Editing Paris Opera Ballet (section)

==History==
{{See also|History of ballet}}

===Naming===
The Paris Opera Ballet has always been an integral part of the [[Paris Opera]], which was founded in 1669 as the Académie d'Opéra (Academy of Opera), although theatrical dance did not become an important component of the Paris Opera until 1673, after it was renamed the Académie Royale de Musique (Royal Academy of Music) and placed under the leadership of [[Jean-Baptiste Lully]].<ref name=Crane/><ref name=Christout86>Christout 1998, p. 86.</ref> The Paris Opera has had many different official names during its long history, but since 1994, it has been called the Opéra National de Paris (Paris National Opera).<ref>[https://www.operadeparis.fr/lopera-de-paris/histoire ''Histoire de l'Opéra national de Paris''] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160403204201/https://www.operadeparis.fr/lopera-de-paris/histoire |date=2016-04-03 }} (in French) at the Paris Opera website. Retrieved 19 July 2011.</ref>

===Background===
[[File:Ballet de la nuit 1653.jpg|thumb|[[Louis XIV]] as Apollo in the ''[[Ballet Royal de la Nuit]]'' (1653)]]
The Paris Opera Ballet had its origins in the earlier dance institutions, traditions and practices of the court of [[Louis XIV of France|Louis XIV]]. Of particular importance were the series of [[Comédie-ballet|''comédies-ballets'']] created by [[Molière]] with, among others, the choreographers and composers [[Pierre Beauchamps]] and [[Jean-Baptiste Lully]]. The first was ''Les Fâcheux'' in 1661 and the most important, ''[[Le Bourgeois gentilhomme]]'' in 1670.<ref>Guest 2006, pp. 5–7.</ref> Many of these were also performed by [[Molière's company]] at the public [[Théâtre du Palais-Royal (rue Saint-Honoré)|Théâtre du Palais-Royal]] in Paris, which was later to become the first permanent home of the opera company and the opera ballet.

Also in 1661, Louis XIV had founded the [[Académie Royale de Danse]] (Royal Academy of Dance) in an effort "to improve the quality of dance instruction for court entertainments". Members of the academy, as well as the dance teachers who were certified by it, and their students, participated in creating the ballets for the court, Molière, and later the opera.<ref>Astier 1998a, p. 3.</ref> In 1680, Beauchamps became the chancellor (director) of the Académie Royale de Danse.<ref name=Christout86/><ref name=Astier396>Astier 1998b, pp. 396–397.</ref> Although the Académie Royale de Danse and the Opera were closely connected, the two institutions remained separate, and the former disappeared with the fall of the monarchy in 1792.<ref>Astier 1998a, p. 4. The last list of its members was published in the 1779 ''Almanach des spectacles de Paris'' [http://www.larousse.fr/archives/danse/page/2 Archive Larousse].</ref>

===Founding and early history===
On 28 June 1669, Louis XIV granted a [[Letters patent|privilege]] to the poet [[Pierre Perrin]] giving him a monopoly to form a separate academy for the performance of opera in French. The first production of the company founded by Perrin, the Académie d'Opéra (Academy of Opera),<ref>Also referred to as the Académie Royale des Opéra (Powell 2010, p. 178).</ref> was [[Pomone (opera)|''Pomone'']], which was first performed on 3 March 1671 at the [[Jeu de Paume de la Bouteille]] and included ballets choreographed by Anthoine des Brosses.<ref>Powell 1995, p. 179; Guest 2006, p. 7; Powell 2010, p. 178. It is frequently stated that Beauchamps choreographed the ballets for ''Pomone'' (e.g., Astier 1998a, p. 3). According to Powell, this misunderstanding is based on the 'Recueil de Tralage' (ca. 1697; MS 6544, Bibliothèque de l'Arsenal, Paris). A manuscript legal document in the Archives of the Comédie-Française makes clear, however, that Anthoine des Brosses, who had earlier served as dancing master for the [[Théâtre du Marais]], choreographed the ballets for ''Pomone''. Beauchamps only took over des Brosses's position with Perrin's company in the late autumn or early winter of 1671, when des Brosses moved back to the Marais to choreograph [[Jean Donneau de Visé]]'s musical machine-play ''Le Mariage de Bacchus et d'Ariane'' (performed at the Théâtre du Marais in the winter of 1671–1672).</ref>

In 1672, Lully purchased Perrin's privilege and also obtained new letters patent limiting the use of musicians and dancers by other French companies. With Anthoine des Brosses and Lully as choreographers and [[Carlo Vigarani]] as stage designer, Lully's company, now called the Académie Royale de Musique, produced Lully's first opera, ''Les fêtes de l'Amour et de Bacchus'' (a ''pastorale'') in November 1672 at the [[Jeu de Paume de Béquet]].<ref>Powell 2008, pp. 127, 233 note 44; Powell 2010, p. 178; [[Jérôme de La Gorce]], "Lully's first opera. A rediscovered poster for ''Les fêtes de l'Amour et de Bacchus''", ''Early Music'', vol. 15, no. 3, Lully Anniversary Issue (Aug., 1987), pp. 308–314, {{JSTOR|3137552}}. [http://gallica.bnf.fr/ark:/12148/bpt6k72258r.r=.langEN Libretto, 1672]; [http://gallica.bnf.fr/ark:/12148/bpt6k109668m/f1.image.r=Les%20festes%20de%20l%27Amour%20et%20Bachus.langFR ms score] from the [[Philidor Collection]], 1705.</ref> This work consisted primarily of excerpts from Lully's prior court ballets connected with new ''[[Entrée (ballet)|entrées]]'' choreographed by des Brosses.<ref name=Powell178>Powell 2010, p. 178.</ref> A crucial difference, however, from the previous court ballets was that the members of the court no longer participated, and all of the dancers were professionals.<ref>Astier 1998a, p. 3. Note however that the ''Gazette d'Amsterdam'' reports that nobles did dance in public at certain performances (cited by La Gorce 2002, pp. 189–190).</ref>

Lully's next production, ''[[Cadmus et Hermione]]'' (27 April 1673), the first ''[[Tragédie en musique|tragédie lyrique]]'' (with a libretto by [[Philippe Quinault]]), also premiered at the Jeu de Paume de Béquet and was choreographed by Anthoine des Brosses.<ref name=Powell178/> Pierre Beauchamps, who had been working with Molière at the Palais-Royal, joined Lully's company in June 1673 (not long after Molière's death), when Lully took over the Palais-Royal theatre, forcing Molière's troupe to move to the [[Théâtre Guénégaud]]. Lully and Quinault continued to collaborate on a series of successful productions, in the process creating a new genre of French opera in which dance interludes played an important part in the musical drama.<ref>Christout 1998, pp. 86–87.</ref> The ballets for these works were created by Beauchamps, des Brosses, and d'Olivet. [[Jean-Baptiste Dubos]] explains that Beauchamps and des Brosses were responsible for the ''ballets ordinaires'', while d'Olivet specialized in ''ballet-pantomime'':

<blockquote>
Lully paid such great attention to the ballets mentioned here that he engaged for their choreography a 'maître de danse particulier' named d'Olivet. It was he, and not des Brosses or Beauchamps, whom Lully engaged for the 'ballets ordinaires', who composed the ballets of the infernal scenes of ''[[Psyché (opera)|Psyché]]'' and ''[[Alceste (Lully)|Alceste]]''. It was also d'Olivet who composed the ballet of the old men in ''[[Thésée (Lully)|Thésée]]'', of the baneful dreams in ''[[Atys (Lully)|Atys]]'', and of the tremblers in ''[[Isis (Lully)|Isis]]''. This last was composed solely of pantomimic gestures by men seized with cold, and he did not introduce a single usual dance step into it.<ref>Quoted and translated by Powell 1995, p. 185, citing ''Réflexions critiques sur la poésie et sur la peinture'', Paris, 1719, p. 357. See [http://gallica.bnf.fr/ark:/12148/bpt6k6544468q/f265.image.r=olivet.langEN p. 247 of the ''Troisième Partie'' of the 1740 edition] at Gallica.</ref>
</blockquote>

Initially the dancers of the Paris Opera Ballet were all male. [[De Lafontaine|Mademoiselle de la Fontaine]] (1665–1738) became the first professional [[ballerina]] when she danced in the premiere of Lully's ballet ''Le Triomphe de l'Amour'' on 21 January 1681.<ref>Guest 2006, p. 9; Pitou 1983, pp. 249, 325–326. [http://operabaroque.fr/LULLY_TRIOMPHE.htm ''Le Triomphe de l'Amour''] at operabaroque.fr. [http://gallica.bnf.fr/ark:/12148/btv1b9062398b/f4.image.r=.langEN Score of ''Le Triomphe de l'Amour''] at Gallica.</ref> Pierre Beauchamps continued to collaborate with Lully at the Paris Opera until Lully's death in 1687.<ref name=Astier396/>

===Subsequent history===
[[File:Adelaïde Simonet as the Princess in the pantomime-ballet 'Ninette à la Cour' – International Encyclopedia of Dance 2004, vol. 5, p. 86.jpg|thumb|Adelaïde Simonet as the Princess in the pantomime-ballet ''{{Ill|Ninette à la cour|fr}}'', first produced by the Paris Opera Ballet in 1778 with choreography by [[Maximilien Gardel]], as performed in London in 1781]]

The 18th century saw the creation of an associated school, now referred to as the Paris Opera Ballet School ([[French language|French]]: École de Danse de l’Opéra de Paris), which opened in 1713. The operas of [[Rameau]], and later [[Gluck]], raised standards for the dancers. [[Jean-Georges Noverre]] was a particularly influential ballet master from 1776 to 1781. He created the ballet ''[[Les petits riens]]'' in 1778 on [[Mozart]]'s music. [[Maximilien Gardel]] was ballet master from 1781, with his brother [[Pierre Gardel]] taking over after Maximilien's death in 1787. Pierre Gardel survived the [[French Revolution|Revolution]] creating ballets such as ''La Marseillaise'' and ''Offrande à la Liberté''.<ref name=Crane/> He remained the ballet master until 1820 and continued to work up to 1829.<ref name=Babsky>Babsky 1998, p. 202.</ref>

In 1820, Pierre Gardel was succeeded as ballet master by [[Jean-Louis Aumer]], who was however highly criticized for using too much mime and failing to use choreography which furthered plot or character.<ref name=Babsky/> In 1821, the company moved to a new house, the [[Salle Le Peletier]], where [[Romantic ballet]] was born. In 1875, the company moved to the [[Palais Garnier]], where it continues to perform.<ref name=Crane/>

===Serge Lifar as ballet director===
In 1929, [[Jacques Rouché]] invited 24-year-old dancer [[Serge Lifar]] to become the maitre de ballet of the Paris Opéra Ballet, which had fallen into decline in the late 19th century.

As [[ballet master]] from 1930 to 1944, and from 1947 to 1958, he devoted himself to the restoration of the technical level of the Opéra Ballet, returning it to its place as one of the best companies in the world.

Lifar gave the company a new strength and purpose, initiating the rebirth of ballet in France, and began to create the first of many ballets for that company.<ref name="Crisp 2002 3–15">{{cite journal|last=Crisp|first=Clement|title=ICARE: Remembering Serge Lifar|journal=Dance Research: The Journal of the Society for Dance Research|date=Winter 2002|volume=20|series=2|issue=2|pages=3–15|doi=10.3366/1290812}}</ref> During his three decades as director of the Paris Opéra Ballet, Lifar led the company through the turbulent times of [[World War II]] and the German occupation of France. Lifar brought the Paris Opéra Ballet to America and performed to full houses at the [[New York City Center]]. Audiences were enthusiastic and had great admiration for the company of dancers.<ref name="Crisp 2002 3–15"/>

===Era of Rudolf Nureyev===
In the world of ballet, [[Rudolf Nureyev]] is regarded as the greatest classical dancer ever and as one of the most preeminent choreographers.<ref name=articlephilippenoisette_2013_03_01>Philippe Noisette, [http://www.lesechos.fr/01/03/2013/LesEchos/21387-438-ECH_que-reste-t-il-de-noureev--.htm « Que reste-t-il de Noureev ? »] ''[[Les Échos (France)|Les Échos]]'', 1 March 2013.</ref> In 1983, Rudolf Nureyev was appointed director of the Paris Opera Ballet, where, as well as directing, he continued to dance and to promote younger dancers.

The top female ballet dancer at that time, if not of all times,<ref>[https://www.telegraph.co.uk/dance/what-to-see/sylvie-guillem-the-greatest-female-dancer-i-have-ever-seen/ Sylvie Guillem: the greatest female dancer I have ever seen], article by Sarah Crampton, 4 November 2014, The Telegraph.</ref><ref>[http://www.smh.com.au/entertainment/dance/sylvie-guillem-life-in-progress--the-greatest-dancer-of-our-time-calls-it-quits-20150810-givh00.html Sylvie Guillem: Life in Progress - the greatest dancer of our time calls it quits], article by Nick Miller, 1 August 2015, The Sydney Morning Herald.</ref> was [[Sylvie Guillem]], who was nominated principal dancer at the age of 19 by Rudolf Nureyev in 1984. They were an exceptional dance couple.<ref name=profilcultureshow>[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PsXXycSjgcs « ''Sylvie Guillem:Force of Nature'' »], ''[[The Culture Show]]'', [[BBC Two]], 9 octobre 2013.</ref> The years of Nureyev marked a golden era of the Paris Opera Ballet.<ref name=articlephilippenoisette_2013_03_01/>

===Brigitte Lefèvre===
[[Brigitte Lefèvre]], director from 1995 to 2014, with Patrice Bart as maitre de ballet from 1990 to 2011, succeeded to maintain the high standard that Nureyev has set.

Brigitte Lefèvre invited some of the most preeminent choreographers, such as [[William Forsythe (dancer)|William Forsythe]], [[Angelin Preljocaj]], [[Saburo Teshigawara]], and [[John Neumeier]].<ref name=inter>{{cite web|url=http://www.franceinter.fr/personne-brigitte-lefevre|title=Brigitte Lefèvre|publisher=France Inter|access-date=18 March 2014 |language=fr}}</ref>

===Transition===
There were turbulent times for the company with [[Benjamin Millepied]], director of the Paris Opera Ballet from November 2014 until he quit on 15 July 2016.<ref>[https://www.nytimes.com/2016/02/11/arts/dance/benjamin-millepied-opens-up-on-leaving-paris-opera-ballet.html Benjamin Millepied Opens Up on Leaving Paris Opera Ballet], article by Roslyn Sulcas, 10 February 2016, The New York Times.</ref> There were two stumbling blocks with Millepied, a French dancer and choreographer, who left France in 1993, at the age of 16, got his main professional education as a dancer and choreographer in the United States and came back to France in 2014 as newly appointed director of the Paris Opera Ballet.<ref>{{cite news | url = http://www.liberation.fr/culture/0101599511-les-mille-et-une-vies-de-benjamin-millepied | title = ''Les mille et une vies de Benjamin Millepied'' (The Many Lives of Benjamin Millepied) |work=Libération |language=fr | author = Vernay, Marie-Christine | date = 27 October 2009}} ([https://translate.google.com/translate?hl=en&sl=fr&u=http://www.liberation.fr/culture/0101599511-les-mille-et-une-vies-de-benjamin-millepied English translation via Google])</ref> The first one was that Millepied wanted the Paris Opera Ballet dancers to interpret ''La Bayadère'', a classic ballet choreographed by Rudolf Nureyev in 1992, like a contemporary ballet.<ref name=millepiedsexitarticlelemonde>[http://www.lemonde.fr/culture/article/2016/02/04/benjamin-millepied-va-t-il-quitter-l-opera-de-paris_4858949_3246.html Benjamin Millepied démissionne de ses fonctions de directeur de la danse à l’Opéra de Paris], article and interview by Rosita Boiseau, 4 February 2016, [[Le Monde]].</ref> To achieve this goal, he had already hired guest principal dancers to present ''La Bayadère''.<ref>[http://www.lefigaro.fr/theatre/2015/12/17/03003-20151217ARTFIG00225-benjamin-millepied-le-ballet-doit-sortir-de-sa-bulle.php Départ surprise de Benjamin Millepied: les sujets qui fâchent], interview of Benjamin Millepied by Ariane Bavélier, 17 December 2015, [[Le Figaro]]</ref>

The other stumbling block was that Millepied had broken the hierarchy of the "Danseurs Étoiles" dancing the leading roles, as he had chosen for the cast of his first contemporary ballet creation "Clear, Loud, Bright, Forward" (the first one in his time as director) out of the 154 danseurs a "dream team" of 16 dancers which he considered to be the fittest to put to practice his ideas and visions (on the programming, the dream team was named "United visual artists").<ref>Benjamin Millepied explained his ideas in a documentary "Relève" which could be watched in a preview on 25 November 2015 and broadcast regularly on Canal+ on 23 December 2016.</ref><ref>[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GydXpJ44RNU Relève, le documentaire sur le ballet de Benjamin Millepied - Bande annonce CANAL+], 1:07 min</ref><ref>[http://www.canalplus.fr/c-infos-documentaires/pid8295-releve-millepied.html documentary "Relève"], site of canal+.</ref> Karl Paquette, principal dancer, said in an interview that he had never felt as bad in his 30 years at the Paris Opera Ballet as he had the past 6 months. Stéphane Bullion, principal dancer, added that it was clear that things could not be straightened out.<ref name=millepiedsexitarticlelemonde/>

[[Stéphane Lissner]], the Paris Opera director who hired Benjamin Millepied in January 2013 — and who has final authority on decisions about budget, hiring and promotion — said at a news conference at the Palais Garnier on Thursday 4 February 2016 that he had no regrets about that choice.<ref>[https://www.nytimes.com/2016/02/05/arts/dance/benjamin-millepied-paris-opera.html Benjamin Millepied to Step Down From Paris Opera Ballet], article by Roslyn Sulcas, 4 February 2016, ''The New York Times''.</ref> “He leaves too soon, but others leave too late.” Lissner added, “I think that the two jobs, director of dance and a choreographer who is more and more in demand, not just at the Opera, raised a certain number of questions.”

===Aurélie Dupont===
[[Aurélie Dupont]] took over the direction of the ballet company on 1 August 2016. She was Danseuse Étoile from 1994 to 2015.

Dupont was the inspiration behind the Cédric Klapisch film about the star,<ref>In 2010, [[Cédric Klapisch]] released a documentary about Dupont, ''L'espace d'un instant'', which had been made over the previous two years. See {{IMDb title|qid=Q19606543|id=tt1611812|title=L'espace d'un instant}}</ref> considered the ''grande dame'' of the Paris Opera Ballet.

Dupond is stepped down from the position on 31 July 2022, as announced in June of that year.<ref name=Marshall>{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2022/06/16/arts/dance/paris-opera-aurelie-dupont.html|title=Paris Opera Ballet Loses Its Second Head in Six Years|work=[[The New York Times]]|last=Marshall|first=Alex|date=16 June 2022}}</ref>

===José Martínez===
[[José Carlos Martínez (dancer)|José Martínez]] took over the company in December 2022.<ref name=Sulcas>{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2022/10/28/arts/dance/jose-martinez-paris-opera-ballet-director.html|title=José Martinez Named New Director of Paris Opera Ballet|work=[[The New York Times]]|last1=Sulcas|first1=Roslyn|last2=Cappelle|first2=Laura|date=28 October 2022}}</ref>