BIDDING is furious for star costumes being sold by the RSC on eBay.
The company is auctioning 81 items to raise money for the company’s Stitch In Time campaign for the restoration and redevelopment of its costume workshop.
The lots include stage worn clothing by stars including Dame Judi Dench, Sir Ian McKellan, Sir Patrick Stewart, Sir Derek Jacobi and David Tennant.
The ten-day online auction will finish at 8pm on Sunday April 28 and hundreds of bids have been placed to secure a unique piece of theatre history.
Currently David Tennant items are proving extremely popular. The former Dr Who’s brown trainers worn in Hamlet in 2008 are at £450; his white tunic from Richard II in 2013 has reached £410; and the blue velvet jacket he wore when presenting Shakespeare Live! From The RSC in 2016 is at £370.
Other items up for bidding include Sir Ian’s red coat from King Lear in 2007, currently at £108; Dame Judy’s doublet and hose from Shakespeare Live!, at £108; Sir Patrick’s beige suede shorts from Antony and Cleopatra in 2006, at at £44; and Sir Derek Jacobi’s breastplate and armour worn in Macbeth in 1993, at £282.
All costumes are listed with costume measurements and come with a certificate of authenticity.
The RSC, a registered charity, makes thousands of costume items each year in its Stratford-based costume workshop. Once a production ends, most costumes are placed into the company’s costume store and are available to hire. Some key items go into in the RSC’s Museum Collection and appear in exhibitions in the RSC’s theatres and around the world.
Stitch In Time is a £3million fundraising campaign and there is £1.8million left to raise towards the cost of restoring and redeveloping the costume workshop. Thousands of people from around the world have already supported the project including contributions from major philanthropists, trusts and foundations and businesses.
The redevelopment will create improved facilities for costume making; create more space to enable new training and apprenticeship opportunities; and allow visitors to experience the company’s costume workshop for the first time through tours and online.
Click RSC eBay to visit the auction.
