The Ballet Is Always in Fashion: The 10 Best Designer Collaborations Inline
Photo: Courtesy of New York City Ballet1/10Rodarte, Two Hearts, New York City Ballet, 2012
Benjamin Millepied’s elegant choreography was perfectly underscored by Kate and Laura Mulleavy’s graphic black-and-white costumes. The pared-down pieces—understated in comparison to the intricate wares the sisters typically produce for Rodarte—kept the focus completely on the dancers.
Photo: Brad Barket / Getty Images2/10Prada, Fortuna Desperata, Performa Commission by Francesco Vezzoli and David Hallberg, 2015
Miuccia Prada and Fabio Zambernardi’s avant-garde costumes for American Ballet Theatre principal David Hallberg were almost as arresting a sight as Hallberg himself, who returned to the stage after a yearlong absence in a tunic and skirt crafted by the designers. The performance, created in collaboration with artist Francesco Vezzoli, served as a nod to ballet’s Italian beginnings—a fact that makes Prada’s participation even more fitting.
Photo: Courtesy of Paris Opera Ballet3/10Riccardo Tisci, Boléro, Paris Opera Ballet, 2015
The Paris Opera Ballet’s adaptation of Maurice Ravel’s Boléro found its creative match in Riccardo Tisci. Working with choreographers Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui and Damien Jalet, as well as longtime collaborator Marina Abramovic, who designed the show’s sets, Tisci crafted a series of transparent looks embroidered with rib bones and spinal cords in an effort to highlight dancers’ bodies, as well as the sensual nature of Ravel’s composition.
Photo: Loic Venance / Getty Images4/10Jean Paul Gaultier, Snow White, Ballet Preljocaj, 2012
The theatricality of Gaultier’s runways made him the perfect choice to create costumes for Ballet Preljocaj’s Snow White. The fantastical fairy tale was given the Gaultier treatment, complete with glossy leather bustiers and corsets modified for dancing rather than vamping.
Photo: Courtesy of Paris Opera Ballet5/10Christian Lacroix, La Source, Paris Opera Ballet, 2012
Paris Opera Ballet’s revival of La Source provided Lacroix with the ultimate vehicle for his sumptuous aesthetic. Using 2 million Swarovski crystals, countless yards of silk, and enough trompe l’oeil to satisfy even the most lavish Lacroix loyalist, the designer put his stamp all over the production.
