Kathryn White - Costumier

A Blog exploring my developing skills as a costume maker in the theatre industry, delving into the world of dance, theatre and film costume.

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Information to be added.

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Progress Photographs for Tovarich dress, Designed by Paul Canada and Directed by Bonnie Monte

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Progress photographs of the 1920s Vintage Jacket finished, restored and re-lined.

These photographs show my process for re-lining the jacket. I started by taking out half of the lining; this was so that I could see how the jacket was sewn together and also to keep a reference for when I piece the new lining into the jacket. As I started to carefully remove the lining from this jacket I could see the interesting way the jacket was sewn together; with the fashion fabric and lining seamed into the same seam. This was a process I had never seen before, and also made this project a much larger challenge than first thought.

In order to replace the lining exactly how it was made originally I would have to take the whole jacket apart, including the fashion fabric. There are many reasons which I chose not to do this, mainly because the fabric was so delicate I was cautious to manipulate it too much, and also because I did not have the time to deconstruct the whole jacket. As an alternative method, I carefully cut the lining from the jacket, initially leaving a 1/4" seam (which is shown in the photograph) this was done to make the patterning easier for me by adding 1/4" allowance at the next stage. I finished constructing the main body of the lining from the silk slip I was given and then moved onto the sleeves. This proved to be my next main challenge.

Originally I was going to use the sleeves from the silk slip, however, the circumference of the head of the sleeve was to small to be inserted into the jacket, therefore I looked at my remaining fabric to create the sleeve from there. As there was not enough fabric for the sleeve I tried to find another fabric to use, however there was nothing I could use that would match the main body of the jacket lining. I then used the method of piecing the new lining with the old lining at the sleeve. I was able to do this because there was no damage to the lower half of the old lining as this isn’t an area where there is a lot of movement and wearing away of the fabric.

Unfortunately I didn’t have the recourses to take full photographs of the jacket, as I would have liked because there was limited time that I could return the jacket to the Vintage store. When I returned the jacket she was extremely pleased with my work and really grateful.

It was a huge challenge for me to take on during the time I was working on other shows, however it was an exciting challenge where I was able to learn new skills and see how vintage fabrics have been constructed.

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Final Photographs of 18th Century Corset

These photographs show my corset finished to the stage where I was able to get to before leaving USA. The final stage I reached was finishing the corset with piped binding and attaching the strapsand grommetsg the back. Unfortunately, although I had the tabs cut, I was unable to bind and attach them. Adding these would have made the corset true to the style of the 18thh Century. The tabs are also used toanchorr the corset down so it doesn't ride up the body of the lady wearing it.

I am really pleased with the final outcome of the corset, the patten of the fabric flows around the body beautifully and the finishing is neat on both the outside and inside. My model is Sophia Blum who is a member of the Next Stage Ensemble, part of STPT. From the photographs the corset looks a perfect fit, however, measurement wise this corset is made for a larger waisted model, this was obvious when the corset easily closed at the back and Sophia could still easily breath!

If I had more time I would have added the tabs and possibly put my model in a bum-roll to complete the silhouette. The main techniques I learnt from this was boning application, finishing and binding. I even managed to have a go at putting the beautiful corset on! 

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Restoration on a 1920s Vintage Jacket.

During the summer I picked up an extra project to restore the lining of a 1920s Jacket for a lady in town who owned the Vintage store 'Time after Time'. Initailly I thought this would be a simple project to remove the lining and, using a silk slip that she gave me, re pattern and replace the lining.  These photographs show the Jacket before I started the process, and also photographs of the silk slip I was given to use as the new lining. As you can see I have photographed the distressed areas of the old lining in detail. The main challenge will be to re pattern the areas where the lining has completely worn away.

I initially aimed to complete this project in the week but due to many factors, including the numerous shows and techs I was involved in, the project took much longer that first envisaged.

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Fallen Angels

The second main stage performance that I worked on was the Noel Coward play Fallen Angels. This show was designed by Martha Bromelmeier and Directed by Matthew Arbour; and was performed in the Kirby Theatre on Campus. This fun little 1920s show had a very quick turn around and only involved a couple of builds.  The garment that I built for this show was Jane's Act 1 Coat which she wore over a matching striped chiffon dress. The coat was patterned by our draper Joleen.

The main challenge for this coat was working with a thin wool and a very lightweight chiffon over a slippery shamoose fabric. Through the process of building the dress, we found that the fabrics grew once hung, therefore, before flat lining the bottom seam and hemline of all the pattern pieces, we hung them on a mannequin overnight to allow the fabrics to rest. I have found it very interesting and helpful to learn how different fabrics react during the summer as I have worked with many new fabrics.

Tailoring the coat was similar to ones I have done before so I felt comfortable in this stage. The final stages of finishing this coat were rushed due to fitting schedule and timing of the tech run. I am, however, pleased with the final look of the garment. 

These photographs were taken at the end of the building process. I hope to add production photographs in due course.

As you can see in the photographs, the coat needs to be steamed and pressed before the Production opens.

A new technique that I learnt was adapting the lining for practicality on stage. as you can see the lining of the sleeve is have shamoose and half chiffon, this is because the shamoose is a satin texture so can slide easily off the body when the actor needs to add or remove the coat. I was finally able to see a performance of Falling Angels last week which was really exciting to see! It feels amazing to see your costume up on stage and I am really proud of the overall look.

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As You Like It - Le Beaut's Vest, designed by Paul Canada I took these photographs during the run of the performance to have a clear photograph of the Vest without the jacket. As you can see in the photographs the back ties are missing; this is for comfort of the actor. The actor is Dan Bound-Black and the costume has been designed by Paul Canada.

This week I was finally able to see this beautiful outdoor performance of As You Like It. All the costumes looked stunning and it was great to see the costumes I worked on.  The first costume I saw was Le Beaut's vest which popped with colour on stage and appeared to fit him very well. The tailoring looked clean and crisp also. The second garment I saw was Pheobe's vest. Following tech week her corset was changed to a darker purple corset, which came up higher on her bust and flattered her figure more. The colour contrast between the bodice and blouse made the blouse really stand out and I could clearly see the pattern and detail under the lights on stage. The most magical scene of the production was the final wedding scene, in which Celia wore the flowered lilac bodice that I built. the bodice looked beautiful and the whole scene was stunning.

The main technical experience I gained from As You Like It was the speed and accuracy needed to build so many costume pieces in such a short space of time. I was also able to build three completely different garments as well as working with challenging fabrics.

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Final Project - Richard II

The final project for STPT is to work with the acting apprentices and other interns to create a performance of Richard II which is fully designed, produced, managed and performed by the interns and apprentices.

For this project I was given the chance to ask for a specific position in the costume team. During this summer I have already stitched for shows, worked on wardrobe for NSE performance of Henry and designer for Metamorphoses, therefore I immediately decided to apply to be the costume shop manager for Richard. My main motive for this role is to allow myself crucial experience in an area of Costume that I haven't had the opportunity to explore and gain experience in. Also, I would like to apply for a supervision role during the next year at AUB and as I didn't take the supervisor's elective, I feel this opportunity will give me a better chance of successfully applying for a role as a supervisor.

Katherine Schuster, another intern for STNJ, has had a fair amount of experience as a costume shop manager and has previously managed the NSE production of Henry, where she showed solid managerial skills and confidence to lead the team. Therefore, I am extremely pleased to co-manage the costume department with her and I will be drilling her for as much information as I can. Overall Kat will be leading the management and delegating me specific elements of planning and preparation that I can be in control of. 

Yesterday we were given the cast list for Richard, so we have already started setting up the Bible and have scheduled times to measure all the actors. The Bible is the most important communication source to keep everyone informed all the way through the process of putting up a show. I am to take home a copy of the Bible for future references.

I am now confident to apply for a supervision role for my first project at AUB this year. I aim to keep this blog updated with my progress as a costume shop manager, of which will act as a progress report for my tutors to be able to view.

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18th Century Corset Masterclass

Progress photographs over two days

During this week we started a new masterclass project to build corsets. This masterclass had two main purposes; one to improve our skills and learn a new method of corset construction, and two, to add costume items to the STNJ stock. There was the option to build an 18th or 19th century corset; I specifically chose to build an 18th century corset to push myself in construction with a silhouette I have not worked on before.

During this process I was able to perfect my machine sewing accuracy as the boning channels are stitched through to the top fashion fabric. I also learnt a new method of neatly finishing the C.B panel which differed from what I have been taught in previous projects. I have found this new method more effective and a cleaner finish. This corset is being constructed and finished with piped binding in three separate pieces, this is to allow the corset to be altered for different sized actors at the side seams.

Future images will follow next week showing the finishing stages. So far this corset has taken me two days to get to this stage, due to some fabric changes I found I wasted two hours of patterning, which couldn't be foreseen. I am really pleased with the aesthetic of the corset so far and I can clearly see an improvement from the previous corset I built last year.

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As You Like It

As You Like It was the outdoor mainstage show for this season at the Shakespeare Theater of New Jersey. This show, directed by Bonnie Monte, was costume designed by Paul Canada and I have been fortunate to be part of the costume department building specific costumes for the show.  This show was started a week before I arrived in New Jersey at the end of May and was a hugely demanding show in regards to costume builds. As an intern I was given my own projects to stitch, as well as altering and adjusting existing pulled costumes. The draper, Joleen, patterned the costumes from the costume renderings and collaborated with Taran, the first hand, to prepare the fabric and pattern pieces for myself, three other interns, and two stitchers to build. 

My main projects included building Celia's Wedding Scene bodice, which was a beautiful lilac silk bodice with a floral decorative border. As shown below.

Although I have built a bodice before at AUB, the main challenge for this project was the time restrictions to have the bodice built. I was able to build the bodice to the stage for fittings in two days, which was a great achievement for me. It was hugely important that the bodice was aesthetically perfect and how the designer visualized and rendered the costume. Below shows a photograph taken by James Morey during the previews. 

Potography by James Morey. Equity Actors: Maria Tholl and Bruce Cromer. My second project was the stitch Le Beau's Blue vest. This was my most challenging build as the fabric was so textured it distorted the grain lines and natural fall of the fabric. Below shows a photograph of Le Beau, played by Equity Actor Dan Bound-Black, photographed by James Morey.

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I am hoping to add photographs of Vest without the jacket to show in my portfolio. My final mini project for this show was to build Phoebe's blouse. This was also a very challenging build as the blouse was made from crinkle-silk, which from previous projects I have found a hard fabric to work with. However, with guidance I was able to learn new methods of dealing with this type of fabric. I am really pleased with the delicate finishing of this garment. Below are progress photographs I took during the process of stitching this blouse.

Below is a photograph taken during preview stages of the perfromance, photographed by James Morey. Pheobe is played by Equity actor Jennifer Mogbock.

Photography by James Morey. Equity Actors Jennifer Mogbock and Caralyn Kozlowski.

The experience of stitching three garments for this show was so critical to my development as a costume stitcher in the professional world.

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Metamorphoses Masks

To portray the Gods and Goddesses in the tales, I have designed masks tailored to each God and their role within the story. These images show most of the masks. They have been sculpted from Wonderflex by four educational interns and then sprayed with a base metallic colour and a mist of characterized colour by myself and Xavier. I then painted on the dots, which are a reflection of the dot motif used int he set; Designed by G. I then began to paint designs onto the masks, with Amy Boulton. In these photographs you are able to see the small designs on the masks, however, from the distance of an audience member they are lost, therefore I am in the progress of re-painting the masks to create a bolder look. 

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Metamorphoses Photos continued...

These are the following photographs from the tech run. The photographs show the base costumes for the actors and their characters are represented by specifically designed drapes, accessories as well as masks for the Gods and Goddesses.

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Metamorphoses.

These first photographs are the scene captions of the Next Stage Ensemble touring performance of Metamorphoses. Metamorphoses is inspired by the tales from Ovid and this production features seven stories. This is the first production I have designed costumes for, as I am primarily a costume maker; and was a huge challenge, but an amazing experience for me. This opportunity gave me the chance to experience costume designing for an actual live performance. In this occasion I had the added pressure of designing the show in a week, followed by a presentation to the Artistic Director of Shakespeare Theatre of New Jersey, followed by  building the show the next week with a team of three other interns in the costume shop; who had the roles of Costume Shop Manager, Stitcher and Wardrobe Mistress. As this was my first design project I was assisted by a graduate designer, from whom I was able to converse with for valuable advice and guidance. Along with the time limitation of two weeks to build a show ready to tour, I have also been working 9am-7.30pm in the costume shop on Main Stage shows, which take priority. We also had a tiny budget, which proved to be one of the main limitations... (More images to follow, and designs will be uploaded...)

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Final Evaluation of Independent Project

Overall I have learnt an incredible amount in such a short space of time. In 6 weeks I have made amazing business contacts that can help me find work placements and jobs abroad, as well as stay in contact with for the latest skills and knowledge of all different techniques in technical theatre. At USITT I was able to learn such a broad variety of new information and meet inspiring upcoming costume designers and theatre technicians. As a person I feel USITT has given me more confidence to show my work and talk to new people who I can learn from and who can even learn from me. I feel this has been demonstrated by the internship I was offered this summer by just being confident and having an interview on the spot.

The University of Cincinnati, CCM has been an amazing experience, The placement started with an intense week in the costume shop finishing all the costume for the big Opera of The Magic Flute, where I worked on the wardrobe crew. Previously I have had experience on dressing for theatre, but not on this scale. I have developed a better understanding of the importance of organisation and paperwork backstage, as being a maker, I had never really appreciated the full amount of preparation that goes into putting on such a big performance, however, living with the assistant designer I was able to quickly gather new information about how to conduct paper work to assure a perfect production period, which I would like to apply in a possible supervision position next year.

I have attended classes I never even considered, for example, wig ventilation and make-up, which I actually found really interesting. I also feel I excelled in costume rendering class which I thought was impossible for me as I have always steered clear of design, however, from these classes I now feel skilled enough to create a character and an accurate fabric rendering for production. My skills as a maker have improved which I feel is shown through the Double-Breasted Men’s coat I tailored. I am disappointed that I didn’t finish the buttons, however, I feel I need to practice my buttonhole techniques before applying that to my coat. Overall I feel he tailored coat has been my biggest achievement whilst I was in America. I feel it shows my improvement as a maker and my understanding of technical pattern drafting and tailoring techniques. As well as technical based skills, I also found a new passion for crafts and jewellery making. I thoroughly enjoyed the mask projects and feel I have demonstrated a clear improvement in my practical work.

The work placement was concluded with a week in New York where I saw six amazing Broadway shows. As well as seeing the shows I drew on the contacts made at USITT and was able to meet with Shannon Koger for lunch to thank her.

My aims for this placement was to develop and learn new practical skills in unfamiliar areas and work professionally to adapt and improve my profession résumé and create contact for the future. I feel I took every opportunity offered to me and met all my aims. In conclusion I feel this option for independent project was the right decision for me, I wanted to study in a different county to experience different ways of working in the industry, The main experience I have taken from this was the opportunity to explore numerous different projects at the same time. I found each new project refreshing and I was able to fully apply myself to each new skill. This project has confirmed for me where I want to progress to in my future studies in third year. I feel the skills and knowledge I have learned over the whole 6weeks are preparing me for a future career in the industry.

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Week Five New York City Reflection

A week has flown passed since I left America and the blues are kicking in! New York was a manic week of exploring the city, visiting exhibitions and museums, as well as seeing numerous Broadway shows. During this week I was able to reflect on my time in Cincinnati and how much I had learnt and the incredible people I had met. Due to a contact made at the USITT conference in Milwaukee and numerous email exchanges between herself and her colleague, Shannon Koger, I was able to tour backstage on two Broadway musicals; which just shows that networking really does pay off!

Amazingly I managed to see a total of six Broadway shows in five days. I saw a huge diversity of shows from the Disney musical 'Cinderella', jumping back to the 20s of 'Nice Work if You Can Get It' and journeying to the dark side of 'Jekyll and Hide'. I was amazed by the pure talent of the children in 'Matilda', the phenomenal male dance company of 'Newsies' and the week was topped off with finally getting tickets for 'The Book Of Mormon'; after playing for tickets in the lottery for four days running. 

On the first day in the City I went to the World Trade Center site to tour the churches and visit the 9/11 Memorial. Although this was a devastating and emotional time it was incredible to see the progress of the World Trade Center from the last time I visited NYC in 2011. I was amazed by the strength of the community and the beautiful Memorials that now stood at the base of the towers. From here I fulfilled my tourist role and walked over the Brooklyn Bridge before reflecting at the top of the Empire State Building during the sunset. As I watched the sun set over the huge city, I actually felt a burst of excitement to be part of this community and possibly work here in the future on Broadway.

In the morning of Tuesday I went over to Central Park to explore the gardens and, ultimately, to find the Metropolitan Museum of Art which was located on the far end of the park. In the Met' Museum there was a special exhibition called 'Impressions, Fashion and Modernity' which was a fantastic exhibition displaying paintings, accessories and full garments from the 19th Century. The display was rich with beautiful fabrics, renderings and intricate details. I especially adored seeing the physical garment next to the painting and a fairly extensive range of men's wear. I found I was able to match up silhouettes with dates and confidently discuss the period of a specific dress. This exhibition has encouraged me to possibly create a period garment from a painting next year and allowed me further first hand historic research.

The first tour I was lucky enough to have was before the musical 'Nice Work if You Can Get It' which is a fun, flirty 20s show. I was primarily surprised by the lack of space backstage and in the wardrobe department. Although this is a fairly small theatre, I was still shocked by the mountains of items piled into a small area. The tour was arranged with Gayle Palmeiri who is the assistant wardrobe supervisor, however, she passed the tour onto the wardrobe supervisor Karen L Eifert who discussed the preparation of the show, their own methods of organization, labeling, storing and pre-sets, as well as her own experience working within the Broadway Union. Every artist had their own personal costume, which was tailored to them individually. If an artist is replaced, the costume is only replaced if it doesn’t fit the new person. As well as this, most of the costumes I was fortunate enough to see were to last the full run of the show, which is currently around one and a half years! Following this tour I saw the musical itself, I found I was more appreciative of the costumes and quick changes, knowing the layout and preparation areas backstage.

Over the next couple of days I researched other exhibitions that would be relevant to my course. I was able to find a fashion and technology exhibition at The Fashion Institute on 5th Avenue. The exhibition was small and mainly geared towards the rise in technology in fashion and catwalk; however, at the start of the exhibition there was a small display of period garments where the boom of the technological industry was described in each. Other than this exhibition, I wasn’t able to find any specifically tailored towards costume, performance or theatre.

The second show I was able to tour was 'Cinderella'. In this arrangement I saw the performance before the tour. Because of this I was able to experience the backstage of Broadway before and after curtain. During the show there were numerous magical quick changes which all happened on stage in front of the audience. As a costumier with experience of quick-change techniques, I thought I would be able to pick up the specific mechanics of the quick changes, however, the pure speed and accuracy made this really difficult to work out. After the performance I asked about the changes and Nannette Golia, the Costume Supervisor, was able to talk me through all the costume changes and the procedure after curtain fall.

To thank Shannon Koger for arranging the tours we met for a casual lunch in a gorgeous Victorian bar/café. I took this opportunity to gently grill Shannon on her experiences on Broadway and the less glamorous side of this highly sort-out career. A main skill I have learnt during this experience is to maintain contacts to build my personal profession network.

  Overall Reflection

Now I have had a week to digest my time in New York and start the preparations to travel back to the USA for an internship at the end of May I can truly reflect on the theatre industry of New York. Taking all the challenges into consideration and the less glamorous sides of working on Broadway I am more passionate than ever to get my name out there, build connections and contacts and join the theatre Union. This week was solely dedicated to experiencing New York and the big lights. Since leaving New York I have been in contact with Shannon, Gayle, Karen and Nannette to thank them for their enthusiasm to give me a taste of life on Broadway.

Over the next couple of weeks I will be focusing on my other projects, CIC and POP, and I have made the decision not to hand in early, as I want to achieve the highest possible grade I can. Although I feel I haven't progressed in either project whilst I was away, I am refreshed and eager to push forward in both.

Before I hand-in I will continue to reflect on my USA placement as a whole and enter a concluding reflective blog in the upcoming weeks.

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This is a timetable showing my last week at the University of Cincinnati-CCM and my final week spent in New York City. I have shown all the exhibitions I attended, as well as the numerous Broadway shows I was fortunate to see; and in two cases tour!