From April 17 to September 6, the Sali delle Arti of the Reggia di Venaria (Venaria Reale, Turin) hosts the exhibition ''Queens on Stage,'' a spectacular journey through cinema, history, and imagination, where costume becomes storytelling and the queen a timeless icon.
''Queens on Stage'' explores how cinema, since its origins, has constructed and transformed the figure of the queen: a symbol of royalty, power, authority, and allure, often going beyond historical truth to give life to a universal archetype, suspended between myth, history, and fantasy.
The heart of the exhibition is cinematic costume. The exhibition presents a refined selection of dresses that have definitively captured the image of queens on the big screen, authentic works of art created by historic tailoring ateliers of international cinema.
Among the iconic figures on display:
The tale of female sovereignty engages profoundly with the history of the Venaria Reale, harking back to its seventeenth-century origins, when the Duchesses Christina of France and Marie Jeanne Baptiste of Savoy Nemours played a central role in the complex's creation and development.
The exhibition is curated by Massimo Cantini Parrini, an internationally renowned costume designer, two-time Oscar nominee, winner of six David di Donatello Awards (the last in 2025 for Gianluca Jodice's Le déluge: The Last Days of Marie Antoinette, filmed at the Venaria Reale) and six Nastri d'Argento Awards, in collaboration with the Consortium's Study Center.
✨ Queens on Stage is a tribute to the power of images, the power of cinema, and the enduring allure of queens.
''Queens on Stage'' explores how cinema, since its origins, has constructed and transformed the figure of the queen: a symbol of royalty, power, authority, and allure, often going beyond historical truth to give life to a universal archetype, suspended between myth, history, and fantasy.
The heart of the exhibition is cinematic costume. The exhibition presents a refined selection of dresses that have definitively captured the image of queens on the big screen, authentic works of art created by historic tailoring ateliers of international cinema.
Among the iconic figures on display:
- Marie Antoinette played by Kirsten Dunst in the Sofia Coppola film (2006), with costumes by Milena Canonero;
- the legendary Medea from Medea, played by Maria Callas, with costumes by Piero Tosi;
- the fairytale Queen of Selvascura from Matteo Garrone's Tale of Tales, played by Salma Hayek, with costumes by Massimo Cantini Parrini.
The tale of female sovereignty engages profoundly with the history of the Venaria Reale, harking back to its seventeenth-century origins, when the Duchesses Christina of France and Marie Jeanne Baptiste of Savoy Nemours played a central role in the complex's creation and development.
The exhibition is curated by Massimo Cantini Parrini, an internationally renowned costume designer, two-time Oscar nominee, winner of six David di Donatello Awards (the last in 2025 for Gianluca Jodice's Le déluge: The Last Days of Marie Antoinette, filmed at the Venaria Reale) and six Nastri d'Argento Awards, in collaboration with the Consortium's Study Center.
✨ Queens on Stage is a tribute to the power of images, the power of cinema, and the enduring allure of queens.