The rehearsal process in choreography as an aspect of creative integration

Kopunova Kseniya Sergeevna ORCID: 0000-0001-9731-9672 Postgraduate student, Department of Ballet Studies, Vaganova Academy of Russian Ballet 191023, Russia, Leningrad region, Saint Petersburg, Architect Rossi str., 2 kse6582@yandex.ru

The rehearsal process in choreography as an aspect of creative integrationModern research in various fields of knowledge operates with the concept of "integration", which assumes a set of various methods and techniques focused on a specific single goal, based on their "interdependence and complementarity" ^{[1, p. 64]}.

In this article, the integration process should be considered both in the pedagogical and social context, as the presence of ordered relationships between individuals or groups (two or more subjects ^[2]). The relevance of the research of the stated topic is due to the fact that in modern education integration is evaluated as a central methodological category. The essence of integration in choreographic art, in turn, is to ensure the integrity of the educational and rehearsal process, which leads to a professional level of choreography performance required for academic opera and ballet theaters.

In scientific publications, the concept of integration is approached from several positions. This term is interpreted through the prism of analogy with the surrounding world, which implies an organic connection of certain disciplines. This connection is organized in various ways, including the convergence of sciences in the process of differentiation, on the basis of the universality and unity of the laws of nature, which presupposes the formation by the subject of the integrity of perception of the surrounding world. According to the fair remark of V. A. Krylova, integration turns out to be a purposeful unification (synthesis) of disciplines, the result of which is the design of an independent system of target cognition focused on ensuring the integrity of knowledge and skills ^[3].

Due to the fact that ballet itself is pure creativity, including rehearsals aimed at practicing and preparing the part, it seems appropriate to characterize the rehearsal process in ballet as one of the aspects of creative integration.

The peculiarities of the tutor activity of the teacher-choreographer have repeatedly become the focus of attention of researchers. This aspect of the professional field of a specialist interested theorists and practitioners of choreographic art in the middle of the last century. Thus, R. V. Zakharov, being a well-known choreographer and a recognized teacher, turned to the essence of the profession of a ballet master-tutor, his functions in professional theater groups (mainly in the ballet theater): "Here is a dance composed and staged. An artist or a group of artists will have to perform it for the audience, and this is possible only when the dance is finished, worked out, polished" ^{[4, p. 26]}. In addition to this thought, let us turn to the opinion of I. V. Smirnov, who drew attention to the fact that the choreographer-tutor "should not only work out with the performers of the movement, but also reveal the image and character, convey the style of the composition" ^{[5, p. 55]}. In other words, it is not enough just to work out the movements, it is necessary to breathe the soul into them, which to a certain extent helps to make a teacher-tutor. This problem finds its scientific coverage in modern publications that note the importance of the rehearsal process in the activities of ballet dancers ^[6-9].

A great contribution to the theoretical development of the concept of the rehearsal process is made by the work of Professor T. B. Narskaya "Fundamentals of tutoring in choreography", where, in our opinion, the definition of the term "rehearsal process" is fruitfully formulated as "<...> a type of joint activity of the head with performers aimed at improving the performing level and preserving the choreographic work" ^{[10, p. 5]}. This definition corresponds to the description of dress rehearsals, which are conducted under the guidance of the artistic director of the troupe and are sometimes more difficult psychologically for the artist who is preparing a new part.

The rehearsal process in choreography is one of the most important moments of preparation for the performance. Improving the skills acquired during the years of training helps to open up in classical choreography and demonstrate impeccable training in combination with acting talent. Today, the time to prepare a new batch has been significantly reduced. In about a month, the artist or soloist must be ready to go on stage to conduct the performance, and the corps de ballet artists must be introduced in less than a week. The rhythm of theatrical life is accelerating, as is the rhythm of everyday life of a modern person. The number of performances, for example, at the Mariinsky Theater in a month can reach 30-35. And this is both a classical and a modern repertoire.

The roles of the artist, described by Noverre ^[11], continue to remain relevant on the stages of theaters today. Especially in ballet, this is of great importance, since each part has certain models for the artist performing it. However, it is fair to note that today this concept is somewhat blurred. The artist should be universal, perform different parts according to their characters, and not be chained to one type (lyrical or comic). Nevertheless, the role should fall on both the appearance and the inner character of the artist ^[12], otherwise the viewer simply will not believe what is happening on stage.

A. A. Sokolov-Kaminsky, considering the peculiarities of the functioning of the modern state of ballet, rightly, in our opinion, notes that "Giselle and Swan Lake, Sleeping Beauty and Raymonda, Paquita and Chopiniana, Bayadere and Don Quixote are these performances they are also an excellent school of professional skills for actors, contribute to the improvement of skills, contribute to the improvement of the level of the performing culture of the troupe" ^{[13, p. 104]}. Going on stage in the performances listed above, both the soloists of the troupe and the actors of the corps de ballet feel a special responsibility. The desire to transfer the viewer to another world, to the world of the performance, to try to feel the touch of the past with him. Every time music is played and choreography is performed, staged by such classical masters as M. Petipa and L. Ivanov, innovators like M. Fokin and V. Nijinsky, time seems to freeze and takes us into the period of their creative activity. Classical dance can be called the language of our soul, this is what happens in the soul of a dancer performing great choreography. This is a psychological reality that helps the perception of the performance.

The responsibility that lies on the artists of the Mariinsky Theater troupe, the guardians of classical choreography and academic rigor, is enormous. The creation of an image, in its depth, not inferior to the dramatic, as part of the performance lies on the conscience of the artist. From his understanding of the role, the general spirit of the play develops. Here we are talking not only about the leading parties, but also to a greater extent concerns the actors of the corps de ballet. After all, mass scenes carry the atmosphere and mood of the scene.

The technical part of performance, honed by years of training, is less engaged in the theater. The newly arrived artists should be "danced". That is why so much attention is paid to the rehearsal process in ballet practice. It should be noted that it is inevitably associated with various kinds of difficulties, which are associated not so much with a large proportion of the dancers' physical exertion, as with the need for its constant interruption in order to find and choose performing solutions for performing a specific element for a certain artist. The vocabulary of classical dance is the same for everyone, but the methods of achieving individual performance are unique for each individual performer, the search for which can last throughout his creative life. In the article, D. N. Katysheva notes that in his memoirs M. I. Petipa warned "about the danger of self-valuable naked technique to the detriment of creating a spiritualized full-fledged psychologically grounded stage image", which has always been a priority for our ballet theater ^{[14, p. 145]}. The ability to spiritualize any choreography while preserving the highest technique is what has always distinguished outstanding ballet masters, especially domestic ones, but it is also achieved by modern artists who care about the life of the classical repertoire.

Creative integration connects not only the artist with the teacher, but also the artist-conductor tandem, and with it the entire orchestra, is important for the final result. When a new soloist is introduced, an orchestral rehearsal is required. This is a very time-consuming process with pauses and clarifications, which is necessary in order for the performance to go together, and everything was musically precisely verified. Here it is appropriate to cite the opinion of I. G. Esaulov, who writes that "tutoring as is bringing into a relatively stable living system all the components, elements of the performance (staging) in their technical, performing, expressive and figurative qualities subordinate to one idea" ^{[15, p. 201]}. It is worth noting here that various unpredictable moments can still happen on stage, so it is important to carefully rehearse everything in the hall in order to feel confident and free at the performance.

 The creative age of the ballet dancer is short-lived, generations of dancers are rapidly changing, and the classical heritage remains unchanged. The preservation of this heritage is equally the task of every generation of teachers and artists. Today G. Komleva, G. Kekisheva, M. Kullik, T. Terekhova, E. Tarasova, E. Evteeva and L. Kunakova work with soloists at the Mariinsky Theater. Teachers-tutors belong to different generations. G. P. Kekisheva, for example, prepared parties with G. Komleva, L. Kovaleva, T. Terekhova, Y. Kasenkova, O. Novikova. Today she works with N. Batoeva. The transfer and fixation of her pedagogical experience has incredible value for future generations of teachers-tutors. In one of the last interviews, G. P. Kekisheva told how she keeps the St. Petersburg style, teaching since the 1970s. She notes three factors necessary for an artist: 1) feel the style; 2) master the technique of classical dance; 3) possess a ballet form. "A ballerina is born," says G. P. Kekisheva. You can dance ballet and not become a ballerina, but you can take one step on stage, and the audience will be riveted to your personality. At the rehearsal, the teacher should not waste time studying any movement, the artist teaches the order on his own, and in the process of preparing for the performance, the teacher helps to think through the nuances of the role. The theater is not a school where it is necessary to cultivate character and endurance. G. P. Kekisheva, holds the opinion that in tandem a teacher–artist should talk and offer, and not demand, sometimes even concede, and then real creativity is born in co-authorship.

It has always been written about G. T. Komleva that her main feature is academism.

"Academism, bequeathed almost by the XVIII century, and since then passed on by the elders to the younger ones, so that they, in turn, would give to those who would come after." - V. M. Krasovskaya ^{[16, p. 104.]} This, perhaps, is the pedagogical goal pursued by G. T. Komleva: "Everything what I know, I always give." G. T. Komleva was called the keeper of traditions, the heiress of age-old foundations, "the ballerina of Petipa." N. M. Dudinskaya gave her her experience. All the classics, as G. T. Komleva recalls, she received from her hands and tried to fulfill all the tasks set by the teacher as much as possible. Gabriela Trofimovna herself recalls that she never allowed any indulgences and was very strict with herself, which she is trying to achieve from her students today.

All of the above allows us to outline a model for the formation of professional competence of ballet dancers, based on the integration of educational and stage practice. First of all, the fundamental factors are the target component of the system, which assumes a clear formulation of the goals and objectives of the activity. The content of the theoretical and methodological component directly depends on the content of this element of the model. This implies the choice of approaches to the implementation of the goals and objectives of the activity, the leading ones among which are personal-activity, competence and integrative. The content element of the model includes such components of professional competence as cognitive, emotional-motivational and activity-based. On the basis of the chosen approaches, technologies, forms of working with the audience, as well as training tools are formulated, which is an organizational and activity component of the model for the formation of professional competence of dancers. Verification of the chosen action strategy implies an effective evaluation element of the system, demonstrating the effectiveness of taking into account cognitive, emotional-value, activity-technological factors.

Accordingly, it can be concluded that the training of ballet dancers and the formation of their professional competence in the system of choreographic education will be more effective if the model of formation of their professional activity is based on the creative integration of educational and scenic practices. It should also be noted that the implementation of this goal will show greater productivity in the case of the expansion of pedagogical teaching tools due to the active use of interactive technologies and methods of teaching future ballet dancers based on the integration of educational and stage practices in the educational process. In addition, the implementation of professional support for aspiring ballet dancers by leading teachers will have a positive impact. Great importance is given to creative integration, which opens up to the ballet dancer a holistic perception of the ballet performance, already at the rehearsal stage. To integrate at this stage means to lead to a harmonious, coordinated whole, and at the same time carefully and carefully protect the heritage of classical ballet.