14 replies to this topic

[BalletNut]

Who would you vote for as the greatest choreographer of all time? Why?

Too bad I can only list 6.

[Mel Johnson]

I keep looking at the choices, and the only answer I can come up with is "yes"!;)

[rg]

is Jerome Robbins off this ballot for some particular reason?

[Victoria Leigh]

It would be hard to even decide on a favorite from this list, much less a "best"   I just don't think one can pick one best out of a list of great choreographers any more than we can say that one great composer or one great artist is "the best".   While I may prefer Puccini or Verdi instead of Stravinsky,  Monet instead of Picasso, or Tudor instead of Balanchine, all of those are just a matter of personal taste and have nothing to do with their greatness.  Sorry, Ballet Nut, just can't make a compeition out of this one.  (But then, I tend to have a teeny problem with competitions in the arts anyway ;) )

[Andrei]

Interesting, BalletNut, why did you put choreographers in this order, starting with Petipa?

[Alexandra]

I must confess I, too, miss the "All of the above button"

[BalletNut]

No subliminal messages in the order of the choreographers, Andrei; I just entered them in the order I thought of them. Really. And yes, I like Jerome Robbins too, but the most options for a poll are 6, and it's rather unfortunate. Perhaps my question was a bit vague, so maybe people could say what they think is a great choreographer, or else just their favorite or whatever. And for the record, I don't like competition either. Just wanted to get an idea of what people think.

[LMCtech]

I can't vote for any one of those. They are all the greatest for different reasons and all so incomparable to each other.

[Twinkle_RBS_gal]

Vote for just one of them???? I want to vote for them all!!!! It's a real hard decision.......;)

[Melissa]

This is a touch choice, like everyone says.  Balanchine I think is the greatest choreographer of the 20th century. But, I don't think there would have been a Balanchine without Marius Petipa.  Petipa's style and language was the foundation on which Mr. B developed his own style. So, for that reason, I choose Petipa.

[LaFilleMalGardee]

I picked Balanchine! My school teaches Balanchine technique.

[Henrik]

Is it possible to vote for all, like a couple of times on each?

[atm711]

I thought of a couple of alternatives:

1.  list them in order of preference

2.  if you were stranded on a  desert island and could only  see the ballets of three---who would you choose?

Alas,  the more alternatives, the worst it gets.

[Cliff]

I'm unfamiliar with all of the choreographers listed, so I selected Petipa. He created the well known classics that most people think of as ballet.  I realize that choosing a greatest based on popularity is suspect.  On the other hand, creating the ballets that are commonly used to define real ballet ought to count for something.

Cliff

[casloan]

I love Balanchine because he has made the music visible through dance.

Nonetheless, I also value (often highly) the works of all of the other choreographers listed (not to mention some that could not be listed, due to the arbitrary limitation of 6).