During the Victorian era, fancy dress balls were one of the grandest and most fashionable ways for a society hostess to make her mark. These magnificent, costumed affairs were widely reported in 19th century newspapers, with a great deal of attention paid to who was wearing what. Guests dressed up as historical figures such as Marie Antoinette or Napoleon. They also wore more creative costumesâmany of which were recommended in fancy dress advice manuals and costume books.
Following up to this post, hereâs a fantastic look at Victorian âfancy dress ballsââthey were all the rage at the time, but really picked up in the later half of the century where the focus was more on self-expression than hiding oneself, as was the case at 18th-century masquerades (Phantom hearkens back to this earlier tradition, but the idea of a masquerade hiding oneâs true identity also works perfectly for its theatrical setting).
Here are some wackier costumes from fancy dress balls. Iâm in love with this one:
And look! A bee!
Hereâs a fashion plate with some costume ideas from across the centuries (and of course, we wouldnât be in the Victorian era if there werenât a bit of tone-deaf cultural appropriation with the Native American costume.):
It was actually common for women to wear shorter skirts at these balls so they could show off their fabulous boots (as you see above, and as is the case with Christineâs stage version of the Star Princess dress):
Depending on your host, masks of all kinds were welcome, so you were free to be as unsettlingly disturbing as you wanted while you lounged by the punch bowl and made rabbit eyes at the eligible young heiress whose hand in marriage comes with fifty thousand pounds a year and a lifetime of resentment because womenâs rights didnât exist yet:
Suppose you canât make it to the most fashionable balls London or Paris this season. If itâs 1883 and you are Mrs. Cornelius Vanderbilt and happen to have $6 million of disposable income at your fingertips, why not throw your own fancy dress ball for New York Cityâs elite (and spend millions on champagne alone)? And why donât you one-up every single one of your guests by dressing as that most wondrous of new inventions, Edisonâs electric light? I defy the Rockefellers to steal your spotlight when the spotlight in question could very easily electrocute them.
Like flowers? Of course you do. Like spring? Oh, my God, do you ever. Like pretending youâre but a mere shepherdess, giggling and flouncing away from the advances of the blacksmithâs apprentice? GOOD LORD, YES. Like the 18th century? HELL YES, OH MAN, GIMME THAT ROCOCO SPRING FLOWER EXPLOSION:
BUT WAIT! Youâre not gonna let that Rococo Spring Flower Explosion HARLOT flounce away with your suitor, are you? HELL NO, YOU ARE NOT. Which is why you are prepared to send her running dressed as a GORGEOUS FREAKING BUTTERFLY:
But where would a butterfly be without a lovely flower upon which to perch? Enter your secret lesbian lover, the Rose:
Or, if youâre uncomfortable with NOT being the center of attention every waking moment, you could just pull the equivalent of one-upping the bride at a wedding by wearing white and come dressed as the DAMN SUN:
But maybe youâre more of the goth persuasion. Might I suggest a tasteful sorceress?
A dainty Batman ensemble to match your wifeâs delicate moth angel gown?
Vampire mistress of the night, perhaps?
Actually, bat motifs were an extremely popular costume option, not just in the 19th century, but also at 18th century balls:
But if itâs 1880 and you want to carry on grandmaâs bat tradition, this might be a more modern take on a pocket-sized blood-sucking demon:
Or this:
You are so thrilled to attend the costume ball like the goth nightmare you are, you can hardly contain your enthusiasm:
Here is a tastefully acceptable take on Satan. Might I sample your punch, Mrs. Higgenbottom, before I make away with your soul?
âOh, Ella!â
âYes, Constance?â
âOh, I do so love your seagull gown.â
âOh, why thank you, my dear friend!â
âBut Iâve not the slightest idea what I shall wear to the ball!â
âWhy, Constance, it is a simple matter of identifying something near and dear to your heart and then adapting it into a suitable costume. I, for example, find solace in the sea, particularly in the birds of the sea, and most particularly when they nose-dive into and defecate upon the boat, shrieking like banshees in heat. Hence, the seagulls adorning my gown. What do you like the very most, Constance?â
âMOTHER-EFFING LOBSTERS.â
Or, maybe youâre just a shameless ho and donât give a brass farthing about showing your ankles, your calves, your thighs, or your hoo-ha at the Embassy Ball, in which case, blaze it:
a cis gay man: calls himself a queen and sister and other feminine terms, wears a full face of makeup, wears skirts and dresses, refers to himself with she pronouns sometimes, etc
y'all: yesâŚ.so powerfulâŚ..breaking down gender rolesâŚ..iconique!
like cis gay men are allowed to express themselves and play around with their relationship to gender in a way that trans men are just not allowed to! when it comes down to trans men expressing themselves in any feminine manner all y'all have to say is âoh but shouldnât that make you dysphoric? youâre not really a man if youâre comfortable with thatâ
y'all want to destroy gender roles and shit but you insist on keeping them in place when it comes to a trans person expressing themselves. but oh no cis people can be as masculine and as feminine as they want! you just canât handle a trans person being comfortable and happy with themselves you think we always have to be miserable.
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