History of ballet
Ballet originated in the Renaissance court as an outgrowth of court pageantry in Italy, where aristocratic weddings were lavish celebrations. Tutus, ballet slippers and pointe work were not yet used. The choreography was adapted from court dance steps. Performers dressed in fashions of the times. For women that meant formal gowns that covered their legs to the ankle. Early ballet was participatory, with the audience joining the dance towards the end.
Joan Denise Moriarty
Irish Theatre Ballet was the first professional dance company in Ireland for some time. The Abbey Theatre School of Ballet had been run by Ninette de Valois with the support of W.B. Yeats from 1927-1933, and was not just a school but a performing company, with de Valois herself often dancing in its productions. A later "Abbey School of Ballet" was founded by two of its dancers, and continued with performances into the 1950s (but was primarily a school). Two more projects were launched by students of de Valois. First, in 1936, Sara Payne launched her Ballet School and Company, which performed eight ballets between then and 1942. Then in 1939 Cepta Cullen launched the Irish Ballet Club, which performed 14 ballets up to 1944. Finally, Patricia Ryan launched the National Ballet School in 1956, and added a formal Ballet Company in 1959, and these operated until the forced merger with Irish Theatre Ballet, and the subsequent closure of them all.