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PHILHARMONICA. International Music Journal
Reference:

Evolution of the forms of sources on classical dance technique in the methodological literature of the second half of the 15th – first half of the 20th centuries

Zhirova Violetta Vladimirovna

ORCID: 0000-0001-6042-0806

Postgraduate student, Vaganova Ballet Academy

191023, Russia, Saint Petersburg, Zodchego Rossi str., 2

viozhiva@gmail.com

DOI:

10.7256/2453-613X.2024.1.69863

EDN:

HJZCYP

Received:

15-02-2024

Published:

21-03-2024

Abstract: The article is devoted to the study of the evolution of the forms of literary works on classical dance technique of the second half of the 15th – first half of the 20th century, among which are educational and methodological manuals, dance notations, theoretical, historical and critical works, and classical dance curriculums. The creation of the first theoretical works on the art of choreography determines the upper temporal boundary of the chronological framework of the research. The development of the first classical dance curriculums determines the lower chronological limit. Until now, curriculums have not been regarded as an autonomous source, allowing to objectively assess the level of performing skills in their historical development. The research is aimed to identify the prerequisites for the emergence of this form of explanation and description of classical dance technique. It is hypothesized that already in the earliest theoretical works, the programmatic approach of the choreographic mindset can be traced. Using the historical method, the article makes a retrospective analysis of literary sources to reveal this pattern. The novelty of the research shows the importance of the classical dance curriculum not only in the evolution of professional ballet education but also in the development of the theory of choreographic art. It is concluded that there is a conventional form of classical dance curriculum in the content of the analyzed works. It was found that the methods of many outstanding teachers (P. Beauchamp, F. Taglioni, O. Vestris, E. Cecchetti) were described by their students, as they did not leave behind any published theoretical works. Other specialists in the field of choreographic art (R. Feuillet, A. Bournonville, E. Theleur, A. J. Zorn, V. I. Stepanov), on the contrary, combined several competences at once in writing methodology, theory, curriculums, and notations.

Keywords:

ballet, choreographic art, Vaganova, dance notation, curriculum, classical dance, classical dance technique, evolution, ballet pedagogy, professional dance education
This article is automatically translated.

In the description and systematization of classical dance techniques, several fundamental forms of presentation can be distinguished: educational and methodological manuals, dance notations, theoretical, historical and critical works and programs on classical dance. Until recently, there was no scientific research interest in the latter, despite the fact that they represent a concentrated source reflecting the historical level of classical dance technique. For the first time, this issue was touched upon in the articles of V. V. Zhirova [1, 2, 3, 4], I. L. Kuznetsova [5] and E. A. Kuzmina [6] and the collection of programs by I. L. Kuznetsov and N. M. Tsiskaridze "Classical dance program. 100 years of improvements" [7]. At the same time, in the structure of the overwhelming majority of works on choreographic art there is a conditional form of the movement program.

The subject of the study is the evolution of classical dance didactics, which resulted in the formation of a classical dance program. The object is a thematic selection of sources analyzed from the point of view of this aspect. The research is based on the premises contained in the works of P. A. Silkin on the pedagogy of classical dance [8] and N. A. A whirlwind dedicated to dance notation [9].The article introduces the term "choreographic thinking programming" into theoretical use, which designates the logic of the gradual transformation of a set of classical dance movements into a sequence of exercises that systematize the development of necessary professional ballet knowledge and skills from simple to complex.

The first theoretical sources were created by Italian Renaissance masters. They are educational literature describing the basic elements of dance and its specific movements. These include the following treatises of the second half of the XV century: "On the art of dancing and dancing" ("De Arte Saltandi & Choreas Ducendi", 1455 [10]) Domenico do Piacenza (Domenico da Piacenza); "A Treatise on the art of dance" ("Trattato dell'arte del Ballare", 1463 [11]) Guglielmo Ebreo (Guglielmo Ebreo da Pesaro); "A book on the art of dancing" ("Libro dell'arte del danzare", 1465 [12]) by Antonio Cornazzano. All the material of the works of this period was intended for adult dancers. The choreographic vocabulary was based on various steps, turns and small jumps (prototypes of changement de pied). Already at this stage of the development of theoretical thought, it is possible to trace the programming of thinking and compare the curriculum for classical dance with the theoretical parts of the treatises, which contain the movements recommended for mastering.

In later Italian works of the turn of the XVI–XVII centuries, the structure and classification of movements according to the level of complexity and various principles of their execution begin to take shape. In the works "The Dancer" ("Il Ballarino", 1581 [13]) and "On the nobility of Ladies" ("Della nobilt? di dame", 1600 [14]) Fabritio Caroso (Fabritio Caroso da Sermoneta) "used pli? movements close to the first, third and fourth positions of modern classical dance, battement tendu, pass?, pas de bourr?, demi-rond de jambe par terre, relev?, coup?, as well as pirouettes and various types of jumps, including "antrache" skids" [8, p. 14]. N. A. Vikhreva in the book "The History of dance Recording" [9] noted that the historian of ancient dance Anges Feves in the article "Fabritio Caroso and the Changing Shape of the Dance" ("Fabritio Caroso and the Changing Shape of the Dance, 1550-1600" [15]) emphasized that through a comparative analysis of two sources it is possible "to compare different versions of the same dance separated by twenty years" [9, p. 65], which was a unique case for the selected historical period.

The treatise "New Inventions of Ballet" ("Nuove inventione di balli", 1604 [16]) by Cesare Negri identifies five leg positions (without their definition and numbering) and describes in detail the jumps that he divided into four groups: jumping with a brush; tour en l'air (including an analogue assembl? en tournant); cabriole (capriola trecciata) and entrechats [8, p. 16]. The first edition of this book was called "The Graces of Love" ("Le Gratie d'amore", 1602). Ten types of rotations distinguished by virtuosity are highlighted in the work.

The next stage in the development of ballet art is due to the creation of the first professional choreographic institution — the Royal Academy of Dance, founded by Louis XIV in Paris in 1661. It was headed by Pierre Beauchamp, who left no published theoretical legacy. His methodology is described in a later work in 1725, "The Dancing Teacher" ("Le Ma?tre ? Danser" [17]) Pierre Rameau. The source contains a set of rules for performing the positions of the legs and arms, which made it a methodological guide on the basics of classical dance, approaching the curriculum in its structure, but not containing an indication of this genre.

During the same period, a new type of fixation of the technique of choreographic art arose — dance notation (a written way of fixing a choreographic text using a system of signs developed for this purpose). The treatise "Orquesography, or a treatise in the form of dialogues, according to which everyone can easily master and practice the noble occupation of dancing" ("L'orchesographie et trait? en forme de dialogue par lequel toutes personnes peuvent facilitation apprendre & pratiquer l'honneste exercice des dances", 1588 [18]) Thoinot Arbeau (pseudonym-an anagram of the name Jean Thouarbault) is an example of one of the first experiments in creating a dance recording system. Its main value is not in describing specific movements, but in fixing and notating their sequences in various French dances. Raoul Feuillet's treatise "Choreography, or the art of recording dance" ("Chor?graphie, ou fart de d'?crire la danse", 1700 [19]) combined these competencies. It defined the rules for setting foot positions and hand positions, turns, pas de bourr?s and jumps (pas tomb?s, gliss?s, assembl?s, coup?s, jet?s, sissonnes, cabrioles, entrechats [8, p. 27]).

The description of dance movements is also recorded in the book "A New and skillful School of theatrical Dance" ("Nuova e curiosa scuola de'ballitheatrali", 1716 [20]) by Gregorio Lambranzi, who reproduced both the "technique" of "noble" academic dance and the technique of grotesque dances" [8, p. 29], including various cabrioles, chass?s, pas de bourr?, chass?s, balanc?s.

John Weaver, who stood at the origins of the English ballet theater, in his work "Lectures on Anatomy and Mechanics of Dance" ("Anatomical and Mechanical Letters upon Dancing", 1721 [21]) used a biomechanical approach, evaluating the motor skills of movement. Later, Carlo Blasis would address him in the work "The Complete Guide to Dance" ("Manuel Complet De La Danse", 1830 [22]). This is an expanded edition of his first book, A Theoretical and Practical Treatise on the Art of Dance (Traite El?mentaire, Th?orique et Pratique de l'art de la Danse, 1820 [23]). It consists of two parts, the second of which contains general methodological recommendations and exercises for legs, body and arms, a description of poses, attitudes, arabesques (it is believed that it was K. Blasis who introduced this term) and jumps, which is "a kind of sample of the classical dance lesson of the 1820s" [8, p. 29].

In the theoretical work "Letters on Dance and Ballets" (1760) [24] Jean?Georges Noverres justified the reform of ballet, turning it into an independent art form. The work considers not only the technique, but also other essential aspects of choreographic art. He dedicated the thirteenth letter to the Dance Academy, which, from his point of view, "is completely indifferent to the successes of art <...>, [and also] does not publish works — neither good nor bad, nor mediocre, nor tolerable, nor boring" [24, p. 246].

French dancer and teacher Auguste Vestris (Marie Jean Augustin Vestris), famous for his brilliant technique, did not leave behind literary sources. The materials of his lessons were recorded by August Bournonville in the manuscript "Method of Vestris" ("M?thode de Vestris"), presumably created in 1826 [8, p. 29]. It is mentioned in the books "August Bournonville" [25, p. 86] by A. Fredericia and "The Technique of Bournonville Ballet. 50 combinations" ("Bournonville ballet technique. 50 ?ncha?nements" [26]) by V. Flidt and A. Jurgenson. The lesson contained 105 exercises in the middle of the hall, systematized into eight series [27, p. 154]. Although the material was not distributed by years of study, it has a clear structure and presents a classification of movements, similar to the classical dance program, where information is presented on the principle from simple to complex.

A. Bournonville, the founding father of the Danish ballet school, left behind the work "Choreographic Studies" ("?tudes Chor?graphiques"), "an experience-tested and detailed guide to dance, which was dedicated to fellow teachers and students" [28, p. 115]. Three versions of the work are known (1848, 1855, 1861), published by A. Jurgenson and F. Falcone [29], the second of which is devoted to the technique of classical dance. In the 1850s, A. Bournonville also worked on creating a dance recording system, inspired by the notation of Arthur Saint-Leon (Artur Saint-L?on) "Stenochoreography, or The Art of quickly recording dance" ("La St?nochor?graphie, ou L'art d'?crire Promptement la Danse", 1852 [30]).

The teacher and choreographer of the Romantic era, Filippo Taglioni, did not record in writing the features of his pedagogical system. F. Taglioni's lesson was described in detail by his pupil Leopold Adice in the book "Theory of gymnastics of theatrical dance" ("Th?orie de la gymnastique de la danse thtrale", 1859 [31]). The work shows the sequence of performing the movements of the exercise, which in form can be compared with the program of classical dance. The volume of choreographic vocabulary presented in the book is comparable to modern ones, while the given number of repetitions recommended for performing movements exceeds it many times.

The work of the English teacher and theorist Edward Th?leur "Letters on dancing, reducing this elegant and useful exercise to simple scientific principles" ("Letters on dancing reducing this elegant and healthy exercise to easy scientific principles", 1832 [32]), which is a pedagogical system based on which A dance notation has been formed. Teler demonstrated knowledge in various disciplines: from the history of dance to the anatomy of movement. In its form and content, this work is unique in the history of choreographic art, since the classification of the positions of the legs and arms was developed specifically for fixation using the author's dance recording system.

It is noteworthy that Enrico Cecchetti, whose name is associated with the formation of the methodology of the Italian ballet school, also left no records of it. His teaching methods were outlined by his son Grazioso Cecchetti in the "Complete Textbook of Classical Dance" [33] and S. Beaumont and S. Idzikowski in the "Textbook on the theory and Practice of classical theatrical dance (The Cecchetti Method)" ("A manual of theory and practice of classical theatrical dancing (m?thode Cecchetti)" [34]) E. Cecchetti's lessons were programmatic: they They were performed in a certain sequence, designed for each day of the week.

In the work "Grammar of Dance Art and Choreography" ("Theoretischer und praktischer Unterricht in der Tanzkunst und Tanzschreibkunst oder Choreographie...", 1887 [35]) by Albert Friedrich Zorn, as N. A. rightly noted. Vorhreva, he raised the problem of the imperfection of the terminology of classical dance [9, p. 228], "in which, it must be confessed, pure Babylonian pandemonium has prevailed so far" [36, p. 228], while offering its own version. In addition to describing the movements, the publication presents a dance recording system developed by him. This is another case in the history of choreographic art where these competencies are combined. In 1892, another dance notation was published in Paris, "The Alphabet of movements of the human body — the experience of fixing the movement of the human body with the help of notes" ("Alphabet des mouvements du corps humain; essai d'enregistrement des mouvements du corps humain au moyen des signes musicaux" [37]) by V. I. Stepanov, which is based on The biomechanical analysis of movements is based.

The beginning of the 20th century can be considered the starting point of the formation of ballet studies as a scientific discipline. During this period, the first works on the history of choreographic art appeared ("History of Dance" [38] by S. N. Khudekov and "World History of Dance" ("World History of the Dance", 1939 [39]) by Kurt Sachs) and professional ballet criticism was formed (A. Ya. Levinson "Old and a new ballet" [40]).

This stage is significant in that the technique of classical dance began to be described not only by practicing teachers, but also by theorists of choreographic art. A striking example is the "Book of Rejoicings. The ABC of Classical Dance" (1926) [41], written by A. L. Volynsky, who had no professional choreographic education, but devoted twenty-five years to studying ballet. His work considers "complex technical movements as a way of emotionally influencing the viewer, leading to deep aesthetic experiences" [42, p. 245]. Despite the abundance of literary epithets and metaphors, the book has a clear structure. In the first part, Volynsky examines the meaning of basic concepts such as ballet and choreography. In the second part, which has subsections, the author professionally systematized movements by categories. The appendix contains a program on classical dance [43], compiled by Volynsky for his School of Russian Ballet, which had not previously been studied in the scientific literature. The program is designed for 6 years, for each year of study there are methodological guidelines set out in the style of the author's narrative.

Vaganova's literary consultant Lyubov Dmitrievna Blok was not a professional ballerina, but engaged in various bodily and dance practices. The posthumous edition of Classical Dance: History and Modernity contains her ballet studies, including the book "The Emergence and Development of Classical Dance Technique" [44]. In her work, she applied the historical and iconographic method of analyzing the technique of classical dance.

The book "Fundamentals of classical Dance" (1934) [45] is the result of the systematization of the pedagogical experience of A. Ya. Vaganova. This work is characterized by a scientific approach. In the introductory article by I. I. Sollertinsky "Classical dance and its theory" [46], the issue of scientific understanding and theoretical fixation of classical dance is raised. He spoke about the need to further consider "the exercise not as a fixed system, but in its historical formation" [46, p. 14].

A significant work on the description and methodology of classical dance technique is the textbook by V. E. Moritz, N. I. Tarasov, A. I. Chekrygin "The methodology of classical coaching" (1940) [47], which is devoted to the program of teaching classical dance at the Moscow school. The text of the program is attached in the appendix to the book, as it has already been found in the "Book of Rejoicings. The ABC of classical dance" [41] by A. L. Volynsky.

The formation of a classical dance program as an independent source is a natural result of the evolution of classical dance technique. The first published program of the Imperial St. Petersburg?The St. Petersburg Theater School has a "Ballet dance class program with an approximate distribution of educational material into seven departments according to their degree of difficulty and complexity" [48] by V. I. Stepanov, published in Materials on the History of Russian Ballet [49] by M. V. Borisoglebsky. The program dates back to 1895 and is a list of movements distributed by class. The following program of 1928 [50], released as a result of the reforms of choreographic education carried out at the Leningrad State Choreographic College, has the form of a separate brochure. The program on classical dance in 1936 [51], published in the collection of programs on special disciplines, is a separate methodological guide in terms of content. Her materials were based on the pedagogical activity of A. Ya. Vaganova.

As a result of a retrospective review of sources describing the technique of classical dance in the second half of the XVI — first half of the XX century, it can be concluded that even in the earliest theoretical works on classical dance, programming was traced and a conditional form of the movement program was contained. In addition to the evolution of ballet technique, attention is drawn to the tradition of transferring pedagogical methods from teacher to students, who subsequently expounded the methods of their teachers in theoretical works.

References
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The subject of the study presented for publication in "PHILHARMONICA. International Music Journal" article, judging by the title ("The evolution of the program of choreographic thinking in the works on classical dance of the late XV — first half of the XX century as a prerequisite for the emergence of a systematic program at the St. Petersburg — Leningrad ballet school"), most likely is the evolution of the didactics of classical dance in a certain body of literature of the late XV - first half of the XX centuries. It is the didactic content of the exhaustively listed list of sources that the author calls "the programming of choreographic thinking", meaning by evolution the logic of the gradual transformation of encyclopediically described classical dance movements into a sequence of exercises programming the development of necessary professional ballet knowledge and skills from simple to complex. It is obvious that the term introduced by the author describing the subject of the study ("programmaticity of choreographic thinking") is based on the professional pedagogical thesaurus of the Russian ballet school of the Soviet era in the field of classical dance, where "programmatic" (didactic) dance or a set of "programmatic" (didactic) movements are opposed to artistic choreographic staging, subordinating the semantics mastered by the dancer to choreographic plastics of artistic design. If the author had paid attention to explaining the origins and foundations of the term introduced into theoretical circulation, then it could have been accepted as an element of the research methodology, but, unfortunately, it is implicitly implemented (not thought out). And since in classical art criticism (especially vividly in musicology) programming is understood as the embodiment by semantic means of one art of some artistic content, previously expressed by semantic means of another art, then the strictly opposite meaning of choreographic programming misleads the reader. The reviewer makes the same remark regarding the term "choreographic thinking", which fundamentally contradicts the implicitly presented theoretical category of thinking, which in philosophy and psychology is understood as a universal human ability as a species. Without explaining the introduced concept of "choreographic thinking", the author involuntarily opposes the ability of choreographers to think, the ability of other people to carry out the same procedure. It's like choreographers think differently from people (with their feet?). The thoughtlessness of the terms used in the title and the lack of their theoretical justification in the text of the article significantly reduces the quality of the planned publication: starting with the fact that the cumbersome verbose title does not look scientific (rather theoretically compromises the author than reveals the subject of the study), ending with the ambiguity of reading the very historical process of the development of classical dance didactics ("the evolution of choreographic thinking programming"). Accordingly, when finalizing the article, the author should either logically justify the terms he introduces into theoretical circulation (essentially professional choreographers' slang), or still use theoretical general scientific vocabulary. As for the object of research, which is presented in the title of the article as works on classical dance of the late XV — first half of the XX centuries, the formal error of mismatch of the singular of the word "object" of the plural of the defining word "works" indicates the bias of the object. It is enough to formulate correctly in Russian that the object of research is a set of works on classical dance, so that a fair question arises: who objectified (put together) this aggregate? If the author claims to present to the reader a completely exhaustive frontal thematic sample of special literature, historically developed from the end of the XV century up to 1939, then this should be stated explicitly. Although, of course, the tendency traced by the author is questionable, that as soon as Russians began to write textbooks on classical dance, foreign teachers stopped doing it. Rather, the author, again implicitly, reveals the basic principle of Stalinist-Bolshevik social eugenics ("cultural revolution"), proclaimed by the "leader of the peoples" in the famous 1938 pamphlet "A Short course in the History of the CPSU (b)": everything that was written before this pamphlet or did not correspond to the interpretation of historical reality presented in it was recognized as a delusion or outright anti-Soviet. It follows from this simple principle that after the formation of the Vagankovo school of classical dance (the most classical of all classical schools), it is necessary to deny the importance of methodological literature of a different (non-Soviet or "anti-Soviet") origin for the "evolution of the programming of choreographic thinking". In any case, it remains likely that the corpus of sources analyzed by the author is not exhaustive, but represents a thematic selection aimed at interpreting the evolution of classical dance didactics in a certain direction. A similar position, although not so clearly, can be traced, for example, in the works on the history of classical dance by N. A. Vikhreva and P. A. Silkin. And if the author's selection of sources is based on a generalization of their works, then this should also be stated directly, and not hide the real sources of their synopsis like a student. The reviewer notes that the author's approach to the search for the causal logic of the evolution of classical dance didactics in the designated body of literature deserves attention. Indeed, the development of choreographic pedagogy, characterized by the close connection of biologically determined plasticity of the human body with the cultural processes of formation and development of the semantic canons of classical ballet and the special language of choreography of the Vagankov school, seems to be a worthy scientific research part of objective reality (the object of research). However, the contradictions noted above significantly reduce the scientific value of the result achieved by the author. The author's conclusion is "that even in the earliest theoretical works on classical dance, programmatic thinking was traced and a conditional form of the program of movements was contained", and also that "in addition to the evolution of the technique of ballet art," the author drew attention "to the tradition of transferring pedagogical methods from teacher to students, who subsequently expounded the methods of their teachers in theoretical works", is well-reasoned and trustworthy. Therefore, the reviewer recommends that the author: a) refine his terminological apparatus (where necessary — to clarify the author's innovations; where there is no special need for new and contradictory terms — to bring the vocabulary in line with the established theoretical general scientific thesaurus); b) unambiguously prescribe in the introductory part of the article the object and subject of research, an existing scientific or methodological problem, based on the solution of which the presented research is aimed at; c) to explain to the reader the logic of the author's selection of analyzed sources; d) if the topic chosen by the author has not really been studied "until recently", then it is necessary to at least briefly assess the prerequisites for posing the problem based on the material of already existing scientific works on related problems. The presented material has scientific novelty in general, but it is poorly provided due to the terminological contradictions noted above. The style of the text is scientific, although the author should adhere to editorial requirements in the design of dates (years). The structure of the article as a whole reflects the logic of scientific research, but the content of the introductory section should be strengthened taking into account the comments of the reviewer. Bibliographies, taking into account the author's reliance on the analysis of empirical material (epistolary sources), can be considered acceptable at a minimum level. The appeal to the opponents is correct and sufficient. The article is certainly of interest to the PHILHARMONICA readership. International Music Journal and after a slight revision of the author's terminology, it can be recommended for publication.

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The article "The evolution of the forms of sources on classical dance technique in the methodological literature of the second half of the XV – first half of the XX centuries" is devoted, as the author himself writes, to "the evolution of the didactics of classical dance, which resulted in the formation of a program on classical dance." The author carefully and comprehensively analyzes a huge variety of sources from different times and countries. The relevance of the article is very high, since there is a certain shortage of research in Russian art criticism devoted to source analysis in its historical development. The author himself notes that the manuals on classical dance "until recently, there was no scientific research interest, despite the fact that they represent a concentrated source reflecting the historical level of classical dance technique." The researcher fills this gap. The article has an undoubted scientific novelty and meets all the criteria of a genuine scientific work. The study is particularly interesting because, according to the author himself, "the term "choreographic thinking programming" is introduced into theoretical circulation, denoting the logic of the gradual transformation of a set of classical dance movements into a sequence of exercises that systematize the development of necessary professional ballet knowledge and skills from simple to complex." The author's methodology is very diverse and includes a thorough analysis of a wide range of sources. The author skillfully uses comparative historical, descriptive, analytical, etc. methods in all their diversity. The study, as we have already noted, is distinguished by its obvious scientific presentation, content, thoroughness, and clear structure. The author's style is characterized by originality and logic, accessibility and high culture of speech. Perhaps the most attractive thing about this work is its well–structured structure and thoroughly analyzed and systematized sources in their historical development. The author consistently reveals to the reader their evolution with a detailed description: "The first theoretical sources were created by Italian Renaissance masters. They are educational literature describing the basic elements of dance and its specific movements. <...> During the same period, a new type of fixation of the technique of choreographic art arose — dance notation (a written way of fixing a choreographic text using a system of signs developed for this purpose). <...> Already at this stage of the development of theoretical thought, it is possible to trace the programming of thinking and compare the curriculum for classical dance with the theoretical parts of the treatises, which contain the movements recommended for mastering. <...> In later Italian works of the turn of the XVI–XVII centuries, the structure and classification of movements according to the level of complexity and various principles of their execution begin to take shape. <...> In the theoretical work "Letters on Dance and Ballets" (1760), Jean-Georges Noverres justified the reform of ballet, turning it into an independent art form. The work considers not only the technique, but also other essential aspects of choreographic art. <...> The beginning of the XX century can be considered the starting point of the formation of ballet studies as a scientific discipline. During this period, the first works on the history of choreographic art appeared <...> This stage is significant in that the technique of classical dance began to be described not only by practicing teachers, but also by theorists of choreographic art." There are many more vivid examples. The author also examines in detail the works of the Russian ballet school - the book "Fundamentals of Classical Dance" (1934), which is the result of the systematization of the pedagogical experience of A. Ya. Vaganova, a number of curricula of the Imperial St. Petersburg Theater School and the Leningrad State Choreographic College. The bibliography of this study is extensive and versatile (more than 50 sources), includes many different sources on the topic, among which there are many foreign ones, made in accordance with GOST standards. The appeal to the opponents is presented to a wide extent, performed at a highly scientific level. The author draws very serious conclusions: "As a result of a retrospective review of sources describing the technique of classical dance in the second half of the XVI — first half of the XX century, it can be concluded that even in the earliest theoretical works on classical dance, programming was traced and a conditional form of the movement program was contained. In addition to the evolution of ballet technique, attention is drawn to the tradition of transferring pedagogical methods from teacher to students, who subsequently expounded the methods of their teachers in theoretical works. This research is of great interest to different segments of the audience – both specialized, focused on the professional study of ballet and ballet studies (art historians, researchers, students, teachers, etc.), and for all those interested in history, literature and art.
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