Jack in the Green thumbnail 1
Not currently on display at the V&A

Jack in the Green

Costume Design
ca. 1921 (made)
Artist/Maker
Place of origin

Costume design by Claud Lovat Fraser for the Lord in Jack in the Green, first staged at the London Coliseum on 4 July 1921. Jack in the Green was a short ballet, probably arranged by Tamara Karsavina. It was performed for the first three weeks of Karsavina's four-week season in variety at the Coliseum, and was danced by the corps de ballet to music by Gustav Holst.

An account of this production in 'Karsavina’s Art. Contrasts at the Coliseum', The Times. 5 July 1921, p.8, claimed that ‘the dresses alone are well worth one or more visits to the Coliseum’, referring to ‘the rustic dresses in the ‘Jack in the Green’ dance, with, by way of contrast, the more imposing attire of the Lord and Lady … the whole thing is a series of beautiful pictures which made one realise once more how great a loss to the English stage Mr. Lovat Fraser’s death entailed.'


Object details

Categories
Object type
TitleJack in the Green (generic title)
Materials and techniques
Watercolour, pencil and pen and ink on paper, with attached fabric swatches
Brief description
Costume designed by Claud Lovat Fraser for the Lord in Jack in the Green, performed in Karsavina’s July 1921 season in variety at the London Coliseum. Rachel Cameron Collection
Physical description
Costume design for a male dancer as the Lord, drawn in profile, facing viewer's left, the design heavily annotated by the artist. The Lord wears an orange tail coat and green breeches and what is described as a 'Very large cocked hat'. Samples of blue-green, red, purple and yellow fabric are pinned to the design.

Dimensions
  • Height: 19.2cm
  • Width: 26.1cm
Gallery label
Just before he died, Claud Lovat Fraser designed a series of short ballets for Tamara Karsavina’s companies at the London Coliseum and on tour. They included Nursery Rhymes in which Karsavina danced as Little Jumping Joan (top left), Fuschias (bottom left) for the corps de ballet, and Polka Les Vendredis, so called as it was performed to a score composed at a club which met on Fridays (Vendredis). Museum nos. S.1 to 4-2012 (26/10/2020)
Credit line
Rachel Cameron Bequest
Summary
Costume design by Claud Lovat Fraser for the Lord in Jack in the Green, first staged at the London Coliseum on 4 July 1921. Jack in the Green was a short ballet, probably arranged by Tamara Karsavina. It was performed for the first three weeks of Karsavina's four-week season in variety at the Coliseum, and was danced by the corps de ballet to music by Gustav Holst.

An account of this production in 'Karsavina’s Art. Contrasts at the Coliseum', The Times. 5 July 1921, p.8, claimed that ‘the dresses alone are well worth one or more visits to the Coliseum’, referring to ‘the rustic dresses in the ‘Jack in the Green’ dance, with, by way of contrast, the more imposing attire of the Lord and Lady … the whole thing is a series of beautiful pictures which made one realise once more how great a loss to the English stage Mr. Lovat Fraser’s death entailed.'
Collection
Accession number
S.4-2012

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Record createdJanuary 3, 2012
Record URL
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