This exhibition is bringing Rihanna’s pope look, Cher’s Bob Mackie and Kylie’s Mugler to Melbourne

From 19th century sopranos, to Golden Age Hollywood stars and Aussie pop icons.

This December, Melbourne’s brand-new Australian Museum of Performing Arts (AMPA) will open its doors with Diva, an internationally-acclaimed exhibition celebrating the stars of film, music and fashion who have redefined culture. 

Developed by London’s renowned Victoria and Albert (V&A) Museum, the collection showcases some of the world’s most celebrated performers and their most iconic looks, including Rihanna’s jewel-encrusted pope look by John Galliano for Maison Margiela at the 2018 Met Gala, various Bob Mackie designs worn by Cher and Tina Turner, and Lady Gaga’s periwinkle Valentino gown from the 2019 Golden Globes.

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Coming exclusively to Melbourne from 11 December 2025, AMPA’s Diva collection features artefacts from Old Hollywood icons Judy Garland and Joan Crawford, as well as the black fringed dress worn by Marilyn Monroe in Some Like It Hot (1959) designed by Orry-Kelly, the first Australian to win an Academy Award for Costume Design.

Cher, Elton John and Diana Ross at Rock Awards Santa Monica Civic Auditorium 1975; Various Locations; Mark Sullivan 70’s Rock Archive (Photo by Mark Sullivan/Contour by Getty Images)

In a world-first, it will also include costumes from some of Australia’s greatest divas, including Kylie Minogue, Cate Blanchett, Jessica Mauboy, and Amy Taylor of Amyl and the Sniffers. The exclusive Australian pieces are particularly unique as many were worn in live performances, such as Amy Taylor’s whoopie cushion costume and Kylie Minogue’s Thierry Mugler costume from her hit music video ‘Padam Padam’. 

Whitney Houston waves to the crowd at the 36th Annual Grammy Awards in New York 01 March 1994 after she was honored for Record of the Year, “I’ll Always Love You,” and Album of the Year, the soundtrack from the film “The Bodyguard.” At rear is her producer David Foster, who shared the honors with her. (Photo by POOL / AFP)

What is the Diva exhibition?

With over 280 objects, AMPA’s Diva explores the origins of the term ‘Diva’ (meaning ‘goddess’ in Italian) and its evolution into a symbol of empowerment. V&A Senior Curator, Kate Bailey, says the exhibit pays homage to the “iconic performers who with creativity, courage and ambition have challenged the status quo and used their voice and their art to redefine and reclaim the diva.”

Australian audiences will be immersed in the dazzling world of 19th-century European opera stars and the artists they inspired to forge groundbreaking careers on stage and screen. The exhibition’s second act shifts focus to the modern era, and explores how contemporary performers have redefined the concept of the diva, using their platforms to make social and political change. 

AUSTRALIA – JANUARY 01: Photo of Grace JONES (Photo by Bob King/Redferns)

On top of the first Australian divas, opera singers Dame Nellie Melba and Dame Joan Sutherland, who were featured in the original V&A exhibit, Margot Anderson, Head of Curatorial for AMPA says the process of selecting the new Aussie diva’s began with Kylie Minogue. “We’ve worked closely with a number of artists to borrow additional costumes for the exhibition,” she says.

“These performers are in demand all over the world and their costumes are still very much part of working wardrobes so it’s a real treat to be able to include them in the show. There is very little down time for a diva, so we’re grateful for any time they can give us to learn more about life as a performer.” 

When asked about the role of fashion played in the amplification of the diva’s careers in the exhibition, Margot says that the links between haute couture and performance go way back to the original divas of the 19th Century, referencing Nellie Melba’s involvement with The House Worth, one of the leading fashion houses of the early 1900s, which would have enhanced her status on the Australian and international stage.

“Like Melba, Kylie has always worked with fashion designers when developing her stage wardrobe,” Margot says. Visitors will see her iconic showgirl costume designed by John Galliano for her Showgirl tour in 2005, as well as the costume she wore to open her Aphrodite les Folies tour in 2011, designed by Dolce and Gabbana.

LONDON UNITED KINGDOM – APRIL 6 Elton John, and David Furnish attend Elton John’s 50th Birthday Party at The Hammersmith Palais on April 6, 1997 in, London, United Kingdom. ( Photo by UK Press via Getty Images )

Other iconic Australian artists such as Meow Meow, Reuben Kaye, Jessica Mauboy and Kate Miller- Heidke were also selected for their unique ability to “bring their own lived experience to the Australian diva story.”  Margo is particularly excited to debut the newly-acquired leather jacket worn by Olivia Newton-John during her Las Vegas residency from 2014, which will make it’s first ever appearance in the Diva exhibit.

Where is the Diva exhibition?

Melbourne’s brand-new Australian Museum of Performing Arts is set to open in December 2025 at Hamer Hall’s upper terrace within Arts Centre Melbourne, 100 St Kilda Road, Southbank.

When does it open?

The Diva exhibition opens on December 11, 2025 and runs until April 26, 2026.

To book your tickets now, head here.