Turandot O divina bellezza! O sogno! O meraviglia!

The exhibition, staged in several rooms of the museum, will recount the complex process of bringing Puccini’s grand opera to the La Scala stage through period images, stage photographs, news reports and original documents, offering visitors the thrill of experiencing first-hand the opening night of a century ago.

At the heart of the exhibition are two extraordinary historical costumes from Turandot, complete with jewellery and accessories, which were actually used in the 1926 premiere. They were rediscovered a few years ago by the Prato Textile Museum and have undergone careful conservation restoration in the museum’s own workshops. Visitors will also be able to admire two original sketches by Galileo Chini and the costume designs by Umberto Brunelleschi, which were not used for the Milan premiere but served as the model for all subsequent ‘premieres’ in Italy and the rest of the world, as was the case in New York on 16 November 1926: the exhibition concludes with the costume for the second act, bequeathed to the Museum by Maria Jeritza, the star of that memorable production at the Metropolitan Opera House.

The exhibition, curated by Simonetta Bigongiari, director of the Puccini Museum, and Daniela Degl’Innocenti, curator of the Museo del Tessuto, is organised by the Giacomo Puccini Foundation – Puccini Museum Birthplace in collaboration with the Museo del Tessuto, Prato.

The exhibition is open during the Puccini Museum’s opening hours. 
Guided tours – in Italian – every Saturday and on the third Sunday of the month at 12:00. In English every Friday from June to September at 12:00. Duration: approximately 1 hour; included in the entrance fee.