Special costumes

Marionettes soon in fabrics worn by festival stars

Lightweight silk fabrics are particularly popular for marionettes

(Bild: Jan Friese)

Festival stars such as Asmik Grigorian and Cecilia Bartoli have their costumes tailored from high-quality fabrics year after year. Recently, the Festival has also opened its fabric warehouse to smaller stars: the marionettes of the Salzburg Marionette Theater. 

Offcuts from the robes of the opera stars are also reused for them. While the dresses of the opera divas often weigh several kilos, the costume designers aim for lightweight silk fabrics for the marionettes.

The reason: the fabric must not increase the weight of a puppet, but should still look "heavy". If a puppet wears different costumes in the play, a separate puppet is made for each costume. As the strings are pulled through the clothing, it is not possible to change.