page_title: Ballet
section_title: Nineteenth century
hierarchical_section_title: Ballet / Costumes / Nineteenth century
caption_attribution_description: Format: Photograph For the sad life story of Olga Spessivtzeva (billed Spessiva for phonic simplicity or maybe to make the name more the same length as "Pavlova" who had toured six years before on her Australian tour); and the part Australia played in her life, see the Valerie Lawson article: The life of Olga Spessivtseva: spies, delusions and the comfort of dolls (dancelines.com.au/Olga Spessivtseva) Note on the name: Spessivtzeva has signed the photogrpah "Olga Spessiva" Find more detailed information about this photograph acms.sl.nsw.gov.au/item/itemDetailPaged.aspx?itemID=442191 Search for more great images in the State Library's collections acms.sl.nsw.gov.au/search/SimpleSearch.aspx (http://acmssearch.sl.nsw.gov.au/search/itemDetailPaged.cgi?itemID=442191) From the collection of the State Library of New South Wales www.sl.nsw.gov.au English: Olga Spessivtzeva (Spessiva) in Swan Lake (as Odette) costume, 1934 photographer Sydney Fox Studio, 3rd Floor, 88 King St, Sydney Русский: Ольга Спесивцева в костюме Одетты из балета "Лебединое озеро", 1934, Сидней
context_page_description: Ballet is a type of performance dance that originated during the Italian Renaissance in the fifteenth century and later developed into a concert dance form in France and Russia. It has since become a widespread, highly technical form of dance with its own vocabulary based on French terminology. It has been globally influential and has defined the foundational techniques used in many other dance genres and cultures. Ballet has been taught in various schools around the world, which have historically incorporated their own cultures and as a result, the art has evolved in a number of distinct ways. See glossary of ballet.
  A ballet, a work, consists of the choreography and music for a ballet production. Ballets are choreographed and performed by trained ballet dancers. Traditional classical ballets are usually performed with classical music accompaniment and use elaborate costumes and staging, whereas modern ballets, such as the neoclassical works of American choreographer George Balanchine, are often performed in simple costumes and without the use of elaborate sets or scenery.
context_section_description: During the early nineteenth century, close-fitting body costumes, floral crowns, corsages and jewels were used. Ideals of Romanticism were reflected through female movements.
  Costumes became much tighter as corsets started to come into use, to show off the curves on a ballerina. Jewels and bedazzled costumes became much more popular.
caption: Olga Spessiva; Swan Lake Costume in the twentieth century
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