How did modern dance influence ballet choreography during the 20th century?

During the 20th century, modern dance significantly influenced ballet choreography by encouraging a departure from rigid, courtly traditions toward more expressive, diverse, and technically varied movement.12

While early 20th-century pioneers like Michel Fokine introduced naturalistic styles and modern themes to ballet, later choreographers began integrating specific modern-dance techniques into the classical vocabulary. This cross-pollination led to several key innovations:13

• Expanded Movement Vocabulary: Choreographers began incorporating techniques such as curving or tilting the torso away from the traditional vertical line, working on or near the floor, and utilizing turned-in leg positions and flexed feet.14
• Increased Expressiveness: Influenced by the desire of modern dance pioneers to address serious, contemporary, and psychological themes, ballet choreographers moved away from conventional mime toward more naturalistic, dramatic gestures.2
• Stylistic Integration: Figures like George Balanchine incorporated syncopated rhythms and steps from popular dance forms, while others, such as Twyla Tharp, successfully melded classical ballet with modern dance and jazz.156

Ultimately, this interaction helped ballet evolve into a more multifaceted art form, balancing its classical roots with the expressive freedom and technical experimentation of modern dance.15