Can you imagine a party where every movement, from the slightest gesture to walking across the room,
你能想象在一场派对上，每一个动作，不管是轻微摆个姿势，还是走过整个房间，
and every visual detail, from furniture to hemline length, were governed by a complex system of rules and procedures?
所见之处每一细节，不管是家具还是裙摆长度，都要遵循一套复杂的规则程序？
For centuries, such rituals were commonplace for European nobility.
几个世纪以来，这些礼节都是欧洲贵族的家常便饭。
And while they've gone out of fashion, we recognize the components under a familiar label: ballet.
即使这些礼节现已退出历史舞台，我们仍能在一个熟悉的舞台上认出他们：芭蕾舞。
Ballet, from Italian 'balletto,' or little dance,
芭蕾一词，源于意大利语里的“balletto”，小舞蹈的意思，
originated in Renaissance Italy as a combination of social dance and choreographed display at aristocratic gatherings.
起源于文艺复兴时的意大利，是贵族聚会上交际舞和编排舞蹈的融合。
In many aspects, it was a way of controlling people in court with acceptable forms of behavior,
从多方面来说，它用以保证宫中人士行为举止得体，
such as the manner in which people stepped, bowed, or took someone's hand.
比如如何迈步、鞠躬、牵手。
It also involved rules governing everything from attire to where one could walk or sit in relation to the King.
同时还有关于衣着装扮，国王在场时他人行走、坐位的规定。
Over time, the study of ballet became a central element of court life,
久而久之，学习芭蕾成为了宫廷生活的重中之重，
and proper grasp of the etiquette could make or break one's success as a courtier.
对宫中规矩的掌握程度甚至可决定你宫廷生涯的成败。
Many of these court gestures can still be seen in modern ballet techniques.
许多宫廷中的姿势仍能在现代芭蕾舞技巧中看到。
Ballet was brought to France in the 16th century by Catherine de' Medici, the Italian wife of King Henry II.
在16世纪，有人把芭蕾舞带到法国她是凯瑟琳·德·美第奇，亨利二世国王的意大利籍妻子。
As celebrations became more lavish, so did the dance,
随着庆典日益奢华，舞蹈也华丽起来，
with dancing masters teaching elaborate steps to young nobles and story elements providing a unifying theme.
舞蹈大师为年轻贵族精心排舞加入故事情节来统一舞蹈主题。
The focus shifted from participation to performance, and the form acquired more theatrical trappings,
舞蹈重心从参与转变为表演，而且表演形式也更加戏剧化，
such as professionally designed sets and a slightly raised platform or stage with curtains and wings.
如专业设计的布景，有些舞台稍微抬高，有些舞台配有帷幕和侧面待场区。

But it was in the 17th century court of Louis XIV that ballet was refined into the art we know today.
不过直到17世纪，在路易十四国王的宫廷芭蕾舞才完善成为我们今天所知的艺术形式。
Louis himself had been trained in ballet from childhood.
路易十四自小就接受芭蕾舞训练。
His early role as the sun god Apollo at age fifteen cemented the central role ballet would play during his reign.
他在十五岁时出演过太阳神阿波罗，因此巩固了芭蕾舞在他的统治时期中的重要地位。
It also earned him the title of Sun King,
这也为他赢得了太阳王的称号，
with his splendid golden costume and choreography that promoted the idea of the king as a divinely ordained ruler.
用他的壕金服饰和华丽编舞昭告天下自己就是天之骄子、九五之尊。
Louis would go on to perform 80 roles in 40 major ballets, either as a majestic lead,
路易十四担任过40部大型芭蕾舞剧中的80个角色，有时是气场逼人的主角，
or sometimes playing minor or comedic parts before emerging in the lead role as the end.
有时是小角色或谐星配角，为最终主角登场作铺垫。
He trained daily in ballet, as well as fencing and riding,
他每天练习芭蕾舞，也练习击剑和骑术，
and through his example, dancing became an essential skill for all gentlemen of the era.
他以身作则，使舞蹈成为当时绅士的必备技能。
But Louis XIV's main contribution to ballet was not as a performer.
不过路易十四对芭蕾的主要贡献不是因为他的表演。
His founding of the Royal Academy of Dance in 1661 shifted control of ballet from local guilds to the royal court.
而是他在1661年创立了皇家舞蹈学院，将对芭蕾的掌控权从地方同业协会转移到了宫廷之中。
As director, he appointed his personal ballet master and frequent performance partner Pierre Beauchamp,
身为院长，他委派其个人芭蕾舞老师及老搭档，皮耶尔·波尚任职，
who codified the five main positions of the body still used today.
波尚编排的五个芭蕾舞基本姿势也沿用至今。
Through is collaborations with Jean-Baptiste Lully, the director of the Royal Music Academy,
通过与让·巴普蒂斯特·吕丽，即皇家音乐学院院长，
and famed playwright Molière, Beauchamp helped establish ballet as a grand spectacle.
及著名剧作家莫里哀的合作，波尚将芭蕾舞发扬光大。
And in 1669, a separate ballet academy was founded.
在1669年，另一家芭蕾舞学院成立了。
The Paris Opera Ballet survives today as the oldest ballet company in the world.
巴黎歌剧院芭蕾舞团开办至今，是世界上最古老的芭蕾舞团。
Ballet moved away from the royal court to the theater
芭蕾舞也走出宫廷来到了剧场，
and survived the democratic revolutions and reforms that followed over the next century.
逃过了下一世纪民主革命和改革动荡不安的年月。
With the advent of the romantic movement, fantasy and folklore themes became common motifs.
随着浪漫主义运动的来临，一些民间传说和怪谈成了常见的主题。
And though the influence of ballet in France would decline,
虽然芭蕾舞在法国的影响力式微，
other countries, such as Russia, would play a major role in its further development.
但其他国家，比如俄罗斯，对芭蕾舞继续发扬光大产生了重要的影响。
Fortunately, today most of us don't have to learn a complicated set of steps just to socialize at a wedding.
幸好现在我们不必学习复杂的舞步，只为在婚礼上交际。
Instead, we can go to the theater to see professionals who spend their lives training rigorously
取而代之的是，我们可以走进剧场，观赏专业舞者令人惊叹的表演，
to perform feats that would have been unimagineable in Louis XIV's day.
现在芭蕾舞者的技艺，路易十四恐难望其项背。