Not currently on display at the V&A

Thamar

Photograph
1912 (photographed)
Artist/Maker
Place of origin

Studio photograph of Tamara Karsavina as the Queen and Adoph Bolm as the stranger in the ballet Thamar. The photograph was probably commissioned for Comoedia Illustre.The music was by Mily Balakirev and the choreography by Mikhail Fokine, with costumes designed by Leon Bakst. Thamar was first performed by Serge Diaghilev’s Ballets Russes on 20 May 1912 at the Théâtre du Châtelet, Paris and in London on 12 June 1912 at the Royal Opera House. It remained in the company’s repertoire until 1929.

The ballet, inspired by a poem by Lermontov, tells of Thamar, Queen of Georgia who lures strangers to her castle above the Dariel Gorge and after a night of passion kills them. As the Pall Mall Gazette claimed ‘It is a terrible dream of Eastern lust, a barbaric swirl of music colour, and life’.


Object details

Categories
Object type
TitleThamar (generic title)
Materials and techniques
Photograph
Brief description
Photograph by Waléry of Tamara Karsavina and Adolph Bolm in Thamar, performed by Serge Diaghilev's Ballets Russes, May 1912
Physical description
Studio photograph of Tamara Karsavina and Adolph Bolm in Thamar, performed by Serge Diaghilev's Ballets Russes, May 1912. The image shows Karsavina standing in front of Bolm; she looks at the camera while he looks intensely at her.
Dimensions
  • Height: 138mm
  • Width: 87mm
Credit line
Given by Jean Hugo

Summary
Studio photograph of Tamara Karsavina as the Queen and Adoph Bolm as the stranger in the ballet Thamar. The photograph was probably commissioned for Comoedia Illustre.The music was by Mily Balakirev and the choreography by Mikhail Fokine, with costumes designed by Leon Bakst. Thamar was first performed by Serge Diaghilev’s Ballets Russes on 20 May 1912 at the Théâtre du Châtelet, Paris and in London on 12 June 1912 at the Royal Opera House. It remained in the company’s repertoire until 1929.

The ballet, inspired by a poem by Lermontov, tells of Thamar, Queen of Georgia who lures strangers to her castle above the Dariel Gorge and after a night of passion kills them. As the Pall Mall Gazette claimed ‘It is a terrible dream of Eastern lust, a barbaric swirl of music colour, and life’.
Collection
Accession number
S.198-2017

About this object record

Explore the Collections contains over a million catalogue records, and over half a million images. It is a working database that includes information compiled over the life of the museum. Some of our records may contain offensive and discriminatory language, or reflect outdated ideas, practice and analysis. We are committed to addressing these issues, and to review and update our records accordingly.

You can write to us to suggest improvements to the record.

Suggest feedback

Record createdAugust 2, 2017
Record URL
Download as: JSON