Costume has the power to stun audiences with its beauty and pageantry, to create an authentic reality, and even to shock and disturb. This unique overview of costume for performance explores the ways in which the costumed body is fundamental in the construction of meaning for audiences and performers within a range of artistic, cultural, and historical contexts.
Offering a fresh perspective on costume in fashion, art, and theatrics, Barbieri emphasizes costume’s value as a topic for critical debate. Including numerous contemporary case studies ranging from the influential work of Julie Taymor, Martha Graham, and Leigh Bowery through to ballet, circus, and the spectacles of the Olympic ceremonies, the book also surveys costume’s historical roots in ritual and traditional dance. With chapters exploring themes such as authenticity, the grotesque and exaggerated body, and technology in the post-dramatic era, Costume in Performance draws on global examples from ancient Greece to the surreal theatre of Switzerland to highlight how costume is approached internationally.
Accessibly written and beautifully illustrated, this book will be essential reading for students and scholars of costume design, fashion studies, performance studies, as well as practitioners.
