I have been so fascinated by all the museums we have gone to and while the Victoria & Albert Museum wasn’t my favorite as a whole, the theatre related wing of the museum was one of my favorite exhibits to get lost in. At first, when I walked through the ballet/dance portion I was worried it was going to not include other facets of performance for some reason, but as soon as I turned the corner near the ballet barre my heart started to beat so fast. The first thing I laid eyes on was the Emmy Award, which seemed far too big. Then I saw the Olivier, Carl Alan Award, etc. and just knew the rest of the exhibit was going to be mind blowing. One of the most spectacular things I saw while walking through was the dress Elphaba wore in Wicked. I have wondered about the fabrication and different colors used for this dress since I was 13 years old and seeing it so close was just remarkable. It was so gorgeous, especially the bead work and the use of red in some of the layers. Plus, it was in such close proximity to Lola’s famous red number in Kinky Boots. Seeing both of these costumes right next to each other nearly made me faint.
I also loved seeing all the different 3-D models. Set design is something that I have just recently fallen in love with, so I enjoyed being able to study such brilliant sets so close up. All of them were so complex and gave you an idea of the director’s vision for the show without seeing it live. Something that I think is so cool about the craft itself, set designs are able to live on their own and still give you a taste of the production’s magic. I especially enjoyed the model that gave you a POV of the audience from the stage. I honestly got a little emotional standing in front of it. Even though it was a small model, it still invoked my imagination to feel as though I was there and I can’t even comprehend what it would actually be like to perform in front of so many people. I always imagine what the actors are seeing in huge theatres, but this model gave me something so concrete and special. It really just made me want to work my little booty off to get to a place where I genuinely have that view. Who knows, maybe one day I will and I’ll think about this cute little design I saw in London. I love that.
When it comes to pieces of the museum that reminded me of a show I saw in London, the only thing that really made sense was this bra in front of a sign calling for equality among the sexes. It immediately reminding me of Six the musical. People who have boobs tend to wear bras…so that was the first connection, but I promise that’s not the only one. The thing that I believe connects this piece with the show is the reason behind the bra, equality and recognizing women for the amazing, strong, queen-bosses we are. Six was overflowing with girl power, the fight for equality, the right to make our own choices, and especially the right to own who we are and our stories. So while this may be just a bra to some, in combination with the poster behind it just reminded me how proud I am to be a female and how interesting it is that, like the women in Six, we are often overshadowed. Even today in my home state our rights are being violated and taken away (I am not even going to get into it), but that does not mean that we don’t deserve to tell our stories, vocalize our opinions, and take ownership of what it is to be a woman.
Just for your viewing pleasure, I have included one thing in the museum that made total sense: Ben & Shiloh fondly embracing at the barre and one thing that made no sense at all: a ketchup bottle signed by Ed Sheeran. Ed’s signature is small, you can barely see it, and it was sad compared to its surroundings but hey, the English are so supportive of one another and that’s really cute.
Theatre in London U of A 