Mastery of Design: The Snow Queen's Crown, 1950

Wig and Diadem of "The Snow Queen"
Stanley Hall, 1950
The Victoria & Albert Museum

If you’re a ballerina and you’re in “The Nutcracker,” you’re likely going to want to play the Sugar Plum Fairy. Even though the character doesn’t appear until the second act, the young lady cast in the part knows she got the plum role. I know…I’m sorry.

But, sometimes it’s just not enough. Famed ballerina Alicia Markova, when she played the Sugar Plum Fairy in the 1950 production at London’s Stoll Theatre, decided her part wasn’t big enough, so she insisted that she also play “The Snow Queen” at the end of the first act. Fair enough.

Here’s part of Markova’s Snow Queen costume—a diamanté crown set on a wig of opalescent cellophane. The wig was the clever work of Stanley Hall of “Wig Creations,” and is notable as being the first wig ever made of cellophane. The effect was one of frosty hair when viewed beneath the bright stage lights.