Ballet Western Culture Essay

Ballet is a Western dance form, developed by the Indo-European speaking Caucasians who shared mutual European traditions. Ballet’s Western culture is displayed through the traditions of the 'proscenium stage, the usual three part performance which lasts for about two hours, our star system, our use of curtain calls and applause, and our use of French terminology' (Kealinohomoku, 2001: 40). Western customs such as weddings, burials and christenings are enacted, along with the mannerisms from the age of chivalry. Religious heritage is revealed in ballet through the use of biblical themes including Christian holidays, such as Christmas, and the beliefs about life after death. Ballet portrays the recurring themes of unrequited love, self-sacrifice
‘Ballet is a visual art’ (Deirdre, 2012: 137), which means that dancers become both hyperaware and hypercritical about their bodies. This is because dancers are constantly made aware of their appearance due to practising in front of mirrors in brightly lit studios. The dancers with the right physiques get the part, therefore ballerinas often feel pressure to ‘conform to a certain look’ (Deirdre, 2012:137). Self-starvation such as the eating disorders anorexia nervosa and bulimia are often used in order to lose weight. One technique used by dancers to lose weight is to subsist on soft drinks, coffee, amphetamines and lettuce. This provides the dancers with enough energy to rehearse, but is not healthy. Ballerinas often have surgical treatment in order to enhance their on-stage line. The ballerina Gelsey Kirkland had rhinoplasty, her earlobes trimmed and had silicone implants inserted into her breasts and lips. The ballerina-turned scholar Susan Young mentions that there is ‘relentless critical self-assessment of the body and a concomitant drive to suppress the physical evidence of female maturation – breasts, hips fleshy curves – were not only tolerated but professional requirements’ (Deirdre,