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[rg]

scan of publicity photo of Zorina, presumably in Balacnhine's Mardi Gras number for the '41 movie.

[sandik]

Interesting -- we don't see too many images take from that angle (for obvious reasons) -- I wonder how this particular one came to be.

[rg]

it's perhaps important to note that this was meant as Hollywood movie still, featuring the movie star, who happened in this case to be a dancer, dancing.

my hunch is that Zorina showed up for the shoot in some studio corner and was asked to do something while the photog clicked away. this shot got as far as being printed but w/o the often usual captioning with the movie's title, and the studio's data, etc. so perhaps it wasn't really meant for distribution as a formal still/excerpt?

while the movie is said to have included Balanchine's choreography, uncredited, for the Mardi Gras number - from the stage show, LOUISIANA PURCHASE for which he did the "ballets" - he was not "personally involved" in the making of the film.

in the stage musical the number presumably indicated here was called: "Queen of the Mardi Gras" w/ Zornia as Queen of the Creoles, and Charles Laskey as Premier Danseur.