The Story of the Star

An exhibition dedicated to the life and oeuvre of Marlene Dietrich, a world-famous cinema star and a legendary figure of the XX century, is taking place in the Tsaritsyno Museum-Reserve. The exposition “Great Marlene. The Story of the Star” has become the first in the long-term exhibition project “Great Women”. The story of Dietrich’s life has proved to be a comprehensive and detailed one. The authors of the exhibition have succeeded in making the spectator see the many-sided and integral image of the great woman.

The art project organizers have managed to create an atmosphere of mystery and enigma. There is thick darkness in 19 museum halls, only the photographs and the exhibits are covered by some spots of light. Every now and then you can hear applause and the voice of the inimitable Marlene.

In the first hall you can get acquainted with the family of the actress. As it turns out, the real name of the actress was Maria Magdalena Von Losch, and she changed it to the sonorous pseudonym. Here is little Maria Magdalena in a smart lacery dress with her parents and her sister Elisabeth, and in that photo she is playing the lute which itself is also to be found in a glass exhibition case. Gradually, the tension grows and, passing from one hall to another, the spectator is plunged into the world of show bills, advertising, photography and cinema.

A big photo of the star holds a central position in each hall: she is no longer Maria Magdalena, but Marlene Dietrich in Leningrad, Marlene on a tour in the post-war Europe, Marlene with American sailors and soldiers, and in this photo Marlene is with the famous group The Beatles. There is a comfortable audio hall at the exhibition where you can listen to the songs of the excellent actress.

High emphasis is placed on Marlene’s cinema career. In the halls you can see films with her acting such as “The Blue Angel”, “Shanghai Express”, “Marocco” and “Stage Fright” and others. The posters and show bills create an aura of the first half of the XX century.

They say that a talented person is talented in everything. The cinema star and singer Marlene Dietrich became famous as a fashion queen, too. Modern women should be grateful for their right to wear “the man’s suit of clothes” to no one but her. Dietrich’s talents in this area have been given awards for achievements in fashion and style.

At the exhibition you can admire attires from the stage and personal wardrobes of the actress. Coats and fur coats (including the famous swan’s-down coat which Dietrich created with the famous couturier Jean Louis), a great number of most fantastic hats (which dismantle the stereotype that Marlene Dietrich is nothing but a black cylinder), scores of shoes, mannequins in a rank demonstrating Marlene’s bathing costumes. Some of the articles are real vintage, but the classics and style are always in fashion.

The organizers have collected some really unique showpieces, such as military decorations of the actress, and among them a Medal of Freedom of the USA, Legion of Honour medals, a dog tag, a set of field dishes, and a cloakroom sign, a pass to Hollywood, and also an African doll which had been made for the film “The Blue Angel”, but later on became Marlene’s talisman and accompanied her in all her tours.

Each showpiece is a separate story about the great Marlene. The attires speak of her elegant taste, style and independence, the films illustrate her beauty and talent, the songs are the triumph of pashion and enjoyment of the magnificent voice “which alone is enough to break hearts”.

The exhibition will be open until 8 March 2009 in the State Museum-Reserve Tsaritsyno.