Which 1924 ballet did Coco Chanel costume for Sergei Diaghilev’s company?

Coco Chanel designed costumes for Le Train Bleu, a ballet created for Sergei Diaghilev’s Ballets Russes and first performed in 1924. Its title means “The Blue Train.”

The ballet presented a modern leisure-world setting rather than a conventional romantic or mythological plot. Its characters were associated with seaside resorts, sport, and fashionable travel, subjects that suited Chanel’s interest in practical modern clothing.

The production brought together major figures in European modernism. Jean Cocteau supplied the scenario, Bronislava Nijinska choreographed the work, Darius Milhaud wrote the music, and Pablo Picasso contributed the curtain design. Chanel’s costumes helped express the athletic, contemporary character of the production.

Le Train Bleu is distinct from Les Biches, another Ballets Russes work choreographed by Nijinska. Chanel’s documented costume connection in this context is specifically with Le Train Bleu.