Exhibition offers a vivid and immersive journey through nearly 400 years of opera
This autumn the Victoria and Albert Museum, in collaboration with the Royal Opera House, created a vivid and immersive journey through nearly 400 years of opera, exploring its passion, power and politics. The only exhibition ever to explore opera on a grand scale, it immerses visitors in some key moments of the history of European opera from its roots in Renaissance Italy to its present-day form, by focusing on seven operatic premieres in seven cities. It reveals how opera brings together multiple art forms to create a multi-sensory work of art, and show how social, political, artistic and economic factors interact with great moments in the history of opera to tell a story of Europe over hundreds of years. More than 300 extraordinary objects, including important international loans, are being shown alongside digital footage of compelling opera performances. Objects on display include Salvador Dali’s costume design for Peter Bro