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Velvet by Mauro de Candia © A Dancers Lens 1.jpg

English National
Ballet School

 

COSTUME DESIGN & MAKING

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'Velvet'
Artistic Director Viviana Daurante 
Choreographed by Mauro de Candia 
Performed by The ENBS Trainee Programme

I was given the opportunity to design costumes for one of the dances in the English National Ballet School's Trainee Programme Showcase 2022.

The piece I was given was choreographed by the Italian choreographer Mauro de Candia and combined pieces of music from various well known operas such as La Boheme and Madame Butterfly.

Reference Images

First Ruff Photoshop
Second Ruff Photoshop

Early Photoshop ideas

Each dancer's individual ruff was designed to match their on-stage personality; some were smaller and neat, others more flamboyant. In fittings I realised that due to the variety of size of dancer, it was important to not overwhelm them.

 

This project required a lot of hand sewing, especially using traditional ruff making techniques.

 

I was also responsible for sourcing and purchasing the other costume elements, most of which required hand dying.

Hand sewing Ruff

It was a humorous piece of choreography,  combining dance and theatre. The individual dancers vied for the attention of the audience, always trying to hog the limelight.

Finished Ruff
First rehersal photo
Second rehersal image

Photos from the show appeared in The Times and The Daily Telegraph

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Finished Ruff 2.jpg
Velvet by Mauro de Candia © A Dancers Lens 7.jpg
Times newspaper

Photos by A Dancers Lens ©

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