Curtain for ‘Coppelia’ by Delibes
Georg Kirsta
Description
Subject Matter:
This drawing shows curtains for the ballet Coppelia by French composer Leo Delibes. It opened in Paris in May of 1870. It is a comical twist on E.T.A. Hoffman's 1816, "Der Sandmann."
Georg Kirsta was a Russian painter and costume and set designer who worked for European theatres and ballet companies. After the Russian Revoluntion, Kirsta emigrated to Berlin, Germany and then to Vienna, Austria; in the late 1930s, Kirsta moved to London. Throughout Kirsta's career, he worked for Bronislava Nijinska, Hedy Pfundmayr, Grete Wiesenthal, Hilde Holger and Helene Tels; Kirsta also worked with the Metropolitain Ballet and the London Festival Ballet. In 1951, Kirsta organized a new Original Ballet Russe after the death of his associate Wassily de Basil, the co-creator of Les Ballets Russes de Monte Carlo with George Balanchine. Kirsta had an integral role in the popularization of ballet across the world.
Physical Description:
This is a horizontal drawing of curtains for a stage with green swags. Red curtains are at left and right. The center is light blue with clouds floating over both the blue and the red curtain to the right.
Usage Rights:
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