Caesar and Cleopatra
Theatre Costume
1945 (designed)
1945 (designed)
| Artist/Maker | |
| Place of origin |
In 1944 designer Oliver Messel was released from his war duties to work on the film Caesar and Cleopatra, adapted from George Bernard Shaw's play. Messel was responsible for the costumes and the interior of the sets, imaginatively interpreting Roman Egyptian dress and decor in the context of the mid 1940s. The film cost over £1 million, and brought a welcome sense of extravagance and colour into a drab post-war world. Surprisingly, given his sense of colour, Messel never worked on another colour film.
Vivien Leigh (1913-1967) played the role of Cleopatra. Messel designed a number of wigs for her, each in an instantly recognisable Egyptian style. This one is formed on a moulded 'cap' which is neatly covered by hair and has braids attached round the base. As the wig has to be seen in close-up, it must appear realistic, but Messel has used some tricks of the trade to make it attractive and comfortable. The hair on the cap is held in place at the lower edge by a thin band of black tape. This was not visible on camera as it was concealed beneath a tasselled circlet. The gold bead at the end of each braid is firmly attached to the hair and is weighted to make the braid hang straight. At the back of the head the braids are loosely held together by a concealed black tape which helps to maintain an attractive shape, and a pad at the base of the cap cushions the wearer's neck and pushes the braids outwards.
Oliver Messel (1904-1978) was Britain's leading theatre designer from the early 1930s to the mid 1950s, working in every aspect of entertainment - ballet, drama, film, musical, opera and revue - as well as in interior decoration and textile design. His lavish, painterly and romantic designs informed by period styles, were perfectly in tune with his times and earned him an international reputation. By 1960, however, Messel's style had become unfashionable, having no sympathy with the new 'kitchen sink' school of theatre. He increasingly concentrated on non-theatrical painting and designing and eventually retired to the Caribbean, where he began a new career designing and building highly idiosyncratic luxury villas.
Vivien Leigh (1913-1967) played the role of Cleopatra. Messel designed a number of wigs for her, each in an instantly recognisable Egyptian style. This one is formed on a moulded 'cap' which is neatly covered by hair and has braids attached round the base. As the wig has to be seen in close-up, it must appear realistic, but Messel has used some tricks of the trade to make it attractive and comfortable. The hair on the cap is held in place at the lower edge by a thin band of black tape. This was not visible on camera as it was concealed beneath a tasselled circlet. The gold bead at the end of each braid is firmly attached to the hair and is weighted to make the braid hang straight. At the back of the head the braids are loosely held together by a concealed black tape which helps to maintain an attractive shape, and a pad at the base of the cap cushions the wearer's neck and pushes the braids outwards.
Oliver Messel (1904-1978) was Britain's leading theatre designer from the early 1930s to the mid 1950s, working in every aspect of entertainment - ballet, drama, film, musical, opera and revue - as well as in interior decoration and textile design. His lavish, painterly and romantic designs informed by period styles, were perfectly in tune with his times and earned him an international reputation. By 1960, however, Messel's style had become unfashionable, having no sympathy with the new 'kitchen sink' school of theatre. He increasingly concentrated on non-theatrical painting and designing and eventually retired to the Caribbean, where he began a new career designing and building highly idiosyncratic luxury villas.
Object details
| Categories | |
| Object type | |
| Title | Caesar and Cleopatra (generic title) |
| Materials and techniques | Hair, wig net, buckram, cotton tape, metal and composition |
| Brief description | Wig for Cleopatra designed by Oliver Messel for the film Caesar and Cleopatra, adapted from the play by George Bernard Shaw, released 1945. |
| Physical description | Braided wig of mid-brown hair on a stiffened 'cap' lined with black net, with a pad covered in black net at the back of the neck. The cap is covered by hair radiating from a central point and held by a thin net tape at the lower edge. To the cap are attached narrow braids, each made by winding the hair round a length of black padding, and each ending in a metal 'bead' formed of one half of a ridged old-gold metal case with a gold painted composition filling. To each side of the face a line of small gold irregular shapes is woven into the hair. The braids at the back of the head are held together by a thin black cotton tape. |
| Dimensions |
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| Credit line | Acquired with the support of the National Lottery Heritage Fund, Art Fund and the Friends of the V&A |
| Object history | The film of George Bernard Shaw's play Caesar and Cleopatra , starring Claude Rains and Vivien Leigh, was directed by Gabriel Pascal and released in England in 1945. Messel designed the costumes and the set interiors. It was the only colour film which he designed. Lord Snowdon, Oliver Messel's nephew, inherited Messel's remaining designs and artefacts (many designs were sold or given away during the artist's lifetime). The collection was briefly stored in a disused chapel in Kensington Palace before being placed on indefinite loan to the V&ATheatre Museum from 1981. The Oliver Messel Collection was purchased from Lord Snowdon in 2005 with the aid of the Heritage Lottery Fund, the Art Fund and the Friends of the V&A. |
| Production | Made for the film of George Bernard Shaw's Caesar and Cleopatra, released in England in 1945 |
| Summary | In 1944 designer Oliver Messel was released from his war duties to work on the film Caesar and Cleopatra, adapted from George Bernard Shaw's play. Messel was responsible for the costumes and the interior of the sets, imaginatively interpreting Roman Egyptian dress and decor in the context of the mid 1940s. The film cost over £1 million, and brought a welcome sense of extravagance and colour into a drab post-war world. Surprisingly, given his sense of colour, Messel never worked on another colour film. Vivien Leigh (1913-1967) played the role of Cleopatra. Messel designed a number of wigs for her, each in an instantly recognisable Egyptian style. This one is formed on a moulded 'cap' which is neatly covered by hair and has braids attached round the base. As the wig has to be seen in close-up, it must appear realistic, but Messel has used some tricks of the trade to make it attractive and comfortable. The hair on the cap is held in place at the lower edge by a thin band of black tape. This was not visible on camera as it was concealed beneath a tasselled circlet. The gold bead at the end of each braid is firmly attached to the hair and is weighted to make the braid hang straight. At the back of the head the braids are loosely held together by a concealed black tape which helps to maintain an attractive shape, and a pad at the base of the cap cushions the wearer's neck and pushes the braids outwards. Oliver Messel (1904-1978) was Britain's leading theatre designer from the early 1930s to the mid 1950s, working in every aspect of entertainment - ballet, drama, film, musical, opera and revue - as well as in interior decoration and textile design. His lavish, painterly and romantic designs informed by period styles, were perfectly in tune with his times and earned him an international reputation. By 1960, however, Messel's style had become unfashionable, having no sympathy with the new 'kitchen sink' school of theatre. He increasingly concentrated on non-theatrical painting and designing and eventually retired to the Caribbean, where he began a new career designing and building highly idiosyncratic luxury villas. |
| Bibliographic reference | Pinkham, Roger (ed.) Oliver Messel: an exhibition held at the Theatre Museum, Victoria and Albert Museum, 22 June - 30 September 1983. London: Victoria and Albert Museum, 1983. 200p., ill |
| Collection | |
| Accession number | S.9-2007 |
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| Record created | March 17, 2009 |
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