For many of us, a costume completes the transition from the rehearsal process to a stage-ready performance. But the components of what makes a “good” costume can vary significantly. Dance Magazine spoke to a ballet dancer, a wardrobe supervisor and a dance critic to find out what they believe makes for a successful costume. Jon […]

Everything from makeup and sweat to quick changes and props can end up shortening the lifespan of your favorite costumes. Dance Magazine asked costume shop directors for the tricks of the trade they use to keep their garments looking (and smelling) as fresh as the day they were made. Get Organized Linda Lee, the wardrobe […]

Most people in the ballet world know the iconic green, pancake-flat tutus of William Forsythe’s The Vertiginous Thrill of Exactitude (1996). But they might not know that it was principal dancer Stephen Galloway who designed them. For much of his career at Ballett Frankfurt, he was also the company’s head costume designer and style coordinator. Galloway—whose grandmother […]

Building a full-length ballet from scratch is an intense process. For the world premiere of Anna Karenina, a collaboration between The Joffrey Ballet and The Australian Ballet, that meant original choreography by Yuri Possokhov, a brand-new score by Ilya Demutsky, costume and set designs by Tom Pye and lighting designs by David Finn. The lavish […]

Costumes: We look amazing in them but, boy, sometimes they’re the actual worst. Whether they don’t fit correctly or they rip right before a performance, here are 10 wardrobe malfunctions all dancers unfortunately suffer through at one point or another. When Your Costume Arrives But Is a Size Too Small  The worst is when this […]