Inspiration: Anna Karenina

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Leo Tolstoy began writing Anna Karenina in March 1873.  He had just completed War and Peace and intended to write his next novel about Peter the Great, but in 1872 Tolstoy had seen an inquest into the death of a cast-off mistress named Anna Pirogova who had thrown herself in front of a train.  He began drafting the novel and through all these drafts his sympathies changed.  At first he describes Anna's husband, Karenin, as long suffering and kind but Anna as harsh and selfish.  These portrayals changed through the draft process and Tolstoy began to sympathize more with Anna's character, therefore crafting a far more complex psychology.

 It is no wonder that Anna Karenina has been made and re- made into classic films starring some of film history's best actresses, from Greta Garbo to Vivien Leigh.  Now Keira Knightley has her turn.  I can't wait to see if she lives up to her predecessors.  I have high hopes because I saw her in The Duchess and she was really wonderful.

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The beautiful Swedish actress Greta Garbo in Anna Karenina 1935.

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A stunning Vivien Leigh in Anna Karenina (1948).

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Ever since I saw Knightley in The Duchess, I have been convinced that she is a fabulous actress who is more than capable of playing this role brilliantly.  We will soon see...

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I am so inspired by the look of 17th century Russian aristocracy.  It is lush and ornate.  Obviously this look translates beautifully to the big screen, but how can one do the same in everyday life?  Well, I don't think it takes much.  If fact you can't do this look from head to toe without looking like you are in costume.  A few pieces are all you need to evoke the romantic feel of the era.  A fur collar, a rich hued shoe or a beaded bag or earring.  Whatever you choose, you can't miss.  Even Banana Republic has joined in on the "Anna Karenina trend."

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Day 20  I am thankful that I have a husband who is willing to help with any crazy project I throw his way:  Today he hung a huge branch from the ceiling.  He never asked 'why' he just went to work.  How did I get so lucky?

Vivien Leigh

Many little girls want to be Scarlett O'hara, but I always wanted to be Vivien Leigh.  I believed, and still believe, that she is the most beautiful woman I have ever seen in pictures and movies.  She seems almost unreal.  I am sure I saw her in Gone With the Wind first, and she is wonderful in that role, but it isn't my favorite.  Waterloo Bridge is fantastic, as is That Hamilton Woman.  I must say that I don't believe she is a great actress--when I say great I mean legendary--she worked very hard and it shows, it shouldn't show.  Next to Marlon Brando in A Streetcar Named Desire it is obvious that Brando overshadows her, yet she was far superior to so many in terms of her intellect (Brando included).  She was a cerebral actress, not an intuitive one.  This is possibly because she was classically trained as a stage actress, and many (including Laurence Olivier) had to learn to adapt from stage to film.  Vivian Hartley (her given name) was born in Darjeeling, British India.  Her father was an officer in the British Cavalry, so little "Vivling" went to the best schools and received a top-notch education at Roehampton (now Woldingham School) where she excelled at cello, piano, ballet and language studies.  She spoke French and Italian fluently, and her knowledge of language made it easy for her to adopt a Southern dialect in the role of Scarlett O'Hara. 

Vivien Leigh is not a fashion icon; she is remembered by many only as Scarlett O'Hara.  I believe she is a wonderful example of an intelligent, beautiful woman who wanted to do the best she could with the abilities she had. She looked delicate but, by all accounts, was tough and tenacious. She was always the consumate  lady, even when she played a prostitute in Waterloo Bridge there was always something about her that was proper.  She may not have been a legendary actress, but she was a good actress.  More than that, she was an amazingly intelligent and determined woman, whose beauty is legendary.

There isn't a bad picture of Vivien Leigh to be found. This one though, is stunning.

Studying at school.

Gorgeous publicity shot for Waterloo Bridge.

A very young Vivien.

In Gone With The Wind.

That Hamilton Woman, staring with her husband Laurence Olivier.

The beautiful couple at the Oscars.

Vivien Leigh as Blanch in A Streetcar Named Desire.

Opera and Fashion

vintage opera--social scene

Opera.  Even the word sounds uppercrust, elite, sophisticated.  I believe that the connotations of opera-going today allude to these terms.  It is true that the upper classes enjoyed the opera as a sphere to see and be seen, to gossip, as much or more than they enjoyed the music, but even those in lower socio-economic classes attended.  It was the entertainment and social club of its time.  I do enjoy the thought of a 19th century opera house: the women in there beautiful attire, complete with gloves and jewels.  The men in their finest, every bit as elegant as their partners.  The grandeur of the crystal chandeliers, gold filigree and velvet drapes completes the idyllic atmosphere, and backdrop for the players:  the prima-donna, dancers and orchestra.

Today attending the opera remains an elegant affair, even if its social importance has declined.  It has come to be seen as an acquired taste, inaccessable.  I don't think this attitude will change, but I love the opera and the romance associated with it.  I am not just infatuated with the mystique, but with the genius behind the art-form.  The actual talent displayed.  I am afraid I am not much for popular music because I find that so many performers today are manufactured, but in the opera world, only true talents surface.  I don't mean pop-opera sensations either.

Fortunately, the glamour of the opera is as much alive today as ever. The theatricality of the fashion still inspires designers and opera-goers.  I, for one, certainly hope this continues.

Opera in Literature:

Who can forget the conversations
at the opera in Anna Karenina?

When I think of the ultimate novel
with scenes of social opera going, I think
of this one.

Opera In The Movies:

Audrey Hepburn's opera dress in
Love in the Afternoon  1957.  

Ms. Hepburn seems to be at the opera a lot in her movies!  Here she is again

in Funny Face (1957).  This movie is a really beautiful piece of fluff.  Love the music--

it's not opera, but Gershwin will certainly do.

Vivien Leigh and Sir Laurence Olivier at the opera in That Hamilton Woman (1941).

Phantom of the Opera (2005) 

Opera and Fashion:

Donna Karen opera coat.

Felicity Brown Spring 2012

Felicity Brown Spring 2012

The Best in Opera: (my opinion, of course)

I could easily gush about Maria Callas, Renee fleming, Cecilia Bortolli and on and on...BUT

My personal favorite: Ms. Kathleen Battle.  I fell in
love with her voice in high school; to me, she is
perfection.

One of my favorite albums of Kathleen Battle, here
with Jean-Pierre Rampal (famous flutist).  I love this one
because I used to play flute and I idolize both of these performers.
Seperately they are fantastic, but together they are magic.