Haute couture finds a home at Cinecittà si Mostra, where starting December 14, it will be possible to experience the atmosphere of exquisite movie sets and fashion shows thanks to costumes designed by Anthony Vaccarello for Saint Laurent for Paolo Sorrentino’s movie Parthenope, which has just celebrated one million tickets at the box office. The permanent exhibition within the Roman studios will allow film buffs and moviegoers of all ages to admire up close the sumptuous original stage garments designed by costume designer Carlo Poggioli and made by the French Maison under the creative direction of Anthony Vaccarello. To underline the deep bond between Saint Laurent and cinema, last year Vaccarello created  Saint Laurent Productions, a registered subsidiary of Saint Laurent which marks the first time a luxury brand has launched a dedicated film division. The costumes that arrived from Paris to Cinecittà si Mostra are among the first made for a film co-produced by Saint Laurent Productions.

A silver embroidered dress in silk georgette and an evening dress in black satin with a deep V-neckline and side slit combined with a brown ribbed faux mink fur coat, both worn by Celeste Dalla Porta, are on display, together with the unforgettable mise inspired by divas of the past consisting of a gold-laminated jersey cape and a dress in the same fabric with a sweetheart neckline worn by Luisa Ranieri in the role of Greta Cool. Alongside these sexy and iconic models that deliberately recall historic YSL designs, the sensational jewel dress worn by Celeste Dalla Porta in the scene with the Bishop, played by Peppe Lanzetta: a miter, a necklace, and a jeweled belt studded with stones, created by Poggioli’s pencil, inspired by the Treasure of San Gennaro and expertly handcrafted by Pikkio, a leading company in the creation of film and theater jewelry.

As for men, the exhibition is enriched with Gary Oldman’s timeless white linen suit, in which the actor played the role of writer John Cheever. Created by Cesare Attolini, this leading brand of excellence has been well-known as a great Neapolitan tailoring tradition since the 30s, with clients such as Totò, Marcello Mastroianni, Vittorio De Sica, and Clarke Gable. Even today, such craftsmanship goes hand-to-hand with fabrics of rare quality and strict workmanship, which is why for years, Paolo Sorrentino, together with his partner Carlo Poggioli, has chosen the brand to dress his leading actors, from Michael Caine in Youth to Toni Servillo in Loro, from Jude Law and John Malkovich in the series The Young Pope and The New Pope.

Linked to stories from other worlds and distant eras are other costumes arriving at Cinecittà si Mostra and worn by the most glamorous stars with a focus on myth and fairy tales.

One and for all, the armored suit (Sartoria Tirelli) created by Gabriella Pescucci and Carlo Poggioli for the Oscar-winning actor Heath Ledger in the role of Jacob Grimm in The Brothers Grimm (2005) directed by Terry Gilliam, accompanied by other ethereal creations (Tirelli) designed by Oscar-winner Pescucci’s pencil for Titania, in the adaptation of A Midsummer Night’s Dream (1999), starring Michelle Pfeiffer and her fairies, shot in Cinecittà by Michael Hoffmann in the historic Stage 5, where he recreated the magnificent forest where humans and fairy spirits meet and dance, amid diversions and amorous pranks.

Monica Bellucci plays a television fairy in The Wonders by Alice Rohrwacher (2014) in the role of Milly Catena wearing a dress (Sartoria Farani) with a showy headpiece created by Loredana Buscemi that recalls the sparkling costumes of legendary Raffaella Carrà with a touch of Etruscan suggestions.

The new selection features a tribute to the 90^th birthday of the Italian diva par excellence, Sophia Loren, with a costume by Isabella Candeloro (Collezione Costumi d’Arte Peruzzi) in More Than a Miracle (1967) by Francesco Rosi, accompanied by the costume worn by Omar Shariff in the role of Rodrigo Fernandez (Sartoria Tirelli), Loren’s partner in the film. Both outfits were designed by Giulio Coltellacci and testify not only to the fairytale nature of the subject but also to the theatrical training of the costume designer, who spent much of his career backstage in theaters worldwide.

Two costumes worn by Maria Callas (Sartoria Tirelli) are steeped in history as they were created by one of the masters of Italian costume designers, Academy Award winner for Lifetime Achievement Piero Tosi, who in 1969 dressed ‘the Divine’ for Pier Paolo Pasolini’s Medea. These costumes can be considered sacred, being inspired by folk clothes of ethnic groups of a faraway past made of cotton gauze and pleated by hand following ancient techniques, then dyed and left to dry in the sun “in the Egyptian manner,” as Tosi himself loved to say.

“This selection pays homage to the fairy-tale, fable-like, and mythological imagery of historical and contemporary costumes, featuring great Oscar-winning designers such as Piero Tosi and Gabriella Pescucci,” explains Barbara Goretti, curator of the selection and head of Cinecittà si Mostra, “Stage costumes but also jewels, that convey the symbols of fantasy stories, or their references set in reality. The focus on the movie Parthenope, a story that explores the vital and energetic reality of the protagonist, born in the sea like a mythical mermaid, enhances the work of costume designer Carlo Poggioli, thanks to the collaboration with Saint Laurent, who offered such a precious patrimony, together with that of Cesare Attolini: a relationship between fashion and cinema that Cinecittà si Mostra is proud to display.”

For the creation of the new selection of 14 dresses, ‘Cinecittà si Mostra’ thanks: Saint Laurent by Anthony Vaccarello; Cesare Attolini S.p.A.; Carlo Poggioli and A.S.C Associazione Italiana Scenografi Costumisti Arredatori (the Italian Association of Set Designers, Costume Designers and Decorators), Fenice Calzature.

JEWELS IN DISPLAY

Cinecittà si Mostra is a narration of film professions through permanent and temporary exhibitions hosted in glass cases. It wishes to enhance the high craftsmanship of these professionals, who have contributed and contribute significantly and valuably to a film’s success. This is why the selection includes wigs made by Rocchetti, footwear by Fenice, and jewels by Pikkio.

Among the latter, in addition to the accessories that complete the costumes on display, the exhibition presents a new focus on stage jewelry, among which two magnificent gold filigree necklaces with white and salmon-colored pearls designed by Massimo Cantini Parrini from Matteo Garrone’s film Tale of Tales (2015).

Cantini Parrini’s imagination has also provided three refined floral applications worn in Ophelia (2018), while two marine-themed crowns with shells and corals are from the film Misericordia (2023) by Emma Dante, created by costume designer Vanessa Sannino. Also on display is a crown from the theatrical tragedy “Richard III” with Alessandro Gassmann, designed by Mariano Tufano and inspired by the one worn by Charlize Theron in Snow White and the Huntsman (2012), and a filigree tiara, a remake of the original from The Taming of the Shrew (1968) created for Elizabeth Taylor by 5-time Oscar winner costume designer Irene Sharaff.

A display case with jewelry, a cape, and a knitted headdress designed by Mitchell Travers and worn by the protagonist, Kaitlyn Dever, is entirely dedicated to the romantic comedy Rosaline (2022).

Info and ticketing at cinecitta.com/en/visit/visitor-information