From Melania to Nijinsky in several easy steps
Most people couldn’t pull off this fashion statement that Melania Trump made during her recent trip to Egypt. For instance, I would like silly in this outfit. But Melania can wear anything and look good, and she looks great here.
I must add that the First Lady of Egypt is one of the few people who can manage to hold her own while standing next to Melania. She has a different (and simpler) vibe and style entirely, but is equally tall and slim, with a natural elegance.
And how about those strange dancers seen from :12-:20? Is that supposed to be some Egyptian dance? It reminds me a bit of the Fokine version of “Afternoon of a Faun” from 1912:
Nijinsky’s ballet caused a huge scandal when it premiered:
The style of the ballet, in which a young faun meets several nymphs, flirts with them and chases them, was deliberately archaic. In the original scenography designed by Léon Bakst, the dancers were presented as part of a large tableau, a staging reminiscent of an ancient Greek vase painting. They often moved across the stage in profile as if on a bas relief. The ballet was presented in bare feet and rejected classical formalism. The work had an overtly erotic subtext beneath its façade of Greek antiquity, ending with a scene of graphic sexual desire.
That “scene of graphic sexual desire” was with a veil, by the way, left behind by a nymph. Here’s what actually happens in the scene:
The Faun holds the veil to his face before spreading it on the ground and lowering his body onto it, head tucked in and arms to his sides. Soft horns and harp accompany a final flute passage as his body tenses and curls back, head rising, before relaxing back onto the veil.
That really doesn’t sound all that shocking, does it? But I’ve seen the ballet, and if that part is done well, it actually does convey a very sexual vibe that must have been intensely shocking in 1912.
But I very much doubt that anyone can do it the way Nijinsky did it. He was by all accounts one of the greatest dancers of all time, in no small part because of his acting abilities. We do have still photos of him and the veil, although not that final moment. You can see his special qualities:
And here is a video of Nureyev doing the role. I’ve cued up just the last bit:
I’ve come pretty far from talking about Melania’s outfit on her trip to Egypt, haven’t I?
Madame Sissi is tall! I didn’t see many women that tall in my stay in Egypt. She is not covered by a hijab, either. Good.
The dancers are odd. Looks like a cleaned-up version of belly dancers, with tights under the costumes.
I noticed the lack of a hijab or even a scarf on Madame al-Sissi, as well. Was that a statement, do you think?
Melania can wear anything and look elegant. I do think she has put on some weight- stress eating probably. Who could blame her?
Egyptian women have a complicated relationship with head coverings.
Seems to me that it’s simply an unfortunate camera angle (opening shot on the video with Mrs. Trump). Later on, we see that she’s wearing a white shirt and pants, with a jacket over her shoulders … rather normal attire. I think you’d do just fine, Neo. [She said, never in her life having seen Neo. *g*]
Carol — my first thought on seeing her next to Mrs. al-Sissi was on the order of “Gee, she’s just a touch curvaceous around the belly.” But then I thought, Maybe it’s more that Mrs. al-Sissi is kinda skinny?”
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Lo these 800 years ago (early ’70s?), I was lucky enough to see either the Kirov or the Bolshoi (I think the Bolshoi) at the Auditorium in Chicago. They were wonderful, of course, but then they did “Apollo.” Holy cow! Already we’d become a bit harder to shock, but wow, those Russians were awfully avant-garde — they practically went the whole way right on stage!
By the way, that’s a fascinating article on The Varieties of Religious Headdress, so to speak. Thanks, Neo.
Julie near Chicago:
Well, thanks for the vote of confidence, but the only white pants I’ve ever worn have been jeans. I was actually referring, however, to the tie and the hat, which I think takes a certain je ne sais quoi to pull off.
And yes, I think Egypt’s First Lady is probably on the thin side. Melania is slender but not at all thin; she’s somewhat curvaceous for a model or ex-model. I don’t think she’s gained any weight, but if she had it wouldn’t be surprising. She’s also 48 years old, which is getting into perimenopause territory, and weight gain can strike even the formerly very thin and fit.
At any rate, she always looks great.
Not bad. But Condi Rice inspecting the Troops in black leather dominatrix boots has to take the cake in this genre.
I’m surprised Camille Paglia didn’t die of pleasure after that one.
I knew Muslim women in Egypt who were vehemently opposed to the hijab, saying their mothers had fought against it and they didn’t want to go backwards. And these women would cross the street to avoid someone in a niqab. They said it was impossible to tell if that was even a woman under there.
On the other hand, many young women, presumably under pressure from family, wore the hijab. They wore long skirts, tightly fitted around the hips, and tight stretchy long-sleeved tops which revealed every inch of curve, and a brightly colored hijab to match the skirt. I could just see them saying, “See, Dad, I’m covered!” I was usually dressed much like Mme. Sissi in this video, and I looked more “covered” than these girls in their tight tops.
Neo, since you started the small diversion from Melania I hope you’ll excuse me for continuing along that detour. This coming Saturday The Metropolitan Opera will be broadcasting live “Samson et Dalila” by Camille Saint-Saëns which was first performed in 1877. The opera includes a Bacchanale which can, well, when played well, make one want to grab the nearest veil. I’m eagerly eagerly looking forward to see how this production does with the piece since The Met Opera recently held a discussion on their Bacchanale at the Museums of Sex. But back to your post which caused me to wonder if the audience was shocked in 1877, but don’t find anything saying they were. I guess the music may have stirred the pulse, but the dancing may have been a bit milder.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jUQsEsR1Awg
Wow, the First Lady of Egypt seems so effortlessly impressive!
They could have done without the dancers in the dorky skin color bodysuits, but, apart from wives of the leaders, who even sees women outside in the middle east at all, so never mind.
Is it just me or is that outfit an exact copy of Belloq in Raiders of the Lost Ark?
My one burning fashion question, is how did Melania keep her jacket from blowing off in that wind?
“Up on the white veranda
She wears a necktie and a Panama hat….” (Bob Dylan’s Black Diamond Bay.)
I’m also reminded of Diane Keaton in Annie Hall.
So some echoes of NYC in the 1970s in the ensemble.
Melania is a Fantastic Beauty (and a Slavic beauty, as well) for the USA. So much better than a First Husband/ ex President / long-term sexual abuser of women (including multiple cheatings on his wife).
Melania had a great trip in Africa.
“Under Obama, relations [Egypt] with America were cold. With President Trump, they are improved.” << what I remembered with one listen (before the dance)
Real quote:
"Ties between Cairo and Washington were cold under President Barack Obama. But, they improved after Donald Trump came to office."
Kind of generic for lots of things: "… was bad under Obama, but improved with Trump!"
The faun dance was quite sexy, as you say.
Now I'm reminded of "The Seven Faces of Dr. Lao" with an excellent Faun scene starring Tony Randall (8 roles!) plus Barbara Eden.
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0057812/
Makes me want to see it yet again (first time when I was 7: ran away from home and picked strawberries, played in an outdoor movie, met other kids, stayed for whole show/ shared strawberries. Got picked up by off-duty cop on way home at midnight… Long ago in an L.A. summer with father and stepmother)
Speaking of erotic elements in ballet, I didn’t find the Nijinsky ballet as disturbing as Kenneth MacMillan’s Mayerling. Of course MacMillan is dramatizing a royal scandal from fin-de-siècle Vienna that involved murder and suicide as well as sex, which means that the choreography echoes the violence of the tragedy as well as the sexual chemistry between the lovers. The final pas de deux between Rudolf and Mary Vetsera is an incredible performance on the technical level but a depressing evocation of two profoundly damaged people on the psychological level. Nijinsky was wise to stick to ancient legend rather than mining an episode from recent history.
Clip with the original cast here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZoshHQsfDGU&ab_channel=SusanAvenue