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labricoleuseSome time back at the beginning of the design process, i posted about using pinterest as a design tool in initial communication of visual research in costume conception, for an upcoming production of It's a Wonderful Life: A Live Radio Play. The play's dramatic conceit is that it presents a "radio play" version of the classic film's story, in which the audience in the theatre functions as the "live studio audience" complete with interaction like Applause-sign responses and so forth. The broadcast is ostensibly happening on Christmas Eve, 1946. Five actors voice all of the roles and the play runs straight through with actual commercial breaks, just like a radio play would have. So, all the characters only have the one costume and very few props and pieces to work with in creating the world of It's a Wonderful Life.
The show, opening at PlayMakers this Saturday night, now exists as an entity in terms of the costumes, and I thought it would be fun to write about how the designs moved from blobs of research images to real costumes worn by actual people.
First, let's take a look at one of the ladies in the cast: Sally Applewhite, played by Maren Searle.
Within the show's premise, Sally Applewhite is a budding Hollywood starlet and former Miss Ohio who will be performing the role of "Mary Hatch" in the radio-play-within-a-play. She has a single costume which encompasses three separate potential looks:
She has arrived at the radio station from the cold NYC December evening air, so she has this winter outerwear look.
She spends most of the show in this smart tailored suit look...
...but she can remove the jacket for another more casual look with this cream blouse.
You'll probably note that there is a stylistic difference in the sketchwork from the first rendering to the second and third. Because i knew that we were going to be pulling or renting the overcoat, i didn't see much point in spending time drawing something representational, when a piece of research would suffice for communicating with my assistant and the director about what the basic look of coats of the period were, so i'll own up to having taken a research image from a ladies' coat advertisement and used it as a base in Photoshop to make this rendering. Here's the original:
I purchased the fabrics for this look--a red suit-weight wool gabardine and a beautiful blouse-weight jacquard in a cotton-silk blend--from local upscale fabric store Mulberry Silks. They have a beautiful selection of truly high-end quality textiles, and I'm a big fan of supporting local businesses when I can.
Kelly and her first hand, first-year grad Colleen Dobson, produced a truly beautiful look for this character, which you can see from these lovely stage shots from Tuesday night's photo call:
Sally in her coat and hat, as "George" and "Mary" get ready to throw rocks at the old house.
(Todd Lawson and Maren Searle.)
Here's the look with the jacket on, as Sam Wainwright calls from New York.
(Maren Searle, Brandon Garegnani, and Todd Lawson.)
Mary in her blouse look, tells George she's "on the nest."
(Todd Lawson and Maren Searle.)
First-year grad and crafts assistant Corinne Hodges made the sweet hat. The wool felt hatbody for the millinery came from my stock. It's brim is bound in black suede and the crown is trimmed with a black chenille circlet, a black grosgrain hat band, and two black fox pompons. Here are a couple of process shots:
Wool body on the crown block with a mocked up brim shape in craft felt.
The hat exists but I decided to divot the crown into a mock porkpie.
You can take a look at Sally's Pinterest board and see how diverse the sources were initially for what might stylistically influence this character's look, and also see how it distilled down into what became the design reality.
The show, opening at PlayMakers this Saturday night, now exists as an entity in terms of the costumes, and I thought it would be fun to write about how the designs moved from blobs of research images to real costumes worn by actual people.
First, let's take a look at one of the ladies in the cast: Sally Applewhite, played by Maren Searle.
Within the show's premise, Sally Applewhite is a budding Hollywood starlet and former Miss Ohio who will be performing the role of "Mary Hatch" in the radio-play-within-a-play. She has a single costume which encompasses three separate potential looks:
She has arrived at the radio station from the cold NYC December evening air, so she has this winter outerwear look.
She spends most of the show in this smart tailored suit look...
...but she can remove the jacket for another more casual look with this cream blouse.
You'll probably note that there is a stylistic difference in the sketchwork from the first rendering to the second and third. Because i knew that we were going to be pulling or renting the overcoat, i didn't see much point in spending time drawing something representational, when a piece of research would suffice for communicating with my assistant and the director about what the basic look of coats of the period were, so i'll own up to having taken a research image from a ladies' coat advertisement and used it as a base in Photoshop to make this rendering. Here's the original:
Source: wickedladycollectables.co.uk via Rachel E. on Pinterest
When it came to the rest of Sally's look, however, I knew that we'd be making it in-house, and that I did need to devote some time and attention to drawing exactly what I wanted, as well as providing specific research to her draper, second-year grad student Kelly Renko.
Vintage suit on Etsy with pocket shape detail.
Source: vintagesonia.tumblr.com via Rachel E. on Pinterest
Beautiful portrait of Ava Gardner with desired lapel shape for suit/blouse.
Period hat which inspired Sally's hat design.
I purchased the fabrics for this look--a red suit-weight wool gabardine and a beautiful blouse-weight jacquard in a cotton-silk blend--from local upscale fabric store Mulberry Silks. They have a beautiful selection of truly high-end quality textiles, and I'm a big fan of supporting local businesses when I can.
Kelly and her first hand, first-year grad Colleen Dobson, produced a truly beautiful look for this character, which you can see from these lovely stage shots from Tuesday night's photo call:
Sally in her coat and hat, as "George" and "Mary" get ready to throw rocks at the old house.
(Todd Lawson and Maren Searle.)
Here's the look with the jacket on, as Sam Wainwright calls from New York.
(Maren Searle, Brandon Garegnani, and Todd Lawson.)
Mary in her blouse look, tells George she's "on the nest."
(Todd Lawson and Maren Searle.)
First-year grad and crafts assistant Corinne Hodges made the sweet hat. The wool felt hatbody for the millinery came from my stock. It's brim is bound in black suede and the crown is trimmed with a black chenille circlet, a black grosgrain hat band, and two black fox pompons. Here are a couple of process shots:
Wool body on the crown block with a mocked up brim shape in craft felt.
The hat exists but I decided to divot the crown into a mock porkpie.
You can take a look at Sally's Pinterest board and see how diverse the sources were initially for what might stylistically influence this character's look, and also see how it distilled down into what became the design reality.
