Downton Abbey Does Chicago

At “Dressing Downton,” fans can enter the opulent world of the Crawleys

If you’re a Chicagoland fan of BBC’s drama series Downton Abbey and want to visit the fictional Yorkshire estate of your Edwardian dreams, you’ll need to hop a 8-hour flight to London Heathrow, followed by a 60-minute drive west to the real-life Highclere Castle, followed by, well, a time warp of 90 years.

Or you could visit Chicago’s Driehaus Museum in River North and experience the next best thing by gaining entrance into the opulent world of Lord Grantham, Lady Mary, the Dowager Countess, and the rest of the aristocratic Crawley clan.

Running through May 29, 2016, “Dressing Downton: Changing Fashion for Changing Times,” features 35 early twentieth-century costumes worn by the Crawley family and their servants.

Designed by London costume house Cosprop Ltd., some clothes are made from original fabrics and embellishments, while others were recreated from photographs, patterns, and magazine images. As fans well know, the show’s costumes are often be more intricate than its plotlines.

In Chicago, there’s no better place for these clothes to take up temporary residence than the Driehaus Museum (40 E. Erie St.), located just a block off the Mag Mile.

With lavishly appointed galleries — once functioning as drawing rooms, living rooms, libraries, and bedrooms commissioned by Chicago banker Samuel Mayo Nickerson — the 1879 Gilded Age mansion/museum is devoted to the craftsmanship of the past. And it’s filled with enough artwork, furnishings, and décor to make the Dowager Countess feel right at home.

Visitors are able to explore fashions in Britain between 1912 (the year the Titanic sank) and the early 1920s (the dawn of the Jazz Age). Via Downton Abbey’s costumes, the exhibit emphasizes a “period marked particularly by the impact of World War I (1914–1918), which saw great changes in people’s lives — and the way they dressed.”

Among the costumes on display: from the constrictive bustles and corsets of the Dowager to the liberating fashion of Lady Sybil. Also featured are silk evening gowns worn by Lady Cora and Lady Rose, a riding habit worn by Lady Mary, and the sturdy farm work outfit of Lady Edith.

For the men of Downton Abbey, you’ll find a short dinner jacket and tie worn by Matthew Crawley, the formal dress military uniform of Lord Grantham, and the chauffeur’s uniform donned by Tom Branson. The sober staff uniforms worn by the likes of Mr. Carson and Mrs. Hughes make appearances as well.

“Dressing Downton” is accompanied by a hand-held audio device. The creators of Downton Abbey narrate the journey, sharing details about the featured costumes as well as historical tidbits about British history.

But perhaps no part was more fascinating to me than the gallery filled with historical photos of the styles and fashions Chicagoans were wearing during the same time period of Downton Abbey. Even Lady Mary would have been impressed.

Admission to “Dressing Downton” is $25 and tickets must be purchased online beforehand at driehausmuseum.org.