These remarkable pages offer an extraordinarily detailed glimpse into the 1924 St. Louis Fashion Pageant, going far beyond what the official program could convey. Reading these descriptions, you can almost transport yourself back to that magnificent evening—witnessing the grand celebration unfold, feeling the palpable excitement rippling through the crowd as the latest ready-to-wear fashions made their spectacular debut before thousands of eager spectators.

St. Louis: An Overlooked American Fashion Capital

St. Louis holds a distinguished and often overlooked place in American fashion history. Throughout the early 20th century, this Midwestern metropolis established itself as a major fashion center, particularly renowned for three industries: luxury furs, quality footwear, and ready-to-wear clothing. While New York City often dominates discussions of American fashion heritage, St. Louis’s garment district was bustling with innovation during the 1920s, producing stylish, well-constructed clothing that was both fashionable and accessible to the growing middle class.

The ready-to-wear industry represented a revolutionary shift in how Americans purchased and consumed fashion. Before this movement gained momentum, most clothing was either custom-made by tailors and dressmakers or sewn at home. The rise of ready-to-wear clothing democratized fashion, making stylish garments available to women across different economic backgrounds. St. Louis manufacturers were at the forefront of this transformation, creating pieces that combined the elegance of haute couture with the practicality and affordability that modern women demanded.

A Spectacular Fashion Extravaganza

The 1924 Fashion Pageant held at Forest Park was no ordinary fashion show—it was a theatrical production of epic proportions, combining elaborate staging, live musical performances, dramatic lighting effects, and choreographed dance sequences with the presentation of the latest clothing designs. This kind of spectacle reflected the optimism and prosperity of the mid-1920s, a period when American culture was embracing modernity, entertainment, and consumer culture with unprecedented enthusiasm.

Fashion pageants of this era served multiple purposes: they were marketing events designed to showcase the season’s newest styles, cultural celebrations that brought communities together, and artistic performances that elevated fashion presentation to theatrical art. The St. Louis event demonstrated the city’s commitment to establishing itself as a serious player in the American fashion industry, worthy of comparison to the fashion capitals on the East Coast.

Preserving Fashion History Through Digital Archives

I was fortunate to obtain original documentation from this historic event and have worked to preserve these precious materials through careful scanning and digital archiving. Using advanced optical character recognition (OCR) software, I’ve extracted the poetic text from these aged pages, allowing this beautiful prose to be shared with modern audiences who appreciate vintage fashion history. While the technology occasionally produces minor transcription errors, the essence and eloquence of the original writing shine through magnificently.

The language used to describe these fashion presentations is remarkably lyrical and romantic—quite different from today’s fashion commentary. The writers of 1924 approached fashion as poetry, using elaborate metaphors, classical references, and theatrical language that reflected the artistic ambitions of the era. This writing style perfectly complemented the grandeur of the pageant itself, where fashion was presented not merely as clothing, but as art, culture, and civilization itself.

The Document Itself

These historically significant pages capture the entertainment features that made the St. Louis Fashion Pageant such an unforgettable experience. The detailed descriptions allow us to visualize every element—from the shimmering lagoons and revolving spheres to the living statues and elaborate peacock decorations. We have so much American fashion heritage to be proud of in this city, and documents like these help ensure that St. Louis’s contributions to fashion history are remembered and celebrated.

Analyzing the Theatrical Spectacle: Four Iconic Scenes

The entertainment features described in the original documentation reveal a pageant that was far more ambitious than a simple fashion show. This was immersive theater combined with haute couture presentation, creating an experience that engaged all the senses and transported audiences into fantastical worlds.

Woman Unadorned: Classical Mythology Meets Modern Marketing

The opening scene employed powerful allegorical imagery rooted in classical mythology and Renaissance art traditions. The concept of “Woman Unadorned“—a feminine figure positioned on a revolving sphere surrounded by orbiting planets—drew directly from ancient representations of Venus and universal beauty. This wasn’t accidental; the 1920s saw a fascination with neoclassical themes, and fashion marketers cleverly positioned their products within this elevated cultural framework.

The mechanical staging elements described—mossy screens that moved silently apart, revolving spheres, and twenty-foot peacock decorations—represented cutting-edge theatrical technology for 1924. These massive peacocks, with their iridescent screens forming oval apertures, served both as spectacular visual effects and as symbolic representations of beauty, vanity, and transformation. The peacock had long been associated with luxury, making it the perfect emblem for a fashion presentation.

The scene’s narrative arc—nations of the world bringing riches to adorn the goddess—cleverly positioned fashion consumption as a form of cultural tribute and international sophistication. This reflected the American consumer culture of the 1920s, when ready-to-wear clothing was democratizing fashion and allowing middle-class women to participate in what had previously been aristocratic display. St. Louis manufacturers were telling their audience: “Our clothing transforms you into something worthy of worship.”

The use of living statues draped in “cloth of pearl” demonstrated the era’s theatrical conventions, where human bodies became part of the scenery. These performers, positioned on stone pylons flanking a shimmering lagoon, created a tableau vivant—a popular entertainment form that blurred the boundaries between sculpture, painting, and live performance.

Festival of Cherry Blossoms: Orientalism and International Fashion

The Japanese-themed second scene reflected the widespread Orientalism in Western culture during the 1920s. Japan had been increasingly influential in fashion and decorative arts since the late 19th century, with kimono silhouettes, elaborate embroidery techniques, and aesthetic principles influencing Western designers. By including a Japanese mandarin, geisha-style maidens, acrobats, and cherry blossom motifs, the pageant positioned St. Louis ready-to-wear as internationally sophisticated.

The staging details—incense burners sending perfumed smoke into the air, colorful parasols, animated illuminated lanterns that opened to reveal pages carrying staffed lanterns—created a multi-sensory experience. The audience wasn’t just watching fashion; they were smelling exotic fragrances, seeing magical transformations, and experiencing a fantasy version of Japanese culture that aligned with Western romantic notions.

This scene also demonstrated how fashion pageants served as cultural education for audiences who might never travel abroad. The choreographed movements “characteristic of their race,” the tea-sipping rituals, and the acrobatic performances presented a carefully curated (if somewhat stereotypical) vision of Japanese culture that made international fashion influences seem accessible and desirable.

The transition mechanism—screens decorated with festoons of illuminated lanterns that came together, with lanterns at the base becoming animated and opening to reveal pages—showcased remarkable theatrical ingenuity. These weren’t simple curtain changes; they were magical transformations that maintained the audience’s enchantment between fashion presentations.

Woman Adorned: The Democratization of Fashion Through Theatrical Debate

Perhaps the most conceptually sophisticated scene was “Woman Adorned,” which featured a playful theatrical debate among fashion craftspeople—the Lingerie Maker, Tailor, Shoemaker, and Milliner. Each character, “garbed in a caricatured costume of his craft,” played musical instruments fashioned after their tools: a spool, oversized shears as a bass viol, a last, and a large-brimmed hat as a banjo.

This whimsical concept served a serious purpose: educating the audience about the components of complete fashion. By having each craftsperson argue that their contribution alone makes a woman “fascinating” and “captivating,” only to conclude that “without our art, to make her smart…they were complete without our art”—the scene both celebrated and gently satirized the fashion industry itself.

The progressive revelation of costume elements—first figures in lingerie, then pages crowned with bolts of fabric, then pages “laced in boots from their toes to their curving shoulders,” and finally pages in large-brimmed hats with streaming ribbons—created a visual narrative about how fashion is constructed layer by layer. This was particularly relevant to the ready-to-wear industry, which was revolutionizing how women assembled their wardrobes by making coordinated separates available off the rack.

The golden disc that “vibrates with a golden sheen” and the large spools of thread upon which the craftspeople sat represented the mechanization and industrialization of fashion production. St. Louis’s garment manufacturers weren’t ashamed of mass production; they were celebrating it as a form of modern magic that made beauty accessible to everyone.

Spanish Mantilla: Romance, Passion, and Exotic Allure

The final scene transported audiences to a Spanish plaza bathed in bright sunlight, complete with stone arch, iron gate, and characteristic balcony—all stock elements of Spanish romantic imagery popular in American culture. The detailed staging—a fountain at center with maidens filling water jugs, strolling Gypsy performers in “rich barbaric colors,” guitar music, and a progression of Spanish dances from tango to bolero to sevillana—created an atmosphere of passion and freedom.

The romantic narrative—a lover singing beneath a balcony, a maiden appearing at a lighted window, lowering her mantilla for him to pin a rose with a message, then withdrawing as moonlight replaces sunlight—perfectly encapsulated Western fantasies about Spanish romance. This wasn’t authentic Spanish culture; it was a carefully constructed fantasy that made Spanish-influenced fashion seem passionate, mysterious, and sophisticated.

The description of the sevillana having “a strange fascination” that “arouses them to a state of wild ecstasy” reveals how these fashion pageants played with coded sensuality. In an era when women’s sexuality was heavily regulated, fashion presentations could express feminine desire and physical freedom through the “safe” distance of ethnic performance and historical costume.

The transformation from bright sunlight to moonlight, accomplished through sophisticated lighting technology, demonstrated St. Louis’s technical capabilities. Theater lighting had advanced significantly by the 1920s, and this pageant utilized these innovations to create atmospheric mood changes that enhanced the emotional impact of fashion presentation.

The Broader Significance: Fashion as Performance Art

What makes this 1924 pageant historically significant is how it elevated fashion marketing to performance art. Rather than simply showing clothes on models, St. Louis manufacturers created an integrated theatrical experience combining:

• Original musical compositions (songs copyrighted 1924 by Joseph Solari)
• Elaborate mechanical staging (moving screens, revolving spheres, animated decorations)
• Narrative storytelling (allegorical, mythological, romantic, and comic elements)
• Multi-cultural themes (classical, Japanese, Spanish influences)
• Sensory immersion (visual spectacle, music, perfumed smoke)

This approach positioned St. Louis as a sophisticated fashion capital capable of competing with New York and Paris not just in manufacturing quality, but in cultural presentation. The pageant told audiences that St. Louis understood fashion not merely as clothing, but as art, culture, theater, and transformation.

The event also reflected the optimism and prosperity of the mid-1920s, when American consumer culture was booming, women were experiencing new freedoms, and entertainment was becoming increasingly spectacular and accessible. Forest Park provided a democratic venue where thousands of people—not just the wealthy elite—could experience this fashion extravaganza.

Technical Innovations in Theatrical Staging

The mechanical marvels described in the 1924 St. Louis Fashion Pageant reveal a production that utilized state-of-the-art theatrical technology of the Jazz Age. The 1920s represented a golden era for stage innovation, with electric lighting systems, mechanized scenery, and sophisticated effects transforming what was possible in live performance.

Mechanized Scenery and Moving Platforms

The revolving sphere supporting the “Woman Unadorned” figure represented advanced stage machinery. Revolving stages and platforms had become increasingly sophisticated by the 1920s, powered by electric motors that allowed smooth, silent rotation. The ability to have multiple orbiting planets around a central revolving figure required precise engineering—gears, counterweights, and synchronized movement that had to operate flawlessly before thousands of spectators. Any mechanical failure would have been disastrous, making the backstage crew’s precision absolutely critical.

The twenty-foot mechanical peacocks with iridescent screens that formed oval apertures demonstrated remarkable craftsmanship. These weren’t simple painted flats; they were three-dimensional sculptural pieces that likely incorporated internal frameworks, articulated mechanisms for opening and closing, and sophisticated painting techniques to create the iridescent effect. The fact that these massive structures could be maneuvered and operated smoothly during a live performance speaks to exceptional stage engineering.

The moving screens that silently parted and came together between scenes represented what theatrical professionals call “wagon stages” or “sliding flats.” By 1924, many theaters had installed track systems in their stage floors allowing large scenic pieces to glide on wheels or rollers. The “silent” operation mentioned in the description was crucial—any squeaking wheels or grinding metal would have shattered the magical atmosphere. This required regular maintenance, proper lubrication, and skilled operators who understood timing and precision.

Lighting Technology: Creating Atmosphere and Transformation

Perhaps the most impressive technical achievement was the sophisticated lighting design that could transform daytime Spanish sunshine into romantic moonlight. By the 1920s, theater lighting had evolved dramatically from the gas-lamp era. The introduction of electrical incandescent lighting and early spotlight technology allowed lighting designers unprecedented control over color, intensity, direction, and atmospheric effects.

The lighting system likely employed:

• Colored gelatin filters (or early glass filters) to create different color temperatures for sunlight versus moonlight
• Dimmer boards that could gradually transition between lighting states, creating the smooth sunset-to-moonlight transformation
• Follow spotlights to highlight featured performers or the woman on the balcony
• Footlights and border lights to provide general illumination while creating atmospheric effects
• Special effect projections or “gobos” to create patterns of light suggesting foliage, water reflections, or architectural elements

The illuminated lanterns that “became animated and opened, disclosing pages carrying staffed lanterns” required internal lighting—likely small electric bulbs wired through the stage floor or powered by early battery systems. Coordinating these effects so that lanterns illuminated on cue and then mechanically opened required both electrical expertise and mechanical engineering.

Special Effects: Smoke, Water, and Illusion

The incense burners sending perfumed smoke into the air during the Japanese scene represented practical effects work. Creating atmospheric smoke that dispersed properly without obscuring sightlines or causing respiratory issues required understanding air currents and ventilation. Stage crews likely used specialized incense or theatrical smoke compounds placed in strategically positioned braziers or mechanical smoke generators.

The shimmering lagoon described in the opening scene may have been a painted surface with specialized reflective materials, or possibly an actual shallow water feature with underwater lighting. Creating convincing water effects on stage was a specialty art form, with some theaters using ripple machines (rotating drums with mirrors or reflective surfaces), silk cloths manipulated by stage hands, or actual water basins with sophisticated drainage systems.

The atmospheric effects—from the golden disc that “vibrates with a golden sheen” to the various transformations between scenes—likely employed theatrical gauze or scrim materials. When lit from the front, scrims appear opaque; when lit from behind, they become transparent. This allows for magical appearances and disappearances that audiences couldn’t quite explain.

St. Louis and the Birth of Theatrical Labor Unions

The complexity of this production couldn’t have been executed without highly skilled theatrical professionals—stage carpenters, electricians, riggers, property masters, costumers, and spotlight operators. St. Louis played a significant role in the development of organized theatrical labor in America, making this pageant not just a fashion event, but a showcase of union craftsmanship.

IATSE Local 6: A Pioneer Union

The International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees (IATSE) had been organizing stagehands since 1893, and St. Louis was among the early cities to establish a local union. IATSE Local 6 in St. Louis was chartered in the early days of the organization, representing stage carpenters, electricians, property personnel, and other theatrical technicians working in the city’s numerous theaters, opera houses, and performance venues.

By 1924, when this pageant was produced, St. Louis’s theatrical unions had established:

• Standardized working conditions and safety protocols for stage crew
• Training programs that ensured technical proficiency in the latest stage technologies
• Fair wages that attracted skilled craftspeople to the profession
• Jurisdiction agreements defining which crew members handled specific technical elements

The sophisticated staging of the Fashion Pageant would have required union stagehands working under IATSE agreements. The moving scenery, complex lighting cues, mechanical effects, and quick scene changes demanded experienced professionals who understood both the artistic vision and the technical execution. Union crews didn’t just “work” these shows—they engineered them, problem-solved them, and made the impossible appear effortless.

Forest Park as a Unique Venue Challenge

Producing this elaborate pageant in Forest Park—likely an outdoor or semi-outdoor venue—presented additional technical challenges that union crews would have solved. Unlike working in an established theater with permanent rigging and electrical systems, the crew would have needed to:

• Construct temporary stage structures capable of supporting heavy scenery and performers
• Install temporary electrical systems with sufficient power capacity for hundreds of lights and motorized scenic pieces
• Weatherproof equipment and effects against wind, temperature changes, and potential precipitation
• Create sight lines that worked for thousands of spectators rather than a traditional theater audience
• Amplify sound naturally or through early amplification technology so performers could be heard

The fact that this pageant came off successfully speaks volumes about the expertise of St. Louis’s theatrical professionals. These weren’t amateur volunteers; they were skilled union craftspeople who had honed their abilities in the city’s thriving entertainment district.

The Entertainment Industry in 1920s St. Louis

St. Louis in the 1920s boasted a vibrant theatrical scene that supported a robust community of IATSE union members. The city had numerous venues including:

• Grand opera houses hosting touring Broadway productions
• Vaudeville theaters with multiple shows daily requiring quick scenery changes
• Movie palaces with elaborate stage shows preceding film screenings
• Outdoor amphitheaters in parks hosting summer entertainment
• Hotel ballrooms converted for theatrical presentations and pageants

This infrastructure created a community of theatrical professionals who could be called upon for special events like the Fashion Pageant. The cross-pollination of expertise—Broadway stagehands working alongside movie palace electricians and outdoor pageant specialists—resulted in productions that incorporated best practices from multiple entertainment sectors.

Comparing the St. Louis Pageant to Other American Fashion Presentations

To understand the significance of St. Louis’s 1924 Fashion Pageant, we must examine it within the context of how other American cities were presenting fashion during the Roaring Twenties. Fashion marketing was becoming increasingly theatrical nationwide, but each city developed its own distinctive approach.

New York: The Intimate Salon Shows

New York City, as the undisputed center of American fashion by the 1920s, paradoxically favored more intimate presentation styles. The major department stores—Altman’s, Lord & Taylor, Best & Company—typically held fashion shows in their in-store salons or rented hotel ballrooms. These were elegant but relatively understated affairs where mannequins (as models were then called) walked along narrow runways while commentators described each garment’s features and price points.

The New York ready-to-wear manufacturers held seasonal “market weeks” where buyers from department stores nationwide viewed collections in showrooms. These were primarily commercial events, not public spectacles. While some New York retailers organized charity fashion shows with theatrical elements, they generally emphasized the garments themselves rather than elaborate staging.

The St. Louis pageant’s theatrical ambition surpassed typical New York presentations in pure spectacle. While New York had sophistication and commercial dominance, St. Louis was creating something more akin to a Cecil B. DeMille production—epic, populist, and designed to reach masses rather than elite buyers.

Chicago: Industrial Might Meets Fashion

Chicago, like St. Louis, was a major garment manufacturing center specializing in ready-to-wear clothing. The city’s Marshall Field’s department store pioneered many fashion marketing innovations, including elaborate window displays and in-store fashion shows. Chicago’s fashion presentations often emphasized the industrial and commercial power behind ready-to-wear clothing, positioning it as modern, efficient, and quintessentially American.

Chicago hosted fashion pageants at venues like the Chicago Coliseum and incorporated them into larger civic celebrations and trade shows. However, Chicago’s presentations tended to be more straightforwardly commercial, focusing on volume and variety rather than artistic theatrical concepts. The Chicago approach said: “Look at how many beautiful clothes we can produce efficiently.” The St. Louis approach said: “Our clothing transforms you into a goddess or a Spanish seductress.”

Philadelphia: Wanamaker’s Theatrical Innovations

John Wanamaker’s department store in Philadelphia was perhaps St. Louis’s closest competitor in theatrical fashion presentation. Wanamaker’s was famous for its Grand Court concerts and elaborate in-store entertainment, and the store incorporated fashion shows with musical performances, theatrical lighting, and narrative elements.

Wanamaker’s fashion shows in the mid-1920s sometimes featured themed presentations with historical or international concepts similar to St. Louis’s Japanese and Spanish scenes. However, these were contained within the store’s architectural space, limiting their scale. The St. Louis pageant’s outdoor Forest Park venue and its massive scenic elements—twenty-foot peacocks, revolving spheres, shimmering lagoons—created a scale that department store presentations couldn’t match.

Los Angeles: Hollywood Glamour Enters Fashion

Los Angeles in the 1920s was rapidly developing its fashion presentation style, heavily influenced by the burgeoning film industry. Fashion shows at the Ambassador Hotel and Biltmore Hotel often featured movie stars modeling the latest styles, blurring the lines between fashion, celebrity, and entertainment.

Hollywood’s fashion presentations emphasized individual glamour and star power rather than elaborate staging. The focus was on getting close enough to see what Gloria Swanson or Joan Crawford was wearing. Los Angeles was pioneering the concept of celebrity-driven fashion marketing that would eventually dominate the industry.

The St. Louis pageant represented a different philosophy—democratic spectacle where the staging and theatrical effects were the stars, making fashion accessible and exciting for thousands of ordinary people rather than a few hundred elite guests at a hotel ballroom.

San Francisco: West Coast Sophistication

San Francisco maintained a sophisticated fashion culture influenced by its Pacific trade connections and cosmopolitan population. The City of Paris and I. Magnin department stores held elegant fashion presentations, and San Francisco’s fashion shows often incorporated elements from Asian cultures—not surprising given the city’s significant Chinese and Japanese populations and its role as a Pacific trade hub.

However, San Francisco’s fashion presentations tended toward refined cosmopolitanism rather than theatrical spectacle. The city’s fashion shows emphasized taste, quality, and international sophistication, appealing to San Francisco’s self-image as the West Coast’s most cultured city. The St. Louis pageant’s exuberant theatricality and populist accessibility represented a different aesthetic—more democratic, more overtly entertaining, more consciously American.

Southern Cities: Pageantry and Regional Identity

Cities like Atlanta, New Orleans, and Dallas incorporated fashion into their civic pageants and seasonal celebrations, but these were typically framed within regional identity narratives. Southern fashion pageants often emphasized historical themes—Colonial balls, Old South plantations, Civil War commemoration—rather than the international and mythological themes St. Louis employed.

New Orleans, with its Mardi Gras traditions, certainly understood spectacle, but fashion was secondary to carnival celebration. The St. Louis pageant inverted this relationship, making fashion primary and theatrical entertainment the delivery mechanism.

St. Louis’s Distinctive Contribution: Democratic Spectacular Fashion

What made the 1924 St. Louis Fashion Pageant historically significant was its unique combination of:

1. Epic theatrical scale rarely seen outside major opera or theater productions
2. Ready-to-wear clothing rather than haute couture, democratizing high-fashion presentation
3. Public accessibility in Forest Park for thousands rather than exclusive invitation-only events
4. Integrated artistry combining original music, sophisticated staging, choreography, and fashion
5. Professional execution by skilled IATSE union crews using cutting-edge technology
6. Cultural ambition positioning St. Louis as a fashion capital worthy of national recognition

The pageant represented Midwestern confidence and ambition—a declaration that St. Louis didn’t need to imitate New York or Paris, but could create its own distinctive approach to fashion presentation. It was populist without being unsophisticated, entertaining without being frivolous, commercial without being crass.

This approach anticipated developments that wouldn’t become mainstream in fashion marketing for decades: the integration of fashion with entertainment spectacle, the use of narrative and theatrical staging to create emotional connections with clothing, and the understanding that fashion presentation could be a form of public art accessible to everyone, not just industry insiders or social elites.

The St. Louis Fashion Pageant of 1924 wasn’t just a fashion show—it was a statement about American culture, industrial capability, theatrical artistry, and democratic values. It deserves to be remembered not as a provincial imitation of coastal sophistication, but as an innovative and ambitious production that showcased the best of what St. Louis’s manufacturing, artistic, and technical communities could achieve when working together.

I was able to use online text recognition software to extract the text from the scan I made… it all sounds so poetic! Forgive any typos, in advance. 2026 Update: I was able to use AI which organized the original OCR by scene with corrections to typos and removal of OCR errors and page headers.

The Entertainment Features of the St. Louis Fashion Pageant

Songs Copyrighted 1924, by Joseph Solari

Part I: Woman Unadorned

Upon two stone pylons that rise at either end of a shimmering lagoon stand groups of living figures, draped in cloth of pearl that falls in graceful folds upon the pedestal. These living figures burst into song as two great mossy screens move silently apart, revealing a revolving sphere upon which is poised a feminine figure unadorned, alone in all her loveliness, holding aloft an oval mirror into which she peers.

The starry planets, symbolized by maidens, move in their orbits around the sphere, their diaphanous robes floating like a mist as they quicken their movement to the rhythmic pulse of the song. Out of the void march the nations of the world, fetching their riches to this unadorned goddess. They deck her with their rarest jewels and drape her in the richest raiment, and on her brow they place a crown of lustrous pearls.

To this enchanting spectacle, deep-throated voices peal forth the following song:

The starry spheres around her roll While Beauty flows from pole to pole. But, in her magic loveliness She stands supreme in blessedness.

A scene at last

Of Woman sing, and Woman praise— Her charm and radiant elegance, Her worshipped beauty and romance.

From every land, and every race, Are sent rich embassies to place Rare gifts before the fairest flow’r That dwells beneath this starry bow’r.

Of Woman sing, and Woman praise— Her charm and radiant elegance, Her worshipped beauty and romance.

Adorn her with your jewels rare; Bestow the fairest on the fair. From dawn of time, in every clime, She has been ever most sublime.

Adorn her with your cloth of gold, A lovely form it will enfold. Enrich her grace with tropic plumes, And Arctic furs and Eastern blooms.

Come crown her with your priceless pearls; Around her form Creation whirls! In reverence have all aspired To kiss her hem, and rise inspired.

Of Woman sing, and Woman praise— Her charm and radiant elegance. Her worshipped beauty and romance.

As the last echo of this song dies away, two huge decorative peacocks, rising to a height of twenty feet, move slowly toward the center from either side, enclosing the magic picture. The downward circular sweep of the peacock feathers forms an oval aperture where they meet above, framing for a lingering moment the feminine goddess in all her glory. She is gradually enveloped by an iridescent screen that represents the huge eye of a peacock feather in green and blue. This forms the background of the aperture, through which eight pages emerge. Their brilliant trains they attach to the further end of each peacock’s tail as they pass on to the promenades, creating a semi-circular decoration to the ends of the lagoon.

The models enter and walk in review before the multitude. As the last model passes over the promenade that divides the lagoon, the four pages stationed there replace their trains and retire through the opening from which they entered.

Festival of Cherry Blossoms

The peacock screen moves apart, disclosing a mass of cherry trees in blossom, resplendent in their delicate tints. Before an arbor of these blossoms stand two highly decorated incense burners that send their perfumed smoke curling into the air. A Japanese mandarin with two attendants is seated at the center near the edge of the lagoon facing the arbor. A group of Japanese maidens are on their knees bowing very low to the dignitary. They rise in unison, and in a quiet dance that is characteristic of their race, entertain his sublime personage. After their dance they retire to either side, seat themselves in graceful groups, and sip tea under the cool shade of colorful parasols.

Through the arbor of cherry blossoms comes a troop of acrobats, who amuse the gathering with clever feats of strength. When they conclude, they bow gracefully to the dignitary, while the two great screens, decorated in festoons of illuminated lanterns, slowly come together. Near the base of the screen is a line of lanterns of unusual design, that become animated. The upper and lower ends draw together, disclosing eight charming pages, who step from the screen, each bearing a staff mounted with a lantern, which they carry to their stations and place at their sides. The models follow and promenade through the auditorium.

Part II: Woman Adorned

A large disc that vibrates with a golden sheen appears in the center, a little above the edge of the lagoon. On each side of the disc are four large spools of thread upon which are seated the Maker of Lingerie, a Tailor, the Shoemaker and the Milliner. Each one is garbed in a caricatured costume of his craft. They play upon musical instruments fashioned after some implement of their trade. The Lingerie Maker plays upon a spool; the Tailor upon a large shear, that takes the place of a bass viol; the Shoemaker upon a last, and the Milliner a large brimmed hat, after the manner of a banjo. They strum their instruments to the following song and action:

Chorus

I adore to adorn The fair ladies. With my craft, I am daft To please the dear ladies!

LINGERIE MAKER: ‘Tis I that adorn her with my art. THE TAILOR: But she’d be complete without your part! THE SHOEMAKER: Nay, ’tis I that make her fascinating. THE MILLINER: Why, she’d be complete with my creating!

Chorus

I adore to adorn The fair ladies. With my craft, I am daft To please the dear ladies!

Lingerie Maker

Now, observe what I have done To prove my own contention: The ladies fair—every one— Are complete with my invention!

Immediately after this verse, four exquisite figures, habited in lingerie, appear before the disc and pose to the next stanza:

For in my lingerie She is in fine array; So, without your part, She’s a thrill thru my art. And, ah! So fascinating! To all, most captivating!

The next verse is sung in chorus to a quick movement to which the maidens dance away to the right and left.

Oh! Ha ha ha ha ha ha! Oh! Ha ha ha ha ha ha! How absurd! Who ever heard That you aspired, or e’er desired Without our art, to make her smart And fascinating—so captivating!

The Tailor

Now, observe what I have done To prove my own contention: The ladies fair—every one— Are complete with my invention!

At this moment two pages come through the disc, each crowned with a bolt of fabric, from which flows the material that drapes their bodies, and pose to the following stanza:

For in my frock attired, She’s always most admired: So, without your part, She’s divine thru my art. And, ah! So fascinating! To all, most captivating!

As the next verse is sung they trip lightly into positions on the extreme right and left of the disc.

Chorus

Oh! Ha ha ha ha ha ha! Oh! Ha ha ha ha ha ha! How absurd! Who ever heard That you aspired, or e’er desired Without our art, to make her smart And fascinating—so captivating!

The Shoemaker

Now, observe what I have done To prove my own contention: The ladies fair—every one— Are complete with my invention!

He ushers in two pages, laced in boots from their toes to their curving shoulders, and as they pose he sings this verse:

For, in my boots secure, Her step is an allure: So, without your part, She’s a charm thru my art. And, ah! So fascinating! To all, most captivating!

The pages dance to their positions, while the chorus sing:

Chorus

Oh! Ha ha ha ha ha ha! Oh! Ha ha ha ha ha ha! How absurd! Who ever heard That you aspired, or e’er desired Without our art, to make her smart And fascinating—so captivating!

The Milliner

Now, observe what I have done To prove my own contention: The ladies fair—every one— Are complete with my invention!

The last four pages emerge from the disc in large brimmed hats, from which stream a colored maze of ribbons that encircle their fair bodies. They fall into pleasing postures to the verse:

For in hats divine She’s chic and superfine: So, without your part. She’s a dream thru my art. And, ah! So fascinating! To all, most captivating!

On the following verses, all the pages dance to their stations:

Chorus

Oh! Ha ha ha ha ha ha! Oh! Ha ha ha ha ha ha! How absurd! Who ever heard That you aspired, or e’er desired Without our art, to make her smart And fascinating—so captivating!

But, brothers, let us quite agree. Without our part to make them smart— Before our time, in every clime, They were complete without our art!

But nevertheless We must confess:

We adore to adorn The fair ladies. With our craft, we are daft To please the dear ladies!

While they sing the last stanza they dance off to the right and left. They are immediately followed by the models, who come through the glittering disc and promenade into the auditorium.

A Spanish Mantilla

The screens open upon a Spanish plaza, bathed in the bright sunlight of that country. In the background, toward the center, is a stone arch with an iron gate. Above it is a large casement window with a typical Spanish balcony. In the center of the plaza you observe a fountain, around which is gathered a group of Spanish maidens filling their jugs with water. Some are approaching the fountain while others are leaving it with their jugs. They all sing a familiar lyric of their sunny clime.

Four of the maidens that are standing before the fountain enter into an animated gossip song as two Spanish gallants appear at the further end of the plaza. One of the gallants starts a flirtation with a maiden, whom he approaches. A band of strolling Spanish Gypsies come into the plaza, bedecked in the rich barbaric colors that are characteristic of their tribe. A few of the maidens gather at the fountain to have their fortunes told, while several of the Gypsy men strum upon their guitars. The others begin a series of Spanish dances, starting with the tango and the bolero and ending with the sevillana, which has a strange fascination and arouses them to a state of wild ecstasy.

The scene is slowly enveloped in the splendor of moonlight. A lover sings beneath the balcony. Through a lighted window above appears a maiden, who, in the warmth of her tender tones, answers her lover. She unfurls and lowers her mantilla, upon which he pins a rose wrapped in a message. She draws it to her lips and bids him farewell. She withdraws from the balcony. The light is extinguished. A cloud obscures the moon and the scene vanishes.

Eight bewitching pages appear from behind the fringe in bizarre costumes of Spanish design. They prance to their stations followed by the models, who again promenade into the auditorium.

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