A warhorse stands in the middle of the action. Next to him, there is Helen Mirren’s white dress, along with Rudolf Nureyev’s Romeo outfit and sexy bustiers from “Phantom of the Opera.”They are all at London’s Victoria and Albert Museum, which has just opened “Curtain Up: Celebrating 40 Years of Theatre in London and New York.”The exhibition’s focus is a little narrower than implied in fact, looking mainly at the best of the West End and Broadway. It is closely linked with the Society of London Theatre, which has a year-long program to celebrate the Ruby anniversary of the Olivier Awards.So there is less of a spotlight on the small events and more on the blockbusting, critically-acclaimed and award winning plays, musicals and other red-carpet productions.“Curtain Up!” uncovers the usually hidden range of craft and team work, from design workshops, models and sketches. Much of this archival material has not been put on public view before.The 1986 designs from “The Phantom of the Opera” by Maria Bjornson sit next to more recent outfits from one of the longest running West End musicals and the longest-running on Broadway.The Nureyev tunic was from the “Romeo and Juliet” which won an Olivier in 1977, while Dame Helen’s regal dress designed by Bob Crowley was from “The Audience,” for which she won both the Olivier and Tony awards for Best Actress. It contrasts with costumes from Disney’s “The Lion King,” designed by Julie Taymor, and models from the National Theatre’s award-winning “War Horse.”The displays are clever, festooned with tickets, photos and more. The design is by RFK Architects and Tom Piper, who is known for his Tower of London poppies installation.The V&A’s large collection includes items from its Theatre Museum in Covent Garden which closed in 2007. While the V&A displays these works in special galleries, in the middle of “Curtain Up” is a street sign, “THEATRELAND SHAFTSBURY AVENUE W1.”Arguably a separate space dedicated to performing arts memorabilia is still needed closer to many stages right in the West End Theatreland.“Curtain Up: Celebrating 40 Years of Theatre in London and New York,” in association with MasterCard, has free admission and runs from February 9 through August 31, 2016, at the Victoria & Albert Museum. It will be on show at the New York Public Library for the Performing Arts at Lincoln Center from October 19 2016 through June 2017. Information: www.vam.ac.uk/curtainup
↧