Costume and the 'availability cascade'. Female costume for dance on the London stage in the early eighteenth-century

It is commonly asserted that Marie Camargo was the first dancer to raise the hemline of her skirt to allow her footwork to be seen by the audience. This is backed up by the fact that she was known for her skill in beaten steps, and the 1730 portrait by Lancret showing her dancing in a shortened skirt. It is also well known that French dancers moved between Paris and London at this time, especially to dance for John Rich’s company. One image from London however, hints at a more complex story; the 1731 frontispiece engraving of Harlequin Horace, in the centre of which a couple are dancing, the woman having tucked up her skirts to reveal her feet and ankles. Can we believe the histories, or has the information about skirt lengths for dancers been the victim of an availability cascade? The phenomenon defined as a self-reinforcing cycle that explains the development of certain kinds of collective beliefs.

This paper will discuss female costume for dance on the London stage in the early part of the Eighteenth century, and whether reaction to its form can be seen as part of the social discourse on politeness, deportment, and bodily control.