Passion and Elegance: How Flamenco and Classical Ballet Met at the Ballets Russes

The book commences with the history of Indian, Egyptian, Arab, and flamenco dance then compares and contrasts the history of both classical ballet and flamenco. This book outlines the early roots of flamenco in India, and the journey of the Romani through the Middle East and Europe up to their final destination in Spain. Alongside this, the history of classical ballet is detailed from its beginning in Italy and later development in France. The breadth of this book spans the period from the temples of India to Massine’s Spanish ballet, The Three-cornered Hat, for the Ballets Russes. It outlines the evolution of flamenco from India to the Spanish shores and the later connection. This chronicle is important to understanding the development of classical ballet as it relates to ‘The Three-cornered Hat’, which is the culmination of the story. The evolution of costumes, space, scenery, and props is examined along with the historical parallels. This exploration is set to inspire and encourage choreographers to partner other dance forms with ballet as Leonide Massine did with flamenco in The Three-cornered Hat’ while also challenging the anthropological idea of the language of dance movement tracing the migration of people.