dances, scenes, variations can possess their own style and be performed in a certain genre.

A unique non-verbal system of classic dance image school can assimilate and transform signs into symbols of different non-verbal systems without altering its essence, but developing and broadening range of their technical, artistic abilities, and enriching scenic dancing art with new original genres.

In choreodramaturgy style depends on many qualities of an author: temper, culture, eduction, talent, taste, psychology, world outlook, willpower, way of thinking, spiritual direction of creativity. Style is defined by a certain historical epoch, time that forms directions, schools, thus expressing definite trends in development of society. In general definition, style is flow in aesthetics of arts, ideology, moral principles of society, its mentality. In more specific understanding in application to choreographic art, style is language, methods means of a choreodramaturgist's work. Style in ballet master art is the very "construction material" and method of its organization, through which ideas are realized.

According to external signs, form of style can be linear, picturesque, constructive, decorative, ornamental. Style of a masterpiece depends on multiply components and their characteristics: selection of genre, idea, music, images, artistic presentation, performers, figurative means, language, direction, etc. Style of a ballet performance is defined by such qualities as figurativeness, social significance, motivation of idea, novelty, unity of form and content, individuality of author's language and thinking, energy of beauty and optimism.

As a foundation of plot an author can use certain life phenomenon, historical fact, literature work (poem, story, painting or sculpture). In case a choreographer uses plot of an existing masterpiece, they must preserve its character and style, images of the source, find methods to present its plot in choreographic genre. Sometimes this problem enforces choreographer, and then author of composition plan to change place of action, make certain reductions or even enrich the literature origin. In this regard culture of choreographic performance in merge of XIX-XX centuries serves as a great example, it demonstrated a great interest towards art of Far East and Antique ("Cleopatra", "Narcissus", "Daphnis and Chloe", and others). "Unlikely we can argue with common sense that the greatest power of Fockin is in stylization, and his best ballets are stylized, such as "Scheherazade" (East), "Cleopatra" (Egypt), "Daphnis and Chole", (Greec antique), etc. In these ballets M. Fockin expressed such a wonderful feel for style of different ages and different people, such outstanding erudition, which no choreographer had never possessed before in Russia (and, probably, all over the world)" [3, p.171] - wrote about M. Fockin S. Liphar. Ballet master referred to expositions of well-known museums of St. Petersburg, first of all, Hermitage and Russian museum. Authentic historical materials established credibility of visual decorations. The named ballets demonstrate author's skill to find figurative, visual equivalents to historical monuments (reliefs, paintings, performances), make understanding his idea and project an interesting activity that excites not only mind, but soul as well. The mastered profile moves and gestures that seem to be illustrations to Egyptian temple reliefs and their rhythmical composition are internally linked to choreographic text at the whole length of ballet "Cleopatra". No doubt, the surface of compositional construction corresponded to canons of ancient Egyptian art. Ballet dress, wigs, make-up (extended eyes, black brows, brightly outlined lips) were presented in a new style, like they came down from Egyptian sculpture. Instead of ballet shoes dancer's feet were dressed in sandals. Figurative stylistics that took origin in monuments of Ancient Egypt created an ideal model of image, became dynamic spring and sensual rod of spectacle.

The image of mythological hero - young man, materialized in marble and raised to a standard of beauty by ancient sculptors, was used by M. Fockin in his ballets of ancient topics: "Narcissus", and "Daphnis and Chloe". In this regard V. Krasovsakaya underlined: "Antique myth about nymph Echoe that called in curse of Gods upon conceited young man Narcissus, was personalized in means of figurative static. Plastic poses were presented one after another, they were stylized as monuments of Hellenic art: thus moved Echo - Karsavina and Narcissus - Nizhinskiy at the stage". {2, p.193]. Apart from Fockin other choreographers touched upon antique figurative images in late XIX - early XX century. Thus in ballet "The Afternoon of a Faun" in choreography by V. Nizhinskiy the first thought on compositional construction of the ballet came to S. Dyagilev. In 1911, Venice "...he began to show Nizhinskiy angular moves of Faun; it was the end of Dyagilev's part in creation of ballet: all of the ballet composition, from emergence of nymphs, dance performance by dancers in antique vases to the last gesture with stop at musical crescendo, belongs to Sergey Pavlovich. In antique images, museums and art collections, devoted to antique sculpture and painting Dyagilev tried to guess dynamic of antique poses, dynamic plastic, and allowed Nizhinskiy to realize the found plastic". {3, p.233-234]. O.Rhoden, impressed by plastic of Nizhinskiy in this ballet, said: "Each artist and actor who really loves their art, must see this spectacle - a wonderful personalization of ideals of Ancient Greek beauty". [1, p.579]. fragile naked beauty, hardened in marble, came alive in images of Narcissus, Daphnis through formula of comforted ionic origin of antique style, and obtained zoomorphic features in Faun.

Sometimes piece of sculpture serves as a foundation for plot of choreographic performance . From this point of view works of L. Jacobson "Eternal spring", "Kiss". "Eternal idol", "Minotaur" are great examples of such type as the sensual rod of them is borrowed from Hermitage originals. The way of L. Jacobson through Rhoden plastic became a movement towards hidden beauty through beauty that can be seen and touched. Pose, motion, angle that were so precious to L. Jacobson in sculptures by O. Rhoden, became able to develop in many dimensions of body plastic, head turns, facial expressions. The ballet master takes to podium scenes that are generalized, images that l came directly from antique. Fragile nude beauty of their figures, hardened in sterile white marble, came to live in duet dance, became an expression of standard for Rhoden characters (white tight tricout of performers imitates sculpture material. If graphic series, as we saw earlier, provide choreographers with a detailed sequence of actions, fixed characters of O. Rhoden created choreography of L .Jacobson - such economic and brief in accordance with the selected source, but mostly dictated by the idea of ballet master. "For Rhoden motion was the basic form of expressing life in sculpture, a sculptor was a passionate observer of dance... He was carried away by bald choreography, admired new searches of L. Fuller and A. Duncan, Russian ballet and Nizhinskiy". {4, p.16]. Though compositions by O. Rhoden "Kiss", "Eternal spring", "Eternal idol", "Minotaur and Numph" are not direct expression of dance, they personalize allegoric and abstract ideas. Nevertheless, they are dramatized, ballet-natured. Due to fantasy of choreographer K. Jacobson, "broadened" space of Rhoden sculptures formed plastic synthesis of direct scenic image. Transition of sculptures by O. Rhoden into choreographic language of L. Jacobson implied development of plot lines that eventually concentrate around the main rod - beginning and end that draw the same visual image (exact copy) of Rhoden images.

Thus, an important part in a choreographer's work is related to their activity as ballet master - composer. Choreodramaturgy as an idea that reflects content in figurative-discriptive form must receive spatial stage expression. Genre-thematic and image-stylistic preferences of different ballet masters and artists create process of individual perception. Then, being constructed together, these positions form those power lines of artistic creativity that shows us certain general legislations. Understanding process of artistic creativity among choreographers as a multi-system process allows us to embrace motion of artistic cognition from objective reality to its artistic model (choreographic masterpiece), as well as it internal self-movement from separate perceptions towards large-scale artistic generalizations, from single and universal to unity of individual and typical in artistic image.



References:
1. V. Weis August Rhoden, M. 1969, 580p.

2. V.M. Krasovskaya, V. Nizhinskiy. L., 1974, p.208.

3. S.M. Liphar Dyagilev and with Dyagilev. Moscow, 1994, 504p.

4. “Rhoden and his time”. Exhibition of French museums, Moscow, 1966, 36p.



Bibliographic reference

Portnovа T.V. ABOUT GENRE-STYLE CHOREOGRAPHIC WORKS . International Journal Of Applied And Fundamental Research. – 2016. – № 6 –
URL: www.science-sd.com/468-25125 (08.11.2024).