On April 20th 2023, art and costume historian Olga Khoroshilova gave a lecture, as a part of the “First Position. Russian Ballet” exhibition project’s educational programme.

Together we discussed Maya Mikhailovna Plisetskaya's ballet career and her place in the world of high fashion in the twentieth century. The audience learned about her first fashion experiences of the 1940s, who and how sewed her costumes, about the ballerina's acquaintance with Russian émigrés and the influence they had on shaping her taste and style. We also covered Maya Plisetskaya’s collaboration with Pierre Cardin and Yves Saint Laurent, and talked about the special language of fashion they invented together.

Guest speaker: Olga Khoroshilova, Ph.D. in Art History, associate professor at St. Petersburg State University of Industrial Technologies and Design, historian of art and costume. Author of numerous books on the history of fashion and everyday culture.

The lecture video is available in Russian with auto-generated English subtitles on Manege’s VKontakte page and YouTube channel.