'The Dance That Does Not Speak Its Name': Choreomusical Masculinity in the Works of Frederick Ashton

Abstract

This Master’s thesis in Musicology investigates choreomusical presentations of masculinity found in the ballets of Sir Frederick Ashton (1904-1988). Masculinity in ballet is a contested topic, both inside and outside of academia. Mainly, the figure of the male dancer brings much discomfort and is riddled with stereotypes. Despite these assumptions and stereotypes, many aspects of ballet are gendered, such as the steps. However, as this thesis shows, a loosening of these strict gender binaries can be found in the works of Frederick Ashton, with many of Ashton’s male characters displaying a wide range of masculinities. A founding choreographer of the Royal Ballet in London, Ashton’s choreographic style is also known to be inherently musical. This thesis hypothesises that Ashton’s inherently musical choreography, and wide display of masculinities are linked.

In order to assess the traces of masculinity in Ashton’s works, this thesis takes a choreomusical approach as the base of its methodology. Choreomusicology is a relative new and interdisciplinary field that advocates for the analysis of music and choreography as a unit. By analysing masculinity through a choreomusical lens, this thesis shows that choreomusical research can also be employed to unveil socio-political contexts present in ballet. Central to this thesis are two works by Ashton: La Fille mal gardée (1960) and The Dream (1964). Choreomusical analysis of these two works shows that the relationship between music and dance heavily impacts a male character’s masculinity. Ashton does this by playing with the rules and conventions of musique dansante, a nineteenth-century composing style that links musical elements to choreographic ones.