Research Paper On Agrippina Vaganova

Surely no one could have known that the daughter of the dark-haired usher at the Mariinsky Theatre would acquire the title of Ballerina in 1915, become the creator of one of the most-practiced standards of ballet instruction, and be remembered as one of the ballet world’s most beloved instructors and choreographers. Agrippina Vaganova’s revolutionary technique introduced a certain athleticism to ballet, which, rather than emphasizing the individuality of the parts of the body, trained the body into one unit. Consequently, the parts of the body depended on the whole in order to move and function. Her legacy is a well-known and revered one in the ballet world.

Agrippina Vaganova was born in St. Petersburg on June 26, 1879 and eighteen years

later would graduate from the Imperial Ballet School, going on to join the Mariinsky corps de ballet that same year. Critics called her the “Queens of Variations” due to her exceptional jumps and batteries, as she danced in pieces such as Coppelia, Don Quixote, The Little Humpbacked Horse, and Swan Lake. As exquisite as her dancing was, she herself was less than beautiful, which delayed her earning title of Ballerina until one year before her retirement, in 1915 at age 36. After she retired, she discovered what seemed to be her true calling: teaching. Vaganova began her first major teaching job at the Leningrad Choreographic School. This job, coupled with Vaganova’s appointment as Artistic Director at the Mariinsky Theatre, catalyzed the creation of what would become the Vaganova Method.
This method trains the entire body, with all four limbs connected to a strong torso so that all five units work as one. She emphasized usage of the head and shoulders for expression. Preaching that the dancer should perpetually be free of gravity, as if airborne, she helped dancers achieve strong jumps and leg work. Because it emphasizes movement of the entire body rather than separate limbs, Vaganova’s technique works for all body types, even less flexible bodies. The Vaganova method teaches that the goal is no longer to get the leg to move by whatever means possible, rather to use the entire body to move the leg, which maximizes an inflexible body’s range of movement. However, for lifelong dancers, her method extended and improved upon their technique and expressiveness.
From Vaganova’s teaching came numerous gifted ballerinas, hailed for their technical prowess, flowing legato movements, and ability to achieve previously unrealized comedy and dramatic nuances in seemingly stale roles. Marina Semeonova, Olga Jordan, Galina Ulanovsa, and Natalia Dudinskaya all came from the tutelage of Vaganova, all revered ballerinas. Galina Ulanovsa’s fame spread through Russia and reached the ears of Josef Stalin, who ordered that she come to the Bolshoi Theatre where she was the first ballerina for 16 years.