Lady GAGA in Vogue December 09 issue!

I'm Famished Brother and sister are home alone with not a morsel to eat. In Vogue's interpretation of the Met's production, which opens December 14, Hansel and Gretel are played by actor Andrew Garfield and model Lily Cole. Dolce & Gabbana cream silk-and-tulle dress. On Garfield: Maison Martin Margiela shirt. Ann Demeulemeester pants.

Far From Home They venture out to hunt for wild strawberries in the woods, where Gretel's lily-white frock shines against the dark foliage of the Tree-men. Before long, though, they're hopelessly lost. Dior pleated silk-chiffon dress. Fendi platform Mary Janes. Tree-men costumes courtesy of the Metropolitan Opera.

Golden Slumber The Sandman (played here by Sasha Cooke, who has appeared in the Met's production) sprinkles magic dust onto the frightened children, who fall into a deep sleep and dream about a banquet served by a fish maître d'. Balenciaga by Nicolas Ghesquière wool-silk jacket. Chloé flats. Sandman and fish maître d' costumes courtesy of the Metropolitan Opera.

Wicked The two discover a house in the forest, only to find it occupied by an old witch (portrayed here by Lady Gaga). Gretel looks sweet enough to eat in a poufy confection. But it's Hansel the evil one wants to fatten up and feast on. On Lady Gaga: Marc Jacobs satin bra, slip silk blouse, and ruffled bloomer shorts. On Cole: Yves Saint Laurent embroidered silk poplin dress. Lady Gaga's wig created by Julien D'Ys.

Feed the Flames Before the witch can cook Hansel and Gretel—whoosh—they push her into the oven and shut the door. From left: Oscar de la Renta bouclé tweed-and-chiffon dress. Marc Jacobs bonded-lamé belted jacket.

The Witch Is Dead! The children (here, the Junior Choristers of Grace Church in New York City) baked into gingerbread by the hag come back to life. Nina Ricci silk satin pleated dress. Chloé flats.
In this story: Fashion Editor, Grace Coddington; hair, Julien D'Ys, using Mokuba Paris Ribbon; makeup, Gucci Westman for Revlon; production design, Mary Howard. Metropolitan Opera costumes designed by John Macfarlane.

Inspired by the Metropolitan Opera's production of Hansel and Gretel, a fashion fairy tale of white frocks unfolds.

Photographed by Annie Leibovitz.

Fired Up: "I've always been an outspoken and extreme dresser," pronounces Lady Gaga, (inspired by Richard Jones's production of the 1893 Engelbert Humperdinck opera, opening this month at the Metropolitan Opera). To prove her point, Lady Gaga arrived at Vogue to discuss the shoot wearing a trailing white chiffon Galliano goddess gown with a Philip Treacy headdress that spelled VOGUE in clipped white feathers. The following day, she came to see Creative Director Grace Coddington in a little black dress with a flaming-red wig, and later appeared on location, as Coddington recalls, "stark naked except for her white rubber raincoat and some very, very high heels!" She then promptly threw herself in the mud at Leibovitz's feet."Gaga was so bubbly and chatty and enthusiastic and excited to be alive," says Coddington. "She was up for anything." Gaga acknowledges that her art director, Matthew Williams—"my Jean-Paul Goude"—was "the inspiration that made the connection for me between the art world and the fashion world. He used to say things like 'If you want to make a shoulder pad, don't research jackets—research sculpture, mineral rocks, paintings.' He thinks in a different way; he is the designer of the future." Fashion and art collide in Gaga's work, too. "We'd been thinking of innovative ways to premiere the music," she says about her decision to debut "Bad Romance" at Alexander McQueen's Plato's Atlantis show, which she found "not of this world." "When Magdalena was stomping her pretty little hooves down the runway," she says, "it was dreamlike." Meanwhile her ballad "Speechless" ("about my love for my father") was first performed in November in Los Angeles at MOCA's thirtieth-anniversary gala, as part of an installation by Francesco Vezzoli. For this she became, in her words, "a child of the Warhol of my time, among the most famous Pop Artists of our time—Damien Hirst made the piano!" Lady Gaga's unique and winning blend of art, fashion, and music take to the road with her Monster Ball tour, kicking off November 27. —Hamish Bowles of Vogue Magazine