The Royal New Zealand Ballet is calling for donations to help its costume department restore Swan Lake costumes, which are now 30 years old, for its production of the classic ballet which opens in May.
Video / Mark Mitchell
There are 110 costumes in the ballet, made up of more than 450 individual pieces, from rich velvet court dresses to the snow-white tutus of the swans.
After national tours in 1996, 2002, 2007 and 2013, the costumes are worse for wear, including tears in the fabric, rust stains and feathers that have become a bit wild.
RNZB head of costume Donna Jefferis said there was a lot more to do than they originally anticipated.
“Our people, especially our men, are a lot bigger and taller. A lot of them are more focused now on fitness and strength, so a lot of the upper bodies are more muscular than they used to be.”
Jefferis estimated it would take the four people who worked fulltime in the ballet’s costume department three months to get the costumes ready for when the curtain rises on May 1.
The costumes were designed by Wellington-born designer Kristian Fredrikson in 1996.
The collection was worth saving because it was gorgeous, Jefferis said.
“Each costume has not one fabric but five to 10 different fabrics. Kristian’s designs are very layered so when they are on the stage and with the set they will look stunning.”
Senior costumier Hank Cubitt spent three days creating new wings for the Rothbart costume after the silk in the original pair had worn through.
This involved the painstaking task of hand-painting the new fabric to replicate the intricate detail of the original cloth.
The silk used in the original Rothbart costume had worn through. Photo / Mark Mitchell
The Rothbart costume was brought back to life. Photo /Mark Mitchell.
Cubitt said they also had to get creative for some of the Pas de Trois costumes.
“We had to re-dye the fabric precisely and we’ve had to use a new fabric but it has come out beautiful and it’s going to work well.”
However, in many cases, there was leftover fabric available, he said.
“When we do a big ballet like this, we keep all the scraps because we know that we’ll have wear and tear throughout. So, we’ve been very fortunate to be able to find little bits and pieces to patch some things.”
Cubitt said it was lovely to be able to show the costumes again in the detail in which they were first designed.
“We can get them back to nearly exactly the same, so we’re going to do it.”
RNZB needs to raise $25,000 towards the costume restoration. A donation of $120 buys one new pair of custom-made men’s ballet tights and a donation of $500 will refurbish a swan tutu.
Many of the costumes have suffered from wear and tear over the decades. Photo / Mark Mitchell
RNZB was planning a national tour of Swan Lake in 2022 but had to cancel it because of Covid-19 restrictions.
When the ballet unveiled its 2024 season, RNZB said Swan Lake was considered to be the greatest of all classical ballets that transported the audience from a palace ballroom to the lakeside in wave upon wave of beauty and emotion.
“Swan Lake is a ballet that all dancers aspire to perform and there is a huge excitement in the company to be performing this iconic production again, following in the footsteps of so many of the RNZB’s former stars,” acting artistic director David McAllister said at the time.
Georgina Campbell is a Wellington-based reporter who has a particular interest in local government, transport, and seismic issues. She joined the Herald in 2019 after working as a broadcast journalist.
