Costume for theater

• http://www.vam.ac.uk/content/articles/d/designing-stage-costumes/
• http://www.vam.ac.uk/content/articles/m/making-stage-costumes/
• http://dspace.mit.edu/bitstream/handle/1721.1/49865/21M-732Fall-2004/NR/rdonlyres/Music-and-Theater-Arts/21M-732Fall-2004/72867145-80BC-4F7C-8B02-5297F3E424CB/0/basic_function_o.pdf
• http://www.ehow.com/facts_5511193_roles-costume-makeup-theatre.html
• http://www.studymode.com/essays/The-Role-Of-Costume-Design-In-650069.html

Outline

I.      The costume designer is concerned primarily with the visual appearance of the characters

A.    The scene designer and the costume designer’s work interacts and needs to be coordinated carefully

II.    The Functions of Costume Design

A.    Establish time and place

1.     Based on clothing worn at the time of the action

2.     Indicate a particular country or region

3.     Indicate a particular place

4.     Indicate a time of day or occasion

B.    Establish social and economic status

1.     Distinguish between classes and indicate level of affluence

C.    Identify occupation or lifestyle

D.    Indicate gender and reflect age

1.     Adhere to stereotypes of what is appropriate

E.    Reflect a character’s atypicality

1.     Dress that departs from the norm

F.    Costumes do not always adhere to realistic standards

1.     They may embody a metaphor, symbol or allegorical concept

a.     Symbol or allegory – capture the essence of each character as indicated by its name

b.    Metaphor – embody the perception of the world in subtle and varied ways

G.    Reflect mood and atmosphere

H.    Establish a particular style

I.      Reflect formalized conventions

J.     Reflect a level of exaggeration

K.    Enhance or impede movement

1.     Costumes may help to determine amount, type and the overall pattern of movement and stage business

L.     Establish or clarify character relationships by:

1.     Contrasting members of one faction and with the members of a rival faction

2.     Identifying sympathetic and antagonistic relationships

3.     Indicating an alteration in relationships through changes

M.   Establish the relative importance of characters

1.     Generally accomplished through contrast

N.    Underline the development of the dramatic action

1.     Accomplished through costume changes

O.    Create both variety and unity

1.     Distinctive, yet part of the total visual style of the production

P.    Alter an actor’s appearance

1.     A costume may be designed to make an actor appear taller, shorter, fatter, thinner, plainer, etc.

2.     Costumes may also help transformation actors into animals, objects or fantastic creatures

III.   The Costume Designer’s Skills

A.    Costume designers need a variety of skills, many pertinent to other professions

B.    Fashion designer

1.     Creates garments for particular types of persons to wear for particular occasions or purposes

2.     Fashion designers establish fashions, whereas costume designers use fashions

C.    Visual Artist

1.     Expresses preliminary ideas through sketches

2.     Render final designs in color

D.    Tailor and Seamstress

1.     A costume designer must understand how clothing is patterned and sewn together

2.     Familiarity with various fibers and fabrics is needed to choose the appropriate cloth

E.    Social and cultural historian

1.     Clothing reflects the mores, standards of beauty and stylistic preferences of period and place

F.    Art historian

1.     Much of our information about the clothing worn in different historical periods comes from paintings and other visual arts

G.    Actor

1.     Costume designers must understand the characters as an actor would

IV.  Working Plans and Procedures

A.    There are no standard procedures to follow in designing costumes

B.    Preliminary designs typically begin the process

1.     Sketches for each character:

a.     Fulfill needs of individual scenes

b.    Sufficiently reflect the progress of the dramatic action

c.     Show how the costumes fit together as a group

2.     A process of reaction and revision

C.    Final designs are expressed in color renderings

D.    Working drawings include:

1.     Color sketches of costume from various angles

2.     Fabric swatches

3.     A costume chart

a.     Broad organization of all the costumes for the production

4.     Dressing lists / cards

a.     Detailed lists of what each actor is wearing and when

V.   Realizing the Designs

A.    Costumes may be borrowed, rented, pulled from stock, or made

B.    Borrowed Costumes

1.     Must be prepared to settle for what is available

2.     These can only be minimally altered as they usually need to be returned in their original condition

C.    Rented Costumes

1.     The rental house assumes many of the designer’s (and costume shop’s) functions

2.     Costumes usually arrive just in time for dress rehearsals

D.    Pull from existing stock / wardrobe

E.    Newly Made Costumes

1.     For Broadway productions, a costume house makes the costumes

2.     Most resident and nonprofessional theatres have their own costume shops

a.     Designers may need to supervise costume construction

F.    Regardless of who makes the costumes, standard procedures are involved

1.     Measurements taken of all actors

2.     Materials purchased

3.     Patterns draped, flat patterned and drafted

4.     First fitting

5.     Final fitting

6.     Distressing and finishing work

VI.  The Costume Designer and the Actor

A.    Costume designers and actors need to cooperate because each supplements and extends the work of the other

1.     The designer considers the strengths and weaknesses of each actor’s figure

2.     The designer also considers the  necessary movements of the actor

B.    Actors are ultimately responsible for exploring the potentials and limitations of the costumes

C.    Designers can also aid the actors by paying proper attention to shoes and undergarments

1.     The height of shoe heels may significantly alter an actor’s balance

2.     Undergarments, particularly those of different periods, may affect posture and movement