NFSA’s 1950’s Vintage Ball: frock up and step back in time
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“A dress can’t change anything.”
“Watch and learn, Gertrude, watch and learn.”
If you’re always looking for an excuse to frock up, you’re in for a treat.
For those who loved 2015 film The Dressmaker, you may remember the scene when Sarah Snook aka Gertrude walks into the town dance in her first gown created by Tilly ‘The Dressmaker’ Dunnage. A vision in beaded silk, heads turn towards Gertrude and Tilly’s reputation is cemented as one who can transform through the power of clothes.
It’s this power that the National Film and Sound Archive (NFSA) will celebrate when they hold their The Dressmaker 1950s Vintage Ball next Saturday 27 April, giving Canberrans the chance to step back in time, with guests are encouraged to don their fanciest vintage and retro evening wear as they immerse themselves in the world of heroine Tilly Dunnage.
Curator of Documents and Artefacts Dr Jennifer Gall explains that the event was a natural choice given the inherently stylish nature of the NFSA’s current The Dressmaker Costume Exhibition.
The Dressmaker Costume Exhibition. Image supplied.
“What we want to do at the Vintage Ball is to connect guests with the sensation of glamour depicted in The Dressmaker, so we are encouraging them to dress in their finest vintage gear and feel the rustle of taffeta and the slither of silk—to step into those high heels and experience the excitement of added height and fashionista hip swing.”
When guests enter through the NFSA’s soaring Art Deco foyer they will be greeted on arrival with a glass of sparkling. But, as Manager of Programs and Visitor experience Karina Libbey explains, that’s just the beginning.
“First and foremost, the exhibition will be open all night with floor talks throughout the evening from the exhibition’s curators, who can give you that extra level of expertise,” she says.
Karina Libbey, Dr Jennifer Gall and Felicity Harmey.
“In the courtyard, local five-piece The Dan McLean Band will be playing tunes all night and Savoy Dance will be teaching short swing dance lessons so you can learn a few steps and then go out into the courtyard and dance along to the swing band.”
If you’re seeking a quiet moment throughout the night, Karina says there will be a breakout space where the NFSA’s broadcast team have put together a selection of radio serials from the 1950s.
“So, once you’ve danced the night away and you want to kick up your heels for a minute and sit down you can listen to a romantic mystery serial.”
“We have so many things in our collection which are from the same period, and we have—in my opinion— a very gorgeous building, so with these together we wanted to provide access to not just the exhibition but to as much of the collection as possible.”
For those unfamiliar with the NFSA’s 2.8 million item collection, The Dressmaker costumes aren’t the only vintage fashion treasures to discover. Guests at the Vintage Ball will have the exclusive opportunity to see other iconic costumes from Australian films, including Muriel’s wedding dress, Miranda’s picnic dress and even the Academy Award-winning outfits from The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert alongside The Dressmaker exhibition for the first time.
The Dressmaker Costume Exhibition. Image supplied.
But while the Vintage Ball centres around these priceless collections, there’s also a very personal element to the night. In the NFSA Theatrette, Dr Gall will be speaking in front of an audience who’ve brought along their favourite vintage garments.
The stories guests share about their items will be recorded and preserved within the NFSA’s collection because, as she puts it, “It’s a chance to reveal the secrets that are woven into the threads of that special garment.”
Guests at the opening of The Dressmaker Costume Exhibition. Image supplied.
If you’d love to take part but are worried you don’t have an item ‘special enough’, never fear. Dr Gall explains the item doesn’t have to be a designer piece to be of significance.
“It might be great-grandmother’s wedding dress; a prized costume worn for a debut performance in a theatrical production; a first communion dress; a child’s ballet or gymnastics costume; grandpa’s footy shirt; the ancestral christening robe; the dress worn at the first school Social; an outfit worn for graduation; a great aunt’s kimono; a Balinese temple dancer’s costume purchased on a 1970s holiday; a pair of gloves kissed by Elvis Presley or the Pope; an outrageous corset from the 1890s; a 1960’s bathing costume; a WWII Austerity suit; a WWI Armistice blouse or that special Fair Aisle jumper handed down the generations.”
The Dressmaker Costume Exhibition. Image supplied.
Ready to step back in time? The Vintage Ball awaits…
the essentials
What: The Dressmaker 1950s Vintage Ball
When: Saturday 27 April from 7 – 11 pm
Where: The National Film and Sound Archive, McCoy Circuit, Acton
Cost: $25, includes glass of bubbly on arrival. Strictly 18+
Tickets and more information: nfsa.gov.au/events/dressmaker-1950s-vintage-ball
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