The research aims to identify the formation mechanisms, key characteristics, and evolution of the perception of the ballet body in the context of modern discussions in the professional research environment. The article presents the phenomenon of the “ballet body” as a disciplined socio-cultural construct, formed by historical canons (verticality, turnout, pointe work) and years of training, despite the late conceptualization of the term (only in the late 20th – early 21st centuries). Analyzing the ballet body as the habitus of a ballet dancer (P. Bourdieu) and an instrument of virtuosity, the author reveals a paradox: the contradiction between the aesthetic ideal, associated with the physical “price”, and the challenges of modern discourses of body positivity and inclusivity. The scientific novelty of the work lies in a comprehensive interdisciplinary analysis of the ballet body as a historically established, but dynamic socio-cultural phenomenon, constantly reinterpreted in the field of art and culture. As a result of the research, it was found that the ballet body is defined as a disciplined body, formed by years of training, and not only by innate data. A triad of principles for the construction of the ballet body was identified: the verticality of the torso (a philosophical symbol and technical basis), turnout, pointe technique. It is shown how ballet norms are incorporated into the habitus, determining the dancer’s everyday life. Modern discussions are analyzed: the opposition of the ballet body to the “free” body of modern dance.
Emma Markovna Gorvits (Tue,) studied this question.