Pointe shoe worn by Bronislava Nijinska, inscribed and dedicated to Cyril Beaumont, 1922.

Pointe shoe worn by Bronislava Nijinska. Pink satin pointe shoe, undarned with scored sole. Size 11 made by Nicolini. Inscribed on inner sole: "A Monsieur C. Beaumont / N/ Nijinska 1922".

Cyril W. Beaumont Bequest

One of a collection of signed ballet shoes given by various dancers to the dance critic and historian Cyril Beaumont.
The shoe was worn by the Russian dancer Bronislava Nijinska, sister of Nijinsky. Assuming that the shoe was inscribed in London, the date 1922 implies that the shoe was given to Beaumont during or at the end of the run of the Diaghilev Ballets Russes production of Marius Petipa's ballet "The Sleeping Princess" ("The Sleeping Beauty").
The soles of ballet shoes were often scored, either by the manufacturer or the dancers, to give improved grip on stage.
The shoe came to the Museum as part of the Cyril Beaumont Bequest.

Historical significance: An example of an Italian ballet shoe of the first quarter of the 20th century. Ballet shoes made in different countries are indicative of the different needs of the dancers and the choreography of the time.
The ballet shoe is the most personal of dance aretfacts, as each dancer is responsible for darning and stitching on the ribbons to suit her own personal preferences and each dancer 'wears' out the shoe in a different way, according to her physique and the role. The dancer darning shoes is a potent image in 20th century dance iconography, a symbol of at once her drugery and humility.
A shoe worn by a great dancer in a particular role on a certain night (such as a premiere) and signed, dated, and dedicated to the recepient, implying that the recepient was with the dancer at the time, attains almost iconic significance for balletomanes.

S.272-1979