Freed Pointe shoes take on the States 1975

One of the most used shoes by professional ballet dancers gets a start here in the states by opening up a store in New York City. Many have heard of the Freed name after they created red pointe shoes worn by Moira Shearer in the motion picture classic, The Red Shoes. This just shows how the success of dance on film has a huge impact on the dance world!

And All That Jazz! 1966

Jazz is sweeping the nation by storm and bringing a unique sense of style with them. Peaking into the dance studios of Jack Coles dance workshop at Columbia Pictures in Hollywood I got a chance to see some dancers training for their roles in movies and television. What they were wearing was definitely a change from a ballet class I’d seen at New York City Ballet. Many of the male dancers were wearing pants rather than tights that seem to be popular around here. These “jazz pants” are tight around the thighs and flare into bell-bottoms starting from the knee. Men pair these pants with a tight fitting shirt and jazz shoes. Jazz shoes are different from your ballet show or heeled shoe, mostly made of leather, they lace up the front and contour the foot giving a dancer a streamlined look. Women seem to be ditching their pink tights and opting for the sexier version, fishnets. Paired with a leotard or short dress and heels these women are showing off their long lean legs while kicking them as high as their face. In Bob Fosse’s Sweet Charity you can see this popular style for women, plus it’s a great show!

Jack Cole

Fosse

Cole at Columbia Studios

Jerome Robbins, West Side Story wins an Academy Award! 1961

It’s no wonder that this broadway hit made it to film, and got an award! This show is one of my favorites with incredible songs, choreography, cinematography and of course, costumes! What is so great about Broadway shows is the use of costumes that reflect the time period, and the trends of the era while still being fit for dancing. In West Side Story the females dresses compliment their roles in the film. The Puerto Rican girls have dresses with ruffles and flare, in bright colors like red, orange and purple. They resemble flamenco dresses that would be worn in Puerto Rico. Now on the other hand, the American “Jets” have dresses that reflect their style. Peasant blouses with skirts synched at the waist is a current trend that was adapted for the film. Rather than the bright colors of the Sharks the Jets tend to wear more neutral or pastel colors. The costumes are well thought out and make each of the groups stand out while reflecting their personalities.

Sharks












                                                                                                                                                         Jets

Night Journey 1947

It was a privilege to watch the infamous Martha Graham tonight in her newest work Night Journey. Night Journey is the re-telling of the famous Grecian myth containing Oedipus and his wife Jocasta, who is also his mother. This work demonstrates Martha’s ability to take an already told story and adapt it to be expressed not only through movement but also a different way of seeing the story. The piece is focused around the moment of death of the wife and mother of Oedipus. Death is a brief moment but this work takes you on a night journey through her life leading up until her death. What made this piece so effective in my opinion was her well thought out use of props, lighting and costumes. For this piece the female lead and ensemble women were dressed in all black that gave an eerie and dark feel to the piece. The flowing skirts balanced out the stiff and clunking movement that the choreography contained. The black dresses did contain a few seams that were a contrast in color. These lines contoured the body and showed off the musculature of the dancers without having to reveal the skin. The ensemble women wearing the same dress made their movement look uniform, as if they were one unit. What I did not quite understand about the costume choice was the use of headpieces. The ensemble women had twig-like silver pieces coming out from the crown of their head while Martha had a statement headpiece. Martha’s headpiece (pictured below) was stunning and useful but the ensembles were personally distracting.

1944 Jerome Robbins and American Ballet Theatre

What a change for the ballet, with Robbins as the choreographer for ABT the ballet Fancy Free really incorporated a wonderful mix of jazz and ballet into a comedic and exciting show. Robbins chose costumes similar to what you might see in some of his famous Broadway works. Instead tights and ballet shoes dancers were wearing clothes that looked as if they had bought them off of Broadway Street in New York. The women were wearing dresses that matched the time period and the men were dancing, jumping and turning in a sailor’s outfit! Balanchine stripped away the costumes but Robbins is making it look as if the dancers walked off of the street and on to the stage!

March 1, 1935, American Ballet, Adelphi Theater, New York

What an amazing experience! I just saw Balanchine’s new work Serenade on it’s opening weekend at American Ballet Theatre. After Diaghileve’s death in 1929 I wasn’t sure if Balanchine’s work would continue, or be as popular. Moving to the United States was a risk but worked out well for Balanchine. Serenade is the first original ballet George Balanchine created in America and is surely going to become a timeless classic. Balanchine began the ballet as a lesson in stage technique and it then morphed into a ballet to Tchaikovsky’s beautiful score Serenade for Strings in C, Op. 48. Of course I paid particular attention the costumes. Designed by Jean Lurçat, all the females were in the same costume which was a light blue camisole leotard with long tulle skirt attached. Although the legs were covered the tulle was sheer and flowed beautifully with the movement. When the dancers would jump or kick their legs the skirt would move with them and then linger as they floated back down into place. It was gorgeous and really added something special to the piece. Another interesting aspect to this ballet regarding costumes was that all the women, even the soloists, looked the same. This uniformity lulled the audience and when a soloist would break away from the corps it came as a wonderful surprise that caught the audiences the attention.

Denishawn school performs Orientalia (Radha) 1930

Recently I had the privilege of seeing a performance from the Denishawn school. I have heard of the work that Ruth St. Dennis and Ted Shawn have been doing but I truly understood their ideas after seeing an Orientalia. Influenced by Eastern dance movement (like the majority of the training at the school) this performance was nothing like I had seen before. Incorporating aspects of East Indian movement this mini-ballet was set in a Hindu temple. The piece was titled Radha and was created to honor and explore the five senses. Radha involved exotically dressed women and adorned sets. The women were dressed in ankle length skirts that flowed as they moved through space and trailed behind them as they spun. What I found most enticing was the adornment on the upper body. The dancers wore large jeweled earrings, bracelets and headpieces along with a cropped top covered in several different strands of jewels. The costumes were extremely detailed and very closely resembled the attire of Indian ritualistic dress. Overall the piece was captivating because of both the movement and costumes. Denishawn is bringing a style of dance that not many have seen before. I look forward to seeing more from Dennis and Shawn. 

1928 Balanchine’s Apollo

Serge Diaghileve made the right decision in hiring George Balanchine. Over the past couple of years Ballet Russess has really taken a turn. Recently I saw Balanchine’s Apollo and at first I was at a loss for words! The ballet used a Stravinsky score and was based off of the Apollo, the Greek god of music, who is visited and instructed by three Muses Terpsichore, Muse of dance and song; Polyhymnia, Muse of mime; and Calliope, Muse of poetry. What I of course enjoyed most was the change in costumes. Say goodbye to the Petipa Pancake! André Bauchant was the set and costume designer for this groundbreaking ballet. The emphasis of this ballet was not on frills and excessive props or scenery, everything was kept simple and focused on the dancing. The females were even further exposed than in Petipa’s ballets. Their costumes were white camisole leotards and a white skirt that only reached their upper thigh. These costumes showed off the physicality of the females and did not in any distract from their dancing. The simplicity of the costumes is a huge change from the elaborate and adorned tutus that had been previously worn. The male in white tights and a cloth shall matched the females in simplicity and showed the strong chest of a male dancer. Overall this ballet ditched the eloborate set designs and costumes and opted for simplicity. With minimal props and costumes that highlighted the dancers body the audience really only focused on the movement and extremely skilled dancing.

The tragic death of Isadora Duncan 1927

In a freak accident the famous dancer who had just began to set a change in dance training died tragically. Although she has passed her influence will remain. I remember a few years back before Duncan started her school in Berlin, Germany I had the privilege of seeing her perform. In Chicago in 1898 I saw her perform and display her ideas about dance. Duncan had always encouraged dancers to be more natural and free and she rejected the confining structure of classical dance technique. When she performed she moved her body in a organic way not necessarily making specific positions or shapes. Her costume matched her thoughts on dance. Rather than a tight corset Duncan was seen in flowing clothes that did not cling to her body. They moved along with her and mimicked the flow and movement that her body created. Duncan was also known for her famous scarves and unfortunately her famous item led to her untimely demise. Isadora Duncan will be missed but her legacy will live on, and her choice of clothing in dance will influence others.

Free Flowing fabric

1892 Louie Fuller at Folies Bergeres in a Parisien Burlesque show

Although Burlesque isn’t Ballet I really enjoyed seeing Folies Bergeres show today in Paris. What especially fascinated me were the skirt dances. Using large circular skirts the performers moved and dazzled the audience with this alluring dance. In the darkened theater the girls manipulated their long, layered skirts with their arms to create a motion of flowing fabric. Their skirts were illuminated with colored light projectors highlighting the patterns of they created. I talked to a designer after the show and he confessed that it took almost 100 yards of fabric to create these skirts. That’s insane! But I’m glad they put time in to create these skirts because it really was amazing to see. Although these Burlesque dancers were not classically trained they moved in free way that was beautiful to watch. Overall skirt dancing is truly a talent that is growing in popularity all across Europe.