The Beginnings of A Language

In analyzing Feuillet’s Chorégraphie, ou L'art de décrire la dance par caracteres, figures et signes desmonstratifs, avec lesquels on apprend facilement de soy même toutes sortes de dances, it is clear that his ballet vocabulary lacks the terminology necessary to describe Fokine’s modern movements. However, this does not mean that Feuillet’s methodology is useless in attempting to textually convey modern choreography. For, as with any modern language when new technologies are invented or something previously unknown is discovered, words simply need to be created to be ascribed to them. Here, I will attempt to emulate Feuillet’s methodology and precision in defining the ballet vocabulary in creating new terminology to convey Fokine’s movements.

The first step Feuillet took was to describe the directions of the room. I will follow his method here:

When applying these directions to their movements, each dancer should picture themselves as the center of their own 3 foot by 3 foot box. This ensures equal angles to the audience will be created by all of the dancers, making for a more harmonious image.

Levels

Next, some terminology must be applied to the various levels at which the dancer is moving. In dance, levels correspond to the height at which the dancer is moving. For instance, if a choreographer were to tell a dancer that they should be at a low level, that typically corresponds to either floor-work or a low lunge. In ballet, the vast majority of the movement is extremely upright, which is why Feuillet did not specify levels in his work.

Level	Description
1	The dancer is hovering over the ground in a crouched position. The right foot is slightly in front of the dancer’s center of mass, while the left foot is tucked underneath the dancer. This can be thought of as a kneeling position with the right leg in front, except with the dancer’s weight fully resting upon the back leg.
2.a; 2.b	The dancer is in a lunge with the front leg making a 90 degree angle and the back leg slightly bent. 2.a corresponds to the right leg in front, 2.b corresponds to the left leg in front.
3.a; 3.b	The front foot is in front of the dancer’s center of mass, whereas the back foot is behind the dancer’s center of mass. Both feet are resting flat on the ground, and the front leg is bent to a 120 degree angle while the back leg is straight. Both feet are turned in the natural amount. 3.a corresponds to the right leg front; 3.b corresponds to the left leg front.
4	The dancer is balancing on the balls of their feet, with both legs slightly turned out. Both legs are straight and pressed together directly under the dancer’s center of mass.
5.a, 5.b	The dancer is in position 4, except one leg is extended in front of the dancer at a 30 degree angle, and the standing leg is bent. 5.a corresponds to the right leg being extended, 5.b corresponds to the left leg being extended.
6.a, 6.b	The dancer is in position 4, except one leg is bent and pulled up such that the toe of the foot rests against the side of the knee on the standing leg. The knee of the dancer’s bent leg is directly in front of them. 6.a corresponds to the right leg being bent, 6.b corresponds to the left leg being bent.

Arms

In the same way in which the various levels were ascribed numbers, I will now ascribe lower case letters to the various arm positions.

Arm Position	Description
a	Both arms are straight and directly above the dancer’s head. The dancers hands are bent such that they form a 90 degree angle with the arms and their palms are facing downwards, with their fingers pointing straight ahead.
b	The same as a, except the palms are facing downwards, and the fingers are pointing towards the sides.
c	The right arm is on the hip with the elbow facing backwards. The left arm is bent at a 90 degree angle and raised such that the palm of the left hand is facing the dancer’s face.
e	Both arms are extended in front of the dancer at shoulder height. The palms are facing upwards and are slightly flexed.
f	The elbows are raised such that they are shoulder height and are in line with the horizontal plane of the body. The forearms are at a 120 degree angle with the bicep, and the hands are flexed with palms facing upwards.
g	The same as f, except the right arm is extended halfway between shoulder height and the vertical. The right palm is flexed, facing upwards, and parallel with the ground.
h	The same as g, except it is the left arm that is extended.

Translating Fokine’s Movement:

Here, I will assign each of Fokine’s movements a facing, level, and arm position using the terminology I have described above. However, while this is a step towards creating a language for modern dance, it is clear that it is far from complete. For instance, this language conveys no information concerning expression, musicality, or the dynamics of movement, all extremely important aspects of modern dance. Additionally, the language is very cumbersome, as such a large infrastructure needed to be built in order to convey relatively simple and static poses. New, inventive ways must be created in order to transcribe and preserve these aspects of modern dance choreography.

The series of 4:

Fokine’s Numbering	My System
1	D; 6.a; a
2	D; 3.a; c
3	D; 5.b; e
4	D; 2.b; c

The series of 6:

Fokine’s Numbering	My System
1	C; 4; b
2	C; 1; f
3	C; 1; g
4	C; 1; f
5	C; 1; h
6	C; 1; f