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labricoleuseI do have several excellent how-to project posts in the works, but I'll have to finish the projects themselves before i can share them, so in the interim, I'm pleased to share a new interview!
Today's participant is Eric Abele, a guy who wears (and makes!) a whole lot of hats at the Lexington Children's Theatre of Kentucky. LCT is a professional company serving young audiences, founded in 1938; Eric is their Costume Director, a resident designer, costume shop manager, and builds quite a lot of their puppets! I've never actually met Eric in "real life," despite having a whole host of friends and colleagues in common, and sharing an alma mater (UT-Knoxville). Someday, we'll remedy that! But, thanks to the internet, we "know" each other and he graciously agreed to this interview.
Q. For a bit of background, would you describe the shop at the Lexington Children's Theatre--how many employees, what different positions there entail, etc?
A. I like to describe my shop as “The Little Shop that CAN” to anyone who asks. We don’t have the traditional roles that many professional shops have; we try and keep it pretty fluid. In addition to me as Resident Designer/Costume Director I have an Assistant Costumer, who takes on many leadership roles for me and with me. Rounding out the team, I have two full-time Resident Professional Interns, over-hire stitchers and guest designers. Together, we take care of all the costume aspects for a busy eleven-show professional season of plays. It’s a non-stop whirlwind of FUN! Seriously. I love this place so much. Usually I assign projects on each show, and later (for their resumes) we try and assign a title. If we’ve done our job right, then many of us can “claim” the same project, because we’ve all had a hand in it along the way.
Q. What are your responsibilities as Costume Director?
A. In my position, I function as Costume Shop Manager, Cutter/Draper, First Hand, Lead Stitcher, Lead Crafts Artist, Rentals Manager, and Wardrobe Supervisor. Well, and Head of Design (for costumes). Now, I don’t do all of those tasks on every show, I just make sure they get done and done right It’s my mission to ensure that LCT produces top-quality work that is on time, on budget and on target. I have my days when I wish my Type-A personality would just let things slide and be lesser quality. It’d be a lot easier and a whole lot less work. But I can’t and I won’t. Every actor deserves my best work. Period.
One of Eric's beautiful rendering plates.
Q. What are some of the specific considerations you have to take into account when creating costumes for chidren's theatre performers (as opposed to say,dancers or opera singers and so forth)?
A. Each play presents its own set of challenges, of course. However, were I to generalize, I would say that TYA shows (Theatre for Young Audiences) require heavy movement and rapid changes.
I’m constantly amazed at how we move our actors in these plays, which creates an enormous amount of wear and tear on the clothes. We tend to build multiples of the same piece, when possible. When I build a hat, it tends to need three to four attachment methods, just to stay on the actor’s head. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve been told that a hat just won’t stay on. So now I tend to overload my hats with headbands, combs, horsehair loops, even topstick.
Many TYA companies keep their acting pool as small as possible to save money, so that means I often have to have many rapid costume changes in a row. At LCT we don’t have dressers on our shows, because we have such extended regional runs at times. That means all of my quick changes are completely actor-driven, oftentimes by themselves. I’ve gotten pretty accustomed to building “all in one” costumes, wherein the bottom, top and accessories are all rigged together for speed. My favorites were the Nazi costumes from out recent production of Anne Frank and Me, when two actresses had to be Nazi officers and then immediately become Jews on the train. I think that may have been more challenging for the actresses to mentally accomplish than it was for us to build the costumes.
Q. What is your educational background in the areas of costume design and production? I would particularly love to hear more about your study abroad!
A. Well, I didn’t study to be a costume designer at ALL in undergrad, until the very last semester of my senior year. I lied and said I knew how to sew and they had me build costumes for the final production that semester. I’ll never forget calling my Mom while laying out a pattern, having her coach me through cutting. But I learned then two things about myself: I really liked what I was doing, and I can sure fake it until I make it.
I worked at Lexington Children's Theatre for three years as a teacher, but kept working in costumes when I could. I did a show for LCT and some local groups in town, just to get more experience. My niece and nephew were my guinea pigs for many, many costumes. I just made as much clothing as I could to get as much experience as possible. I was hooked.
I decided on an MFA at University of Tennessee for many reasons. First, the faculty there (Bill Black and Marianne Custer) were both top-notch, working designers. Marianne’s program fell in line with my own beliefs about theatre and the design process. I also liked how UT balanced design and tech, but how they fervently worked to make sure we weren’t abused as graduate student stitchers.
But the best part of UT was the study abroad! In undergrad, I traveled some to France and Austria, and then spent a semester in Heidelberg, completely immersed in German, to study linguistics and theatre. Marianne and I share a passion for the German language and she also believes in the importance of international design. She took us to the Prague Quadrennial at the end of our first year, and on a tour of London and Bulgaria in our second. We studied drawing alongside Bulgarian design students (and let me tell you, they blew all of us out of the water).
Q. The LCT is known for its educational programs and youth outreach. What role does your costume department play in that arm of the company?
A. We provide costume support for all of LCT’s educational programming. I designed and built costumes/a puppet for the touring production of Heap it On, which teaches young people about the importance of recycling and environmental responsibility. Otherwise, they come to us and we help them become characters for teaching in role, or to costume their students in a performance workshop. I don’t tend to build anything for them, so it’s pure fun to see what we can come up with out of our stock.
Q. What advice would you give to readers who aspire to a career in costume design and/or production?
A. Oh man. I would say to learn everything you can. Costumes take us inside the character’s mind, so you need to understand people. I would recommend reading constantly, learn about art and fashion history, and watch as much theatre as you can. In terms of skills, you need to sew, sew, sew. I don’t understand designers who can’t sew a stitch. You need to understand how a piece is built, how it functions, how gravity affects the fabric, and how it fits (and how to MAKE it fit). I think this is essential. Draw as much as you can. I still struggle with drawing: it’s a life-long process, really. Take life-drawing classes whenever possible. Finally, network. Theatre is about the people, and you need to meet as many people in the field as possible. This is how you will learn the most, and ultimately, this is how you will get work as a professional.
Q. Your company works a lot with puppetry, and you make a lot of those in your shop. Do you ever split that work with props? Can you talk a bit about how you approach the design of a puppet?
A. I love puppets. My specialty is working with ½ scale foam puppets and I will put a puppet in a show any time the director will let me. I tend to do all of the puppets, unless they need to be more hard sculpture, rather than soft. In our current production of Old Jake’s Skirts, I made the puppet for the Dog, but the Scene Shop built the puppets for the Jackrabbits and Crows. It all depends.
When I design a puppet, I just design the character I want. The cool aspect of puppetry in this sense is that I get to design the whole figure, not just the clothes. I get to determine expression, skin color, eye color, height, weight, gender, species… everything! It’s complete control over the character. Then, once the director and I like the character, I will backtrack and determine the best way to construct the puppet.
Another of Eric's renderings, featuring a puppet design.
Q. And, what resources and materials do you use when considering how you will construct your puppets?
A. Well, I try to keep it simple. I don’t have any time for R&D, so I have to get it right pretty much the first time. Last year, I discovered a company called Project Puppet. The company, run by the amazing puppet creator Pasha Romanowski, sells “blank” puppet patterns for figures of many different skill levels. His vision is for puppet builders to expand and remake his patterns into the characters they need. Well, I was hooked. I now own EVERY pattern he sells. By starting with his shapes, especially since I am now very comfortable with his patterns, I can literally make any foam puppet I desire. In fact, I like his work so much, I’m working with him to develop a line of clothing patterns to sell as part of the Project Puppet brand. It’s the most exciting project, ever!
Okay, now that I got that shameless plug out of the way, back to materials. I most always work in foam, usually upholstery, reticulated or minicell, depending on what I need in terms of strength, scale and durability. The next essential is Antron fleece. This hard-to-find fabric is made almost exclusively for puppet “skin” because of its ability to hide seams, contour to dimensional shapes and dye whatever color you want. From there, it’s all up to the puppet. I tend to wander Michael’s or Hobby Lobby and find neat little knick-knacks that inevitably become part of a puppet.
Puppet from the previous design rendering.
Q. What do you look for in candidates who apply to work in the LCT costume department?
A. I need interns who are smart, hard-working, creative and fun to be around. Since I spend more time with these interns than I do with my own partner most weeks, I need to like the people around me. It’s essential. When someone walks into the costume shop, I want them to feel positive energy, not negative silence. I look for interns who have specific interest in TYA and who will bring skills to the table that will enhance our product output. Most of all, you need to be willing to LEARN. It needs to be a passion, an obsession, almost. Our work gets stale when we stop trying new things and if we’re too afraid to fail.
Q. Can you talk about some of the projects you have worked on recently?
A. Currently I have five shows in my shop in one phase or another. We’re about to launch our two fall touring shows, in fittings for Charlotte’s Web, about to start building The Boxcar Children, and are in design for Madeline’s Christmas. I’ve also been hired to make some unusual hats for the national production of Motherhood: the Musical. We’re building three hats: a giant light-up birthday cake, a stack of frozen food boxes and a crown of dental hygiene. Since there are three companies, we have to build these hats three times each (we’re onto sets two and three right now). I’m also into the prototype phase for the Project Puppet patterns, which we’re hoping to have done by the end of the month. Plus, since it’s almost Halloween time, I have a few costumes in the works, but mostly for toddlers. They’re the only kind I enjoy making in my off time. And I’m sure my partner, Layne, is dying to make a Christmas quilt, so I’ll be working on that, too. I stay pretty busy.
* * *
Thanks so much to Eric for sharing his time and expertise in this interview!
Over the next couple-few weeks, look for posts on topics such as 1880s hat styles for Sarah Ruhl's In the Next Room, my students' first round of glove projects, making stageworthy silk fans, design research for the world premiere of Mike Wiley's play The Parchman Hour, and our next interview with the head of the Los Angeles Opera's crafts department, Hallie Dufresne!
Today's participant is Eric Abele, a guy who wears (and makes!) a whole lot of hats at the Lexington Children's Theatre of Kentucky. LCT is a professional company serving young audiences, founded in 1938; Eric is their Costume Director, a resident designer, costume shop manager, and builds quite a lot of their puppets! I've never actually met Eric in "real life," despite having a whole host of friends and colleagues in common, and sharing an alma mater (UT-Knoxville). Someday, we'll remedy that! But, thanks to the internet, we "know" each other and he graciously agreed to this interview.
Q. For a bit of background, would you describe the shop at the Lexington Children's Theatre--how many employees, what different positions there entail, etc?
A. I like to describe my shop as “The Little Shop that CAN” to anyone who asks. We don’t have the traditional roles that many professional shops have; we try and keep it pretty fluid. In addition to me as Resident Designer/Costume Director I have an Assistant Costumer, who takes on many leadership roles for me and with me. Rounding out the team, I have two full-time Resident Professional Interns, over-hire stitchers and guest designers. Together, we take care of all the costume aspects for a busy eleven-show professional season of plays. It’s a non-stop whirlwind of FUN! Seriously. I love this place so much. Usually I assign projects on each show, and later (for their resumes) we try and assign a title. If we’ve done our job right, then many of us can “claim” the same project, because we’ve all had a hand in it along the way.
Q. What are your responsibilities as Costume Director?
A. In my position, I function as Costume Shop Manager, Cutter/Draper, First Hand, Lead Stitcher, Lead Crafts Artist, Rentals Manager, and Wardrobe Supervisor. Well, and Head of Design (for costumes). Now, I don’t do all of those tasks on every show, I just make sure they get done and done right It’s my mission to ensure that LCT produces top-quality work that is on time, on budget and on target. I have my days when I wish my Type-A personality would just let things slide and be lesser quality. It’d be a lot easier and a whole lot less work. But I can’t and I won’t. Every actor deserves my best work. Period.
One of Eric's beautiful rendering plates.
Q. What are some of the specific considerations you have to take into account when creating costumes for chidren's theatre performers (as opposed to say,dancers or opera singers and so forth)?
A. Each play presents its own set of challenges, of course. However, were I to generalize, I would say that TYA shows (Theatre for Young Audiences) require heavy movement and rapid changes.
I’m constantly amazed at how we move our actors in these plays, which creates an enormous amount of wear and tear on the clothes. We tend to build multiples of the same piece, when possible. When I build a hat, it tends to need three to four attachment methods, just to stay on the actor’s head. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve been told that a hat just won’t stay on. So now I tend to overload my hats with headbands, combs, horsehair loops, even topstick.
Many TYA companies keep their acting pool as small as possible to save money, so that means I often have to have many rapid costume changes in a row. At LCT we don’t have dressers on our shows, because we have such extended regional runs at times. That means all of my quick changes are completely actor-driven, oftentimes by themselves. I’ve gotten pretty accustomed to building “all in one” costumes, wherein the bottom, top and accessories are all rigged together for speed. My favorites were the Nazi costumes from out recent production of Anne Frank and Me, when two actresses had to be Nazi officers and then immediately become Jews on the train. I think that may have been more challenging for the actresses to mentally accomplish than it was for us to build the costumes.
Q. What is your educational background in the areas of costume design and production? I would particularly love to hear more about your study abroad!
A. Well, I didn’t study to be a costume designer at ALL in undergrad, until the very last semester of my senior year. I lied and said I knew how to sew and they had me build costumes for the final production that semester. I’ll never forget calling my Mom while laying out a pattern, having her coach me through cutting. But I learned then two things about myself: I really liked what I was doing, and I can sure fake it until I make it.
I worked at Lexington Children's Theatre for three years as a teacher, but kept working in costumes when I could. I did a show for LCT and some local groups in town, just to get more experience. My niece and nephew were my guinea pigs for many, many costumes. I just made as much clothing as I could to get as much experience as possible. I was hooked.
I decided on an MFA at University of Tennessee for many reasons. First, the faculty there (Bill Black and Marianne Custer) were both top-notch, working designers. Marianne’s program fell in line with my own beliefs about theatre and the design process. I also liked how UT balanced design and tech, but how they fervently worked to make sure we weren’t abused as graduate student stitchers.
But the best part of UT was the study abroad! In undergrad, I traveled some to France and Austria, and then spent a semester in Heidelberg, completely immersed in German, to study linguistics and theatre. Marianne and I share a passion for the German language and she also believes in the importance of international design. She took us to the Prague Quadrennial at the end of our first year, and on a tour of London and Bulgaria in our second. We studied drawing alongside Bulgarian design students (and let me tell you, they blew all of us out of the water).
Q. The LCT is known for its educational programs and youth outreach. What role does your costume department play in that arm of the company?
A. We provide costume support for all of LCT’s educational programming. I designed and built costumes/a puppet for the touring production of Heap it On, which teaches young people about the importance of recycling and environmental responsibility. Otherwise, they come to us and we help them become characters for teaching in role, or to costume their students in a performance workshop. I don’t tend to build anything for them, so it’s pure fun to see what we can come up with out of our stock.
Q. What advice would you give to readers who aspire to a career in costume design and/or production?
A. Oh man. I would say to learn everything you can. Costumes take us inside the character’s mind, so you need to understand people. I would recommend reading constantly, learn about art and fashion history, and watch as much theatre as you can. In terms of skills, you need to sew, sew, sew. I don’t understand designers who can’t sew a stitch. You need to understand how a piece is built, how it functions, how gravity affects the fabric, and how it fits (and how to MAKE it fit). I think this is essential. Draw as much as you can. I still struggle with drawing: it’s a life-long process, really. Take life-drawing classes whenever possible. Finally, network. Theatre is about the people, and you need to meet as many people in the field as possible. This is how you will learn the most, and ultimately, this is how you will get work as a professional.
Q. Your company works a lot with puppetry, and you make a lot of those in your shop. Do you ever split that work with props? Can you talk a bit about how you approach the design of a puppet?
A. I love puppets. My specialty is working with ½ scale foam puppets and I will put a puppet in a show any time the director will let me. I tend to do all of the puppets, unless they need to be more hard sculpture, rather than soft. In our current production of Old Jake’s Skirts, I made the puppet for the Dog, but the Scene Shop built the puppets for the Jackrabbits and Crows. It all depends.
When I design a puppet, I just design the character I want. The cool aspect of puppetry in this sense is that I get to design the whole figure, not just the clothes. I get to determine expression, skin color, eye color, height, weight, gender, species… everything! It’s complete control over the character. Then, once the director and I like the character, I will backtrack and determine the best way to construct the puppet.
Another of Eric's renderings, featuring a puppet design.
Q. And, what resources and materials do you use when considering how you will construct your puppets?
A. Well, I try to keep it simple. I don’t have any time for R&D, so I have to get it right pretty much the first time. Last year, I discovered a company called Project Puppet. The company, run by the amazing puppet creator Pasha Romanowski, sells “blank” puppet patterns for figures of many different skill levels. His vision is for puppet builders to expand and remake his patterns into the characters they need. Well, I was hooked. I now own EVERY pattern he sells. By starting with his shapes, especially since I am now very comfortable with his patterns, I can literally make any foam puppet I desire. In fact, I like his work so much, I’m working with him to develop a line of clothing patterns to sell as part of the Project Puppet brand. It’s the most exciting project, ever!
Okay, now that I got that shameless plug out of the way, back to materials. I most always work in foam, usually upholstery, reticulated or minicell, depending on what I need in terms of strength, scale and durability. The next essential is Antron fleece. This hard-to-find fabric is made almost exclusively for puppet “skin” because of its ability to hide seams, contour to dimensional shapes and dye whatever color you want. From there, it’s all up to the puppet. I tend to wander Michael’s or Hobby Lobby and find neat little knick-knacks that inevitably become part of a puppet.
Puppet from the previous design rendering.
Q. What do you look for in candidates who apply to work in the LCT costume department?
A. I need interns who are smart, hard-working, creative and fun to be around. Since I spend more time with these interns than I do with my own partner most weeks, I need to like the people around me. It’s essential. When someone walks into the costume shop, I want them to feel positive energy, not negative silence. I look for interns who have specific interest in TYA and who will bring skills to the table that will enhance our product output. Most of all, you need to be willing to LEARN. It needs to be a passion, an obsession, almost. Our work gets stale when we stop trying new things and if we’re too afraid to fail.
Q. Can you talk about some of the projects you have worked on recently?
A. Currently I have five shows in my shop in one phase or another. We’re about to launch our two fall touring shows, in fittings for Charlotte’s Web, about to start building The Boxcar Children, and are in design for Madeline’s Christmas. I’ve also been hired to make some unusual hats for the national production of Motherhood: the Musical. We’re building three hats: a giant light-up birthday cake, a stack of frozen food boxes and a crown of dental hygiene. Since there are three companies, we have to build these hats three times each (we’re onto sets two and three right now). I’m also into the prototype phase for the Project Puppet patterns, which we’re hoping to have done by the end of the month. Plus, since it’s almost Halloween time, I have a few costumes in the works, but mostly for toddlers. They’re the only kind I enjoy making in my off time. And I’m sure my partner, Layne, is dying to make a Christmas quilt, so I’ll be working on that, too. I stay pretty busy.
Thanks so much to Eric for sharing his time and expertise in this interview!
Over the next couple-few weeks, look for posts on topics such as 1880s hat styles for Sarah Ruhl's In the Next Room, my students' first round of glove projects, making stageworthy silk fans, design research for the world premiere of Mike Wiley's play The Parchman Hour, and our next interview with the head of the Los Angeles Opera's crafts department, Hallie Dufresne!
