Ballet History Traced through the term 'Coupe'

Abstract

The step named coupe was born with the birth of danse classique in the 17^<th> century and has continued to be in the current ballet vocabulary, while it has varied its form through ballet history. Literally coupe means 'cut,' but what does 'cut' mean for the dance and why has the form changed though the name has remained identical? To answer these questions I examined the various descriptions concerning coupe found in main dance books since the 16^<th> century and tried to identify their forms and functions in each century. Viewing over different coupe existing through ballet history, it can be noticed that the most pivotal role of coupe has been to articulate dance: to segment time and to give dance clear movement patterns. In the 17^<th> century coupe was the action for 'taking in breath' in advancing steps, articulated as pattern of 'temps', while since the 20^<th> century it has played a role as a conjunction connecting steps, articulated as visual patterns of body position. As the way of articulating dance movement has changed with time - and especially between the 18^<th> and 19^<th> century - the variety of coupe has emerged in ballet history.