Darth Vader is even more menacingly awesome close up.
Chewbacca’s hair is Bigfoot cool.
And that golden bikini Princess Leia wore while enslaved by Jabba the Hutt, well, it’s just as hot on a faceless gray mannequin.
This is Star Wars disrobed.
“Rebel, Jedi, Princess, Queen: Star Wars and the Power of Costume” opens today at Seattle’s EMP Museum and runs through Oct. 4. It’s the first stop on a 12-city tour developed by the Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibition Service in a partnership with the Lucas Museum of Narrative Art and in consultation with Lucasfilm Ltd.
On display are about 60 genuine costumes worn by our favorite heroes and villains in the first six Star Wars films. All those Halloween costumes that have been cloned in mass since the first blockbuster movie in 1977 don’t even come close to the striking details of the real things.
These were worn by Carrie Fisher, Harrison Ford, Mark Hamill, Alec Guinness and others who brought galactic joy into our lives.
Visitors can get almost within touching distance (but, please, don’t try it) at the two-level exhibit that is shown in nine presentational displays, from the Galactic Senate to droid heartthrobs R2-D2 and C-3PO.
We all know George Lucas is a genius. So, too, are the forces behind this exhibit.
“All of the mannequins are specifically designed for the exhibition and sized to the costume that’s on them,” said Smithsonian spokeswoman Myriam Springuel. “The gestures of the mannequins were carefully thought through so that the clothes draped the right way, so you can read the character in the way you need to read the character.”
The actors felt the power of costume.
“There are a number of quotes from the various actors that when they put on the costumes they understood the role that they were playing,” she said.
The exhibit has multimedia displays, sketches, interactive flipbooks, notes and other elements that look behind the seams at the huge amount of work that went into the movies long before the cameras started rolling.
“Costumes don’t come out of a costume designer’s head wholesale,” Springuel said. “Like any masterpiece, it takes work, it takes refinement, it takes collaboration, it takes people thinking and figuring out how all of this works together. This is an exhibition about creativity, and about how do you create a believable world that is totally fictional and fantasy.”
The dressing of the Star Wars universe drew on cultures from around the world for input into everything from fashion to weapons.
The exhibit will fascinate all ages.
“The point is to have a multi-generational reach,” said EMP curator Jacob McMurray. “The Star Wars brand is so strong. My daughter who is five-and-a-half knows who a lot of these characters are. We can watch the movies together.”
The exhibit is a separate ticket that includes admission to all galleries at EMP and reservations are recommended. A few of the costumes are sprinkled throughout the main museum.
In the gift shop, get your Star Wars fix with lightsabers, Wookiee cookbooks, “I love my Boba” onesies for the baby and hoodies with Yoda ears for grandpa.
Andrea Brown: 425-339-3443; abrown@heraldnet.com. Twitter: @reporterbrown.
If you go
Star Wars and The Power of Costume runs through Oct. 4 at EMP Museum, 325 5th Avenue N at Seattle Center.
Tickets: $22 to $30. It’s recommended to purchase in advance online, www.EMPmuseum.org, to reserve a space and time.
Timed ticket entrance every 20 minutes, starting at 10 a.m. daily. Final timed entry is 40 minutes prior to museum close. Arrive to the special exhibition gallery 15 minutes prior to your selected viewing time.
Group rates of 15: email GroupSales@EMPmuseum.org or call 206-770-2776 for more information.
Star Wars exhibit
Presentational chapters. Introduction: Dressing a Galaxy. Jedi versus Sith: Form, Function and Design. Concept and Design for Royalty and Beyond. Symbolism and Military Power. Outlaws and Outsiders. All Corners of the Galaxy: The Galactic Senate. After the Throne: Padmé’s Journey. Darth Vader: Iconic Villain. Droid Design: C-3PO and R2-D2.
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