Costume

Our Theatre and Performance collections include over 3,500 stage costumes and accessories dating from the mid-18th century to today. From complete outfits to individual headdresses, they are a tribute to the creativity and skills of designers and costume makers working in every kind of performance: drama, opera, dance, musicals, pantomime, rock and pop, music hall, film, cabaret and circus.

Search “Costume” in Explore the Collections

Features

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Conserving a clown costume

See the processes involved in conserving a sequinned clown costume

  1. Watch

    Costume design: SIX the Musical – Catherine of Aragon

    Discover the secrets behind the costume
  2. Read

    A V&A celebration of carnival in seven objects

    Discover some carnival-flavoured highlights from our collection
  3. Read

    Léon Bakst – design for the ballet

    Discover Léon Bakst's revolutionary costume designs for the legendary Ballets Russes
  4. Read

    Shoes formerly worn by Prince

    Shoes worn by the best-selling musical artist Prince have been acquired for the V&A's National Collection of Performing Arts
  5. Watch

    Costume conservation: My Fair Lady

    From rags to riches, follow the transformation of an iconic piece of musical theatre history
  6. Watch

    ASMR at the museum

    Get closer to our objects than ever before
  7. Watch

    The story of The Supremes

    Mary Wilson, co-founder of The Supremes, talks about her extraordinary career and the heyday of Motown
  8. Watch

    Designing Hollywood costume

    Delve into Hollywood's extraordinary legacy of costume design
  9. Listen

    Gender, performance and transformation: Sonja Harms

    Hear how costume maker Sonja Harms crafts alternative identities through clothing
  10. Watch

    Conserving a ballet tutu

    Watch as Belinda Wright's tutu is humidified
  11. Watch

    Handling Ian McKellen's Shakespeare costume

    Find out about the importance of handling theatre costumes with care
  12. Watch

    Conserving an Adzido Pan African Dance Costume

    See how these raffia leg wraps were conserved
  13. Watch

    Costume for Salome, performed by the Ballets Russes

    Take a closer look at the risqué costume designed for Tamara Karsavina in her role as Salome, performed by the Ballet Russes in 1913
  14. Watch

    Conserving Vivien Leigh's Cleopatra Cloak

    Step behind the scenes and experience the conservation process up close
  15. Watch

    Costume design: Moulin Rouge! The Musical – Satine's Sparkling Diamond costume

    Go behind the scenes to see how Satine's dazzling costume was designed
  16. Watch

    Whitney Houston's dress for the 1994 Grammy Awards

    Take a close-up look at the glittering dress that was worn by Whitney Houston at the Grammy Awards in 1994
  17. Watch

    Dua Lipa's glimmering Future Nostalgia catsuit

    Take a close-up look at the costume worn by the star
  18. Watch

    Musical theatre costume design: Everybody's Talking About Jamie

    How do you create a character through costume?
  19. Watch

    Making a Notting Hill carnival costume

    Watch the making of a bespoke butterfly wire-bra carnival costume

Collection highlights

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  1. Navy blue tailcoat worn by Fred Astaire in the film 'Shall We Dance'.
    Shall We Dance, film costume worn by Fred Astaire, made by Anderson & Sheppard Ltd, 1936, UK
    V&A South Kensington
    On display
  2. theatre costume
    Music-hall costume worn by May Moore Duprez, about 1910, England
    V&A East Storehouse
    Not on display
  3. theatre costume
    Costume for 'Prince's Mother' in Swan Lake designed by Alexandre Golovine for the Bolshoi, Moscow, 1901
    V&A East Storehouse
    View by appointment
  4. theatre costume
    Headdress, theatre costume worn by Ram Gopal, maker unknown, mid-20th century, UK
    V&A East Storehouse
    View by appointment
  5. Costume
    Costume for The Chinese Conjurer in Massine's ballet 'Parade', designed by Pablo Picasso, 1917
    V&A South Kensington
    Not on display
  6. theatre Costume
    Theatre costume from 'The Lion King', designed by Julie Taymor, 1994, US
    V&A South Kensington
    View by appointment
  7. costume
    Brexit Dress, pantomime costume, designed by Lotte Collett, 2016, UK
    V&A South Kensington
    On display
  8. costume
    Lady in the Dark, film costume, designed by Edith Head, 1944, Hollywood, US
    V&A East Storehouse
    View by appointment
  9. theatre costume
    Hat worn by Idina Menzel as Elphaba in the original 2003 New York production of Wicked, by Rodney Gordon, 2003, New York, US
    V&A South Kensington
    On display
  10. costume
    Dame Edna's Breakfast Dress, costume, designed by Stephen Adnitt, 1997, London, England
    V&A South Kensington
    On display
  11. costume
    Jumpsuit worn by Mick Jagger, costume, designed by Ossie Clark, 1972, Great Britain
    On loan
  12. rock and pop costume
    Rear view, 'Bicycle John', rock and pop costume worn by Sir Elton John, designed by Bill Whitten, about 1974, UK
    V&A East Storehouse
    Not on display
  13. Design
    Design for the costume of Le Buffoon in the ballet 'Chout', by Mikhail Larionov, 1915, Lausanne, Switzerland
    V&A South Kensington
    View by appointment
  14. Costume design
    Costume design for 'Le Coq d'Or', by Natalia Goncharova, about 1914
    V&A South Kensington
    View by appointment
  15. costume
    Black satin floral patterned shoes worn by Prince, costume, about 1994, USA
    On loan
  16. theatre costume
    Theatre costume, designed by Philip Prowse, made by Bonn & Mackenzie, 1981, London, England
    V&A East Storehouse
    View by appointment
  17. prop
    Film prop and costume from 'The Bride of Frankenstein', designed by Vera West for Universal Pictures, 1935, US
    Young V&A
    On display

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Photocall for the London Palladium production of A Chorus Line, 2013, England. Museum no. THM/110/2/407. © Victoria and Albert Museum, London

Collections

Theatre & Performance

Header image:
Costume for The Chinese Conjurer in Massine's ballet 'Parade', designed by Pablo Picasso, 1917