Reiffenstuel on Falstaff costumes at the Met

Brigitte Reiffenstuel talks to the New York Times about the challenges of adapting her Falstaff costumes for the production at the Metropolitan Opera which will be filmed in HD. The production, directed by Robert Carsen, was originally seen at Covent Garden and opens at the Met on Friday.

The article includes photographs of Brigitte working with drapers Elise Aragon and Yvonne Lee on fittings for singers Lisette Oropesa and Angela Meade. She discusses the care needed to create costumes that are sturdy enough for performance yet refined enough to look good when filmed in close-up from every angle, which has meant changing some elements of the costumes.