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ARTS AND HUMANITIES: CURRICULUM AND INSTRUCTION

Demonstrator 2. Aligned and Rigorous Curriculum

a.) The arts curriculum encompasses creating, performing and responding and is fully aligned with the Kentucky Core Academic Standards

b.) The arts curriculum provides for the development of arts literacy in all four arts discipline and also utilizes the Common Core Standards for English/Language Arts.

c.) The school curriculum provides opportunities for integration as natural cross-curricular connections are made between the arts and other content areas.

d.) The arts curriculum includes the study of representative and exemplary works of dance, music, theatre and visual arts from a variety of artists, cultural traditions and historical periods.

Demonstrator 3. Instructional Strategies

b.) Teachers provide print, electronic media, virtual or live models of

exemplary artistic performances and products to enhance students’

understanding of each arts discipline and to develop their

performance/production skill

d.) Guest and community artists, artist residencies, field trips, etc., are

integrated into the school arts culture for all students and provide experiences

that are designed to promote learning of Kentucky Core Academic Standards

within the arts and other content areas.

Demonstrator 4. Student Performance

b.) Students identify a purpose and generate original and varied art works

or performances that are highly expressive with teacher guidance.

d.) Students use written and verbal communication to objectively reflect

on exemplary exhibits and live or technologically provided performances as

classroom assignments.

All activities in this study guide align with the Kentucky Core Academic

Standards in Arts and Humanities – Elementary- High Schools Levels.

Classroom Activity: DANCE ME A STORY Dance is a way to communicate a story, thought or idea without using words. Dancers use their bodies, movements and gestures to communicate and tell a story to the audience. Many ballets are based on stories, books and poems. Literature is a wonderful source of inspiration to spark dance creation and performance. Find or write your own poem or story. Use the words in the text as inspiration to create a dance. Perform your dance for your class and see if they can guess what you’re trying to communicate or what story you are expressing through movement, gestures and dance! Read the plot of the Nutcracker Ballet. Choose a part of the story to recreate through dance. How does your version of the Nutcracker compare to what you saw the Lexington Ballet dancers perform?

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Moods and Emotions

frightened anxious tired afraid lonely silly sad happy surprised angry jealous joyful annoyed excited proud confused worried scared bored grumpy nervous cheerful loving guilty shy curious embarrassed

Music and Emotions: Composer Peter Tchaikovsky created the

score for The Nutcracker. The music helps tell the

story – creating melodies or themes for each

character and helping express the moods and

emotions throughout the story.

Listen to the music from The Nutcracker – try

to match the music to the different parts of the

ballet. What emotions and feelings do you

hear in the music?

If you could choose a theme song for yourself,

what song would you choose? Why? What

movements and feelings are communicated

by your theme song? How does this song

describe your personality?

Use classroom instruments to create your

own mood and emotions composition.

What moods and

emotions does

Giselle feel

throughout the story?

How do the dancers

express these

movements on

stage?

How can you express

moods, emotions ,

and feelings through

movement and facial

expressions?

Mood and Emotions in Dance

Dancers have to create feelings and emotions through their bodies and movements to communicate to their audience.

Call out emotions and have students create movements and facial expression that express that emotion. Discuss what the emotion looks like – how your body can express that emotion.

Have students choose an emotion and create a

short movement phrase that expresses that

emotion. Allow students to work with a partner or in

a group. Perform for the class and ask audience to

guess what emotion/feeling that students/group was

expressing in their performance.

Have students choose 3-5 emotions and create a

dance using their chosen emotions. Dances need

to have a beginning, middle and end and use a

variety of movements and the elements of dance to

express their emotions. Groups may choose to

create a story with their emotions to perform, or

sequence their emotions in a specific order for

performance. Find music that matches emotions to

accompany performances.

Have groups perform their dance phrases for the

class. Have other students watch and describe the

emotions they see and the story or other ideas

being communicated through movement.

Listen to the music of The Nutcracker here:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lYeDxshrYN8&list=PL53h-xLnZwbC-UMWoMq8yULGSctE_7YMC

Put on some music and call out various elements of

dance and movements and have students move

around the room demonstrating these, such as:

o Walk at a high level, change to a low level,

medium level.

o Walk with large steps, small steps

o Skip in different pathways: straight, curved,

zigzag

o Gallop forward, backwards and sideways

o Stomp with heavy force, tiptoe with light force

o Slide fast at a quick tempo, slide slow

o Add your own or let your kids throw out some

ideas.

Create mini-dances by combing movements and

space time and force elements. Add music and

perform for the class!

Basics of Dance – SPACE-TIME-FORCE

Force: The use of energy while moving Heavy/light, Smooth/Sharp, etc… Space: The area covered by the dance movements

• directions: Forward, backward, sideways, up, down, etc • level: The distance from the floor high, medium, low • pathways: Patterns that the body makes as it moves through space or on the floor • shape: The design of the body as it exists in space

Time: How fast or slow (tempo); even or uneven (beat); and long or short (duration) the movement is Locomotor Movements: walk, run, tip-toe, slither, roll, crawl, jump, march, gallop, hop, skip, leap, slide Non-Locomotor Movements: bend, twist, turn, open, close, swing, stretch Principles of Movement: balance, initiation of movement, weight shift Purposes of Dance: ceremonial, recreational, artistic expression

Basic Dance Vocabulary for the Classroom

Responding to the Performance

Writing about dance and understanding what you have just seen can be a difficult task for students. Use the guide below to help your students respond to the performance they have just seen or pieces they create within the classroom to perform. MacArthur Award winning choreographer Liz Lerman's Critical Response Process has been a widely adopted as a tool for providing valuable critical response to the work of both professional and student artists and is a great tool to introduce to students. This method is easily adapted and applied any technical or academic subject matter!

This Process will use your students in two of three

roles; artist (when they present their dance), and

responder (when they offer feedback to their peer

groups),

The artist perform their dance for their peers

and knows they will get to discuss with the

audience afterwards;

Responders, view their fellow student artist’s

dance and offer appropriate feedback to the

dance in a dialogue with the student artists;

The class instructor will serve as the facilitator,

The facilitator initiates each step, keeps the

process on track, and works to help the artist

and responders use the Process to frame

useful questions and responses.

The Critical Response Process will take place after students have viewed a performance or presentation. This Process can be

applied to any presentation, short or long, large or small, and at any stage in its development. As facilitator, lead your student artists

and responders through the following four steps:

1. Statements of Meaning: Responders give POSITIVE feedback to the performers about their dance they just observed.

Statements like …

a. I liked how the dance showed _________…

b. My favorite part was _____...

2. Artist as Questioner: Now your student artists get to ask their peer audience specific questions about the dance. This

gives the student artists a chance to check with their audience to see if they understood the story they were trying to tell

through dance. Questions might include…

a. Could tell what we were doing when ______?

b. Did we dance _____ big (long, soft, sharp, etc…) enough?

3. Neutral Questions: Responders ask neutral (no stated or implied opinions) questions about the dance and the student

artists respond. Here the audience gets to find out why the student artists did something in a particular way. For example,

a. Rather than asking “Why did you spin like crazy?” ask “What was the reason you were spinning?”

4. Direct Comments: Once all the other questions have been exhausted, the responders may state opinions, but only if the

given permission by the student artists. The usual form is “I have an opinion about ______, would you like to hear it?” The

student artists may answer no if they do not wish to hear the opinions for any reason.

Academic Expectations 1.15 Students make sense of and communicate ideas with movement.

2.23 Students analyze their own and others' artistic products and performances using accepted standards.

Elementary:

Big Idea: Structure in the Arts: Skills and Concepts – Dance

Students will

analyze and explain the use of elements of dance (space, time, force) and basic dance forms using dance terminology

use the elements of dance in creating, copying and performing patterns of movement independently and with others

observe, describe and demonstrate locomotor (e.g. walk, run, skip, gallop) and nonlocomotor (e.g. bend, stretch, twist, swing) movements

Big Idea: Purposes for Creating the Arts:

Skills and Concepts – Dance

Students will

describe and compare multiple purposes for which dance is created (ceremonial, recreational, artistic expression)

create new, observe, choose and perform dance to fulfill a variety of specific purposes

Big Idea: Processes in the Arts: Skills and Concepts – Dance

Students will

be actively involved in creating and performing dance (incorporating the elements of dance: space, time and force) alone and with others

use knowledge of the elements of dance and dance terminology to describe and critique their own performances and the performances of

others

identify possible criteria for evaluating dance (e.g., skill of performers, originality, emotional impact, variety, interest)

demonstrate behavior appropriate for observing the particular context and style of dance being performed; discuss opinions with peers in a

supportive and constructive way

Middle Grades: Big Idea: Structure in the Arts: Skills and Concepts – Dance Students will

use appropriate terminology to identify and analyze the use of elements in a variety of dance (space, time, force)

observe, describe and demonstrate choreographic forms in dance

apply elements of dance and principles of movement (e.g., balance, initiation of movement, weight shift) when observing, creating and performing patterns of movement independently and with others

identify and describe themes and styles (including characteristics of styles) of dance Big Idea: Purposes for Creating the Arts: Skills and Concepts – Dance Students will

compare and explain purposes for which dance is created (ceremonial, recreational, artistic expression)

create new, observe, choose and perform dance to fulfill a variety of specific purposes

Big Idea: Processes in the Arts: Skills and Concepts – Dance Students will

be actively involved (individually and in small groups) in creating and performing dance (using the elements of dance: space, time and force) in a variety of compositional forms (AB, ABA, call and response, or narrative)

create an improvisational dance with complex movements (beginning, middle and end)

use knowledge of dance elements to create and perform dance in an expressive manner

use knowledge of the elements of dance and dance terminology to describe and critique their own performances and the performances of others

identify and apply criteria for evaluating dance (e.g., skill of performers, originality, emotional impact, variety, interest) demonstrate behavior appropriate for observing the particular context and style of dance being performed; discuss opinions with peers in a

supportive and constructive way

Nutcracker Ballet - The Plot

There are many versions of the basic Nutcracker story since its original production in

1891. The Lexington Ballet’s version is as follows:

Nuremburg, Germany, Late Napoleonic Era

ACT I

A wicked sorcerer, seeking revenge for being turned into a king of rats, has turned the nephew

of his antagonist, the mysterious Herr Drosselmeyer, into a plain nutcracker doll. To break the spell,

the Nutcracker has to defeat the Rat King and make a young princess fall in love with him.

Drosselmeyer decides that his goddaughter, Marie, would be the perfect girl to help him get his

nephew back.

On Christmas Eve, Marie’s family (Doctor and Frau Stahlbaum and Marie’s brother Fritz)

throws a party where there is much dancing, gift giving and story telling, including the grizzled Baron

spinning tales of courage of his youngest soldiers and adventures in foreign lands. The enigmatic

Herr Drosselmeyer suddenly arrives at the party and entertains everyone with a show of life-like

mechanical dancing dolls. He then gives Marie the Nutcracker doll. During the party, Marie’s brother

Friz breaks her beloved Nutcracker doll. Drosselmeyer repairs the doll, but the party comes to an

end.

After everyone leaves and the Stahlbaum family goes to bed for the night, Marie sneaks

downstairs in concern for her Nutcracker doll. She falls asleep beside him and begins to dream.

Meanwhile, the Rat King and his sinister army of rodents come to destroy the Nutcracker doll. Marie

awakens and the Nutcracker doll comes to life along with Fritz’s toy soldiers. After a long and hard

battle and with the help of Marie, they defeat the Rat King.

Herr Drosselmeyer comes and transforms Marie into a charming princess who is able to see the

Nutcracker for who he really is – a courageous, good-hearted young man. Marie and her Nutcracker

Prince travel into a magical world beginning in a land of dancing snowflakes.

ACT II

Marie and the Nutcracker Prince, fresh from their victory over the evil sorcerer, continue their journey

into the Land of Sweets where the Sugarplum Fairy and her Cavalier have planned a magical party in

their honor. At the party, performers from faraway places dance for them and show them the exotic

flavors that exist in the Land of Sweets

Following the celebration, Marie and Drosselmeyer’s nephew return to reality. Drosselmeyer

discovers that the spell has been broken and his wish of getting his nephew back is fulfilled.

The Nutcracker

The Composer

Peter Tchaikovsky (1840 – 1893) composed The Nutcracker, one of the world’s

best-known ballets. Generally remembered as a composer of symphonies and

ballets, Tchaikovsky’s music also includes stage works, major compositions for

orchestra, music for orchestra and solo instruments, chamber music, piano

pieces, approximately 100 songs, church music, cantatas, and other choral

works. Some of Tchaikovsky’s best-loved music is that of the stage, which

comprised 11 operas, 3 ballets and 2 works of incidentals music. All three of his

ballets, including Swan Lake and Sleeping Beauty, are in the standard repertoire

of many ballets companies, but perhaps none are so familiar for its music as The Nutcracker, which,

although not conceived as Christmas music, is heard everywhere this time of year.

“Casse-Noisette” (cass-nwa-zet), or The Nutcracker, was first presented on December 7, 1892 at the

Maryinsky Theatre in St. Petersburg, Russia. In what may well have been a preview of coming

attraction, a concert suite from the upcoming Christmas-theme ballet was heard in March of the year

the first ballet was performed. This advanced hearing created a bit of a sensation, for it was in this

suite Tchaikovsky introduced the silvery tone of the celesta to create the magical mood of the “Dance

of the Sugar Plum Fairy.” The instruments, brought from Paris under great secreacy, achieved

maximum effect at first hearing. The Nutcracker Suite quickly settled into orchestral repertoire and

went on to become an international favorite. Tchaikovsky died during a cholera epidemic within a

year of the first performance of The Nutcracker.

The Choreographers

Marius Petipa (1818-1910) was the foremost choreographer of classical

ballets in late 19th-centruy Russia and one of the most influential

choreographers of all time. Petipa (pet-e-pa) was born in France and came to

St. Petersburg as a young man to dance at the Maryinsky Theater. The ballet

school of the Maryinsky Theatre became one of the best ballet schools in the

world and its dance company a rival to Moscow’s Bolshoi Ballet as the

premier dance company in Russia. After some years of dancing with the St. Petersburg Ballet, Petipa

began to choreography ballets for the company. By the 1890s, and his association with Tchaikovsky,

Petipa had been choreographing ballets from the Maryinsky Theater ballet for almost 30 years. The

first collaboration between Petipa and Tchaikovsky was Sleeping Beauty, which debuted at the

Maryinsky Theater in 1890. Its success provided the composer with the scenario and general outline

of the action to be seen in The Nutcracker ballet. However, Petipa entrusted the final choreography

to his assistant Lev Ivanov (1834-1901). No one knows how much of the ballet is owing to which

man. Dance scholars today often attribute the ballet to Ivanov, but there is no doubt that the original

conception of the ballet, to which Tchaikovsky wrote his score, was Petipa’s.

The Story

The story of The Nutcracker is based on a fairy tale by E.T.A. Hoffman (1776-

1822), a German writer who specialized in sophisticated fairy tales for adults.

Hoffman’s macabre style later influenced such other masters of the macabre

as the American poet and short story writer Edgar Allen Poe and the French

symbolist poet Charles Baudelaire. As was noted at the time of The

Nutcracker ballet’s debut in 1892, the ballet’s version considerably toned

down the occasionally gruesome imagery in Hoffman’s original story.

Production History

The Nutcracker was performed exclusively in Russia until the Sadler Wells Ballet of London

production in 1934. In the fall of 1940, the Ballet Russes de Monte Carlo introduced The Nutcracker

Suite to American audiences by performing the Divertissements of Act II. A full-length production was

not seen in this country until 1944, performed by the San Francisco Ballet.

It was not until 10 years later that the famed choreographer, George Balanchine, presented his

interpretation of The Nutcracker with the New York City Ballet. It is Balanchine’s production that

caused The Nutcracker to become the most popular of all ballets and an annual holiday event, not

only with the New York City Ballet, but classical ballet companies across the country.

The Lexington Ballet has been performing its version of The Nutcracker since 1977. Balanchine’s

ballet was designed to be performed by children; the original version had over 100 children on stage

in the two acts. This tradition has also been preserved by The Lexington Ballet.

The Costumes

The Lexington Ballet’s production of The Nutcracker has over 150 separate costumes and some

years the ballet has been performed by as many as 120 children. The casts during the school shows

are always smaller than those used in the public performances. Our costumes were acquired from

the London Festival Ballet more than a quarter century ago. Look especially for the Russian dancers

in Act II. These costumes are both very elaborate and very heavy! Each costume has to be hand-

fitted to the dancer performing the role in this year’s production. Ballet costumes are different from

the costumes used by theatre companies in that they have to specially designed to allow the dancer

maximum freedom of movement. Sometimes costumes get too old and have to be replaced. Some

of the older costumes are irreplaceable, but even the newer costumes are worth more than $500

each.

What is Ballet?

The English word “ballet” comes from the French, who adopted it from the Italian, who originally used the word to refer to dancing of any kind. Over time, classical ballet came to be defined as an intricate group dance, which uses pantomime (which is derived from the Latin word meaning to mimic) and conventionalized movements to tell a story. These features distinguished ballets from popular dancing performed by ordinary people. Some ballets have been continuously performed since the early 19th century as generations of ballet companies have passed down well-defined sequences of steps and gestures set to specific pieces of music. The Lexington Ballet’s production of The Nutcracker belongs to this tradition. The sequence of steps and gestures in each of these ballets is called choreography. The English word combines the Greek words for dance and writing, therefore choreography literally means, “dance notation.” Imagine the difficulties before film and video of recreating past performances of a particular ballet. Choreographers used to employ elaborate notational systems to record the exact sequence of dance. Nonetheless, the classical ballets inevitably evolved over time as various choreographers arranged, and rearranged, the dances according to their memories, notes and personal artistic ambitions. Even today ballet companies perform the classics in different ways depending upon the inventiveness of the company’s own choreographer, the skills of the company dancers and so on. However, since the invention of film, it has become possible for companies to perform a dance exactly the same as the first recorded production. Many of the older classical ballets, such as The Nutcracker, tell stories. To this end, the music, lighting, costumes, gestures and movements of the dancers all work together to create a narrative. However, even in The Nutcracker the narrative sometimes simply becomes the context in which the dancing, for its own sake, is performed. Thus, while the first act of The Nutcracker moves from a party to Marie’s encounter with the Nutcracker and battle with the Rat King and his minions, much of the second act is devoted to individual dance pieces, performed before Marie and her companion in the Land of Sweets. Great dance should seem effortless, displaying certain physical lightness – an expression of freedom, or longing for freedom. Dancers should perform with case, confidence, bravura and freedom. Assured of technique and properly rehearsed, a good dancer will let go, forgetting about particulars, only thinking about the human body moving through space. Great dancers, perhaps, will not be thinking at all, but will become the very dance they perform. Many subtleties separate a good ballet performance from the truly inspirational. Watch for: (1) variations in speed, (2) direction changes, (3) the height of leaps, (4) quiet landings, (5) body extensions, and (6) smooth movement between partners. Also watch for the dancer’s ability to create mood or emotion, the movement in connection with the music and the ability to make it all look easy.

A Brief History of Ballet

The story of ballet began five hundred years ago in Italy, during the Renaissance. In those days the Italian nobles entertained important visitors with elaborate pageants of poetry, music, mime and dance. When an Italian woman named Catherine de Medici married King Henry II and became Queen of France, she introduced this type of entertainment to the French Court. Almost a hundred years later, in 1643, Louis XIV became King of France at the age of five. Louis loved to dance and performed in many of the court ballets. He created the Royal Academy of Music and Dance in 1661. It was then that the five basic positions of the feet were developed and ballet began to develop a set technique. This is why French is the language used to describe ballet steps. At that time women were not allowed to perform in ballets. Their roles were taken by men wearing masks and women’s clothing. The first ballet with parts played by women was in 1681. One of the first female dancers was Maria Camargo. Maria thought the women’s costumers of the time were too heavy and bulky, so she shortened her skirts to be able to move better and wore flat shoes so she could do simple jumps. In the late 1700s the world of dance experienced many changes, thanks mainly to Jean-Georges Noverre. Born in 1727, Jean-Georges was a great dancer and choreographer who believed dancing should be more than just pretty movements. It should tell a story. He did away with the singing and the masks and taught dancers how to use mime and facial expression to tell a story. Jean-Georges’ creation of the ballet d’action (ballets that tell a story) changed ballet forever. Beginning with the production of La Sylphide in 1832, the Romantic Era of ballet introduced more changes. Women became the important figures in the stories and began dancing on their toes in what are now called “pointe shoes.” The number of steps increased and the movements became more expressive and lyrical. Even the subject matter of the ballets changed. Instead of stories about heroes and myths, fairy tales and folk legends were used. The costume became a long, flowing skirt call the “romantic tutu” and women took on a more graceful appearance. Ballet was very popular in Russia in the mid-1800s and the Imperial Ballet in Moscow and St. Petersburg became known all over the world. Many French composers and dancers went there to St. Petersburg to work with them. One was Marius Petipa. During his time in Russia, he created 60 full-length ballets. Many of which are still performed today and Petipa is considered the father of classical ballet. The modern era of ballet started in the early 1900s when a young Russian named Serge Diaghilev moved to Paris to try out some new and exciting ideas he had about art, music and dance. He introduced a young choreographer named Michel Fokine. Fokine was a rebel who broke with tradition and changed ballet from a pretty entertainment into a work of art. In 1911, Diaghilev formed his own company, the Russian Ballet, which was usually known by its French name, Les Ballets Russes. Ballet emerged in America in the mid-1900s. The two most important American companies, American Ballet Theater and New York City Ballet, were both established in the early 1940s and other regional companies, including the Pennsylvania Ballet in Philadelphia, soon followed. New York City became the dance capital of the world and George Balanchine, artistic director for the New York City Ballet until his death in 1983, became the most influential choreographer of the 20th century. Today, millions of Americans enjoy live ballet performances all over the country.

A Glossary of Ballet Terms

Adagio – slow and sustained movements; a slow and sustained dance Arabesque (ara-besk) – a frequently used classical ballet position. The weight of the body is supported on one leg while the other is extended in back, the knee straight. The arabesque may be varied in many ways by changing the position of the arms, the angle of the body and the height of the leg in the air. Allegro (uh-leh-gro) – fast running and jumping movements; a fast dance Attitude – a classical position similar to the arabesque, except that the knee of the raised leg is bent Ballet shoes – soft slippers made of flexible leather with thin, flexible soles Battement (baht-mahn) – an extension of the leg Bourree (boo-ray) – a rapid run, like a trill on the points of the toes, with the feet in fifth position. The feet move so quickly that the transfer of weight is almost imperceptible. The ballerina seems to skim across the stage. Chaine (sheh-nay) – a series of turns, executed in a line or in a circle, in which the feet remain close to the floor and the weight is transferred rapidly and almost imperceptibly from one foot to the other as the body revolves Chass (shah-say) – a slide in which the weight is transferred from two feet to one, or from one to another Choreographer – the person who creates, or composes, the dance Corps de ballet (cor-de-bah-lay) – the supporting dancers of the ballet company Danseur (dan-sir) – any professional male dancer Developpe (day-vel-oh-pay) – a smooth, gradual unfolding of the leg toward the front, side or back En pointe (on point) – the ballerina rises as far from the floor as she possibly can by dancing on the tips of her toes. She carries her weight not merely high on the balls of her feet but literally on the top of her toes. Originally, dancers did this in soft slippers; today toe shoes are blocked across the front to give added support Entrechat (ahn-treh-shah) – a jump beginning and ending in fifth position. While the body is in the air, the feet are rapidly crossed Fouette (fweh-tay) – one of the most brilliant steps in ballet. The dancer turns on one foot (usually en pointe) while at each revolution the working leg whips sharply into second position en l’air (in the air) Glissade (glih-sahd) – a sliding step, beginning and ending in fifth position Jete (zheh-tay) – a jump from one foot to the other Pas de deux (paw de duh) – literally “step for two”; a duet, often in several positions Passe (paw-say) – a passing position or movement Phrase – a series of steps or patterns, which constitute part of an idea; a sentence in movement

A Glossary of Ballet Terms… continued

Pirouette (peer-oh-wet) – a turn in place, on one foot. A good dancer can execute four or five continuous revolutions; a virtuoso, as many as a dozen Plie (plee-AY) – a bend of the knees Pointe shoes – see toes shoes Rond de jambe (rohn de jahm) – a circular movement of the leg, accomplished either with the toe on the floor or with the working leg raised Toe shoes – soft fabric (usually satin) slippers blocked across the toes with a hard pad to give support when the dancer rises en pointe Tour en l’air (tour ahn lair) – a complete single, double or triple turn in the air, usually beginning from and ending in fifth position. It is almost always executed by male dancers. Tutu – the traditional ballet skirt usually made of many layers of gathered tulle. The length of the tutu varies according to the period or style of the ballet being performed.