If you’re someone who’s dazzled by the design of a show and love the character-defining clothing worn by the cast, there’s a new must-see exhibition opening this week that shines a spotlight on Showstoppers! Spectacular Costumes from Stage and Screen. Presented by the Costume Industry Coalition, the limited eight-week engagement, opening on Thursday, August 5, in a 20,000-square-foot space on West 42nd Street – the former home of Modell’s, located between Times Square and the Garment District, in the heart of the New York Theater District – features fabulous fashions from Broadway, Off-Broadway, National Tours, the movies, TV, and other iconic performances.
Designed by the award-winning international exhibition firm Thinc Design, the immersive experience includes more than 100 of the industry’s most complex eye-popping garments, offering an up-close-and-personal view of the extraordinary craftsmanship and detail that you don’t always get from your seat in the theater. Along with the costumes are interactive installations, demonstrations of techniques and skills by costume-makers and costuming experts who create, supply, and care for the outfits, and multimedia elements that give a rare behind-the-scenes look at the process.
Brian Blythe of John Kristiansen New York, Inc., and a founding member of the CIC, noted, “While so many parts of the entertainment industry are announcing reopening plans, the majority of our members continue to feel the impact of being mostly dormant for more than a year. The generosity of our partners, donors, and clients – who are lending us over 100 amazing costumes – will not only be a wonderful way to raise money for our Recovery Fund, but will help showcase our talented workforce of costuming experts.”
Among the displays are costumes from the Broadway productions of A Soldier’s Play, Aladdin, Chicago, Come From Away, The Cher Show, Dear Evan Hansen, Frozen, Golden Child, Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, The Lion King, Moulin Rouge! The Musical, Mrs. Doubtfire, The Phantom of the Opera, SIX, and Wicked; TV’s The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, Dickinson, and Saturday Night Live; and the films Respect and No Time to Die. There are also costumes from dance (including American Ballet Theatre, the Martha Graham Dance Company, New York City Ballet, and San Francisco Ballet), opera, Disney World, Norwegian Cruise Lines, Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus, and other favorites from the world of entertainment.
Showstoppers! Spectacular Costumes from Stage and Screen is open Wednesdays-Saturdays, August 5-September 26, 2021, from 10 am-10 pm, at 234 West 42nd Street, NYC. For tickets, priced at $29 for adults and $24 for seniors, students, and children, go online. To maintain optimal capacity within the exhibit and COVID safety standards, it is imperative that all ticketholders enter at their reserved time; everyone is required to wear a mask throughout the exhibit, except in designated mask-free zones, and encouraged to use hand sanitizer whenever offered. All proceeds will support the Costume Industry Coalition Recovery Fund, which remains one of the hardest hit sectors of the entertainment industry.
