It’s an especially important piece: The coat belonged to the real Maria Callas. (Cantini Parrini calls it a “secret” gift.) It isn’t the only item in the costume department that directly connects the film to the real-life legend — it didn’t make it onscreen, but Cantini Parrini pulled a brown dress from his archives from one of the singer’s favorite designers, Biki, which he had found in a vintage market. “In the hem,” he reveals, “I found this little piece of white fabric with the catalog number saying, ‘Designed for Ms. Maria Callas.’”
