VERIDIANA PIOVEZAN
Scenic intentions and costume’s agency in the opera Salome
ABSTRACT
This presentation is part of the academic research developed for the Master’s Degree in Performing Arts at UDESC (University of State of Santa Catarina, Brazil), which analyzes two productions of the opera Salome, by Richard Strauss: one made for the Royal Opera House (2008), by David McVicar and the other for the Municipal Theater of São Paulo (2014), by Livia Sabag.
The study focuses on the artistic creation of costume in contemporary operatic production, taking into perspective the idea that it is embodied in a dramatic discourse, acting as a mean to express the social, psychological and political contents of the opera.
Thus, it emphasizes the scenic intentions and iconographic references for the staging, as well as the agency of costumes throughout both performances, giving special consideration to the Dance of the Seven Veils’ scene, performed with entirely different scenic approaches. Costumes conceived for this scene reveal the complexity of human relationships, behavioral subtleties, moral and spiritual lassitude.
Given that costumes are shaped from the correlation between creation and execution, design and crafting processes for the Brazilian production are also examined hereby in order to perceive that their manufacturing is related to the singers’ body and the construction of characters.
BIOGRAPHY
Veridiana Piovezan is a costume designer and teacher whose studies in History, Costume, and Performing Arts were completed in Brazil and Italy. Her experience includes costume creation and production for opera, theater and cinema, as well as lectures in different notorious Fashion and Performing Arts schools in São Paulo, such as the SP School of Theater, SENAC, Panamericana – School of Art and Design, and at the School of Communications and Arts, part of the University of São Paulo, as a guest teacher.
Between 2013 and 2014, she was the costume producer for 14 opera productions in São Paulo’s Municipal Theater. Among her works she designed the costumes for Salome, chosen as the best opera in 2014 by an expert jury. In 2016, she was part of the costume production team for the opening and closing ceremonies of the Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro.
Photo credits Image 01:
Dance of the Seven Veils’ scene – Municipal Theater of São Paulo (photo Heloisa Ballarini/TMSP)
Photo credits image 2:
Dance of the Seven Veils’ scene – Royal Opera House (photo Clive Barda/ROH)
General Credits for my presentation referring to both productions:
Opera Salomé by Richard Strauss, Royal Opera House, London,2008, staging: David McVicar, designer: Es Devlin.
Opera Salomé by Richard Strauss, Municipal Theatre of São Paulo, São Paulo, 2014, staging Livia Sabag, set designer Nicolás Boni, costume designer Veridiana Piovezan.