Dress Parade Mary Barton

The dress parade for Mary Barton took place in the rehearsal studio which the actors had been performing in. The challenge of this session was to manage the actors in their costumes together with their changes. The director is always distracted and not overly interested in costume, which meant that my job of managing the situation even more challenging. To add to this a number of costumes for the minor characters had not been discussed at the design stage and an image had not been generated. This was the first time I was able to get the directors opinion on these costumes. After focusing the director and organising the actors the process of looking at the costume could start. Many of the costumes were as they were in the designs and the director seemed happy with the realisation. Even the minor characters which had been a concern were successful with just a little change of hat here and there. The character of Esther did however cause a few problems. Though the costume had been realised the director and the actor both felt that the way the character had developed did not suit the costume which she was wearing. It was identified that the costume seemed to heavy in weight and too clean. We considered breaking the costume down but it was still felt that it would not be appropriate for the character who was a down and out alcoholic prostitute. It was decided at this stage that the costume needed to be revised and a new costume would be looked at at the technical rehearsal. Perhaps the design had not shown the weight of the fabric on the character. Or perhaps the communication both verbally and visually had been miss interpreted, or perhaps the character had further evolved in the actor’s realisation. I was not overly concerned as I felt it was an issue which could be rectified. With this in mind I will interview this actress at the post research stage.

La Ronde Dress Rehearsal

Since the fittings the designs had been used very little other than the design for the actress as this costume was fully cut and constructed. The costumes themselves had been the main focus. However for the actors the design had been essential as some of the hire costumes which came from Torbay only turned but a few days before the dress rehearsal. Until then the actors had to use the information on the designs as their only means of knowing the technical elements of the costume. Having this knowledge and allowing the actors (in the later stages of the rehearsal period) to rehearse with something that replicated their costume has allowed for less problems during the dress rehearsal. Other technical points were raised and some of the fastening needed to be changed to enable the actors to redress on stage with ease.

The designs were also used by the wardrobe assistant who helped the actors style their hair. I had chosen specific period hair styles especially for the female members of the cast and the designs where used at this time to achieve the look for each character.

La Ronde Costume Parade

Costume Parade

Due to the technical nature of the production it was decided that the parade should be a quick run through of the production. This not only aided the actors to see what it would be like to perform in the costumes it also enabled the wardrobe department to see any potential issues which may occur with the undressing of costume and the quick changes before the technical rehearsal; the following Tuesday.

The notes from the parade were mainly technical with little discussion over the aesthetical element of the costume. A few additional dressing gowns have been added for the modesty of the actor but on the whole other than the changes due to sourcing availability the costumes remain unchanged from the original designs. I am pleased to say that these designs have lifted off the page. Though further scrutiny will need to take place the overall look of the production has greatly been achieved.

Dress Rehearsal for Tender

Generally the only notes about the costume was about hair styles. Interestingly the hair styles in the design were impossible to recreate on the actors so an alternative needed to be considered. The actress who had resisted the to have her hair in a ‘older’ style continued to show resistance and the director had to step into rectify the situation. All issues were resolved by the second dress rehearsal. On reflection I feel that the character of Gloria and Marvin were depicted a great deal older than there characters. The faces I had chosen to collage onto the designs where not quite right. This has had a knock on affect as I think this may have influenced this particulars actors response. These actors are students and use this productions a springboard to their professional career. I think this actress felt vulnerable and wanted to look her best for agents. Something which is hard to do when you’re playing a character piece.

The dress rehearsal was the first time the costumes were seen alongside the set. Though I had worked closely with the set designer throughout the design stage the two elements are dealt with separately until the technical rehearsal. The synergy between the two design elements worked will. The brighter colours of the costume worked will against the monochrome colour scheme of the set.

The problem scene - Scene 14
This scene continues to be an issue. As the character of Squeal had a few options that the director decided to cop and change until the character had what he felt was appropriate. The 3 other characters in this scene were resolved at the costume parade but the director never really knew what he wanted for this scene for the character of Squeal. Perhaps without a rendered image this was something he struggled to visuals. By the 3rd dress the issues was resolved.

Fittings for Mary Barton

The fittings took place on Monday 2nd July which allowed 2 weeks before the show opened. Again the director decided not to attend the fittings and in attendance was myself as costume designer, the wardrobe supervisor and a wardrobe assistant.

The complexity of the play demands doubling and multiple costume. Though some of this had been considered during the design process the organic nature of this production was that the script was still developing and therefore the doubling and characters were still changing. The fittings offered an opportunity to consider further the quick changes and whether elements of the garments would be able to be underdressed. This task is impossible to do at the design stage as it depends on the individual actors body shapes and the the flexibility of the garment fastenings. The evolving nature of the piece had mean that some of the characters hadn’t been designed for. With this in mind the designs were referred to for the main character costumes but the secondary characters were designed ‘off the rail’ during the fitting. By working with the actors who came with a clear idea of who else they were playing and how long they had to change we started to collate costumes together for the other characters. It was important to make sure the extra costumes suited the overall concept and colour scheme of the piece and did not look out of place. Also that they had the same period cut as depicted in the script. Though most of the costumes were being sourced it was key as the designer that I kept an eye on the overall look of the production to make sure it was still conveying what had been discussed with the director. The supervisor in this nature was very good and provided a variety of options for the actors to try. Considered at this stage was not only whether the costumes fitted and where right for the character but how the clothes would be worn. Though I had studies the character during the design stage of the processes by working with the actors in the fitting I was able to really get a feel of how there characters were developing. This evolving nature is a unique way to work which I enjoy. It makes the fittings a much more creative environment.