When the dancers from the Princeton Dance and Theater Studio take to the stage in the state-of-the-art auditorium at the Montgomery Township High School in the most magical ballet of the holidays, they will sparkle in updated costumes that create an authentic Victorian mood with colorful and elegant designs.##M:[more]##
Tchaikovsky’s Nutcracker was first performed in 1892, just a year before the death of the great Russian composer. The Princeton Dance Theater interpretation, under the direction of Risa Kaplowitz and Susan Jaffe, will feature the traditional crowd favorites including the Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy, the Snow Queen and her entourage of Snowflakes and of course, Clara and her Prince. But this version will also include costumes inspired by a modern-day New York fashion designer and created by a “ballet mom” from West Windsor.
Influenced by fashion designer Donna Karan’s windows on New York’s Madison Avenue, along with input from PDT’s Jaffe, lead costume designer and ballet mom Barbara Osburn has created a sleek new look highlighting the colors and fabrics of the holiday season.
Osburn is an unusual “ballet mom.” While she has never taken a ballet class in her life, Osburn has seen the Nutcracker many, many times — 30 times in one year alone — so she understood perfectly how to outfit a dancer on and off the stage and how to create certain moods with color and design.
“I had been a fan of Susan Jaffe’s for years and had followed her career so I was very humbled when she asked me to help with the Nutcracker costumes,” says Osburn, referring to the former principal dancer for the American Ballet Theater who now co-directs the Plainsboro-based Princeton Dance and Theater Studio. “Susan and I met and talked several times to discuss her vision and her ideas. I also visited Donna Karan’s store several times while thinking about these costumes before I made any drawings.”
Osburn says that while they weren’t able to finish everything they wanted for this year, they have a great new costume base from which to build next year. “You’ll see cranberry, emerald green, gold and purple gowns and classic party style dresses for the children. I couldn’t have created all of these wonderful costumes without the support of all the sewing volunteers and the entire cast who have worked incredibly hard to make this year’s Nutcracker an amazing experience for everyone.”
Osburn’s ballet connection — and sewing experience — began with her daughter, Brannan, a dancer who now also teaches ballet at Princeton Dance and Theater. When Brannan was a child, Jaffe was one of her favorite ballerinas. One of the Osburns’ earliest mother-daughter ballet memories is seeing Jaffe dance in a performance of Paquita at the Shrine auditorium in Los Angeles many years ago.
Brannan was five when she began her own trek down the ballet path. “After I took her to see the ballet Cinderella, she begged me to take ballet lessons,” recalls Osburn. “By the time she was 12 she was taking several ballet classes a week. She moved away from home in ninth grade to attend the School of American Ballet and Pittsburgh Ballet Theater School. In her senior year she began her professional career. Naturally, I loved watching her dance. She has worked incredibly hard. Becoming an accomplished dancer is not an easy choice.”
Out of necessity — leotards were expensive — Osburn began sewing her daughter’s dance clothes. Sewing was a love she had picked up from her own grandmother, who had lovingly sewn all her clothes for her when she was growing up. Even after her grandmother died, Osburn had continued to sew.
“One thing led to another,” Osburn says. “Brannan’s ballet friends wanted leotards and so I made them, which eventually led to a small custom leotard business. I think there was one year when I made 1,”200 leotards. Before long I was sending custom ballet leotards to girls from ballet schools and companies all over the United States. The girls would call me or send me a note with their measurements and I would design a leotard for them.
“I learned to make Russian-style tutus from a woman I had met while sitting in the waiting area at the School of American Ballet. This wonderful woman shared a few ‘tutu’ secrets with me and so I began sewing custom tutus.”
Osburn found herself in the middle of a very time-consuming business and eventually she began making and designing costumes for several ballet companies. It was a pursuit that fit right in line with who she was and what she was all about. “I love being part of any creative happening. For me, a huge part of life is about education and the arts. I love taking the risk that is involved with every creative process.”
Along the way, she got married, earned a teaching degree and had three other children in addition to Brannan. She and her husband, who works for a bank software and consulting company, moved to West Windsor in 1990 from California after 10 moves to 10 other cities all over the United States. She began teaching in the West Windsor-Plainsboro School District and now, when she is not designing ballet costumes, she teaches fifth grade at Millstone River School in Plainsboro, a job she loves because it also taps into her well of creativity.
“I enjoy encouraging authenticity in my students. For me, a huge part of life is about education and arts.”
Osburn says she is proud to be part of such a magical holiday experience, not just for the dancers, but for the audience, which shares in a tradition that has spanned years and generations with its universal and timeless tale. “Each performance has been a gift to my life and I am very humbled to have shared a small part of this experience.”
Princeton Dance and Theater Studio, Traditional Holiday Nutcracker. Saturday, December 10, 2 and 7 p.m., Montgomery High School, 1016 Route 601, Skillman. $15, seniors, $10. Children 12 and under, $8. Open seating.
For tickets or directions call 609-514-1600. Www.princetondance.com.
