Baroque dancing is often associated with the Menuet, and it is true that this dance was considered as the “queen of the dances” during more than a century . But what was exactly meant by «dancing a menuet»? The ordinary or «simple» minuet for the ballroom differs from the «figured minuet», by not being entirely composed. It was in fact a standard form, whose rules were known by all dancers, and which could “fluctuate” depending on the masters, the circumstances, the places, the periods...
During the workshop, we will learn the principles ruling a performance of this dance: the mandatory spatial figures, and their main variants, the different versions of the basic-steps, the usual variations and ornaments and the rules for improvising, particularly in a reciprocal relation with the partner.
We will use some of the main european sources about the minuet, including the treatises by Pierre Rameau (1725), Taubert (1717), Dufort (1728), but also later authors, like Magny (1765) and Bacquoy-Guédon (c. 1785), in order to identify the components which remain stable, and those evolving until the end of the XVIII century. We will also take as examples some pages of choreographed or “figured” ballroom minuets, written with the Beauchamp-Feuillet system. They will provide some transposed and ornate versions of the usual figures, which can be integrated during the improvisation.
The workshop Le Menuet de Bal, which lasts 12 hours, is opened to dancers with experience in baroque dance, dancers and musicians.
HOURS
Saturday 5 - 12 am - 2 pm / 3 pm - 7 pm
Sunday 6 - 10 am - 1 pm / 2 pm - 5 pm
