BETWEEN THE SEAMS: THE MAKING OF A PRINCESS CAROLINE O'BRIEN A THESIS SUBMITTED TO THE FACULTY OF GRADUATE STUDIES IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF MASTER OF ARTS GRADUATE PROGRAM IN INTERDISCIPLINARY STUDIES YORK UNIVERSITY TORONTO, ONTARIO JUNE 2009 Library and Archives Bibliotheque et 1*1 Canada Archives Canada Published Heritage Direction du Branch Patrimoine de I'edition 395 Wellington Street 395, rue Wellington OttawaONK1A0N4 OttawaONK1A0N4 Canada Canada Your file Votre reference ISBN: 978-0-494-53745-9 Our file Notre reference ISBN: 978-0-494-53745-9 NOTICE: AVIS: The author has granted a non­ L'auteur a accorde une licence non exclusive exclusive license allowing Library and permettant a la Bibliotheque et Archives Archives Canada to reproduce, Canada de reproduire, publier, archiver, publish, archive, preserve, conserve, sauvegarder, conserver, transmettre au public communicate to the public by par telecommunication ou par I'lnternet, preter, telecommunication or on the Internet, distribuer et vendre des theses partout dans le loan, distribute and sell theses monde, a des fins commerciales ou autres, sur worldwide, for commercial or non­ support microforme, papier, electronique et/ou commercial purposes, in microform, autres formats. paper, electronic and/or any other formats. The author retains copyright L'auteur conserve la propriete du droit d'auteur ownership and moral rights in this et des droits moraux qui protege cette these. Ni thesis. Neither the thesis nor la these ni des extraits substantiels de celle-ci substantial extracts from it may be ne doivent etre imprimes ou autrement printed or otherwise reproduced reproduits sans son autorisation. without the author's permission. In compliance with the Canadian Conformement a la loi canadienne sur la Privacy Act some supporting forms protection de la vie privee, quelques may have been removed from this formulaires secondaires ont ete enleves de thesis. cette these. While these forms may be included Bien que ces formulaires aient inclus dans in the document page count, their la pagination, il n'y aura aucun contenu removal does not represent any loss manquant. of content from the thesis. 1*1 Canada Between the Seams: The Making of a Princess By Caroline O'Brien a thesis submitted to the Faculty of Graduate Studies of York University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of MASTER OF ARTS ©2009 Permission has been granted to: a) YORK UNIVERSITY LIBRARIES to lend or sell copies of this thesis in paper, microform or electronic formats, and b) LIBRARY AND ARCHIVES CANADA to reproduce, lend, distribute, or sell copies of this thesis anywhere in the world in microform, paper or electronic formats and to authorize or procure the reproduction, loan, distribution or sale of copies of this thesis anywhere in the world in microform, paper or electronic formats. The author reserves other publication rights, and neither the thesis nor extensive extracts from it may be printed or otherwise reproduced without the author's written permission. ABSTRACT In this thesis I investigate the iconic costume for the ballet, the classical tutu, in its relationship to the prima ballerina. In spite of years of training and even more years of practice and rehearsal, the princess of the ballet is unrecognizable without her tutu. There are certain theories of dress that are useful to offer new meanings in this exploration: Roland Barthes' Fashion System offers a means of interpreting the process used to design the costumes for the ballet; Julia Kristeva and the notion of abjection through vacant clothes secures the classical tutu in an interdependent relationship with the ballerina; finally, the notion of dress as boundary and margin offers another way of exploring the ballerina in relation to her costume: as boundary, the tutu distinguishes her in her role as the princess, but in framing her body as a margin, the tutu connects her to the art of classical ballet, and to the magical world of fairy tale. As an artifact of the ballet, material culture offers a useful way of investigating the physical properties of the tutu from three perspectives, those of the wearer, the maker and the spectator, and the tutu has different meanings for each of these three. Gaining an understanding of the costume as it evolved along with the dance form through the ages of the Romantic Ballet and the emergence of Classical Ballet provides insight into the form of the tutu we see in use today in the twenty-first century. Parallel to the evolution of the ballet it is interesting to trace a relevant history of the fairy tale from the earliest oral tales to the written tales of Charles Perrault in the late eighteenth century to the translation of The Sleeping Beauty to the stage by Marius Petipa, master of the classical ballet. iv In entering the magical world of 'once upon a time' the princess takes us on a journey of exploration that becomes compelling and haunting in its own right, and helps to transcend previous understandings. The classical tutu, one of the most recognizable silhouettes in Western Culture, weaves an aura of enchantment and mystery around the wearer, and comes to signify the taut and honed body of the prima ballerina. v ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS This project could not have been attempted without the support and assistance of several individuals. I am indebted to my supervisory committee: Norma Sue Fisher-Stitt, Yvonne Singer and Julia Creet. They have given generously of their time and expertise and have guided my efforts to focus this paper on the occasions when I waivered too far off track. Sincere thanks to each of you. My friends and colleagues in the dance world have been tremendously supportive and have patiently endured the excitement of new understandings: Veronica Tennant, Mavis Staines, Peggy Baker, Laurel Toto, Greta Hodgkinson, Jaimie Tapper and Johan Persson, Matjash Mrozewski, Sabrina Matthews and Tiffany Knight. My friends and colleagues in the world of costume have offered support and encouragement for many years: Marjory, Ruth, Chris, Mary, Susan, Barb, Grant, Natalie and Alex. My colleagues at NBS have inspired the original impulse for this project. My academic colleagues have quickly become a source of inspiration: Perry, Sholem, Tanit, Nadia, Irene, Sheldon, Terry and Sunny. My new-found friends through this work have inspired confidence and alternate ways of seeing the world: Anne, Fides, Delwyn and Laurent. I am grateful to my parents and family for support and encouragement; my two boys, Ceilidh and Clare, who have always reminded me of what's important in life; And Ian -1 am eternally grateful, you have given me wings to fly and the courage to embark on the journey. vi Dedication: For the influences found on the beaches of Ms Mor TABLE OF CONTENTS Chapter 1. Introduction 1 Methodology 3 Parameters 8 Fairy Tales 9 Costume 14 Body/Dress 15 2. The Classical Tutu: Form and Function 18 A Brief History 19 The Romantic Tutu 25 The Classical Tutu 28 Classical Tutu Analysis 35 Materials Used 36 Construction 41 General Appearance 44 Significance 46 3. The Body Dress Relationship 50 Roland Barthes' Fashion System ... 52 Lacan / Kristeva 58 Corporeality 60 4. Concluding Remarks 66 Bibliography 74 Figures 81 viii LIST OF FIGURES Fig 1 Early Court Dress 19 Fig2 Marie Camargo, 1730 21 Fig3 Marie Salle, 1734 22 Fig 4 Marie Taglioni in La Sylphide 26 Fig 5 Virginia Zucchi 30 Fig6 The Dance Foyer at the Opera, 1872 33 Fig 7 Inside a classical tutu 36 Fig 8 Centre back of tutu with added snaps and bars 38 Fig 9 Surface decoration 39 Fig 10 Underside of tutu 40 Fig 11 10-panel bodice with structural details 42 Fig 12 Decoration detail 43 Fig 13 Identifying marks 45 Fig 14 Greta Hodgkinson as Aurora 47 Fig 15 Paquita, Canada's National Ballet School 62 ix The bigger fear is that there is nothing to express, nothing with which to express, nothing from which to express, no power to express, no desire to express, together with the obligation to express". Duthuit in conversation with Beckett Proust. Three Dialogues. Chapter 1 Introduction This paper is an effort to offer a glimpse of the journey taken as I've investigated some of the meanings of the princess in modern western society. What began as a fascination with the many manifestations of a princess in our culture has been distilled down to some of the parts I know best: the prima ballerina, the fairy tale as it has been translated to the stage, and the meaning of the classical tutu as it has evolved from the time of Marie Antoinette and pre-revolutionary France. In this paper I argue that it is only through the classical tutu that we can recognize the princess of the ballet, and without it her body does not carry the same meaning or identity. The physical / visceral body of the ballet dancer brings the costume to life and the body itself may become lost in the performance of the ballet; likewise, without the body the costume remains inanimate and anonymous in the confines of the wardrobe. There are a few questions motivating the research. The first and most central asks: Is she a princess without her tutu and is the tutu central to her performance of the princess? Other related questions include: How does the princess of the ballet distinguish herself? Is the tutu made to fit the body, or to create an illusion that the body becomes? How does the tutu contribute to the transcendent quality of the ballet? What is the difference between clothes and fashion, costume and fashion? 1 From my perspective, an effective way of investigating the significance of the princess in the ballet is to explore the structure of the clothing in signifying the role.