Favorite designs

[BalletNut]

I thought it would be interesting to hear what people's favorite costume and scenic designs are. Mine, in no particular order, are:

1. All 3 parts of Jewels, by Karinska [not sure about the sets, though]

2. The old Royal Ballet designs for Swan Lake, by Leslie Hurry

3. Macmillan's Romeo & Juliet, by Nicholas Georgiadis

4. Western Symphony

5. The Prodigal Son

6. Liebeslieder Walzer

7. Vienna Waltzes

8. Kirov Symphony in C

9. Lilac Garden

[Amy Reusch]

"Kirk Peterson's American Nutcracker" - even though I'm not crazy about the setting, the set designs and costumes were truly fantastic. Sandra Woodall was responsible for much of it.

Ruth Page's Nutcracker - made much of an impossibly large stage (100' across); set & costumes by Jose Varona.

Leigh Witchel's "Rideau" had a beautiful drop curtain by Matthew Mohr that interacted with the dancers in a wonderfully whispy way as they entered and exited through it.

Vienna Waltzes makes it on my list as well, except for maybe one scene.

Are we talking the actual results on stage or can we consider the sketches as well? Some of the Bakst and Benois designs are "never to be forgotten", even if the photos of the actual costumes don't quite live up.

One of my favorite set designs wasn't for a ballet but a modern dancer/choreographer Diane Vivona for a piece called "Rain Forest"... consisted of a drop(wall?) painted with glow paint which would freeze shadows of the dancers for a few moments before fading.

I'm sure there are more, but these leapt to mind instantly.

Sadly, I can think of many more works with costumes that took away from choreography, than ones that added lustre to it.

[Mme. Hermine]

Actually, Amy, I very much liked the original costumes and sets for Ruth Page's Nutcracker; if memory serves me right, sets were by Sam Leve, act one costumes by Rolf Gerard and act 2 costumes by Karinska. The first act set somewhat minimized the size of the 90 ft. proscenium and the 2nd was a very nice filigree-candy cane design.

[ConstanzaElisabeth]

I saw Ballet West's Sleeping Beauty last march i think, and the costumes and sets were beautiful, with the exception of some of the fairies who looked like they had been wrapped in colored cellophane over tinfoil. i really loved the costumes of the people in the background of the scenes, the long dresses and excellent use of colors, with a definite periodic style.

[carbro]

Perhaps my favorite is the Georgiadis designs for Nureyev's Sleeping Beauty, originally made for Nat. B. of Canada, but replicated for a Swiss (?) company, as well.

Balanchine's Orpheus: HATE the costumes, of course, but the silk curtain . . . ah! I always enjoy watching it billow during the pdd.

And I'll cast another vote for Vienna Waltzes-- the ingenious and beautiful set/s more than the costumes, except for the opening and closing sections.

ABT's current Swan has gorgeous designs. I love the "broken heart" red insert in Odette's bodice.

[pj]

For me, it's hands down the Kirov's Sheharazade Costume/Set combination, inspired by the designs by Baskt. (I hope I spelled all that correctly -- anyway, most people will understand what I mean even if I spelled it all badly).

No pun intended, but when I first saw the sets, I was spellbound.

[sandik]

I'm very fond of a different Rainforest -- the Warhol set for the Cunningham piece is so beautiful. Locally, I liked the scene painting that Pacific Northwest Ballet commissioned for their version of Tudor's Dark elegies -- it's based on a very harsh and wind-swept part of the Washington coastline, and worked extremely well with the sensibilities of the ballet. (to my shame, I can't remember the designer)

[Amy Reusch]

My memory is failing me (typical!), but I remember enjoying dancing in a recreation of the Rainforest set where it was an installation in the ?Warhol museum?? in ?Pittsburgh?? Tremendous fun! (Of course, no one was watching).

I've been told that it's very expensive to keep sets and most end up being destroyed. It seems like such a loss. Couldn't someone start up a business in some state where real estate & warehouse rental is very cheap to store & rent out sets to regional companies? It seems like there are enough regional companies out there to support such an enterprise (particularly if we're talking sets for ballets like Giselle, Coppelia, Sleeping Beautify, Sylphide, etc.) Has Dance/USA ever looked into this?

What stands in the way? Is humidity control such an issue? Couldn't they be stored in someplace like Arizona or New Mexico to get around this?

[carbro]

I suspect that the issues are the large expenses of square footage in major metropolitan centers (where the greatest number of even "smaller" ballet companies live), coupled with the considerable expense of transporting them any distance.

I don't know that humidity control would be a major cost factor, as most commercial storage facilities are already equipped with that.

[sandik]

I've been told that it's very expensive to keep sets and most end up being destroyed.  It seems like such a loss.  Couldn't someone start up a business in some state where real estate & warehouse rental is very cheap to store & rent out sets to regional companies?  It seems like there are enough regional companies out there to support such an enterprise (particularly if we're talking sets for ballets like Giselle, Coppelia, Sleeping Beautify, Sylphide, etc.) Has Dance/USA ever looked into this? 

What stands in the way?  Is humidity control such an issue?  Couldn't they be stored in someplace like Arizona or New Mexico to get around this?

There is a certain amount of rental/borrowing going on (one example: Oregon Ballet Theater has been borrowing Pacific Northwest Ballet's older Swan Lake sets for their current production of Act 3, and apparently will now buy them in preparation for setting the complete ballet -- PNB opened a new production last year), but you're right, there certainly doesn't seem to be the same kind of intentional marketing of sets/costumes that you find in opera, where potential rental income is often figured into the budget of a new production as a way of defraying costs. I think in some cases larger companies have "sold down" (rather than handed down) some parts of older productions, but it's pretty adhoc.

You're absolutely right about the storage issue -- it's a big budget item for many companies, and a pain in the neck as well.

[socalgal]

The scenic design by Adrianne Lobel, costumes by Puissant and lighting design by Naasha Katz of Christopher Wheeldon's "Swan Lake" were imaginative and innovative. The use of the gigantic French mirror used throughout, the video projections used on the back screen are just a few of the amazing designs. The swan corps tutus were also a wonderful reinvention of the traditional. The visuals in this ballet took my breath away!

[ToThePointe]

I love PNB's/Sendak's Nutcracker designs. It was so nice to see a new take on an old theme.

The Australian Ballet's Coppelia sets are stunning to behold as well, although they almost upstage the dancers.

[Natalia]

The Kirov-Mariinsky 'new-old' reconstructions: Sleeping Beauty, Bayaderka and Don Q (costumes only for the latter)

Novossibirsk Ballet's 'new-old' Coppelia and Flore et Zephyr

Vaganova Academy Sylvia recreating the 1900 Benois costumes & Roller sets

St. Petersburg Conservatory's Pavillon d'Armide (only the gorgeous Bakst costumes revived...set is simpler)

POB's Sleeping Beauty, Paquita and Bayaderka

La Scala's Excelsior

The Kirov-Mariinsky's Diaghilev reconstructions, mentioned earlier by someone else, are also winners...esp. Scheherazade and Firebird.

In other words...minimal 'cheap,' maximum 'luxe'!