Photograph
1936 (photographed)
| Artist/Maker | |
| Place of origin |
Oliver Messel (1904-1978) was Britain's leading theatre designer of the 1930s, '40s and '50s. He created settings and costumes for all forms of entertainment - ballet, drama, film, musical, opera and revue - as well as working in interior decoration and textile design. His lavish, painterly and romantic concepts were perfectly in tune with the times and earned him an international reputation. By 1960, however, that style was becoming unfashionable, and Messel gradually abandoned theatre and built a new career designing luxury homes in the Caribbean.
Romeo and Juliet was Messel's third film and his first for Hollywood. He designed the settings with the production's art director, Cedric Gibbons, and the costumes with MGM's principal costume designer, Adrian (Adrian Adolph Greenberg). Romeo and Juliet were played by Leslie Howard and Norma Shearer.
Norma Shearer was one of the most popular film actresses during the 1930s. She began her career in silent film but made the transition to talking pictures in 1929. She received an Academy Award for her performance in The Divorcee in 1931.
In this sequence, Juliet appears at the Capulet's ball where she first meets Romeo. The dress Shearer wears in this scene is silver satin, which captures all the light in the room, highlighting her face and at once distinguishing Juliet from the other dancers.
Romeo and Juliet was Messel's third film and his first for Hollywood. He designed the settings with the production's art director, Cedric Gibbons, and the costumes with MGM's principal costume designer, Adrian (Adrian Adolph Greenberg). Romeo and Juliet were played by Leslie Howard and Norma Shearer.
Norma Shearer was one of the most popular film actresses during the 1930s. She began her career in silent film but made the transition to talking pictures in 1929. She received an Academy Award for her performance in The Divorcee in 1931.
In this sequence, Juliet appears at the Capulet's ball where she first meets Romeo. The dress Shearer wears in this scene is silver satin, which captures all the light in the room, highlighting her face and at once distinguishing Juliet from the other dancers.
Object details
| Categories | |
| Object type | |
| Materials and techniques | photographic print |
| Brief description | Black and white photograph of the set for the film of William Shakespeare's play Romeo and Juliet, 1936, designed by Oliver Messel. |
| Physical description | Black and white photograph of the set for the film of William Shakespeare's play Romeo and Juliet, 1936, designed by Oliver Messel. |
| 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 | Romeo and Juliet was directed by George Cukor and produced by Irving Thalberg. It starred Leslie Howard as Romeo and Norma Shearer as Juliet. Oliver Messel was the designer and artist consultant, working with Cedric Gibbons on the sets and with Adrian on costumes. Lord Snowdon, Oliver Messel's nephew, inherited Messel's theatre designs and other designs and artefacts. The designs were briefly stored in a disused chapel in Kensington Palace before being housed at the V&A from 1981 on indefinite loan. The V&A Theatre Museum purchased the Oliver Messel collection from Lord Snowdon in 2005. |
| Summary | Oliver Messel (1904-1978) was Britain's leading theatre designer of the 1930s, '40s and '50s. He created settings and costumes for all forms of entertainment - ballet, drama, film, musical, opera and revue - as well as working in interior decoration and textile design. His lavish, painterly and romantic concepts were perfectly in tune with the times and earned him an international reputation. By 1960, however, that style was becoming unfashionable, and Messel gradually abandoned theatre and built a new career designing luxury homes in the Caribbean. Romeo and Juliet was Messel's third film and his first for Hollywood. He designed the settings with the production's art director, Cedric Gibbons, and the costumes with MGM's principal costume designer, Adrian (Adrian Adolph Greenberg). Romeo and Juliet were played by Leslie Howard and Norma Shearer. Norma Shearer was one of the most popular film actresses during the 1930s. She began her career in silent film but made the transition to talking pictures in 1929. She received an Academy Award for her performance in The Divorcee in 1931. In this sequence, Juliet appears at the Capulet's ball where she first meets Romeo. The dress Shearer wears in this scene is silver satin, which captures all the light in the room, highlighting her face and at once distinguishing Juliet from the other dancers. |
| 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
ISBN 0905209508) |
| Other number | ROT 7135 - TM Rotation Number |
| Collection | |
| Accession number | S.6395-2009 |
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| Record created | March 19, 2010 |
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