- 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
