Maria Callas' allure goes beyond her voice. Her style, grace, and visual heritage are equally iconic. Thus, her wardrobe became a storytelling tool for the costume designer of the film Maria, starring Angelina Jolie.
The film about Maria Callas' life premieres in Greek cinemas on December 5, while its avant-premiere took place at the Megaro Mousikis on the evening of November 25th.
For Massimo Cantini Parrini, designing the costumes for Maria was a deeply immersive process.
"Beyond the most iconic photographs that we had all seen sooner or later of Maria Callas, I was also able to dig deeper and deeper in my research to find other pictures of where she was portrayed at homes of friends, dining out—a number of events that were not typically those linked to her professional life," Parrini noted.
"That was a great inspiration, and it allowed me to imagine and create her wardrobe, which spans throughout the ’50s, ’60s, and ’70s," the designer added.
Photographs, videos and archival material provided a rich basis for his designs. However, the research wasn't just about reproduction but about recreating Callas' essence.
Working closely with director Pablo Larraín and Angelina Jolie, Cantini Parrini designed around sixty dresses, fifty of which were used in the film.
His work was particularly challenging for the film's black-and-white sequences, where the absence of colour required increased attention to texture, silhouette, and detail.
Jolie, for her part, described the costumes as essential not only to her portrayal of Callas but also to her connection to the character. She recounted how a simple robe became pivotal in understanding Calla's private side.
Paired with house slippers and glasses, the look established Callas as the person behind the legendary soprano.
Instead, the dramatic costumes that Callas wore on stage transported Jolie to another world, combining her own identity, Callas' persona, and the operatic characters that Callas played.
Callas' clothes are not simply replicas of her past attire but symbols that communicate her dual identity as both a personality and a universal symbol. Photographs, fabric samples, and garments allow researchers to decipher the meaning behind each design.
Similarly, Callas' costumes in Maria illustrate how archival research becomes the foundation for the narrative, creating a dialogue between historical authenticity and contemporary interpretation.
As Parrini noted, "Clothes are the first thing people see."
This highlights the importance of collaboration between costume designers and researchers to create a visual language that bridges history and art, connecting images from the past to the present cultural landscape.
The movie "Maria" will premiere in Greek cinemas on 5/12 and then be available on Cinobo.
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