A Tangible Connection to our History

Premiering in 1954, George Balanchine’s The Nutcracker^® was a foundational success for the company, and, as its persistence over the decades demonstrates, an artistic triumph whose power to transport artists and viewers alike to a world of imagination and wonder has not diminished. That The Nutcracker remains as entertaining and essential an experience as ever is in no small part attributable to the costumes designed—and occasionally edited and redesigned—by Barbara Karinska. These signature looks are key to the ballet’s world-building, and a critical component of The Nutcracker’s lasting effects. Having celebrated more than seven decades of this much-cherished production, the company revisits its earliest and changing iterations this season with an in-theater display of costumes and ephemera from the NYCB Archives. Archivist Ailina Fisk and Director of Costumes Marc Happel led the charge in bringing these treasures to the public eye. 

“The Archive was established in 1999 to document and preserve New York City Ballet's history and serve as a resource for the company and scholars worldwide,” says Fisk. “As the archivist, I'm constantly processing and cataloging new materials; curating collections, such as this display initiative; performing basic conservation work to stabilize costumes and other fragile materials we receive; and digitizing materials. I find myself jumping from project to project sometimes, depending on priorities that day. We receive research requests from students, authors, and scholars from around the world. It's a very active archive!” Though the volume of items from The Nutcracker kept in the archive isn’t necessarily greater than that of the many other ballets represented, their presence is significant for the fundamental importance of the work to the company’s history, and for the work’s singular ability to trace the decades of performances, dancers, and changes that have left their marks on the remaining materials—often literally. 

“Costumes retired from active repertory are selected to be sent to the NYCB Archives,” explains Fisk. “They are first evaluated and receive a very light, gentle cleaning using a dry brush and delicate vacuum to remove dust and other potential surface debris. We vacuum with a nylon material over the end of the hose so that we don't accidentally suck up any crystals or embellishments—it's a very delicate process. Then the costume is photographed, cataloged in the database, and packed in an archival, acid-free box with acid-free tissue paper supporting it. We want to keep its shape as much as possible and not distort it in the box. Then it goes on the shelf in our climate-controlled archival facility.

“We appreciate the costumes how they are,” she continues. “They often come to the Archive with makeup and sweat stains, torn fabric, and missing embellishments. We view that as the life story and the character of the piece. We don’t do any dry cleaning or extensive restorations. If the costume is being sent out for an exhibit and needs to be stabilized, there are some non-invasive modifications that we would do to protect and support the costume while on display.”

Labels inside the costume with the dancers' names are another important aspect of many of the archived costumes that are preserved, which Fisk has encouraged the Costume Shop to leave in whenever possible. “When we are rebuilding a ballet or revamping a ballet in some way, and there are costumes that are being retired and no longer worn, I will check with Ailina and have her take a look at them and see if she thinks we should put them into the archives,” shares Happel. “For example, if it has a well-known dancer's name in it from the past, that is relevant and should stay in our archives, or if we think it comes from the time when Karinska was alive and still building costumes—and there aren't many.” 

As with the signs of wear mentioned above, these labels are a rather beautiful analog to the company’s philosophy more broadly, particularly as it pertains to the way that previously-choreographed works are transmitted to new dancers. Though photos and videos are often helpful as a dancer takes on a new role, the key source of information is always the repertory director or coach teaching them the work, from the broad choreographic strokes to the interpretive details, and the storytelling behind the creation and many iterations of every performance. This definitive oral tradition finds a touching parallel in the passage of costumes from dancer to dancer, a physical manifestation of the connection between artistic generations. 

As such, these labels are a vital source—sometimes the only source—of historical information for the Archive when identifying the specific era of a retired costume. At the least, these provide the starting point for drawing fascinating connections. “One of the discoveries in putting together these displays relates to Drosselmeier’s coat. This coat has [former NYCB dancer and the originator of the role] Michael Arshansky’s name on the Karinska label,” shares Fisk. “I was watching the 1958 televised version of Balanchine's Nutcracker for the CBS Playhouse 90 series; Balanchine performs the part of Drosselmeier, and it looks like he is wearing this same coat, which would make sense with it taking place only four years after the premiere—it's unlikely the Costume Shop would have made a new coat at that time for Balanchine to wear. So while we’re not able to say definitively, after examining the buttons on the arm, the sleeves, the collar, the length of it, I really believe this could be the Drosselmeier coat Balanchine wore for that 1958 televised production as well.”

When labels aren’t present, this kind of detective work expands to include studying any notes left behind with the materials, the actual fabrics used, and the little details that might indicate Karinska or another designer’s hand. But this can become complicated, too. In keeping with the company’s devotion to authenticity wherever possible, “We will, on occasion, reuse something like an embroidered motif or an arrangement of flowers that is still in good shape, or even a trim that's going around a neckline that no longer exists [when revamping a costume],” explains Happel. “That's what we're always up against—the fact that we are many times copying costumes that were built 20 or 30 years ago or designed even earlier than that, and a lot of those trims and fabrics don't exist anymore. So we try to utilize anything we can from a costume that's still in good shape, to maintain the DNA of Karinska’s design.” 

“Karinska was sourcing these exquisite materials from markets in Paris and all over the world, so they can be difficult to match exactly or aren't being made anymore,” adds Fisk. “Sometimes the costume that comes to the Archive is a stripped down skeleton of what it used to be. What also makes it difficult to pinpoint a costume’s era is when the costume has elements that were taken from the original costume, but it's a later reproduction.” And yet, these costumes are sometimes the only remaining direct connection to a historical work, choreographed when video recording and color photography weren’t yet as frequently in use. Even in instances when a costume is quite faded or stained, Fisk or Happel can often look within a hem to investigate the original hue. 

And there are additional learnings to be gleaned from the costumes. “It's very interesting for the Costume Shop artisans to see how things were done in a different period,” says Happel. “We’ll also look at these archived costumes and consider how we might improve on them. We have more modern ways of building clothes, there are materials we have now that they didn't—especially our drapers and cutters. We're always looking at these costumes for ways that we might make them last longer, or make the dancers more comfortable.” This becomes strikingly evident when looking at the Dewdrop costume in the Nutcracker display. 

“The Dewdrop costume is now made out of a stretch net, which is very comfortable; in fact, when our dancers put it on during a fitting, they always say, ‘This is the most comfortable costume, it doesn't feel like anything,’ because it's like a stretch net leotard,” Happel shares. “One thing I discovered by looking at the archived costume is that back then it was made of a non-stretch net; it definitely would not have been as comfortable. The other thing that I love about that archived piece is that when it was originally built and premiered, it was basically designed to be made out of a nude net, so the audience is actually seeing some of the dancer through the net.”

And yet, despite the many changes, one of the most fascinating aspects of George Balanchine's The Nutcracker^® is how much it has stayed the same. “I love that, because it lets you imagine yourself back in that 1954 audience,” says Fisk. “It's a special way for me, personally, and for those of us who were not around at that time, to feel connected with that original production. These costumes are the tangible objects that connect us to our history.”

_{Photos by Ella Spruill © New York City Ballet}