The Swan

... Our joint work (with Anna Pavlova) was The Dying Swan. It took just a few minutes to create the ballet. It was amost an improvisation. I danced in front of her, she was there, just behind me. (... ) Before that production I had been accused of being involved in ‘barefoot’ dancing and was generally opposed to dancing en pointe. The Dying Swan was my response to this criticism. This dance became a symbol of new Russian ballet. It was a serious work of perfect technique and expression. It was like a kind of proof that dance can and should not just please the eyes but also get into the soul. Michel Fokine. Highlights from Memoirs of a Ballet-Master