''A Tragedy of Fashion, or the Scarlet Scissors'' is a

ballet 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 and highly technical form of ...

which was first choreographed and performed on 15 June 1926 by

Frederick Ashton Sir Frederick William Mallandaine Ashton (17 September 190418 August 1988) was a British ballet dancer and choreographer. He also worked as a director and choreographer in opera, film and revue. Determined to be a dancer despite the oppositi ...

, who starred with

Marie Rambert Dame Marie Rambert, Mrs Dukes DBE (20 February 188812 June 1982) was a Polish-born English dancer and pedagogue who exerted great influence on British ballet, both as a dancer and teacher. Early years and background Born to a liberal Lithuan ...

. The BBC described this debut as "a pivotal moment in the history of ballet," as it launched the careers of both Ashton and

Ballet Rambert Rambert (known as Rambert Dance Company before 2014) is a leading British dance company. Formed at the start of the 20th century as a classical ballet company, it exerted a great deal of influence on the development of dance in the United Kingd ...

. The music was by Eugene Goossens, arranged by

Ernest Irving Kelville Ernest Irving (6 November 1878 – 24 October 1953) was an English music director, conductor and composer, primarily remembered as a theatre musician in London between the wars, and for his key contributions to British film music as m ...

. The ballet was inspired by the tragic suicide of the 17th-century French chef,

François Vatel François Vatel (; 1631 – 24 April 1671) was the majordomo (in French, ) of Nicolas Fouquet and prince Louis II de Bourbon-Condé. Vatel was born either in Switzerland or in Paris in 1625, 1631, or 1635. He is widely credited with creating '' ...

. In 1671, Vatel was responsible for a grand banquet in honour of

King Louis XIV Louis XIV (Louis Dieudonné; 5 September 16381 September 1715), also known as Louis the Great () or the Sun King (), was List of French monarchs, King of France from 14 May 1643 until his death in 1715. His reign of 72 years and 110 days is the Li ...

and became so upset that the fish delivery was late that he killed himself with a sword. In the ballet, the tale is of a

couturier ''Haute couture'' (; ; French for 'high sewing', 'high dressmaking') is the creation of exclusive custom-fitted high-end fashion design that is constructed by hand from start-to-finish. Beginning in the mid-nineteenth century, Paris became th ...

who despairs when his work is not liked and then kills himself with a pair of scissors. The style of the ballet was influenced by the sophisticated productions of

Sergei Diaghilev Sergei Pavlovich Diaghilev ( ; rus, Серге́й Па́влович Дя́гилев, , sʲɪˈrɡʲej ˈpavləvʲɪdʑ ˈdʲæɡʲɪlʲɪf; 19 August 1929), usually referred to outside Russia as Serge Diaghilev, was a Russian art critic, pat ...

in the 1920s such as ''

Les biches ''Les biches'' () ("The Hinds" or "The Does", or "The Darlings") is a one-act ballet to music by Francis Poulenc, choreographed by Bronislava Nijinska and premiered by the Ballets Russes on 6 January 1924 at the Salle Garnier in Monte Carlo. Nij ...

''. It was Ashton's first choreographed work and it was for a 1926

revue A revue is a type of multi-act popular theatrical entertainment that combines music, dance, and sketches. The revue has its roots in 19th century popular entertainment and melodrama but grew into a substantial cultural presence of its own duri ...

staged by

Nigel Playfair Sir Nigel Ross Playfair (1 July 1874 – 19 August 1934) was an English actor and director, known particularly as actor-manager of the Lyric Theatre, Hammersmith, in the 1920s. After acting as an amateur while practising as a lawyer, he turne ...

and Rambert's husband

Ashley Dukes Ashley Dukes (29 May 1885 – 4 May 1959) was an English playwright/dramatist, critic, theatre manager. Biography Personal life Ashley Dukes was born one of five children in 1885. He was the son of the Congregationalist clergyman, Rev. Edwin J ...

. ''The Observer'' commented:

an engaging little ballet called 'A Tragedy of Fashion: or The Scarlet Scissors' which Mr. Eugene Goossens has set most suitably to music. Miss Marie Rambert, as an impudently vivacious mannequin, and Mr. Frederick Ashton as a distracted man modist, lead the dancing. It is as chic a trifle as Mr Playfair's modish establishment leads you to expect.

The costumes and scenery were by

Sophie Fedorovitch Sophie Fedorovitch ( be, Сафія Федаровіч; 3 December 1893 – 25 January 1953) was a Russian-born theatrical designer who worked with ballet choreographer Sir Frederick Ashton from his first choreographed ballet in 1926 until her a ...

, who continued to work with Ashton for more than twenty years, and became, in his words, "not only my dearest friend but my greatest artistic collaborator and adviser." In 2004, Ballet Rambert revived it as part of their celebration of Ashton's birth centenary, reinterpreted and restyled by choreographer

Ian Spink Ian Spink (born 8 October 1947) is an Australian-British choreographer. Born in Melbourne, he trained at the Australian Ballet School. After graduating in 1968, he danced and choreographed for The Australian Ballet, Australian Dance Theatre and t ...

, following six months of research. ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...

'' review gave it four stars and commented "It is a witty and clever achievement but Spink and his superb collaborators have gone one better. They have imbued Tragedy with the quality that made Ashton irresistible – his charm."

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Tragedy of Fashion, A Ballets by Frederick Ashton 1926 ballet premieres Ballets designed by Sophie Fedorovitch