Opera: The Pearl Fishers

Maquette for The Pearl Fishers Set

Bizet's The Pearl Fishers, which premiered at the San Diego Opera on 14 February 2004, featured costumes and sets designed by Zandra Rhodes. The opera was such a success that it went onto the Michigan Opera in June 2004, then onto San Francisco and New York in 2005.

Set in mid-1800 Ceylon (modern day Sri Lanka), Zandra perfectly captured The Pearl Fishers' tropical setting and the passion of its characters with her signature vibrant colors and bold patterns. From the breathtaking opening scene to its fiery demise, Zandra's designs made for a truly unforgettable performance.

Along with fellow adventurer, friend, and brilliant artist, Andrew Logan, Zandra travelled to Sri Lanka to study this faraway land and produced a multitude of sketches, which served as the basis for her designs. To read more about how Zandra designed the costumes and sets, read her article Designing an Opera!

Zandra's final drawings for The Pearl Fishers: Dancer, Leila, and palm trees for the set