The wildly popular TV series “The Sopranos” aired its much-hyped season finale almost 20 years ago. The critically acclaimed show, starring the late James Gandolfini as troubled mob boss/family man Tony Soprano, premiered on HBO in 1999 and ran for six seasons. “The Sopranos,” often credited with initiating a golden age of prestige television, is now the subject of an exhibition at the Museum of the Moving Image.
“Stories and Set Designs for The Sopranos” is on view at the Queens, New York, museum through May 31. It includes script notes and newspaper clippings from “Soprano’s” showrunner David Chase’s personal archive, plus ground plans and production photos from MoMI’s collection.
The show focuses on the set design for the show’s four main locations: Tony Soprano’s psychiatrist Dr. Melfi’s office, the Soprano family home in New Jersey, the Bada Bing Strip Club, and the Satriale’s Pork Store. Examples include a detailed drawing of Tony and Carmela’s bedroom along with a photo of the ornately decorated space, complete with a Renaissance-style painting in a gilded frame hung above the dresser.
A vitrine of notes provides a fascinating peek behind the scenes. In one document, Chase jotted down some basic story ideas for season one (eg. “Tony gets betrayed and survives”; “Melfi has to leave town”; “Livia [Tony’s mother] dies but there’s no closure.” In another, an HBO executive named Carolyn shares feedback on a director’s cut, telling Chase not to worry about the length of the cut and that she thinks “The Sopranos” will be “a tremendous series.”
Below are some images and installation shots from “Stories and Set Designs for The Sopranos.”
