Madam Tussaud's Museum

Introduction

To be immortalized forever in wax you don’t need to be a Queen or a
politician, you just need to be a celebrity with a pulling power.

In fact, there is a great number of wax works exhibitions in our county
and abroad. Wax personalities attract millions of visitors all over the
world. It’s an open secret that a transnational entertaining company
Tussaud’s Group is at the top of the list.

During my summer trip to St. Petersburg I also visited some wax – works
exhibitions. Two of them were really fascinating and worth seeing. But I
was also disappointed to discover that there is too much hackwork at
this field. All this aroused my particular interest in wax sculpture and
made me investigate the subject deeper. The aim of my work is to
research the history of the matter, to reveal the facts of Madame
Tussaud’s life and to trace the development of Wax Works Museum into the
world’s biggest entertaining centre Tussaud’s Group.

This written work can be used at English lessons and world art lessons,
as well as at extra curricular, devoted to great personalities. I’m sure
it will help to broaden the student’s outwork.

How It All Began

First it was a living newspaper, then a History textbook, London’s visit
card, a movie theatre, a restaurant and even a planetarium. Today Madame
Tussaud’s Wax Works Museum is the most visited tourist attraction in the
world. Its founder, Madame Tussaud is considered to be the first
business lady in the world’s history and is called a grandmother of
modern show – business.

At the beginning of the 17th century Europe was captured by fashion on
wax portrait sculptures. Although thy were not so long – living and
tough as those made of marble and bronze, they were at greater demand as
more realistic and cheaper. And it made them available not only for
merchants and aristocrats but for the common citizens as well. And they
wanted to remain in their grandchildren’s memories.

Madame Tussaud and Her Museum

The story of Madame Tussaud is as fascinating as that of the exhibition
itself. Two things of her life are especially noteworthy. First, she
spent her early years during the French Revolution and came to meet many
of the characters involved. Second, and perhaps more unusually, she
succeeded in business at time when women were rarely involved in the
world of commerce.

Madame Tussaud was born in Strasbourg in 1761 and christened Marie
Grosholtz. Her father, a soldier, was killed in a battle during the
Seven Years War only two months before Marie’s birth. Her mother was a
housekeeper for Dr. Philippe Curtius, a skilled wax sculptor. From the
earliest childhood Marie learnt modelling techniques with Dr. Curtius.
Just before the French Revolution they moved to Paris.

At that time Marie’s talent became apparent and he was invited to the
royal court to assist in the artistic education of the King Loui XVI’s
sister, Madame Elizabeth. Life in Versallies was vivid contrast to
Marie’s pervious existence. The capital became a centre chaotic
activity; no one was safe, and at one time both Marie and her mother
were imprisoned. But they were not executed, and nobody knew why. Long
before Marie was asked to prepare the death masks of many of her former
employers after they had been executed – among them Marie Antoinette,
Lois XVI, Jean Paul Marat, the philosopher and revolutionary. This
portrait, along with many others modelled by Marie, is still on display
today.

In 1794 Cutius died, and Marie inherited the business, which was grown
under her influence. In the following year she married a French
engineer, Francois Tussaud, and gave birth to three children: a
daughter, who died, and two sons.

France was still suffering, enormous deprivation, and Marie’s exhibiton
was struggling to survive. In 1802 Marie made a monumental decision. She
would leave her husband and her baby son, Francis, in Paris, while she
and her elder son, Joseph, would tour to the exhibition round the
British Isles.

Marie was to see neither France nor her husband again. She spent the
next 33 years travelling around the British Isles, exhibiting her
growing collection of figures to crowds of curious and intrigued
spectators. Joseph (her elder son) accompanied her, taking a keen
interest in the craft of making wax figures Soon his brother Francis
joined them.

In the days before television, cinema and radio Madame Tussaud’s figures
ere sensation. Week after week the figures of Lord Byron, the murders
Burke and Hare, King George IV, Queen Carline of Brunswik, Shakespeare
and the death mask of Emperor Napoleon – among many others – were packed
and unpacked to be shown to an admiring public.

The travels ended in 1835, when Madame Tussaud’s exhibition found a
permanent home. It was in London, not far from today’s exhibition.

Another interesting development of the period was the establishment of
what was to become the Chamber of Horrors. Madame Tussaud’s collection
of the victims and perpetrators of violent punishment and murders and
miscreants was an unquestionable success.

Madame Tussaud was actively involved in the exhibition almost to the end
of her life. This would be a remarkable feat even now, and was
particularly unusual for a woman in the 19th century. In April 1850, at
the age of 89, she died. Her final work – a remarkable self – portrait
modelling eight years before her death – can still be seen today.

There are some interesting facts about her museum. In 1925 an electrical
fault sparked a fire, which, despite the efforts of Madame Tussaud’s own
firefighters and the London Fire Brigade, soon raged out of the control.
Many of the figures were destroyed. But in 1928 the interior had been
reconstructed, this time with the addition of a cinema and restaurant.

With the outbreak of the Second World War, in 1939, all of Britain was
threatened by enemy action – not least London. During the night of the
8th of September 1940, Madame Tussaud’s was struck by a heavy bomb,
which inflicted significant damage. Some 352 head moulds were damaged
beyond repair and the cinema was completely destroyed – although,
thankfully, no lives were lost. In December of that same year the
exhibition again opened its doors to the public.

And now I’d like to dwell upon some studio secrets of Madame Tussaud’s
Museum.

Studio Secrets

Modelling methods at Madame Tussaud’s have not changed in 200 years.
Once a person has been chosen, the firs step is to collect preliminary
information – press photographs and articles if the subject is alive,
portraits in other media and biographies if dead. Then it must be
decided in which part of the exhibition the figure is to be placed, what
the pose it should be and its relationship to other wax portraits.

The sculptor is normally given a sitting with the subject when detailed
photographs are taken, hair and eyes are matched and clothes noted. The
sculptor not only takes precire measurements, such as dimensions of ears
and nostrils, but also has the opportunity to observe the character and
personality of the subject, which will be conveyed as modelling
progresses.

Sittings usually take place at Madame Tussaud’s studious although, on
occasion, the sculptor will visit the subject. Nelson Mandela gave a
sitting at the Post House Hotel near Heathrow Airport, during a busy
schedule which included a television interview. He later visited Madame
Tussaud’s with the late ANC leader Oliver Tambo to unveil the figure.

Sylvester Stallone’s sitting was as the MGM Studious in Holywood, and he
presented Madam Tussaud’s with his own full set of evening clothes.

Madame Tussaud’s sculptors never take life casts. Hands, however, are
regularly moulded from life and cast in wax.

It takes about six months to complete a figure, most of which is spent
on the portrait head. Working from the reference material acquired at
the sitting, the sculptor begins by modelling the head in clay. At this
stage the hair is also sculpted, but this will later be replaced by real
hair. Despite the extensive use of careful measurements, a great deal of
artistry is required to achieve a realistic portrait. The body is built
up in clay on to an armature.

When the sculptor is happy with the clay model, a mould of approximately
12 separate pieces is taken from the head. After meticulous cleaning,
the saturated, warm plaster head mould is filled with molten wax. When a
sufficient thickness has solidified, the still molten centre is poured
away. The head mould is made of a plaster of sufficient quality and
fitness to reproduce exactly the surface of the clay, and can be used
several times. The plaster pieces are removed from the head, and the wax
cast is allowed to cool slowly, wrapped in cloth.

Entertaining and Amazing People

Figures are made 2% bigger than real life because wax shrinks. The wax
used for the figures is similar to candle wax. In the more thrifty past,
wax figures were melted down and re – used, but this is no longer the
case as the color of the wax deteriorates when recycled. Each figure
weights about 15 kg – with 4.5 kg of wax used for the head and 1.4 kg
for the hands.

Over 150 precise measurements are taken to create an accurate portrait.
Each hair is to be individually inserted, taking about five weeks.

All the figures regularly have their hair washed and styled like anyone
else would at a hairdresser’s. By the way, all vital statistics are
accurate and kept under lock and key by Madame Tussaud’s. Despite
repeated requests from the press, this information is never disclosed.

The characters who move and speak are modelled in clay first of all,
like the normal portraits, but the head is made in silicon rubber which
allows movement.

A spokesperson for Madame Tussaud’s says men and women like different
figures. The figure most photographed by men is Naomi Campbell, and the
most photographed by women is Brad Pitt.

However, the attention from the public isn’t always friendly – for
instance, Hitler had to be put behind in the Chamber of Horrors because
people couldn’t stop abusing him. By the way, research by Madame
Tussaud’s has revealed that women are stronger than men. In a recent
study they discovered that Chamber of Horrors is twice as popular among
women as among men!

Developing Business

Ringing in the changes

Since it opened in 1835 Madame Tussauds has constantly worked to
introduce new attractions over the years.

One of the most recent changes has seen the prominent displays of pop
singers, TV stars and movie icons replacing the traditional royals,
historical figures and politicians.

Customer needs

Customer feedback has dictated the recent changes as visitors no longer
expressed an interest in seeing men in suits expecting to see instead
current celebrities and wanting interactive exhibitions.

The royals haven’t been replaced completely you can still see the Queen
but instead of seeing her from behind a rope you can have a royal
audience escorted by guardsmen.

The UK’s top personality

7 Sir Elton John has been unveiled as the UK’s favourite personality and
cast in chocolate! A life size chocolate figure of Sir Elton has been
made to celebrate Cadbury’s Centenary.

People had the chance to vote from a top ten list that consisted of:

• five TV personalities (Cat Deeley, Denise Van Outen, Jonathan Ross,
Ricky Gervais and Sharon Osbourne)

• three sports personalities (David Beckham, Denise Lewis and Paula
Radcliffe)

• two singers (Sir Elton John and Will Young)

The figure which weighs 126kgs can be viewed in Madame Tussaud’s until
Autumn in a special tent that stops it from melting.

Popular British culture

You can get up close and personal with celebrities like Simon Cowell
made famous by UK reality TV show ‘Pop Idol’ you can try to impress him
with your vocal talents and then listen to his comments.

The system you sing into tells how in tune you are and dictates his
comments from his trademark put downs to the very rare praise.

Pop and movie stars

If you want more than TV personalities you can rub shoulders or chests
with the cream of Hollywood, Brad Pitt. You can stroke his silicon chest
– it may be the closest you ever get to doing it. Or if you would rather
you can dance with pop princess Britney Spears and her backing dancers
while Britney is all wax the dancers are real creating a unique
experience.

How much do they cost?

Beyonce Knowles, singer with the girl group Destiny’s Child, was
mmortalized in 2004 at a cost of F52,000 complete in the orange and pink
Versace dress she wore in her music video ‘Crazy in love’ as part of the
Diva’s exhibition.

The interactive features and celebrity wax works are helping Madame
Tussauds remain a world famous tourist attraction that celebrities want
to be part of and people want to visit.

Chronology

And now I’d like to present the full history of Madame Tussaud’s in
brief.

FRANCE, 1770-1802

Through talent and determination, a young girl named Marie Grosholz came
to be numbered among the most famous of English institutions.

1761 – Marie Grosholz, later known as Madame Tussaud, is born in
Strasbourg.

1770 – Marie’s mother’s employer, a doctor called Philippe Curtius,
opens an exhibition of life-size wax figures at the Palais Royale in
Paris. Marie learns the art of wax modelling from him.

1777 – Marie models the famous author and philosopher, Francois-Marie
Arouet Voltaire.

1780 – Marie becomes art tutor to King Louis XVI’s sister and goes to
live at the royal court in Versailles.

1789 – The outbreak of the French Revolution. – Marie returns to Paris,
later helping Curtius to mould the heads of some of the guillotine’s
victims – among them her Versailles acquaintances.

ENGLAND – TRAVELLING PERIOD, 1802-35

1794 – Marie Grosholz inherits Curtius’s collection of figures.

1795 – She marries Francois Tussaud, an engineer, but leaves him eight
years later to bring the collection on a tour of the British Isles.

ENGLAND – BAKER ST BAZAAR, 1835-84

For the next 33 years, she lives the exhausting and precarious life of a
travelling showman, moving from town to town with her caravans,
organising advertising, and encouraging newspaper anecdotes, or
organising charity benefits to bring in useful patrons.

She suffers shipwreck in the Irish Sea, and fire during the Bristol
Riots of 1831. Yet, throughout the travelling years, new figures are
constantly introduced.

1835 – Madame Tussaud’s settles into a permanent home in The Bazaar,
Baker Street, London.

“Visitors entering the Bazaar from Baker Street proceed to a saloon
richly decorated with mirrored embellishments. Here sits an aged lady,
with an accent which proclaims her Gallic origins. Were she motionless,
you would take her for a piece of waxwork. This is Madame Tussaud, a
lady who is in herself an Exhibition.” [from an 1842 guidebook]

1846 – Punch Magazine coins the name “Chamber of Horrors” for Madame
Tussaud’s separate room where gruesome relics of the French Revolution
are displayed.

1850 – Madame Tussaud dies. In her old age, supported by two sons, she
had achieved great success. She had resisted a U.S. buy-out, her memoirs
had been published, and her portrait was painted by a court painter. She
had been immortalised by Dickens (as Mrs Jarley) and caricatured by
Cruikshank.

MOVE TO MARYLEBONE ROAD

1884 – Madame Tussaud’s grandson, Joseph Randall, directs the move to
the present site in Marylebone Road.

FIRE & RE-BUILDING 1925-28

1925 – Fire guts the whole building, destroying not only almost all the
wax figures and their costumes, but priceless furnishings, paintings and
relics too.

Fortunately, many of the old head moulds were saved, and from these the
Exhibition was rebuilt, opening 3 years later with the addition of a
large Cinema and Restaurant.

WAR BRINGS ABOUT PLANETARIUM

1940 – A German bomb destroys the Cinema. Ironically, the figure of
Hitler is one of the few figures to survive unscathed.

1958 – Madame Tussaud’s opens the Commonwealth’s first Planetarium on
the site of the old cinema.

1971 – A new Madame Tussaud’s opens its doors in the Kalverstraat,
Amsterdam, returning to the continent for the first time since 1817.

1981 – Madame Tussaud’s Amsterdam expands their collection and moves to
celebrated Dam Square right in the heart of the city.

1993 – The Spirit of London, a spectacular animatronic ride, arrives at
Madame Tussaud’s.

1995 – The London Planetarium is re-opened after a F4.5 million
redevelopment, including the installation of the world-leading Digistar
II Star Projector.

1996 – A bigger, better, more chilling than ever Chamber of Horrors is
opened at Madame Tussaud’s, London.

1999 – Madame Tussaud’s opens in Las Vegas featuring American superstars
and Hollywood legends.

2000 – Madame Tussaud’s New York opens, featuring the city’s ‘Movers and
Shakers’, alongside a whole world of stars.Madame Tussaud’s opens in
Hong Kong featuring over 100 wax figures of internationally-known
personalities and local celebrities

2002 – Madame Tussaud’s starts to introduce exciting new interactive
attractions where guests get to feel what it is like to be famous. In
the ‘Goal!’ attraction guests step into the moment when David Beckham
prepares to take the 93rd minute free kick that leads England into the
World Cup – his figure is created with a beating heart.

After a sitting at Buckingham Palace, Queen Elizabeth II’s 22nd figure
is created for a Golden Jubilee attraction at Madame Tussaud’s. The
ropes surrounding the Royal Family are taken away forever as guests are
invited to have a personal ‘Audience with The Queen.’

2003 – Tussaud’s collaborates with Disney to create a Treasure
Planetarium attraction, and with Universal Pictures to create The Hulk
attraction.The Chamber-Live! gives a new injection of fear to the
Chamber Of Horrors.

2004 – More new interactive attractions open; In ‘Divas’, starring
Beyonce, Britney and Kylie, guests are taught dance moves and perform on
stage with feedback on their performance from Beyonce via video link.

‘Bollywood for Beginners’ opens with the new figure of Aishwariya Rai
and guests get to perform in a scene from the film ‘Bride &
Predjudice’.‘Marry me George’ sees guests getting the chance to have a
dinner date with Mr Clooney and trying out their best chat-up lines –
they are rewarded with either diamond engagement ring or the bill for
dinner!

2005 – Madame Tussaud’s gets rocking with a new show ‘Air Guitar Star’
starring The Darkness’ Justin Hawkins. Guests are taught air guitar
moves and battle it out to become the top Rock God!

Guests are invited to try and put a twinkle in the eye of the new Robbie
Williams figure, made because the previous figure was literally ‘worn
out’ from the over-attention of eager fans!

Conclusion

In conclusion I’d like to say that working at my report I discovered a
lot of astonishing details about the past and present of the museum. It
was interesting to learn about opening the Planetarium, moving images
and animatronic ride “The Spirit of London”. I could hardly imagine that
there are even speaking wax figures and that visitors can freely
interact with them – dance, sing, play and what not! I was also
impressed reading about Studio Secrets; the process of making wax
sculpture is a real art! And can you imagine that each hair is inserted
individually and it takes five weeks? And of course it was a surprise
for me to follow wonderful changes and how the museum gradually turned
into a great international complex Tussaud’s Group!

I can’t but say I highly appreciate Marie Grosholz, or Madame Tussaud. I
admire this talented strong, courageous and enthusiastic business lady.
I’m sure her life and the history of the Museum can serve a brilliant
example for business people how to develop and expand one’s business.
And without any doubts she would be proud to see the fantastic changes
of her creation!

My report is supported with a video “Madame Tussaud’s Museum”, which was
really helpful. I got a vivid picture of the Museum and watched the
process of wax figure – making in a mould studio, as if I have visited
it myself.

I wish I could drop in a chilling Chamber of Horrors, or come to a life
size chocolate figure of Sir Elton John and smell it! And it would be
nice to watch David Beckham taking his free kick and listen to his
beating heart!

I wonder if there is wax Marilyn Manson there. It would be great!

Bibliography

· Studio Secrets booklet, copyright M. Tussaud’s Limited, 1993, produced
by Big Design, London, p. 49 – 50

· World Business Legends magazine, № 4, 2004

· Uchitelskaya Gazeta, Olga Dmitrieva (www.ug.ru)

· Stories To Enjoy (intermediate), Moscow, “Manager” p. 111-113

· Speak Out Magazine № 6, 2004, p. 8 – 9

· Wax Works Museum, A. Greiser, Ekaterinburg, p. 86 – 89

· Video “Madam Tussaud’s Museum” “Waking Around London”

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