The Victorian stage actor Ellen Terry had a near-supernatural ability to enthral. According to her son, “she spread herself out and encompassed the stalls, the pit, gallery and somehow the air”. The same might be said of the V&A’s new fashion exhibition, which explores the lives of leading divas from Terry’s days to now.
The mix of fabulous costumes, fashion illustrations, posters, photography and sound will showcase, in the words of curator Kate Bailey, “the diva as an expression of femininity, flamboyance and power”. Yet the show also challenges the term’s double edge: the word originally meant “goddess”, but now praises and damns hardworking creative women in equal measure. As such, the exhibition is set to burst diva territory wide open.
