Contact: Lisa Greene
Telephone: 860.380.5006
Email: vgiannasi@duncaster.org
Web: Duncaster.org

Duncaster Sponsors Ballet Theatre Company’s Through the Tulle Exhibition in 2021

Many Duncaster residents are avid art patrons, enjoying and supporting the performing arts in all forms. Over the years, the Ballet Theatre Company (BTC) has visited our campus, presenting excerpts of select new works and offering stimulating programs about their presentations. This year, BTC’s 22nd season, has been dedicated to its talented “tutu makers” whose work has gone above and beyond the stitching of costumes to ensure Greater Hartford the highest quality of professional performances, education, and cultural experiences.

Just as a dancer trains countless hours to perfect their performance on stage, a seamstress works countless hours to perfect each aspect of a costume. To pay tribute to these artists and to feature this crucial component of ballet production that is too often left out of the spotlight, Ballet Theatre Company is presenting a touring costume exhibition, Through the Tulle, in museums throughout New England. Viewers of all ages are given the rare opportunity to learn about costume creation and examine up-close some of BTC’s most valued costumes.

Throughout BTC’s 22 years, the company’s productions have not only been recognized for the quality of dancing and choreography, but also for its incredibly detailed costume designs. It comes as no surprise that under the leadership of seamstress Tracy Dorman, BTC has developed a vast repertoire of costumes that include hundreds of styles, time periods, and designs.

A large component of Through the Tulle includes educational references of ballet designs through various decades, descriptions of different sewing and stitching techniques, as well as the typical ballet pieces included in most major classical ballet productions. As viewers enter the exhibit they will be greeted with a collection of costumes specifically grouped together to tell their own unique story, accompanied by details relating to the design, designer, the costume’s significance, and other important factual information.

A first glance of the exhibit with a limited number of selected costumes opened on Oct. 1 and will be on display at the Noah Webster House and West Hartford Historical Society through Oct. 28. A grand opening event was held at the museum on Thursday, Oct. 1 and included a discussion with BTC’s artistic director, costume designers and dancers followed by a Q&A with attendees.

The exhibit will be open in its entirety at the West Hartford Art League from Nov. 1- 22. To finish out the year, the exhibit will make its way to the Hill-Stead Museum in Farmington. Exhibit locations for 2021, which will include Duncaster, will be released at a later date.

Learn more at https://www.dancebtc.org/through-the-tulle.

Duncaster, a locally-founded not-for-profit, is located in Bloomfield, Connecticut. A Life Plan Community celebrating its 35th anniversary, Duncaster sits on 94 beautiful acres and offers options for senior adults seeking independent living, assisted living, memory care, rehab services, and long-term care.  Duncaster was voted the Best Retirement Community by readers of Hartford Magazine, is CARF/CCAC certified, and rated 5-Star by the Centers for Medicare/Medicaid Services. Call 860.380.5006 for more information.