The Victoria and Albert Museum was so amazing, and I loved looking around and seeing and learning about all the artifacts from the different time periods and places. I’ve decided to talk about two articles of clothing that I found in the fashion gallery. I know I’m only supposed to talk about one item, but the clothes were displayed in the same case and they shared one information plaque.
When I first saw these items, I was instantly reminded of Hamilton and the costumes the actors were wearing. Both the men’s coat and the gown looked very similar to the cast costumes, so I decided to look up what time period Hamilton was set in. I found out that the costumes and the artifacts represented about the same time. Hamilton was set between 1776 – 1804 and the coat and gown were from 1760 – 1769 and 1770 – 1779 respectively. The coat in the museum was a little different from the one in the show. The museum coat had a noticeably longer torso compared to the costume coats. I think this difference in length is due to the seven-year gap between the two time periods. The difference in length could also be attributed to the fact that the artifact comes from Great Britain and Hamiton showed fashion from an American point of view. Another reason could be that the costume coats had to be shortened to allow for the actors to move better, especially while they are dancing. In the show the coat was worn by Aaron Burr and General Washington before and during the war. More cast members wore the coat after the war, playing as members of the cabinet. These men were sophisticated, and had power and responsibility, and I could see each of them wearing this French Silk Velvet Coat. The gown looked very similar to the dresses the Schuyler sisters were wearing. This is probably because the time the gown was from was closer to the time Hamilton was set and actually their time frames overlap by three years. Just like the coat, the gown looked to have been worn by a woman from a high status class and that’s how the Schuyler sisters were portrayed in the show.
I think that the clothes from the museum reflect how the world of play uses costumes to influence the mood and audience. The gowns in the show were brightly colored but didn’t really have any patterns, however the gown from the museum was white with a detailed dark blue floral pattern, it reminded me of a teacup. I feel this is an important difference because it shows how Hamilton took some creative liberties and had more fun with the color to lift the mood and make the play less serious. The color of the dresses was also used to differentiate between the sisters. Each sister had a distinct color. The intricate patterns on the dress would not have been of use to the play, because the audience was too far away to appreciate the details.
Theatre in London U of A 