Here's a list of my expectations as a costumer:
The Director
To be backed up by the director. The director has asked me to design his or her show for a reason. If he or she doesn't trust me to do so, he or she should not have asked me in the first place. If the director doesn't like a costume, he or she can tell me, and I will change it. However, the proper answer from a director to an actor who doesn't like a costume that the director likes is, "That costume is going out on stage. Whether or not you are in it is up to you."
To be told in advance about any special needs. If you see the characters in a show as representing the seven deadly sins, tell me. I can work with that. (The director that did that, did let me know in advance, and pulled me into designing the show from that point of view.)
The Actors
To be respected by the actors, and for the costumes themselves to be respected. I am not your personal maid. When I collect for laundry and dry cleaning, don't put your underwear in there, or your socks. Don't leave your costumes lying around, expecting me to hang them up. And, when you do hang them up, do it right, so they are not wrinkled for the next show. I have better things to do than iron your stuff.
To be trusted to do my job. If it's a period show, yes, you do have to wear clothes that conform to the period. You cannot perform in "Anne of Green Gables" in flip flops and a tank top. Back in that era, girls wore things that were tight at the neck, wrist, and waist. Deal with it.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Not once have I invoked the Never Piss Off Your Costumer rule. I have never deliberately, out of spite, put an actor into a costume that is difficult to wear or uncomfortable. If a costume is unflattering, it's because the character requires it. I will admit that not every character in every play is supposed to look terrific. Some need to look dowdy. Dr. Einstein in "Arsenic" wore a suit that was too short in the legs and sleeves. Perfectly in character.
My responsibility is to the show itself. As a costumer, my job is to further the story with the visual effect of the clothes. I do my level best. If an actor has an issue with a costume being uncomfortable due to a poor fit or itchy fabric, I can and will fix that. I expect the costumes to be worn the way they were intended. If you hang your pants around your hips instead of wearing them at your waist, you make me look bad, the show look bad, and, ultimately, you make yourself look bad. Don't do it.
Geez! Rather you than me. They sound like someone I know.
ReplyDeleteYou iron their costumes? That's crap!
That bit about the costume going on stage no matter who is in it, was priceless.
ReplyDeleteI collect any costumes that need attention; either laundering, dry cleaning, mending or ironing after every sunday matinee, and return them before Thursday's performance. If there are a lot of shirts that need to be crisp in a show, I will send them to the cleaners. If there are ony a few, I will wash and iron them.
ReplyDeleteI can't let people go on stage all wrinkled. We keep an iron at the theater for emergencies. I donated a steamer at one point, but it has disappeared.
They should be in awe, Ronni. Not back-stabbing.
ReplyDeleteBastards!
I've never had a costumer invoke that rule on me as a performer (I learned my lessons from acting teachers about never pissing off the tech staff years ago), but I've seen a props guy invoke the same rule for propmasters with a performer. A gay baritone friend of mine had a lead role in a short Gian Carlo Menotti opera. In one scene the guy is supposed to be reading a newspaper. Opening night he opens the paper and on all the interior pages had been taped the nastiest heterosexual porn possible. Understand that this baritone was so gay he'd never even tried to fake being straight, never dated women, and would tell you flat-out that he didn't like the sight of a naked woman -- which is not the standard for gay guys I've known; plenty of them appreciate a nice female form almost as much as a straight guy, they're just not as intensely attracted to it. My baritone friend was so mortified and stunned that he indeed did miss his next cue, coming in on the second measure of his line. Since he simply dropped a measure, no one really noticed. But he'd dug his own hole -- he had, until that show, a habit of throwing diva fits about props not being right. Never saw him do it again.
ReplyDeleteHi, Steve! Thanks for dropping in!
ReplyDeleteI have seen the Rule invoked once. Not by me or on me, but close enough for me to see the fallout! It wasn't pretty. Maybe I'll write an entry about it.