Topic > The impact of the Rite of Spring on contemporary dance

In 1913 the Rite of Spring sparked a revolt, it was a show that no one had ever seen before. It all began when Stravinsky created a piece of music entitled The Firebird for Diaghilev and the Ballets Russes in 1910. Nikolai Roerich was a Russian painter who designed the sets and costumes for Stravinsky. Stravinsky finished the composition Earth Adoration and Sacrifice in 1912 and completed the instrumentation by late spring. Vaslav Nijinsky was the choreographer. The premiere of the play took place on May 29, 1913 at the Theater de champs. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an original essay In 1913 The Rite of Spring shocked audiences accustomed to seeing classical ballet performances. In ballet, dancers have good feet and good posture. However, in the Rite of Spring the dancers have crooked feet and are slumped over. This might make the audience angry because it doesn't look attractive and isn't traditional. Watching Swan Lake the dancers' movements are elongated and the moves flow into each other. The movement in Rite Of Spring is very repetitive and the counts are strange. This makes the dance seem frenetic. The costumes of the Rite of Spring are rather unusual. The dancers wear long dresses. The color of the dress is very colorful with red, green, pink and orange patterns. They wear wigs, shoes and a headband that matches the dress. They have putty-colored makeup, with a thickened nose, waxy eyebrows and button eyes. (2) The costumes represent different spirits, and both male and female dancers wear the same ones. Compared to Swan Lake the clothing is not gender neutral. The dancers wear a tight tutu top while the men wear black tights with a top. In the Rite of Spring the costumes are quite loose whereas, as in Swan Lake, the costumes are tight to clearly show the movement. The women wear pointe shoes while, as in Rite of Spring, they wear flat shoes. The set is of a field with hills and clouds. In the second section you can't see the background because it's too dark. The set was designed by Nicolas Roerich, Russian painter. He called the painting earth kiss because he wanted people to appreciate and love the Earth. The dance begins with the Spring Greetings where an old woman enters the scene and tells the future. The woman stands still with a clawed hand. A group of dancers are in a circle and start stomping towards each other. They all perform different movements with closed fists. This makes it look messy and chaotic. They look down when they do this. The women start jumping up and down and run towards the other dancers who start moving. He carries sticks and holds his arm raised with his hand outstretched. He puts his leg bent and bowed. The other group of dancers repeats the same movements towards each other. The dancers continue to use lots of repetition and fast, bouncing movements. On the contrary, when the girls enter, they slowly return to their starting positions. Compared to Swan Lake the dancers are elegant and have good technique. Their eye line is always raised and they have no tension in their hands like older women have. Their feet are not crooked and their legs are straight. One similarity is that they both have to perform quick movements, but the dancers do it in a more controlled manner. They make it look easy. The dancers have energy in their eyes while, as in the rite of spring, the dancers have a blank expression. Five girls enter the scene and begin the kidnapping dance. They come in a line with their arms crossed and kick their leg. In the ritualof spring young girls dance the Khorovod, an ancient Russian dance performed in a circle. As they do this, their posture is not upright and their body slumps towards the leg making it look unpleasant. They rest their heads on one side in a huddled group. Head movement is exaggerated as they arch backwards slightly. The other three girls join them in line. All the girls' heads are facing in different directions. In the end the two dancers are facing the same direction, which doesn't seem right. There are different formations, some dancers are in a row and others in a circle. Each group performs different moves which give them the opportunity to show off. They repeat many hopping movements and face in different directions, including their backs. In Swan Lake the dancers all perform the same movement. Instead of doing many things, they duet while the other dancers stand still to the side. This is to keep the audience focused only on them and to make the dance look clean. Dancers rarely have their backs to the audience. Their jumps are higher and more precise. The formations are symmetrical and in the duet the dancers mirror each other. They both have to perform the movements in exactly the same way, which may make them feel limited. The other dancers in line will dance less. In the spring rite the dancers divide into two groups and perform the Ritual of the rival tribes. They move towards each other and then move away using repeated arm throws. All other groups break away and return to their circular formations on the floor. One tribe is standing with arms raised and jumping. They seem to have power over other tribes since they are at a higher level. They perform duets using contact work while one dancer stands still, staring at the audience. In Swan Lake, partner work is typically done with a woman and a man. Unlike the Rite of Spring where they are the same sex. The dancers stand still in different positions at the back of the stage when the duet begins. These positions complement each other and do not seem random as in the Rite. The dancers exit the stage when the duet happens where they all look identical while performing the same moves. One similarity is that both perform in circular formation. In the next section, the wise elders enter the stage and the sage blesses the Earth. The dancers cross their arms and hold hands as in the swan dance. They all look in the same direction, which contrasts with what happened at the beginning of the dance, when they had different focal points. They are on demi-pointe and their palms are facing the audience where, as in ballet, the palms are hidden. The dancers perform a movement in which they touch the floor. This is the opposite of ballet as dancers must be as quiet as possible when en pointe. The dancers fall to the floor then become maniacal and the dynamic becomes faster. The second section is called the sacrifice and begins with the mystical circles of young girls in circular formation. They are in a tight circle and keep repeating the same move used earlier in the piece. They rest their heads on their arms and spin in a circle. They run in front of each other, it seems like they are trying to escape from something. One dancer is selected as the chosen one. She falls to the floor and the other dancers push her around. The music changes and the dancers begin a fast, frenetic dance. While this happens, the chosen girl remains in the center of the circle with her gaze fixed into space. They repeat a motion where they fall to the ground landing in a plank position. Similarly in Swan Lake the villain pushes the dancer to the ground. The music becomes more intense in both dances, creating suspense for the..