A free exhibition opening
Tuesday at Milan's Palazzo Reale showcases an entire century's
worth of costumes from the city's historic La Scala opera house.
The show, which runs through January 28, includes more than
25 costumes spanning nearly 100 years.
The creations on display include some by fashion designers
such as Karl Lagerfeld and Gianni Versace, as well as costumes
worn by opera divas Maria Callas and Renata Tebaldi and dance
legend Rudolf Nureyev.
The Friends of La Scala Association organised the show,
following a restoration of the costumes, and in so doing, the
association is celebrating its 40th anniversary in collaboration
with the City of Milan, the Palazzo Reale, and La Scala opera
house.
"The costumes tell the story of the role that La Scala has
had as an experimental research centre," said Milan Culture
Councillor Filippo Del Corno.
"It's also the story of how the work was directed, by
highlighting the extraordinary artisanal quality of the
workshops" of the opera house, which created the models, he
said.
The oldest costume on display is that of Isabella in
Rossini's "L'Italiana in Algieri", which was created by Caramba
(Luigi Sapelli) in 1933.
Examples by famous fashion designers include Karl Lagerfeld's
design for Luca Ronconi's opera "The Trojans" and Gianni
Versace's Salome costume for the opera staged by Robert Wilson.
Other costumes in the show include one created by director
Franco Zeffirelli for Maria Callas as Donna Fiorilla in
Rossini's "Il Turco in Italia" in 1955, which Zeffirelli himself
directed.
There are also creations by the Russian designer Alexandre
Benois for Italian soprano Renata Tebaldi, such as that for the
role of Tatiana in Tchaikovsky's "Eugene Onegin" in 1954.
Ballet costumes include the prince costume worn by Rudolf
Nureyev in a 1969 production of The Nutcracker and the red dress
designed by Luisa Spinatelli in 1987 for Carla Fracci's
performance in "La Fille Mal Gardee".
The most recent costumes are by Maurizio Millenotti for the
stepmother and stepsisters in the 2015 production of Cinderella
directed by Mauro Bigonzetti.
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