There’s a small but interesting exhibition in the Royal Opera House looking back at the career of the soprano Maria Callas in this year, the centenary of her birth.
As a display, it’s mainly a mix of photographs from her performances in London and a few adverts. There’s also some commentary from reviews at the time. I think it’s fair to say that this isn’t an exhibition to tell you who Maria Callas, more a small celebration of her for people who already know who she was and why she was famous.
The exhibition is open until November 2023.
Fortunately though, there are two other exhibitions in the same room which help to, ahem, pad out a visit.
One marks another centenary, of Nicholas Georgiadis, a Greek-born painter and stage designer who was a prolific creator of the stage sets for the Royal Opera House and the Ballet over several decades. The exhibition boards show off a number of the stage sets he designed, interspersed with the costumes he also worked on.
And finally, a small display in the corner is of four tiaras, made for performances. All made from imitation jewels, and the accompanying notes explain some of the design details, such as the fine mesh (crin) used to secure the tiaras to the wearer’s head, and why some are made mainly of fabric rather than metal.
The exhibition is free to visit, and open Monday to Saturday from 12 noon until 10pm, or the start of the evening performance, and on Sundays when there’s a performance.
The exhibitions are up on the 5th floor foyer in the Royal Opera House, and the easiest way to find it is either to use the lifts, or more appealingly, go up to the 1st floor, then take the very long escalator to the top.
A tip, I’d visit earlier in the day, as the exhibition space is also the reception for people attending a performance, and it’ll be busy in the evenings. Oh, and don’t forget to admire the view from the top as well, which is worth popping in to see just for that alone.
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