Field Trip Essay On Saturday, October 17, I took a trip to the San Jose Performing Arts Center to see the ballet Giselle. The art form of ballet has been around for a very long time and consists of very strict positions of the arms, feet, legs and head. Full productions generally tell a story through movement and gestures. Ballet is defined as “a form of artistic dance performed to music using precise, highly formalized steps and gestures. Classical ballet, born in Renaissance Italy and established in its current form in the 19th century, is characterized by light, graceful, flowing movements and the use of pointe shoes,” according to Webster's Dictionary. Ballet dancers wear special shoes called pointe shoes that allow the dancer to stretch from all feet down to the toes. These shoes provide the proper support needed to perform movements down to the toes. Every dancer needs a very specific toe brand, size and shape. Pointe work is something that takes a long time to accomplish, it takes many years of ballet training before a ballerina can then develop the strength needed for pointe work. Although this art form seems easy, it is when a ballet piece is created that the artist and/or choreographer partners with a musical artist who writes musical scores specifically for the choreographed ballet. The ballet I went to see was a recreation of Giselle since it was composed hundreds of years ago and there are many different versions. I think the aim of the artist who reconstructed it was to represent the original story and its variations as well as the original music created especially for this ballet. I felt that the artist did a very good job considering that I chose to watch this ballet without knowing the plot in advance. I was able to easily follow and tell the story