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Dance as a theatrical art evolved from the court traditions of the Italian Renaissance, when elaborate spectacles, involving monarchs and courtiers, were devised by professional designers employed by the courts, to demonstrate wealth and power. These spectacles grew more elaborate and complex, and professional dancers gradually replaced the courtiers. As these court dances evolved into professional entertainment, the costumes too had to change to allow for the stronger and more refined technique of trained dancers, and, while dance costumes long continued to reflect the current fashion trends, the development of dance as a spectator sport, so to speak, meant that the costumes had to become freer and shorter than everyday dress. Documenting the development precisely is difficult and historians of the early period generally have to rely on lithographs and engravings and their possible artistic license; costume designs were not always kept and few of the costumes themselves have survived. But the overarching trends can certainly be traced.
The ballet de cour, the first type of professional dance, originated in France, encouraged by the Italian Catherine de Medici (1519-1589), who married Henri II of France. As the Queen Mother and Regent, she used the court dances, based on shows from her native Italy, to demonstrate the magnificence of her power. The participants were not yet professionals, and the costumes, designed by a court designer, were stylized versions of court dress, with long skirts, tight bodices, and heeled shoes. The male costumes were more fanciful, less tied to their day-to-day dress, and were based on an idealized version of a Roman warrior (an indication of the classical influence on the Renaissance), with a plumed helmet, and a wide, short kilt-like skirt called a tonnelet.
The court dances of Louis XIV (who ruled France from 1643-1715) had particularly elaborate costumes. The women, still not professional, wore wide skirts with long trains. These were decorated with fanciful motifs, designating mythological characters, and the men's costumes were even more flamboyant, with exotic designs and feathered headdresses. Louis XIV, who often danced in these productions, lived up to his nickname, the Sun King in the 1653 dance the Ballet de la Nuit, where he appeared as the sun, apparently blinding the audience with his grandeur. The courtiers were themselves...