Biography
Dancing and gesture must express dramatic action.
Born: 1880, Saint Petersburg, Russia; Died: 1942, New York City, NY
Michel Fokine was one of the most influential choreographers of the 20th century. He was also a talented dancer and teacher. He graduated from the Imperial Ballet School in1898 and was promoted to first soloist at the Mariinsky Theatre in 1904. In 1907 he created Chopiniana, to music by Frederic Chopin, which was revised over the next three years into a romantic pas de deux that was the basis for Les Sylphides. Fokine established his reputation while he was chief choreographer for impresario Serge Diaghilev who provided Fokine with the opportunity to break away from the academic form of late 19th-century ballet and implement reforms. He advocated that movement alone should convey plot, that the style of a choreographic work should match the subject matter, and that pantomime should be limited or integrated into the dance movement. Fokine worked in Russia until 1918 and then came to the U.S. where he continued to work as a teacher, dancer and choreographer. Although he created numerous new ballets, he was most constantly in demand to revive the masterpieces he originally created for Diaghilev including The Firebird, Schéhérazade, Spectre de la rose, and Petrouchka.
Petrouchka tells the story of the loves and jealousies of three puppets who are brought to life by a charlatan during the 1830 Shrovetide Fair in St. Petersburg. "Petrouchka's Room" takes place in the compartment where the charlatan keeps Petrouchka––a black box dominated by a portrait of the charlatan. Humiliated by the charlatan’s cruel treatment and yearning to express his love for the ballerina puppet, Petrouchka, tries in vain to find some escape from his black cell.
Michel Fokine Works:
Petrouchka's Room (Scene two from Petrouchka)
Premiere: circa 1911