Modernism After the Ballets Russes : Movement in the British Theatre

Serge Diaghilev's Ballets Russes holds a renowned position in the history of modernism across various arts.The company's daring productions brought together leading artists working in diverse fields - from Igor Stravinsky to Pablo Picasso, from Bronislava Nijinska to Coco Chanel - redefining the possibilities of artistic collaboration and shaping the trajectories of dance, music, fashion, and the visual arts.But what of the Ballets Russes's role in the text-based theatre?Despite the intrinsic link between dance and theatre as performance arts, the company's contributions to dramatic literature and dramaturgy have remained surprisingly elusive.This book establishes the Ballets Russes as a powerful force in the development of modernist theatre in Britain, revealing how the company's avant-garde repertoire inspired the creation of new composition strategies and performance techniques that privileged the immediacy of expression offered by the moving, dancing body. Modernism after the Balle