Tiptoeing through time : tracing the provenance and conserving Pasticcio costumes from the Royal Winnipeg Ballet

Abstract

Peformance costumes are frequently recycled making original historic samples very valuable for researchers. Documentation on ballet costume construction, cleaning and restoration is limited. This study explores all of these aspects of costuming while focusing on three tutus from the collection of the Royal Winnipeg Ballet (RWB) said to have been produced in the New York City costume shop of world renowned designer Barbara Karinska. The purpose of this study was to examine a piece of material history relevant to Winnipeg's cultural history by exploring its use, significance, components, construction and storage needs. From a material cultural perspective this study has two components: an attempt to trace the provenance of the costumes from the RWB ballet Pasticcio, and a second component of textile conservation. There were five objectives to the study: to verify attribution of the RWB Pasticcio costumes to Karinska, to gain knowledge of historical construction techniques and fabrics in dance costumes, to initiate conservation of costumes with historical significance to the RWB, stabalizing them so they could be displayed, to create a permanent storage system, and finally to provide material to assist the RWB in educating the public regarding the value of costumes generally and Karinska's in particular...