Overview
1. Read the play
2. Asses resources: Time, Money, and Labor
3. Consult with the director
4. Get other to help you
5. Do the paperwork: lists, drawings, reproductions of research.
6. Make a schedule (Found costumes take about 10 hours, personally made outfits can take up to 30 or 40 hours.)
7. Make the costumes.
Advice
1. Do not panic - write everything down.
2. Make a spreadsheet (see below)
3. Have a travel-size folder to keep things in
4. Find inspirational pictures. The best place to go to determine the "look" of a costume period is art work and costume books. When looking at these books, you should look for the general lines of the costume first. Detail work comes later. Questions you should ask are: - Where is the waist? - What type of sleeve are we dealing with? - Is the neckline high or low? - Are there any outstanding features that immediately capture my eye? When you have answered these questions, you are ready to start browsing through pattern books for patterns that highlight these features. Once you have achieved the basic look of the period, you can go on with other concerns such as unity of line coordination of color, and overall appearance of the show.
5. Be creative with fabric - dye it, pleat it, make it more fun (just be careful, this takes time)
Documentation
1. Items to buy
2. Items to find
3. What people are wearing
4. How to make things
5. Measurements
6. How much you spent
Resources
1. Rinaldi
2. Thrift stores
3. Garmet District's Dollar-a-Pound
4. Goodwill stores (esp. Roxbury)
5. Old drapes, tablecloths, linens, and lace for fabric
Timeline
Costume Designer can be a demanding or simple job depending on the show, the number of characters, and the director's vision. When the design is well-planned out, it should not be too time-consuming, but any prospective costume designer should be aware of how much they are willing to commit to the show ahead of time, and should make the producer and director aware of how complicated of a design they can manage with their time and budget.
The Costume Designer should know the period and general style of the show by the end of the first prod meeting. From there, a preliminary design can be made of the general shape and style of the costumes for most categories of actors (i.e. young women, old men, soldiers, servants, nobility, etc. are some of the major categories for most shows)
At the first read-thru, the measurements of all the actors should be taken. Refer to the example measurements form for a template. By the first read-thru the characters should all be assigned, so make sure you are aware of any double-cast characters.
Read the final cut version of the script. Make notes about specific costume pieces mentioned, referred to, or otherwise noted in the text. Ask the director about any difficult movement for the actors (dancing, acrobatics, climbing ladders, etc. ) which might limit design constraints.
Start gathering and building as soon as possible after the initial measurements are taken. It is a good idea to first look through the Ensemble's costume stock, then visit Rinaldi, and then try secondhand stores to get any pieces that might be found. Costume Builds should be hosted regularly with advance notice sent to the cast through email at least 2 days ahead of time. Close track should be kept of all spending to keep in line with the budget and also produce the necessary costumes. An email should be sent to the ensemble treasurer before purchases are made. Other places to look are in actor's wardrobes, or possibly MTG and G&S for specialty items.
Rinaldi will require a deposit for costumes borrowed, which can be upwards to $350-$400 depending on how many items are pulled. A personal check is the ideal way, since deposit checks are not really available through our Student Activities Accounts. If you cannot write a personal check yourself, your soul can be used as adequate collateral for one of the officers or the producer to write one. Once the costumes have been returned cleaned and in their original condition, the check will be returned.
All costumes should be complete by the Costume Parade, one week before put-in. Alterations can be made after the Costume Parade, but all actors should be clothed, shod, and decent by that day. The director is allowed to make requests and suggestions, and the costume designer is allowed to refuse any unreasonable ones.
During prod week, the costume designer should be at the theater observing the costumes from the audience and making any needed adjustments that pop up. After the first weekend, the show laundry should be done for things like shirts, socks, and any other items that are in significant need of cleaning before another weekend of shows.
After the close of the show, all costume pieces should be collected and inventoried. Actor's own clothing should be returned to them at strike, and everything else should be laundered/dry cleaned (as appropriate). The borrowed clothes should be returned to Rinaldi within a week of closing, and the remainder should be organized in the Ensemble Office.
Functions
Function of Costumes
1. Defining character differences
2. Setting a character in time and space (history, geography)
3. Age and gender
4. Rank or status
5. Personality
6. Mood
Theme, Concept, Mood
1. Realism
2. Stylization: exaggeration of shape
3. Stylization: exaggeration of silhouette
4. Distillation of period - mixing of periods
5. Abstraction, Color
6. Texture