First Look: Marie Antoinette
To play the role of the elegant Marie Antoinette, Kirsten Dunst needed to learn a thing or two about dancing 1779 style.
By Cristy Lytal
"At Versailles, there were two or three balls a week," says choreographer Corinne Devaux. "They were showing who they were when they were dancing." Since people no longer express their identities through minuets and gavottes, Devaux strove to balance authenticity with accessibility on the set. For a masked ball scene, Devaux blended baroque movements with a quick modern tempo. She also schooled the cast in the rank-specific bows and graceful postures used at Versailles. "The ballet positions of the hands came from that time, because you would hold [your skirt] between the thumb and the third finger," she says. "Everything was elegant. Kirsten Dunst and all of those poor girls had to walk with books on their heads and wear petticoats."
But Dunst alone learned the real secret to living like a queen. "There's something called the Versailles Glide, which is a special way of walking," says director Sofia Coppola. Devaux won't risk her neck by divulging the specifics: "Kirsten told me, 'You won't tell the other girls in the movie, because Marie Antoinette must have a little difference.' So I won't tell you what we were doing with the feet. That's our secret. Everything was under the skirt."
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Copyright © 2008 Hachette Filipacchi Media U.S., Inc.