{"meta":{"version":"2.1","_links":{"self":{"href":"https://api.vam.ac.uk/v2/object/O1625571"},"collection_page":{"href":"https://collections.vam.ac.uk/item/O1625571/"}},"images":{"_primary_thumbnail":"https://framemark.vam.ac.uk/collections/2023NJ0001/full/!100,100/0/default.jpg","_iiif_image":"https://framemark.vam.ac.uk/collections/2023NJ0001/","_alt_iiif_image":[],"imageResolution":"low","_images_meta":[{"assetRef":"2023NJ0001","copyright":"© Victoria and Albert Museum, London","sensitiveImage":false}]},"see_also":null},"record":{"systemNumber":"O1625571","accessionNumber":"S.827-2021","objectType":"Costume design","titles":[{"title":"The Nutcracker","type":"generic title"}],"summaryDescription":"Unrealised design by Lez Brotherston for a white-face clown in the revival of Peter Darrell’s ballet <i>The Nutcracker</i> for Scottish Ballet, 2014.\n\nLez Brotherston OBE (born 1961) is an influential and innovative British set and costume designer, who trained at the Central School of Art and Design. Brotherston started his career designing for the film <i>Letter to Brezhnev</i> (1985) and has worked extensively across dance, theatre, opera, musical theatre and film. He is best known for his collaborations with choreographer Matthew Bourne and Bourne’s dance companies Adventures in Motion Pictures and New Adventures, where he is an Associate Artist. Their ground-breaking <i>Swan Lake</i> (1995) with male swans has received over 30 international awards to date, including a Tony Award for Best Costume Design. In 1998, Brotherston received the Olivier Award’s Outstanding Achievement in Dance for Matthew Bourne’s <i>Cinderella</i>, which was set during the Blitz. In 2005, Brotherston designed, co-wrote and co-directed <i>Les Liaisons Dangereuses</i> with Adam Cooper and has designed sets and costume for many national companies including the National Theatre, Scottish Ballet, English National Opera and the Royal Shakespeare Company. Brotherston received the Ninette de Valois Award for Outstanding Contribution to Dance in 2018 and has worked extensively throughout the UK with companies Kneehigh, Shakespeare’s Globe, Sheffield Crucible, Almeida Theatre, Northern Ballet, Theatre Royal Stratford East, Old Vic, Glyndebourne and Chichester Festival Theatre. He has also designed numerous productions for the West End including <i>Long Day’s Journey into Night</i>, <i>The Rise and Fall of Little Voice</i>, <i>Sister Act</i> and <i>Oh What a Lovely War</i>. In 2022 Brotherston was awarded an OBE for services to Dance and Theatre. \n\nPeter Darrell created his version of <i>The Nutcracker</i> for Scottish Ballet in 1972-3, as one of the traditional ballets which he felt should be in the repertory of a national company. The choreography was credited to Darrell and Lev Ivanov and the designs were by Philip Prowse. The staging allowed the ballet to tour effectively, and it proved very popular with audiences. Prowse’s set and costumes were in use until 1997. Though his designs survived, it was decided to commission Lez Brotherston to create a new staging when the company revived <i>The Nutcracker</i> for Christmas 2014. Darrell’s ballet was so well loved that Brotherston felt he should honour the original designs while revitalising the production for 21st-century audiences. Philip Prowse had been one of Brotherston’s tutors at the Central School of Art. \n\nIn the second act of <i>The Nutcracker</i> (traditionally The Kingdom of the Sweets) there are a series of ‘national’ dances. This design is probably an idea for one of the tumblers who perform the Russian Dance in Darrell's production. It is a companion to S.820-2021, an unrealised design for a 'Lady Clown'. The attached images show a man's tunic worn for classical ballet which was an inspiration for the shape and pattern of the costume.\n\n\n\r\n","physicalDescription":"Costume design by Lez Brotherston for a white-face clown in <i>The Nutcracker</i>. Full length male figure, looking to viewer's left. He wears a tunic in gold and red, fringed gold breeches and a conical gold hat, the hat and sections of the tunic spotted all over in black and white. One side of the tunic is unfinished and unpainted. He has a white face with red and black makeup. Mounted on the design, upper left, is an image showing the face of a white-face clown to indicate the makeup, and, right, are two images showing a man's tunic for <i>The Sleeping Beauty</i> with inspired the pattern on the clown's costume. The printed title, 'Nutcracker', in shadow font capital letters, is mounted, right, with, in similar, smaller font, the word 'Clown', both running up the paper from bottom to top. The company name, 'Scottish Ballet', in similar lettering, is mounted at the lower left hand corner, with 'Scottish' running up the edge of the paper from bottom to top and 'Ballet' running left to right. All edges of the design are painted in a ragged black pattern to create a frame.\n ","artistMakerPerson":[{"name":{"text":"Brotherston, Lez","id":"A6676"},"association":{"text":"costume designers","id":"AAT163428"},"note":""}],"artistMakerOrganisations":[],"artistMakerPeople":[],"materials":[{"text":"watercolour","id":"x33202"},{"text":"ink","id":"AAT15012"},{"text":"pencil","id":"x30347"},{"text":"paper","id":"x30308"}],"techniques":[{"text":"painting (image-making)","id":"AAT54216"},{"text":"drawing (image-making)","id":"AAT54196"}],"materialsAndTechniques":"Watercolour, ink and pencil on paper","categories":[{"text":"Entertainment & Leisure","id":"THES48959"},{"text":"Designs","id":"THES48968"},{"text":"Dance","id":"THES252984"}],"styles":[],"collectionCode":{"text":"T&P","id":"THES48602"},"images":["2023NJ0001"],"imageResolution":"low","galleryLocations":[{"current":{"text":"003","id":"THES402711"},"free":"","case":"","shelf":"","box":""}],"partTypes":[[{"text":"costume designs","id":""}],[{"text":"theatre designs","id":""}]],"contentWarnings":[{"apprise":"","note":""}],"placesOfOrigin":[{"place":{"text":"Great Britain","id":"x32019"},"association":{"text":"designed","id":"x29338"},"note":""}],"productionDates":[{"date":{"text":"2014","earliest":"2014-01-01","latest":"2014-12-31"},"association":{"text":"designed","id":"x29338"},"note":""}],"associatedObjects":[],"creditLine":"Given by the designer","dimensions":[{"dimension":"Height","value":"29.7","unit":"cm","qualifier":"","date":{"text":"","earliest":null,"latest":null},"part":"","note":""},{"dimension":"Width","value":"42","unit":"cm","qualifier":"","date":{"text":"","earliest":null,"latest":null},"part":"","note":""}],"dimensionsNote":"","marksAndInscriptions":[],"objectHistory":"","historicalContext":"","briefDescription":"Unrealised design by Lez Brotherston for a white-face clown in the revival of Peter Darrell's ballet <i>The Nutcracker</i> for Scottish Ballet, 2014 ","bibliographicReferences":[],"production":"","productionType":{"text":"","id":""},"contentDescription":"","contentPlaces":[],"associatedPlaces":[],"contentPerson":[],"associatedPerson":[],"contentOrganisations":[],"associatedOrganisations":[],"contentPeople":[],"associatedPeople":[],"contentEvents":[],"associatedEvents":[],"contentOthers":[],"contentConcepts":[],"contentLiteraryRefs":[],"galleryLabels":[],"partNumbers":["S.827-2021"],"accessionNumberNum":"827","accessionNumberPrefix":"S","accessionYear":2021,"otherNumbers":[],"copyNumber":"","aspects":["WHOLE"],"assets":[],"recordModificationDate":"2026-01-26","recordCreationDate":"2021-05-21","availableToBook":false}}