Evaluation
I have really enjoyed this ballet unit and feel I have learnt a lot of new and useful techniques that will help me in future projects. Even though I have enjoyed this unit I feel that I have struggled with different areas.
Time keeping was defiantly one of my weak points I never seemed to get what needed to be done on time. Making mistakes also slowed me down which means that I am really unhappy with some of my work due to not having time to correct it. Working on time management will be something I will have to work on for future projects.
Having the screenings each week and a discussion after was one of the most enjoyable parts of this project. The sessions allowed me to watch productions that I have never seen before and discussing the performance made me think about the elements I did and didn’t like about each production. This has given me the ability to be more critical about mine and other peoples work. Having a lecture on the history of ballet at the beginning of the unit put into context where ballet came from and how it became the style of dance that we see today. Whilst going to see other live performances outside of university broadened my knowledge on different styles of ballet.
Creating the bodice has been the most challenging part of this project and I feel very disappointed in the way has turned out due to making silly mistakes. I found the slipper satin rather hard to work with due to it slipping around when cutting but I feel that this has helped me for when working with other difficult fabrics. Constructing the bodice seemed to go ok but I came unstuck when sewing the piping I didn’t cut back the seam allowance beforehand making the back of the bodice bulky and untidy. I also ran into trouble with the fit of the bodice and found that it was just too small for the manikin which meant it had to altered and from accidently cutting off too much seam allowance from the side seams earlier I just has enough to let my bodice out. Doing this caused a lot of damage to the delicate fabric making the bodice look messy and unprofessional.
Creating the romantic tutu didn’t go as badly as the bodice but I did make a few mistakes such as cutting off too much fabric on the centre back of the Basque meaning that I was able to create a placket for the hooks and bars. Sewing the panels of net together was quite tricky and I feel that some of the seams could have been smaller. Gathering the net to the Basque was time consuming but I didn’t have too many problems with it apart from catching unwanted net at times. Levelling the tutu apart from time consuming went well. Over all I am pleased with the tutu and the techniques I have learnt could be transferred to making other skirts in the future.
Having the decoration work shop and experimenting with different braids and laces broadened my knowledge of ballet decoration and how it is created. The workshop was also development my understanding of character portrayal by taking into consideration colours, symmetry and the amount of detail. These being a few of the elements that need to be thought about when trying to communicate a certain type of character and is a skill that I have started to work on and will continue to expand on this in the future. Sewing on the decoration is very time consuming like other parts of creating a ballet costume. The need for accuracy and tiny stitching was quite a challenge but I found through practice became easier and suited my way of working. All the skills and techniques from the decoration work shop are invaluable and will defiantly be transferred when creating other decoration.
Being given the task of creating a ballet sleeve was quite daunting having some knowledge of creating sleeves did seem to help but the pattern has to be adapted to allow for the dancer to move at easy. I haven’t constructed my sleeve yet due to a later hand in but I already feel this is a challenge where problem solving will be needed and the whole process might take longer than anticipated.
Through all the different areas I have discussed I feel this unit has developed my skill as maker and has pushed me to a new standard which at times I couldn’t reach. The knowledge I have gained will be a valuable recourse and has defiantly sparked a passion for ballet.
