Vladimir Ivanovich Stepanov / Raymond Lister
The problem of recording movements of the human body isalmost as old as the art of dancing: it has been said that theancient Egyptians had a system of notation, but there is noreal evidence to prove that this was so.The present system was developed by the Russian dancerVladimir Ivanovich Stepanov at the end of the 19th century.It is based on existing music notation, and although basicis certainly practical: one has only to read the officialtestimonial, signed by such people as Petipa and Johanssen,to realise this. Lessons in the system were given at theImperial Ballet Schools, and many ballets of the periodwere notated in it.Stepanov’s book is no more than a skeleton key, showingthe general principles of his system and their application,yet even as it stands it can be used to decipher old notations– it was by means of notations made in Stepanov’s systemthat Nicolai Sergeyev was able to reproduce The SleepingPrincess for Diaghilev, and other ballets for the Sadler’sWells Ballet and International Ballet. More recently, otherhands have used the system to revive ballets long thoughtto have been irrevocably lost.
