If The Glass Shoe Fits...

Last week I popped down to Scottish Ballet to have a look at the costumes for their upcoming production of Cinderella, due at the Festival Theatre in Edinburgh on the 5th of December, where it will receive its European premiere.

CEO and Artistic Director Christopher Hampson originally created this version of Cinderella for the Royal New Zealand Ballet in 2007 and this is the first Scottish Ballet have ever perform it.

The company are using the original costumes and extravagant sets by New Zealand designer Tracy Grant Lord.

Looking through the costumes I was struck by the detail and luxurious fabric choices. Obviously, the velvets drew my eyes immediately and even though the velvet is used primarily in the men's costumes, there was little there I wouldn't have worn myself. The unusual colour palette provides the perfect setting for these wonderful pieces.

“Once upon a time in a faraway land, there was a tiny kingdom; peaceful, prosperous, and rich in romance and tradition. Here in a stately chateau, there lived a widowed gentleman, and his little daughter, Cinderella.”

take your cues from this lush colour palette and have your own....

“It was upon the untimely death of this good man, however, that the stepmother’s true nature was revealed: cold, cruel, and bitterly jealous of Cinderella’s charm and beauty, she was grimly determined to forward the interests of her own two awkward daughters. ”

Ballet's which have few traditional tutu's,  such as this one, I find far more interesting to view up close. The details, from Swarovski crystal applique to the precise knife pleats on underskirts, are certainly worthy of any couture house. Added to that the fact that some of the costumes have to be skillfully resized to fit the dancers, without compromising the original creation for when it gets sent back to New Zealand, makes it all the more impressive.

My main take away from the visit? I need more velvet.

If you are in Scotland and get the chance to see it, the performances of Cinderella are as follows:

Festival Theatre, Edinburgh: Sat 5 – Thu 31 Dec 2015
Theatre Royal, Glasgow: Tue 12 – Sat 16 Jan 2016
His Majesty’s Theatre, Aberdeen: Wed 20 – Sat 23 Jan 2016
Eden Court, Inverness: Wed 27 – Sat 30 Jan 2016

QMichelle