Dance of Fashion/Fashion of Dance

This SSIR course explores the evolution and intersection of Dance (ballet and modern dance) and Fashion, examining the relationship between these two embodied forms. Various modes of instruction will be implemented including, but not limited to: class discussions, creative projects, lectures, attendance to live performance, assigned readings, assigned viewing of recorded performance. 

Inside the Classroom

Dress and adornment play an important role in the visual, symbolic, and dramatic power of dance, both in contemporary fashion and costume. Through readings, viewings, class discussions, and projects students will learn about the relationship between fashion and dance from the Renaissance and the reign of Louis XIV when court ballet costumes derived from luxurious clothing worn at festivities (royal marriages, tournaments, masquerades, and opera). Nobility and aristocrats performed in costume along with professional dancers. Costumes for men tended to be more artful, while those for women more closely resembled court dress for reasons of modesty.  

The enlightenment ushered in a revolution in fashion in the late 1790s: the neo-classical. Fashion fabrics became lightweight, and fabrics used in dance costumes became unincumbered by heavy fabrics popular in the previous centuries. Costumes became physically revealing. The early 19th century and Romanticism provided renewed synergy between fashion and dance. The shape of the leg is revealed due to the ever-shortening skirts, yet the legs are fully covered in stockings and what is the precursor of tights and what we know today as the classic ballet slipper is nearly the same as women’s shoes from the period. Both the shortened skirt and the lowered heel presented possibilities for choreographers to continue to evolve the technique. 

The intersection between fashion and dance during the post-Romantic period of Edgar Degas provides ample visual research for seeing dancers in rehearsal and performance costumes. Through Degas, we can see the 19th century corsetry and tutus take on the silhouette of their time (fashion). The dawn of the 20th century brough a new freedom from traditional costumes with a return to the ancient Greek aesthetic popularized by modern dance pioneer, Isadora Duncan. Many current fashion designers credit Duncan as an important influence in their design work. Along with Duncan, Les Ballets Russes challenged the traditions of both ballet and fashion, forever transforming both. During the Gilded Age and up to WWI, fashion was dominated by corsets, lace, feathers, and pastel shades. The designs for new ballets by Les Ballets Russes ushered in vivid colors, harem skirts, beads and fringes, and voluptuousness. Fashion designer Paul Poiret’s “oriental” look appeared one year after the premiere of Schéhérazade and two years after the premiere of Cléopâtre, both produced by Les Ballets Russes. Simply put, Les Ballets Russes launched Orientalism and Poiret popularized it. Renowned fashion designer Coco Chanel designed for Nijinska’s Le Train Bleu using pedestrian-style clothing. 

Dance has been and continues to be profoundly influenced by fashion, which will be further explored through this course. 

Outside the Classroom

Students will travel to Paris, France, the iconic destination for both avant-garde fashion and dance. We will visit leading fashion museums, including the Palais Galliera, Azzedine Alaïa, the YSL Museum, and the Dior Museum, all at the forefront of haute couture. In addition, we will attend professional ballet and contemporary dance performances, showcasing both classic and cutting-edge works, at renowned venues such as the Palais Garnier, Théâtre de la Ville, and Opéra Bastille. By experiencing the intersection of fashion and dance firsthand, abstract concepts will become tangible and vividly real. 

Research and Capstone Experience

Students will continue to develop their solo work from the fall, but instead in groups and eventually in one large full cohort movement study. This final culminating creative project will be presented in a public performance in the department’s spring showcase.