Discover Despréaux and be one of the first students to participate in this first international online workshop dedicated to his work.

This groundbreaking online workshop offered on Fridays from February 17 to March 24 consists of six 75 minute classes and includes a lecture on the life of Jean-Étienne Despréaux, a theory class and classes on the notation system he invented which is no longer in use, early 19th century ballet exercises, samplings of early 19th century ballet repertoire and a presentation of quadrilles from his unpublished manuscript. We are so fortunate to have Alan Jones share his deep research on the early 19th century ballet style and to have Irène Feste take us through her work on the court style as it evolved from the Baroque into the pre-romantic era. This transition period sheds light on what came before and what came after, but perhaps it is its own thing…

This workshop consists of lectures and practical classes. The practical classes can be taken as a regular dance class or simply observed. All classes will be recorded and available for study a day or two after the class so students can study at their own pace and review. Also, because of the time zone, students will be able to attend these online events in real time or at their convenience.

Class 1: Introduction to the life of Jean-Étienne Despréaux (1748-1820). This power point lecture by Irène Feste with additional commentary by Alan Jones, contains rare images from the period, sheds light on this artist who was a French dancer, choreographer, composer, singer and playwright. The lecture includes an introduction to his repertoire and his unpublished manuscript and places his work within a cultural context.

Class 2: Dance Theory Lecture and Discussion.  Alan Jones and Irène Feste present Despréaux’s ballet theory and practice revealing changes in ballet from the end of the 18^th century into the beginning of the 19^th century.

Classes 3, 4 and 5: Walking, Positions, Ballet Exercises and Notation.  This practical dance class will draw the student into the basics of the ballet style at this time and introduce them to Despréaux ‘s innovative notation system which is quite different from the established Beauchamp-Feuillet system. Taught by Alan Jones and Irène Feste, dance phrases will be drawn from repertoire such as the Gavotte de Vestris, Forlana, Menuet de la Cour, and Les Tricotets.

Class 6: Presentation of Quadrilles. Irene Feste will talk about the evolution of the ballet steps as used in the ballroom emphasizing the origin of the dances, rhythm, measure and cadence.

The dance materials are at the BnF. Both the Terspi-Coro-Graphie and the Quadrilles are part of the Fonds Deshayes, Bibliothèque nationale de France (Bibliothèque-Musée de l’Opéra).

Dates: Fridays from February 17-March 24 from 12-1:15pm Eastern Standard Time

Cost: $130 which includes 6 classes and recordings of each class as well as supplemental materials.

This workshop is of interest to: dancers, choreographers, stage directors, ballet teachers, musicians, actors, Pre-Romantic ballet fans, Baroque ballet enthusiasts, American dance students, dance notation students and teachers and those interested in American/European cultural history of the late 18^th and early 19^th centuries.

To Register for the workshop please contact Jennifer Meller at jenbeast@gmail.com

Discover Despréaux | The New York Baroque Dance Co. (nybaroquedance.org)