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MAD. DESARGUS-LEMAIRE ET MDELLE. AMÉLIE GALSTER / dans / le pas de deux polonais.
Gleich, Eduard - Enlarge image
MAD. DESARGUS-LEMAIRE ET MDELLE. AMÉLIE GALSTER / dans / le pas de deux polonais.
- Object:
Print
- Place of origin:
Germany (made)
- Date:
second quarter 19th century (made)
- Artist/Maker:
Gleich, Eduard (artist)
Müller, G. Eduard (lithographer) - Materials and Techniques:
Lithograph
- Credit Line:
Given by Dame Marie Rambert
- Museum number:
E.4995-1968
- Gallery location:
In Storage
Even without the caption, the costumes worn by the two dancers would identify the dance as Polish. The square, flat-crowned caps and skirted coats with hanging oversleeves, trimmed with fur are characteristic of Polish national dress. Their pose looks a little lively for a polonaise, which was mostly made up of gliding steps, so they may be performing a dance based on the polka, which was extremely popular in the mid 19th century.
The dancer on the right is performing en travestie, that is to say, a woman taking the man's role. The triumph of the ballerina in the first half of the 19th century gradually turned the spotlight away from the male dancer until ballet heroes were played by a woman, like the Principal Boy in pantomime.