Modernizing Costume Design, 1820�1920 (Routledge Advances in Theatre & Performance Studies)

Summary

Annie Holt identifies the roots of contemporary Euro-American practices of costume design, in which costumes are an integrated part of the dramaturgy rather than a reflection of an individual performer's taste or status. She argues that in the period 1820-1920, as part of the larger project of modernism across the artistic and cultural field, the functions of clothing and costume diverged. Onstage apparel took on a more specific semiotic task, acting as a fresh channel for the flow of information between the performer, the literary text, and the spectator.