Actor problems

Last night, I had the joy of completing 4 of my required 10 makeup class lab hours. This meant sitting and listening to 3 hours of Children of Eden, washing beard hair ( don't worry, it wasn't attached to anyone, it was in preparation for Makeup class on Monday when 20 girls will all have beards and mustaches), and watching tons of actors put makeup on. This was a rather interesting experience. I feel like I have fairly good grasp on actors mentalities and other things, but I definitely had a few new experiences last night.

First off, one guy in the cast refuses to wear anything but MAC makeup (Don't worry, only onstage)... I didn't know guys cared that much... apparently some guys in theater do. I also discovered that one girl in our cast sings just like Judy Garland. It was really quite awesome! Also I got sassed by a member of the cast, and I am finally learning to dish it out as quickly as it comes... Mostly because otherwise I feel like a doormat by the end of the night from all those jazz shoes trampling all over me.

However, the choice moment of the evening was this: we had an adjudicator come last night ( for those of you who have no idea what that is, lemme splain. An adjudicator is someone who is knowledgeable in the theater and observes the show and then gives criticism and encouragement on the design choices in lighting, costumes, sound, props and scenic.). We were talking to him about some of the costumes choices which were made and telling him how the biblical costumes were supposed to show their basic costumes underneath in order to remind the audience that the biblical costumes were just symbolic and that underneath, every member of the cast was equal and just like you and me. Then the adjudicator said, "Well that wasn't the only thing that was open on _________ ( actor's name and character are omitted). He had something open on the lower half too. " Turns out said actor forgot to zip up a certain necessity... I told the adjudicator that that was not a costume problem... that was an actor problem.

Warm and Fuzzy time of the year...

It snowed this weekend. I am split in my opinion about snow. I love the first few times that it snows, and the lovely layer of perfect white that covers the grass and ground. There is something really lovely about the way that it falls past the window, and the way that it sticks to your eyelashes. On the other hand, I don't like the risk of slipping and falling. I don't like how the snow gets dirty and slushy when people drive on it. I don't like how your hands feel like they are going to fall off when you are outside for too long. But, I have found a marvelous solution for the cold: A heated blanket. Yes, you should all get one too... believe me, you won't regret it.

When it rains, it pours.

Ain't it good - an amazing song by an amazing girl!
Eve
Finale of Act I
Eve, Adam, Abel
Rebellious Cain... I love this picture!
The naming of the animals. I love all the motion in this picture.
And the set.

The title of this post sums up my theater life at the moment. Perhaps you were wondering why I had not update my blog with more exciting pictures from Frankenstein, or stories of how the mother's skirt fell off onstage once, or perhaps the time when we bought a gorgeous hair extension for a character and it almost went flying into the audience during a fight scene... I could have told you many stories about the exciting things that happened during that show, however, like so many things in theater, I moved right onto the next show.

The last two weeks have been full of Children of Eden that BYU is putting on. I am the assistant costume designer (such an official title, it makes me sound like I am actually important...) We have been working on getting problems sorted out like making sure no one will have to go onstage in the buff. Thankfully we have fixed it so that no one has had to do that...

Anyway, we have had a great time working on a lot of amazing biblical costumes as well as the basics that everyone wears which include: khaki pants or shorts, a colored t-shirt and then a multicolored tank top. The best and most time consuming part of the show was, of course, an entire set of animal head masks that are on stage for about 7 minutes... too bad, because they look amazing. I could not get any clear pictures of them today, but I will try again on Tuesday.

The great thing about this show is that the more you hear it, the more you love it. The music is amazing and although much of the stories of Adam/Eve and Noah/Ark have been altered, and the entire play is full of incongruities with the Bible, there is an amazing spirit that comes from this performance! I look forward to going to their tech rehearsals every day and wish that I could come every night of the run!

Frankenstein Photos

So, the preview performance of Frankenstein is tonight! Scary! I hope everything is ready and working! I still have a few last minute makeup kinds of things to get.

Here are some photos for your viewing enjoyment!

The Monster that is Chasing me

But seriously! Frankenstein is right on my tail. It opens next weekend, and I am SO busy! On the upside I now have all these tools for distressing clothing and lots of quilt batting. On the downside, I now have all these tools for distressing clothing and lots of quilt battings. What am I going to do with all of it...? I don't know...

Frankenstein

Me, preparing for fittings
This is the gypsy who has been in prison for a few months

A few months back, I got asked to design the costume for a Provo Production of Frankenstein. I said 'great', and have been working on it ever since! It has been quite the endeavor, because the place we are getting costumes doesn't have a whole lot to choose from... lame, however it has been adventurous trying to get clothing from other periods to look like it belongs in the 1850's! I have also had a fun time figuring out how to distress the creature's clothing in order that he looks like he has been running around in the woods for almost a year... So yesterday I went out and bought some black tea and fake moss, and am in the process of distressing polyester... it is SO much harder than you would think... Polyester is practically indestructible, so through the use of some sand paper and a sharp knife, I am starting to get somewhere. Here is the beginnings of what will be a disgusting shirt:) Dirt, and some black tea!

Fabric

Oh how I love fabric, and love my job! Isn't this last thing the most gorgeous thing that you have ever seen? this is a special way of sewing to make the fabric look like it is woven. This was part of an old scrap too! I work in a costume shop for theatrical productions ( as you have perhaps known or noticed:) and this is one of the many reasons for loving my job!