Felicity asks about the cover art on the sidebar. I've had this identical question before: tell me about the picture in the sidebar. Here's what I wrote before about it: Request Day: Blog Cover Art
I've sent an email inquiry out to a costume design professor whose former student subsequently emailed me some more info. An excerpt from the student's email:
[My professor] said the dancer portrayed was somebody's mistress, and very beautiful but had to be scantily clad to compensate for the fact that she wasn't a very good dancer.....I don't remember who's mistress La sultane was. I don't think it was Bakst. Couldn't have been Serge Diaghilev (Ballet Russe impresario) 'cause he was gay. Obviously someone influential enough to get her onstage, though she may have gotten by on her looks. The Ballet Russe is remembered mostly for its spectacle and subsequent influence on the arts and fashion, though it did have some of the best dancers of the day in it, e.g. Anna Pavlova.
More information would be welcome.
Also, Felicity wants to know about divorcing her husband, and whether she has any rights to his money. Um, the answer is I don't know, but probably you've got some rights. What rights they are and to how much depends on a bunch of things, from what I can remember from my bar exam review. Including what state you live in. You'll want to talk to a lawyer in your state, I'm afraid. Good luck, Felicity. I hope the divorce is minimally destructive to each of you.
I read that Scheherazade (the ballet)was supposed to be scandalous and risque for its time (early 1900s), but presumably not because of this particular costume.
Posted by: bill | November 16, 2005 at 03:25 PM