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Home , At the Moulin Rouge, Ballet dancer, Moulin Rouge, Pierre Beauchamp, Royal Winnipeg Ballet

19 20 SEASON FEB 26 - MAR 1 FEB 26 -

Moulin Rouge® - The

Chenxin Liu and RWB Company, Photo by Michelle Blais CANADA’S ROYAL BALLET STUDY 380 GRAHAM AVE. | WINNIPEG, | R3C 4K2 T 204.956.2792 W RWB.ORG @RWBALLET GUIDEMOULIN ROUGE® - THE BALLET | 1 STUDY GUIDE About Canada’s

Did you know … ? The Royal Winnipeg Ballet School’s Recreational Division offers classes in jazz, modern, hip hop, tap, musical theatre, and creative movement as well as clas- sical ballet. If you were to enroll in our Recreational Division, which dance style would you try first? Do you live in Altona, Eriksdale, Gimli, or St. Malo? The RWB School is very proud to offer Satellite Program classes in these communities. Would you like to be a professional dancer some day? Everyone is welcome to audition for the Professional Division! Auditioners – you are not required to have taken a single dance class before. Auditions are held every year in Winnipeg and accross North America. Visit us online for class descriptions, audition information, and more. rwb.org/school. Royal Winnipeg , Photo courtesy of RWB Archives RWB of courtesy Photo Company, Ballet Winnipeg Royal

Founded in 1939, the Royal Winnipeg Ballet holds the In addition to the Company, the RWB is home to the double distinction of being Canada’s premier ballet RWB School. The RWB School consists of both a company and one of the oldest ballet companies Professional Division which trains young artists for a in North America. Under the artistic direction of professional career in dance, and a Recreational Division André Lewis, versatility, technical excellence, and a that provides classes to over 1,500 students weekly. captivating style are the trademarks of the RWB which have garnered critical and audience acclaim. RWB’s superlative standards keep the Company in demand across the world.

MOULIN ROUGE® - THE BALLET | 1 STUDY GUIDE Preparing to See the Ballet

What to watch for: • Watch the athleticism of the dancers: their balance, fluidity, and strength. Look This booklet is designed for how their costumes are designed to allow and highlight their movements. to enhance the experi- • Sometimes choreography tells a story through arm movements, much like ence of attending the sign language does. What sorts of ‘signs’ do you see that help tell the story? RWB’s performance of • Look at the distance between dancers on stage at certain points in the Moulin Rouge® - The Ballet, dance. Do they seem close or distant? Does it seem like their characters choreographed by Jorden are working together or creating opposition to each other? Morris. The activities and information included are • Look at the costumes. What information do they convey about the organized to help students characters? prepare, understand, enjoy, and respond to What to listen for: their experience with • As the music begins, listen for the mood of the piece. Think about what the performance. sorts of movements might go along with this mood. When the dancers enter, think about how their movements match (or contrast) what you Balletomane’s Guide imagined. Are the dancers moving to the music in an obvious way or in A balletomane is a fan of the a way that juxtaposes the score? ballet, and the secret to being • How would you describe this music in words? What clues in the music do one is that there is no secret at you think the choreographer picked up on when designing this dance? all! Ballet tells stories on stage through movement and with music. People love ballet for Like all live performances, each ballet performance only all sorts of reasons, from the happens once. It is a combination of the performers on admiration of the dancers’ skill, to the fantasy of the world created stage and the audiences in front of them that make up each on stage, to the thrill of seeing a unique performance. story told through dance. For this reason, it is in the audience’s best interest to be visibly and audibly After the attentive and appreciative – the better the audience, the better the performance on stage will be. performance: Process and respond to the per- • During the performance: Enjoy the ballet! As part of the audience, formance by engaging in class your attendance is as essential to the ballet performance as the dancers discussions or writing a letter to themselves. It is very important to arrive on time or even early for the the RWB. We love to get feed- performance in order to allow enough time to settle in and focus on the show. back from our student groups. • Concentration: Always sit still and watch in a quiet, concentrated way. Write to: This supports the dancers so that they can do their best work on stage. Royal Winnipeg Ballet • Quiet: Auditoriums are designed to carry sound so that the performers can 380 Graham Avenue be heard, which also means that any sound in the audience can be heard WPG, MB, R3C 4K2 by dancers and other audience members. Checking your phone disrupts E [email protected] the performance for everyone, so always ensure that phones and other facebook.com/rwballet electronic devices are turned off during the performance. twitter.com/rwballet • Respect: By watching quietly and attentively you show respect for the dancers. The dancers show respect for you (the audience) and for the art instagram.com/rwballet of dance by doing their very best work. pinterest.com/rwballet • Appreciation: Tell performers you enjoyed the show by clapping at the end of a particular dance (when there is a pause in the music) and at the end of the performance.

MOULIN ROUGE® - THE BALLET | 2 STUDY GUIDE About Ballet

The First Ballet down through centuries, freer in her movements and French choreographer In 16th century and and which now form the allow the audience to see collaborated Italy, royalty competed to basis of today’s classical her intricate footwork and with the Russian composer have the most splendid ballet style. complex jumps, which often Pyotr Tchaikovsky to create rivaled those of the men. the lavish story ballet court. Monarchs would The First search for and employ the Ballet companies were spectacles such as Swan Professional best poets, musicians and now being set up all over Lake, The Sleeping Beauty artists. At this time, dancing Dancers France to train dancers for and The Nutcracker. Today, became increasingly At first, were the . The first official these ballets still form the theatrical. This form performed at company (a collection basis of the of entertainment, also Court, but in 1669 King of dancers who train repertoire of companies all called the ballet de court Louis opened the first professionally) was based over the world. opera house in . Ballet at the and (court ballet), featured One Act Ballets elaborate scenery and was first viewed publicly opened in 1713. in the theatre as part of In 1909, the Russian lavish costumes, plus a The series of processions, the opera. The first opera impresario Serge Diaghilev poetic speeches, music and featuring ballet, entitled By 1830, ballet as a brought together a group dancing. The first known Pomone, included dances theatrical art form truly of dancers, choreographers, ballet, Le Ballet comique de created by Beauchamp. came into its own. composers, artists and la Reine, was performed Women participated in Influenced by the Romantic designers into his company, at court in 1581 by the ballets at court, but were Movement, which was the . This Queen of France (and not seen in the theatre until sweeping the world of company took Paris by her ladies) at her sister’s 1681. Soon, as the number art, music, literature and storm as it introduced, wedding. of performances increased, philosophy, ballet took instead of long story ballets courtiers who danced on a whole new look. The in the classical tradition, The Sun King for a hobby gave way to ballerina ruled supreme. short, one-act ballets In the 17th century, professional dancers who Female dancers now such as, Schéhérazade, Les the popularity and trained longer and harder. wore calf-length, white, Sylphides, The Rite of Spring, development of ballet could The physical movement bell-shaped tulle skirts. Firebird and Petrouchka. be attributed to King Louis of the first professional To enhance the image of Some of the worlds XIV of France. He took dancers was severely the ballerina as light and greatest dancers, including dancing very seriously and hindered by their lavish ethereal, the pointe shoe (1881-1931), trained daily with his dance and weighty costumes and was introduced, enabling and Vasslav Nijinsky (1889- master, Pierre Beauchamp. headpieces. They also wore women to dance on the 1950), and choreographers One of the King’s famous dancing shoes with tiny tips of their toes. Mikhail Fokine (1880-1942) heels, which made it rather and George Balanchine roles was the Rising Sun Classical Ballet which led him to become difficult to dance with (1904-1983), were part of known as the “Sun King.” pointed toes. Although the term Diaghilev’s company. King Louis also set up “classical” is often used to the Academie Royale de Revealing Feet refer to traditional ballet, See for Danse (Royal Academy of and Ankles this term really describes yourself! Dance) in 1661, where, for Early in the 18th century a group of story ballets Do a search for images of the first time, steps were in Paris, the ballerina, first seen in Russia at the ballet dancers throughout structurally codified and Marie Camargo, shocked end of the . the ages. Can you notice recorded by Beauchamp. audiences by shortening At this time, the centre of the differences in costumes These are the same steps her skirts to just above the ballet moved from France over time? What do most that have been handed ankle. She did this to be to Russia. In Russia, the dancers wear today?

MOULIN ROUGE® - THE BALLET | 3 STUDY GUIDE Life of a Dancer

The career of a dancer is relatively short and it is not unusual to spend more years training than dancing professionally. As in Olympic-level sports, the movements demanded of the human body in ballet are very specific and require great precision and care. For that reason, the physique must be prepared for a professional ballet career at a young age. The professional training period usually consists of at least seven years of intensive, precise work. Ideally, girls and boys should begin their professional training by age ten. Training is a very progressive process. The young professional student begins with daily classes, practicing the basic ballet positions and movements, learning body placement and how to move through the space with balance and artistry. As the student progresses, time spent in classes each week increases, as do the difficulty and extensiveness of the skills taught. In addition to daily class in classical technique, students also receive instruction in variation (solo) work, pointe (dancing on the toes), (a dance for two), character, jazz, and modern dance. Prior to the introduction of pointe work, a number of criteria must be considered, including the amount of previous training, the dancer’s strength and ability, as well as their age as it relates to the bone development in the dancer’s feet. Pas de deux and repertoire (the collection of different ballets a dance company performs) are introduced only when the student has adequate strength, ability, and training. Students who graduate to a professional ballet company usually begin dancing as a member of the (ensemble). After a few years, corps de ballet members whose artistry, technical ability, musicality, and ability to communicate with the audience set them apart may be promoted to first or second . Finally, the highest achievement in the company, the position of or ballerina, is attainable by only a few select dancers. Former RWB Company Dancer Maureya Lebowitz (2007-2011), Photo courtesy of RWB Archives RWB of courtesy (2007-2011), Photo Lebowitz Maureya Dancer Company RWB Former

Did you know … ? Enhance your experience! Dancing ballet puts a lot of wear on a dancer’s Watch some of the RWB’s videos online. From shoes. Some dancers need to get new shoes behind-the-scenes interviews, to spotlight features every week! on dancers, see more of what goes into creating a ballet performance. Look for us on Vimeo or YouTube.

MOULIN ROUGE® - THE BALLET | 4 STUDY GUIDE Moulin Rouge® - The Ballet Creative Team & Synopsis

Act l Act ll As Paris awakens for another day, Matthew enters and is Toulouse’s muse waits for him to return to his studio. She immediately robbed of his belongings by Gypsies. Nathalie is about to leave Paris and is saddened by the thought is waiting for the other launderettes to arrive when she that this is the last time she will work with Toulouse. The sees Matthew for the first time. As the couple dance artist enters and they have a tender moment together. together, the spark of love ignites. Zidler, the owner of the Toulouse leaves his muse to reminisce and departs to Moulin Rouge, enters and everyone knows that he is the meet Matthew . man who can take you from the streets to the spotlight, so the women dance for him, hoping to attract his attention. Meanwhile, Nathalie is getting ready to meet Matthew Nathalie outshines all the other girls so Zidler offers her at the Tango Café. She is happy and in love. Zidler has a position at the Moulin Rouge! Nathalie says goodbye now become obsessed with Nathalie and does not want to Matthew and her friends, then leaves with Zidler. her to go out. He tries to seduce Nathalie and only Toulouse-Lautrec arrives and sees Matthew sketching. Toulouse entering saves her. Zidler has no idea she is Intrigued, he asks to see Matthew’s work and critiques it meeting Matthew at the Tango Café but follows and finds rather harshly. Matthew, not knowing who Toulouse is, the couple together. Zidler threatens to kill Matthew, gets quite upset. Toulouse offers a paintbrush to Matthew so Nathalie leaves with him in an attempt to appease and the dueling paint off scene begins with Toulouse’s the tyrant and save Matthew from harm. Matthew is favourite muse as the subject. left brokenhearted and confused. He drinks absinthe with Toulouse and encounters the green fairies. After Zidler brings Nathalie into a cold, dark and somewhat he wakes up, Toulouse creates a plan for Matthew to frightening rehearsal space, where she is told to wait disguise himself as a waiter and get back into the . before rehearsal begins. The other dancers are not impressed that Nathalie is there and try to intimidate her. At the show that evening, Matthew finds Nathalie and challenges Nathalie to a cancan competition they try to escape through the mayhem of the cancan. and at the end Nathalie is victorious. She wins Zidler’s Zidler discovers them together and becomes enraged, approval and the tower dressing room. stopping the show. He intends to kill Matthew, but Nathalie is mortally wounded instead. Matthew holds Toulouse and Matthew are in front of the Moulin Rouge Nathalie as she takes her last breath. cabaret with their paintings. Toulouse invites Matthew to the cabaret for the evening but Matthew is broke and underdressed. Toulouse brings in tailors who transform Matthew into a gentleman in a tuxedo. After the first choreography Moulin Rouge show, Nathalie sees Matthew and the Jorden Morris two of them rekindle the spark from their first meeting. d r a m at u r g e Nathalie takes Matthew away from the Moulin Rouge so Rick Skene they can be alone. Zidler notices that Nathalie is gone and becomes suspicious; after searching the Moulin co s t u m e d e s i g n Rouge he closes it down and leaves to find her. Anne Armit & Shannon Lovelace As people are leaving the cabaret, Nathalie and Matthew s e t & p r o p e rt i e s d e s i g n are on their way to a bridge by the . Zidler Andrew Beck comes searching for her, but Toulouse distracts him to help the couple escape to the bridge where they dance l i g h t i n g d e s i g n a romantic pas de deux. Pierre Lavoie Former RWB Dancers Maureya Lebowitz (2007-2011) and Jaime Vargas (2004-2011), Photo courtesy of RWB Archives RWB of courtesy Photo (2004-2011), Vargas Jaime and (2007-2011) Lebowitz Maureya Dancers RWB Former

MOULIN ROUGE® - THE BALLET | 5 STUDY GUIDE Classroom Activities Royal Winnipeg Ballet Company, Photo courtesy of RWB Archives RWB of courtesy Photo Company, Ballet Winnipeg Royal

Visual Arts • Research artist Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec and his works for the Moulin Rouge. • Create a poster yourself, in Latrec’s distinct style.

Social Studies • Watch ’s 2001 film Moulin Rouge! and compare it with the ballet. • Write a review of the afternoon’s performance, acting as an on-the-spot reporter and send it to the RWB.

History • Study the history of the Moulin Rouge. Research one of the characters based on real-life people: Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec, Charles-Joseph Zidler, or La Goulue (Louise Weber). What was their life experience like? Moulin Rouge: La Goulue, poster (1891) by Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec de Henri by (1891) poster La Goulue, Rouge: Moulin How does it compare to their portrayal in the ballet?

MOULIN ROUGE® - THE BALLET | 6 STUDY GUIDE Classroom Activities Royal Winnipeg Ballet Company, Photo courtesy of RWB Archives RWB of courtesy Photo Company, Ballet Winnipeg Royal

Telling Stories Through Gesture Modifications: Dance sometimes tells a story or conveys a mood For less-advanced students, create gestures for a story through movement on stage. Get your students thinking read to the class as a group. Pause at intervals in the in a movement vocabulary with this fun and accessible story and select a student to share a gesture for that exercise. Do this exercise before seeing the ballet and ask moment, allowing all students to try the gesture before your students to look for storytelling gestures from the continuing on. Repeat the entire story adding in the dancers during the performance. created gestures. Students will translate a familiar story into a series of For more-advanced students, create longer sets of gestures and explore different ways to present those gestures to music and focus on transitions between each gesture-stories to an audience. gesture. Remind them to include facial expressions and Divide students into small groups and have each group think about the quality of each movement in relation to select a well-known story (a favourite story book from the story. class, a fairy tale, a familiar legend, etc). Have each group Instead of different stories, divide one story into 7 create 3–5 gestures (specific movements) that highlight to 10 sentences. Divide into groups of 2 or 3 and key elements of the story. number groups 1 through 7 (or 10). Give each group ex. The story of Rapunzel: their corresponding sentence for the story. Practice to the same piece of music then present the whole story 1 “locked in a tower”: fists crossed in an ‘x’ by chronologically, one group after the other. student’s chest 2 “long hair”: head tilted to one side, braiding long hair 3 “ rescues her”: climbing a rope ladder, then raising both arms in celebration Once groups have decided on their gestures, instruct them to try performing them in different ways (“like robots”, “smoothly”, “as big as you can”, “as small as you can”, “joyously”, “nervously”, “fast”, etc.). Consider adding in music to these and presenting each to the class.

MOULIN ROUGE® - THE BALLET | 7 STUDY GUIDE Glossary of Ballet Terms Royal Winnipeg Ballet Company, Photo courtesy of RWB Archives RWB of courtesy Photo Company, Ballet Winnipeg Royal

ballet – (“bah-LAY”) 1. an balletic – (“bah-LET-tic”) of or choreography – the art of rehearsal – 1. a trial performance artistic dance that usually tells having to do with ballet. inventing and composing dances. or practice of play, music, dance, a story or expresses a mood, A choreographer is the person etc. 2. the process of rehearsing. balletomane – (“bah-LET- performed by either a soloist or who sets the dance and often oh-main”) a person who is repertoire – a collection of pieces a group of dancers in a theatre, teaches it to the dancers. enthusiastic about ballet. that a company or dancer knows concert hall, etc. 2. a dramatic or pas de deux – a dance for or is prepared to perform. representational style of dancing ballerina – a female ballet dancer. a couple to music 3. a particular piece or Male ballet dancers are simply score – in music, the written form performance of ballet. called “male dancers”. – a dance for three of musical composition people – a horizontal bar at waist level, used in dance exercises.

Why does ballet use so many French words? Ballet was popularized and standardized in the royal court of King Louis XIV in 17th century France. See page 3 to find out more of ballet’s history and the balletic reason that gave

King Louis XIV Louis the “Sun King” nickname.

MOULIN ROUGE® - THE BALLET | 8 STUDY GUIDE Like all live productions, each ballet Let us know what you think! Write to: performance only happens once. It is a Royal Winnipeg Ballet combination of the performers on stage 380 Graham Avenue and the audiences in front of them that Winnipeg, MB, R3C 4K2 E [email protected] make each performance unique. facebook.com/RWBallet For this reason, it is in the audience’s best interest to be visibly and twitter.com/RWBallet audibly attentive and appreciative – the better the audience, the better instagram.com/RWBallet the performance on stage will be. pinterest.com/RWBallet

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MOULIN ROUGE® - THE BALLET | 9 STUDY GUIDE