Ballets Russes

I LOVED THE BALLETS RUSSES! I'm sure most of you did too :) it was a highly inspirational and informative experience....

My top 3 exhibition pieces were Costume for Shah Zeman from Scheherazade, Costume for Petrouchka from Petrouchka, and Costume for Queen Thamar from Thamar.

I loved all the costumes from Scheherazade, because I knew the storyline and musical score, so finally seeing the costumes first hand was an amazing experience. The colours and embroidery were exquisite! Scheherazade was set in the harem of the oriental palace of the Persian Shah Shahriar. The costumes and scenes were designed by Leon Bakste. The materials used were silks, cottons and velvets, and the embellishments consisted of metal braid and gold embroidery. The costume I chose was made of: (coat) silk brocade, satin & embroidery, metallic braid, cotton lining, (trousers) silk satin, metallic braid.

I found the Petrouchka storyline and characters quite interesting and funny, and the costume was cute too. It was also easy to sketch :) Petrouchka was set in 1830, just before Lent during the annual Butter Week Festival in Admiralty Square, St Petersburg. The ballet was influenced by street theatre mime, puppet shows, etc. The costumes and scenes were designed by Alexandre Benois. The costume I chose was made of: (tunic) silk satin, cotton, cotton lace, metal fasteners, (trousers) silk satin, rayon patches, plastic buttons, (boots) silk, metal eyelets, cotton, leather.

The Thamar ballet caught my eye because the costumes were very similar to traditional Armenian folk garments (which I have worn on stage myself for Armenian character dancing!), so I chose this costume because I am familiar with the construction and decorative techniques used to make it. Thamar is set in the castle of Queen Thamar of Georgia. The costumes and scenes were designed by Leon Bakst. The costume I chose was made of: (dress) acetate, silk, rayon, cotton, metallic braid, metal medallions, elastic, (overskirt) silk, rayon, cotton, metallic braid, metal buckle, imitation turquoise (cropped vest) silk, metallic braid, metal medallions (crown) acetate, cotton, metallic braid, metal medallions, imitation jewels, wire, (veil) silk, paint, (scarf) silk.

So what were your favourites??

Anaheed (aka Ana) xoxox