While the dancing is the focus of any ballet, part of what makes the show interesting is the costumes and props that go along with it. The help identify characters and exaggerate differences between dances, but they’re also sometimes just really cool.

There are two different ways to obtain costumes for a ballet. You can either rent them or have them made specifically for that part. Renting costumes is less expensive, at least short term, but you can’t adjust the costumes to make them fit, and they are often pretty basic as well. Making costumes takes a lot of time and money, but it guarantees that a costume will fit and also can mean that the costume will be more creative and awesome, depending on how skilled the maker is.

The company I’m a part of used to use predominantly old, rented costumes, but has recently been doing a lot to update costumes and expand their wardrobe. One of the mothers has been particularly prominent in the creation of these costumes. With the help of some of the other mothers, as well as some of the students and one of our teachers, she created 10 flouncy, layered party girl dresses for Nutcracker two years ago, as well as 16 white tutus and bodices for Swan Lake this past spring. Recently, she’s been charged with making new, updated versions of both the Sugar Plum Fairy costume and the Columbine Doll costume (also known as Kissy Doll). And let me tell you, these new costumes look stunning. Sugar Plum Fairy looks like it came right out of the Land of Sweets, and the Columbine costume is simply gorgeous. The skirt is folded to look like ribbon candy and the colors are bright and cheerful. I’m Columbine in the first show and I have never been so excited to wear a costume. I really can’t wait.