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The Sleeping Princess

Theatre Costume
1921 (made)
Artist/Maker
Bakst, Leon (designers)
Unknown (makers)
Place of origin
Europe (made)

Skirt designed by Leon Bakst for the costume of a negro guard in Petipa's ballet The Sleeping Princess, Serge Diaghilev's Ballets Russes, 1921.


Object details
Categories
Entertainment & Leisure
Dance
Theatre Costume
Object type
Theatre costume
Materials and techniques
Velvet and cotton with flat metal hoop
Velvet
Cotton (Textile)
Gold Braid
Metal
Brief description
Skirt designed by Leon Bakst for the costume of a negro guard in The Sleeping Princess, Serge Diaghilev's Ballets Russes, 1921
Physical description
Black velvet hooped overskirt, designed by Leon Bakst for the costume of a negro guard in The Sleeping Princess. The front of the skirt has a pattern of gold fabric appliqué and there is decoration of gold braid and chord around the whole hooped hem. The skirt is lined in beige herringbone cotton. It would have fastened with a draw string (now missing).



For an idea of the complete costume, see Plate VIII in The Designs by Leon Bakst for The Sleeping Princess, Paris: Brunoff, 1922, and London: Benn Brothers, 1923.
Dimensions
  • Length, waist to hoop length: 73cm
  • Circumference at waist circumference: 132cm (Note: measured flat)
  • Circumference of hoop circumference: 228cm
Credit line
Given by the Friends of the Museum of the Performing Arts
Object history
NB: The term "negro" was used historically to describe people of black African heritage but, since the 1960s, has fallen from usage and, increasingly, is considered offensive. The term is repeated here in its original historical context.
Summary
Skirt designed by Leon Bakst for the costume of a negro guard in Petipa's ballet The Sleeping Princess, Serge Diaghilev's Ballets Russes, 1921.
Collection
Theatre and Performance Collection
Accession number
S.113-2019

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Record createdMarch 19, 2019
Record URL
https://collections.vam.ac.uk/item/O1484263/the-sleeping-princess-theatre-costume-bakst-leon/
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