I know I’ve talked a lot about the basic parts of theatre…acting, backstage work, that sort of thing. But the more that I think about it, it’s really important to think about everything that’s going on stage that’s not just the actors. There’s a lot that goes into the making of a show. And I want to talk about all of them, because these are the things that sometimes make or break a show. People work really hard on things like props and sets and costumes. Most people don’t think about these things, since most audience members don’t get to see that side of things, but it’s all entirely necessary. In this post, I want to talk about costumes.
Costumes are one of the most important things that are necessary for a show. They can span from the most simple of things to the most complicated of things, and there’s a whole spectrum in between. Costumes build so much in a show. They make things fun, they make things believable, they can help us relate to characters, or feel bad for characters. If you’re watching a show that takes place in modern times, you know you can expect things like jeans and a t-shirt. A Shakespeare show would be a lot fancier, and period specific. Costumes help set the tone for a show.
That’s exactly what I mean when I say costumes can be so simple or so complicated. You’re going to get something different with every show you see. Costume designers work so hard on that. I’ve been in shows with all sorts of costumes. When I played Roo in Winnie the Pooh when I was a kid, my costume was a sailors shirt and a hood with kangaroo ears. My mom drew whiskers and colored in the tip of my nose with makeup. It was cute, and it was easy. But in A Christmas Carol, I wore a fancy dress when I played Dorrit, and a very detailed and elegant dress as the Ghost of Christmas Past.
There’s really no wrong or right way when it comes to costumes, although of course, you want to make it fit to the play. I’ve seen some super cool costumes that fit a part of the play, even if it’s unexpected. When People’s Light did The Winter’s Tale about ten million years ago, they did some pretty cool stuff with costumes that you wouldn’t expect to see for a Shakespeare show. Actors wore sleeves that made it look like they had tattoos. It was a fun, modern rendition for the show, and it was absolutely awesome.
I talk about costumes fitting the show, and I think it’s important to mention the abstract end of things as well. When I did Metamorphoses, they decided that they wanted us all to look like we’re part of a dream, as the show had a very dream like vibe. We all had base costumes, and they were pyjamas. It set the mood for the show, and what we were doing. Our costume changes were simple…one of mine was just putting my hair up for one character and wearing it down for another. It was a beautiful thing to catch to set the tone of what we were trying to do for the show.
People work extremely hard on costumes. If you find yourself in a costume shop, it’s eye opening interesting. There are so many tools of the trade…tape measures, scissors, sewing machines, and more. It’s a lot of fun to see costumes being worked on, or all the fabric that is or isn’t being used. The talent that costume designers and makers have are phenomenal. Even just putting together a basic outfit takes thought and planning. Costumers need to make sure they’re getting things right in order to present the actors on stage. It’s a massive undertaking, and something that people definitely don’t think about enough.
Costume design is a massive process. It doesn’t just happen overnight, especially when costumes are more complicated or detailed. Lots of it starts with preliminary sketches of what costumes look like. Things that are drawn up as a very start. Patterns have to be made for costumes so the costumers have everything they need to create. There’s sewing and putting all the pieces together. Even for simple costumes, thought needs to be put into these things.
The next time you’re seeing a play, really take a look at the costumes. Take a moment to think about what went into them. How much fun the costume designer probably had when they were creating those costumes, no matter how simple or how detailed a costume is. People really put a lot into these things. I don’t think people walk away from shows saying, “Those costumes were amazing!” as much as they should. And even if that does come up as you’re walking away from a show, maybe you haven’t thought about everything that went into those amazing costumes. But someone worked hard for us to see those…we need to think about them a lot more.
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