Pas de Quatre: Embodied Stories in a Plotless Ballet

Abstract:

Plotless ballets convey stories not through a traditional plot but through the embodied identities of their performers, a phenomenon exemplified by Pas de Quatre (1845). While story ballets, such as La Sylphide (1832) and Giselle (1841), were prevalent during the period, this pivotal Romantic-era work transforms the technical strengths, artistic signatures, and public persona of its original ballerinas—Marie Taglioni, Carlotta Grisi, Lucile Grahn, and Fanny Cerrito—into the story of Pas de Quatre.

This study examines Pas de Quatre through historical contextualization and movement analysis, tracing how each ballerina’s technical and artistic traits are expressed through specific steps and staging. Through this lens, the ballet emerges as an embodied archive, encoding professional prestige and reflecting both the idolization of its performers and the hierarchies shaping their careers. By analyzing the choreography in this way, I demonstrate how narrative can emerge from movement, performer individuality, and historical context rather than plot alone. This perspective also offers contemporary choreographers and pedagogues a framework for reimagining embodied storytelling, highlighting previously overlooked narratives and expanding possibilities for teaching, performing, and interpreting ballet today.

 

Bibliography:

  • Binney, Edwin. Longing for the Ideal: Images of Marie Taglioni in the Romantic Ballet. Cambridge: Harvard Theatre Collection, 1984. https://nrs.harvard.edu/URN-3:HUL.INSTREPOS:37371806.
  • Cavers, J. K. “The Iconography of the Pas de Quatre.” Dance Research: The Journal of the Society for Dance Research 5, no. 1 (1987): 65–69. https://doi.org/10.2307/1290665.
  • Dolin, Anton. “Pas de Quatre.” In The Glory of the Kirov. Produced by NVC Arts. 1995. 38:05–52:20. medici.tv. https://edu-medici-tv.ezproxy.lib.utah.edu/en/ballets/the-glory-of-the-kirov.
  • Maynard, Olga. “The History of ‘Le Pas De Quatre’.” Dance Magazine 32, no. 4 (1958): 52-55. Edited by Lydia Joel. https://search-alexanderstreet-com.ezproxy.lib.utah.edu/view/work/bibliographic_entity%7Cbibliographic_details%7C4019868#search/pas+de+quatre.
  • Tobias, Tobi. “Hunt the Slipper.” Dance Now 12, no. 2 (2003): 47–53. https://search-ebscohost-com.ezproxy.lib.utah.edu/login.aspx?direct=true&db=ibh&AN=3144 3384&site=ehost-live.

 

Presented by Emma Capen, Associate Instructor; University of Utah

 

Biography:

Emma earned her MFA in Ballet and Certificate in Teaching in Higher Education from the University of Utah, where she served as a University and Graduate Teaching Assistant in the School of Dance. Before graduate school, she taught at the Oklahoma City Ballet’s Yvonne Chouteau School, instructing ballet, pointe, variations, Progressing Ballet Technique®, and character dance, while also serving as School Coordinator. During her time at OKCB, she choreographed original character dance ensembles and received the Outstanding Teacher Award at YAGP 2023. She currently teaches at the University of Utah, Utah Dance Institute, and Ballet West Academy.

Originally from Colorado Springs, Emma trained in the Vaganova method with German and Valentina Zamuel, formerly of the Maliy Theatre of Opera and Ballet and the Royal Ballet of London. She furthered her training in character dance under Marina Oreshkevich, a former member of the Moiseyev Dance Company.

Emma holds a BA in Spanish, graduating Summa Cum Laude from the University of Oklahoma, where she minored in Dance History and collaborated closely with the OU School of Dance. While at OU, she performed Amy Hall Garner’s I Rise and Micah Bullard’s Storge, and later served as a rehearsal assistant and stager for Willam Christensen’s The Nutcracker in Oklahoma and Coppélia in Utah.

Emma’s research examines the evolution of pointe technique and choreography across historical periods while envisioning future directions for pointe work. As an educator, she is committed to fostering curiosity, rigor, and imagination, empowering dancers to grow as artists and individuals.