SÃO PAULO, BRAZIL – Musicals were responsible for some of the most fashionable movies in the history of cinema. Funny Face (1957), by Stanley Donen, portrayed Audrey Hepburn as a shy bookstore saleswoman in Greenwich Village who became a supermodel in Paris in the 1950s, with Fred Astaire playing a fashion photographer inspired by Richard Avedon.
This year, Rocketman, Elton John’s film biography, took to the screens more than 85 extravagant costumes created by British designer Julian Day. Two of them are on display at the exhibition “Musicais no Cinema” (“Musicals in Cinema”), which opened on November 13th at the Museu da Imagem e do Som – MIS (“Sound and Pictures Museum”), in São Paulo.
Conceived by Musée de la Musique – Philharmonie de Paris (Museum of music – Paris Philharmonic) and unprecedented in the Americas, the exhibition traces a panorama of the universe of the musical genre in national and international cinema from the beginning of musical cinema to the award-winning La La Land (2016).
In addition to Rocketman’s outfits, it includes photographs, posters, production documents and a series of unpublished testimonials on the genre’s great classics, including Singing in the Rain (1952), West Side Story (1961), La La Land (2016) and Dancer in the Dark (2000), directed by Lars von Trier and starred by singer Björk. In another area, an immersive projection room displays a large editing with scenes from musical classics.
National productions have not been left out, with a part of the show specifically dedicated to them. Carmen Miranda is honored in an exclusive area, with a turban signed by the French hatter Lilly Daché and worn in the film That Night in Rio, in 1941, granted by the Carmen Miranda Museum. The iconic Brazilian singer was recently honored at the Metropolitan Musem (MET), in New York, at an exhibition dedicated to Camp, and is one of the greatest symbols of national identity to this day.
This sector is also dedicated to movies produced for young audiences from the 1960s onwards. ‘Jovem Guarda’ is represented in parts of the trilogy of films starred by Roberto Carlos and directed by Roberto Farias. Those preferring the new wave aesthetics of the 1980s will enjoy movies such as ‘Bete Balanço’ (1984), which launched Debora Bloch in the movies; ‘Areias Escaldantes’ (1985), with the Titãs and Regina Casé; and ‘Rock Estrela’ (1986), with Leo Jaime, Diogo Vilela and Malu Mader.
The livelier visitors may rehearse some dance steps during the exhibition, as the round space at MIS becomes an immense dance floor, where visitors may mimic Gene Kelly, Ginger Rogers or John Travolta. To help in this mission, actress Claudia Raia, one of the greatest stars in Brazilian musical theater, gives a tap dance class for beginners, in a video recorded specifically for the exhibition – as well as being the voice of the audioguide following the show.
The show covers the two exhibition floors of MIS and has an extensive parallel program that involves movie screenings, courses, workshops, lectures, and children’s activities.
The exhibition was conceived by the Musée de la Musique – Philharmonie de Paris.