The
Merry Tsarina and Russian Dance
Before the reign of Peter the Great, dance in Russia existed only among
the common people, among the peasants and lowest classes living outside
the city fortresses. The feudal nobility did not dance, but enjoyed the
amusing services of dancing clowns, who were on the whole, men.
This difference among the
social classes in the development of dance culture occurred naturally as
a result of one historical event: the Tartar-Mongolian invasion and the
subsequent destruction of Rus (the old Russian kingdom). This invasion
ruined the people's way of life and interrupted the development of the
dance traditions of its people by halting its logical succession.
During
those terrifying times for Russia, the influence of the Orthodox Church
was greatly solidified and strengthened. Religious ideology penetrated
all aspects of spiritual culture. Under the impact of Christian
asceticism, which included a dogma that held dancing to be sinful, a
profound change began to take root in the people's consciousness of the
representatives of the privileged classes. Under the influence of this
ideology, the upper classes began to call dancing "satanic" and its
performers, scandalous.
At that time in Europe,
salon dancers were already necessary and important components in social
life. But, as Alexander Pushkin wrote, Russia long remained foreign to
Europe until Peter the Great appeared. "Peter the Great's reforms",
wrote G. Plekhanov, "brought the end of the predominance of theological
elements in the outlook of the Russian people."
The nobility's world outlook
altered, in particular the attitude towards dance as an art. This
transformed dance in Russia and helped it acquire the role it enjoyed in
European culture.
From the time that Peter the Great established dancing assemblies in
1817, Peter the First's daughters, the young Grand Duchesses Anna and
Yelizaveta, were in constant attendance.
During the Peter Assemblies,
the young Yelizaveta delighted all, not only with her dancing gifts but,
with an ability for every kind of improvisation. The French Ambassador,
La Vie wrote, that the Grand Duchess "drew attention to herself in the
dances, displayed.... ease of movement, quickness and inventiveness,
continuously thinking up new figures".
A.Karnilovich wrote of the
dancers of that time, "Of the ladies, first place was taken by the Grand
Duchess Yelizaveta Petrovna; the Princesses Cherkassky and Kantemir,
Countesses Golovkin and Dolgoruky also distinguished
themselves...Assemblies were given not just once in St. Petersburg. With
the court's arrival from Moscow in 1722, a soiree was established in the
capital, taking place by decree three times a week: on Sundays, Tuesdays
and Thursdays. Besides that, there were private balls, where there were
fewer guests, but the festivities were merrier. At these, dances
sometimes lasted until three o'clock in the morning."
From childhood, a love for
dance coincided with Yelizaveta's artistic talent and never abandoned
her. Her talent even prompted Prince M. Sherbatov, who was usually
antagonistic towards her, to write, "In youth, hers was the perfect
beauty, pious, charitable, compassionate, generous. Endowed by nature
with sufficient reason, she however lacked any education
whatsoever....Having by nature a cheerful disposition, she had a thirst
for merriments; (she) felt her beauty and passionately decorated herself
with various adornments."
After the death of her
father, Yelizaveta's carefree life continued during the reign of her
mother, Catherine I (1725-1727). "Agile, lively, full of grace...she was
the Queen of the Balls..." wrote M.Semevsky.
From childhood, Yelizaveta
was surrounded by nannies and wet-nurses, common Russian women and
girls. She absorbed more than their prejudices and superstitions.
Together with her serf girls, the Princess "danced" and "played"
ceremonial folk dances (khorovod or ring dances) particular to each
peasant festivity, told fortunes and listened fairy tales. Yelizaveta
knew many songs and dances and was acquainted with the peculiarities of
the traditional simple folk dances composed even before Peter the
Great's time. Thus were the tastes and attachments of the future Empress
formed between the songs, games, and dance traditions of the common
people, and the Europeanised dance assemblies and official celebrations
hosted by Peter I.
Apparently, at one of the Imperial balls, Yelizaveta performed a
"Russian" dance in front of the many gathered natives, who became upset
because foreigners were also present to see it. Unfortunately, history
does not record the exact date of this important event in the history of
Russian dance, though it had significant consequences in all spheres of
Russian theatrical and salon dances of the time.
The
significance of this wonderful fact can be explained by an entire series
of psychological and artistic reasons. On one hand, Yelizaveta was
skilled in the highest form of European style of salon court dancing,
the so-called "sophisticated" minuet. At that time the minuet was closer
to ballet seria ("serious ballet") and was performed at balls before
numerous palace guests as a unique dancing display. Yelizaveta was also
experienced in ballet dancing. According to historian Jacob von Stahlin,
the Italian ballet teacher, "Fossano taught her and her small entourage,
ballet dances." She also studied with the French ballet teacher, Jean
Baptiste Lande, who as Nikolai Drizen wrote,- "taught dancing to
Yelizaveta herself." Von Stahlin cites Lande, saying that at the Russian
Imperial Court they danced the minuet "according to the rules,
gracefully and at ease." He added, "We can take the example of the
Empress Yelizaveta, as (being) one of the truly superlative and
accomplished dancers."
On the
other hand, the Empress possessed experience in the performance of
Russian folk dances. These skills, along with her talent for
improvisation, allowed Yelizaveta to create a new, secular style of
"cultivated" Russian dance which did not exist until then, neither among
the common people nor in the aristocracy. The Empress enhanced the
authentic essence of the commoner's dance, ( with its popular rituals
and predominant ceremonial group characteristics) with the qualities of
professional ballet grace, harmony of movement infusion them with her
own individual methods of expressiveness. Thanks to Yelizaveta, the
general character and manner of Russian national dance began to find
professional form.
The
amateur noble court dancers underlined the natural, distinctive beauty
of Russian dance in every way, and adopted it into their aristocratic
lifestyle. It goes without saying, Yelizaveta was responsible for this.
From the
moment Empress Yelizaveta ascended to the throne in 1741, a new era
began in state government politics: an intensive development of national
Russian art and culture. In many aspects this was stimulated by the
artistic gifts of the new Empress.
"The Merry
Tsarina" (as the Empress was called) enjoyed the pleasures of life,
especially the brilliant celebrations and the theatre. While preparing
for her coronation, she ordered that an Opera House be constructed in
Moscow. The allegorical prologue Oppressed and Comforted Russia was
produced, along with a ballet and an Italian opera Titus' Mercy. Mikhail
Lomonosov ( founder of Moscow University ), took part in their
preparation.
The
ballets charmed everyone. The Happiness of the People on the Appearance
of Astrea was given as a prologue, and the ballet The Golden Apple at
the Feast of the Gods, or The Judgement of Paris concluded the program.
They were choreographed by Jean Baptiste Lande, who taught dance not
only to Yelizaveta, but also to her heir, Peter III ( who had come to
Russia), and to his bride, the future Catherine the Great (Yekaterina
II).
In 1744,
an important event in the history of Russian dance took place. With
participation from his Russian pupils, choreographer Lande produced for
the first time a Russian dance on the court stage. This was not in the
comic-grotesque style of the West, but significantly, in the "high"
genre of dance serieuse ("serious dance"). During the celebration, given
in honor of the wedding of Peter III to the future Catherine II ("the
Great"), Lande choreographed the dances for the opera The Union of Love
and Matrimony and The Ballet of Flowers. In fact, " at the time of
costume and scenery changes", i.e. during the interval, "music, Russian
songs... were played, and after, the dancers, Agrafiena and Aksinya ,
performed a Russian folk dance... Russian dancers, particularly
Agrafiena and Aksinya, showed great artistic quality", wrote theatre
historian Vsevolod Vsevolodsky - Herngross. The Empress was even known
to have commented, "What is Russian always has greater impact on the
Russian heart than what is foreign..." Agrafiena and Aksinya were
honored with an opportunity to speak with Yelizaveta, who gave them gold
earrings for their artistry both in the ballet and in the Russian folk
dance.
Thus, for
the first time in Russian ballet theatre history, Russian dance was
performed by Russian ballerinas on the Russian court stage. It is only
natural that Yelizaveta's former teacher, Lande, created the first
"Russian plyaska" or folk dance for the stage , taking into account the
tastes of his former student. He strived to poeticize the dance,
generalizing the interpretation of national folk dance traditions,
thereby forming the basic aesthetic principles of Russian ballet. A
theatrical turning point in dance, these principles proceeded from the
truthful portrayal of folklore, which excluded any characteristics of
ridicule or stupidity in the common person.
During
Yelizaveta's reign Russian dance found its stage personification. Thus,
in the last third of the 18th century, Russian dance contributed to the
development of realistic tendencies not only in ballet, but also in the
Russian theatre. The first ballet, opera and drama artists performed
Russian dances wonderfully on stage. At the same time, they were
creating new forms of court ballroom dances like the Russian plyaska and
kazachok, which were taught until the 20th century in all official
Russian educational institutions - at the Cadet Corps, gymnasiums,
boarding schools and institutes. This occurrence does not have any
analogy in the majority of West European cultures.
The work
of Alexander P. Sumarokov had a particular historic importance in the
growth of Russian stage dance, and in relation to dance culture in
general. He succeeded in adding a highly patriotic resonance to Russian
dance in his prologue New Laurels and in his first Russian ballet, The
Refuge of Virtue. Sumarokov's works were created against the background
of the brilliant victory of the Russian army in the war against Prussia.
Indeed, at that time - a time of political confirmation of Russia's
significance in Europe - Sumarokov created The Ballet of Russian Men and
Women. The new politics associated with the reign of Yelizaveta
confirmed the beginning of Russian roots in a Russian national culture,
not in the least restricting the sphere of dance.
The wish
to organize a professional court theatre did not leave Her Imperial
Majesty. To that end, in 1752 she ordered that seven choristers enter
the Sukhoputny Shlyakhetny Corps in order to learn dance, music, and the
French and German languages. In September of the year, she decreed the
appointment of Ivan Dmitrievsky and A. Popov to the Corps. In 1753, she
commanded that the tragedy Sinav and Truvor be selected and learned by
them. The following year, she appointed the brothers, Feodor and G.
Volkov to the Shlyakhetny Corps. The tragedies that they prepared were
than presented to Yelizaveta in 1754, who apparently was pleased with
the result. In January 1755, by her decree the young company was
transferred from the Corps to the Palace under the command of Sumarokov.
On August 30, 1756, the Empress signed a decree regarding the
establishment of the Russian theatre and, a year later, she signed
another decree concerning the Russian Academy of the Arts, where great
attention was paid to the teaching of music, dance and drama. It is
worth remembering that Moscow University opened in 1755 at the
initiative of Mikhail Lomonosov and Ivan Shuvalov "for the sake and
honor of the country". Simultaneously, the University became the cradle
of Russian theatre in Moscow. In the curriculum, music, singing, dancing
and art were all included.
Thus, the artistic gifts of Russian woman Yelizaveta, not only defined
her personal taste and creativity, but also played a great historical
role in the development of Russian art.
by Olga Vsevolodskaya - Golushkevich
This article first appeared in «Sovietsky Balet», issue No.2, 1991
