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Why did Michel Fokine oppose dance and mime used only as entertainment in a ballet?
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dance criticism
Dance criticism analyzes all forms of dance, including classic pieces such as Swan Lake, to enhance the understanding of the art form.
Michel Fokine opposed the use of dance and mime as mere entertainment because he believed they were meaningless unless they served to express dramatic action. In his 1914 manifesto, he argued that ballet should achieve artistic unity, where every elementâincluding movement, music, and designâcorresponds directly to the subject, period, and character of the work.1
Fokine criticized the prevailing practice of using long, conventional, or symbolic mime sequences that were often incomprehensible to the audience and disconnected from the narrative. Instead, he advocated for:2
- Expressive Movement: Meaning should be conveyed through the movement of the whole body rather than relying on decorative acrobatics or rigid, traditional mime codes.12
- Naturalism: When mime is used, it should be natural and essential to the drama, rather than a decorative filler.12
- Artistic Equality: There should be complete equality among the component arts of a ballet, ensuring that dance and mime are integrated into a cohesive, expressive whole rather than functioning as isolated spectacles.1
By prioritizing dramatic integrity, Fokine sought to transform ballet from a collection of decorative routines into a unified, meaningful theatrical art form.12