You are the costume master. Am I crazy or have the sleeves on the Phantoms tux gotten way longer? Check out Ben Crawford’s latest photo set by Murphy Made. The tux looks ill fitting at best. I’ve noticed since at least Panaro, if not well before that. Michael Crawford made a point about the sleeves being SHORTENED. Now they seem to half way cover the hands. Am I crazy?
You are definitely not crazy. The Broadway taicoats are different from most others in that the fit is looser, and the sleeve cuffs and trousers are longer.
I classical Western menswear three main styles is usually brought up:
UK/English style: Structured, close-fitting, high-waisted and with a love for double-breasted jackets, but also for understatements (in the suit, accessories can be loco). Think Savile Row.
Italian/continental: Elegance, lighter fabrics, sharper angles. The finest wools, often also lighter colours. Can be super smooth, but also a bit excessive. Think Brioni, Caraceni, Kiton.
US/American: Looser“box” fit, rounded shoulders, wider and longer sleeves and trouser legs, usually dark colours. An actual expression here is “the sack suit”. Think Brooks Brothers and Ralph Lauren.
And with this as a backdrop, this tailoring does make more sense, no?
I certainly won’t call it ill-fitting, as it seems tailor-made for the actor and fitting him well in the torso. But I AM itching into make the sleeves a helluvalot shorter, as per the original instructions.
As you say, Michael Crawford and designer Maria Bjørnson aimed for the sleeves to be a bit shorter than usual. Reason was that this would emphasis the hands, make them large and visible. And Ben Crawford is definitely NOT getting that little push from his jacket. The cuffs are rather drowning out his hands. Which becomes more obvious when comparing the two Crawfords in MOTN:
I think this started in the days of Howard McGillin and/or in the late 1990s, but with some more extreme examples than others. With some Phantoms the shirt cuff and cuff links are visible, and with some 2/3 of the hand is covered. I don’t know if it comes down to preferences of the costume maker, costume supervisor or actor. But your observation is correct, the US Phantom jacket sleeves are notoriously longer than most other versions out there.
On the other hand, the tailoring of said cuffs is pretty neat, almost reminding of horse hoof cuffs. The European equivalents often has an additional velvet decoration on the cuffs, and can be a bit more rigid in shape and movement. Though there are nicely tailored ones here as well. Scott Davies in West End, for example:
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