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Pointe shoe

Shoe
mid 20th century (made)
Artist/Maker

One of the ballet shoes collected by Cyril W. Beaumont.

Cyril Beaumont (1891-1976) was one of the most important figures on the 20th century British ballet scene. As dance historian, publisher, critic and bookseller, he helped establish the credibility of dance as a historical study in Britain, both in his own work and in his publishing programme. He was also responsible for the recording and preserving of the Cecchetti system of teaching. His subjects ranged from the Diaghilev Ballet (Diaghilev allowed him access to backstage), studies on Swan Lake and Giselle, bibliographies, and his monumental Complete Book of Ballets and its various supplements, describing ballets from the 18th to the mid 20th centuries.

In addition to shoes signed by dancers, Beaumont's collection includes unsigned specimens that show how dancers cared for their footwear.

Object details

Categories
Object type
TitlePointe shoe (generic title)
Materials and techniques
Satin, hessian, leather, glue, tape and ribbon
Brief description
Pink pointe ballet shoe showing darning at the sides and toe
Physical description
Pink satin ballet pointe shoe made by Nicolini, showing care for the shoe. The toe and sides are darned with thread and the pink ribbons are supported underneath with white tape in the section closest to the shoe.
Dimensions
  • Length of shoe length: 20cm
  • Side of shoe, measured at back height: 6.5cm
  • Length of vamp length: 6cm
Credit line
Cyril W. Beaumont Bequest
Summary
One of the ballet shoes collected by Cyril W. Beaumont.

Cyril Beaumont (1891-1976) was one of the most important figures on the 20th century British ballet scene. As dance historian, publisher, critic and bookseller, he helped establish the credibility of dance as a historical study in Britain, both in his own work and in his publishing programme. He was also responsible for the recording and preserving of the Cecchetti system of teaching. His subjects ranged from the Diaghilev Ballet (Diaghilev allowed him access to backstage), studies on Swan Lake and Giselle, bibliographies, and his monumental Complete Book of Ballets and its various supplements, describing ballets from the 18th to the mid 20th centuries.

In addition to shoes signed by dancers, Beaumont's collection includes unsigned specimens that show how dancers cared for their footwear.

Collection
Accession number
S.923-2021

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Record createdAugust 18, 2021
Record URL
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