First Week at the University of Cincinnati-CCM
This first week, as part of the Costume Department team at The University of Cincinnati, CCM, has been a whirlwind of stitching, painting, cutting, patterning and classes. Everyone is working together to finish all the final costumes for the huge Opera performance of The Magic Flute; which started technical rehearsals on Sunday 31st March continuing through to the performances starting this Thursday. Because of this Opera, a few of the classes have been postponed until next week as this has taken priority, however, I have made sure I attend every session I can.
As this is the first blog entry after starting at CCM I have included a more in-depth amount of detail explaining what I have done in each class, with a final evaluative reflection at the end.
Costume Rendering Class
This was one of the classes I was most excited to attend, mainly because as a 'maker' I don't have as much opportunity to study how costumes are designed and rendered, and the different aspects of colour matching and fabric accuracy. The first class was started by discussing 'colour matching' projects completed the previous week. I was able to appreciate the complex process that goes into rendering a costume and it was very interesting to hear the challenges the other students faced. The main elements that influence the colours in renderings is the light source, medium used and time taken for the paint to dry, which were the main opponents that affected their work.
Drapery in fabric is one of the hardest elements to capture when rendering a costume. Dean gave out three hand-outs; 'Folds', 'Body Protrusions' and 'The Anatomy of Drapery', which all demonstrate different types of drapery and how fabric is manipulated around the form. Fabric is affects by; the type of drape, for example one-point drapery which hangs from a single point, the hand of the fabric and gravity. I came out of this class with new knowledge and skills to apply to the next session.
In the next session two different fabrics were draped across the wall, one of which was a heavy striped fabric and the second a soft blue fabric, which we were asked to paint in either water-colour or acrylic. I chose water-colour as I feel I have more control of this medium. I thought I would find this a very challenging project and would struggle to depict the line and movement in the fabric, however, referring back to the hand-outs I was able to create accurate renderings of the fabrics. The main skill I learnt from this was the ability to define the line of gravity in the fabric and then work in the dark and light. The image below shows the first stages of my drapery study, to improve this painting I feel I should use more fluid strokes.
Costume History
The first class I attended focused on men’s wear from 1870-1890, with in-depth information into each garment and accessory worn by men in different social occasions and class. Sportswear became more established during this period, with every different sport having a distinctive look. We discussed the progression in formal wear and the specific differences between jackets, vests and coats. This class has helped me to pin-point specific characteristics of this period which I can apply to accurate costume patterning and draping.
In the second class we explored women’s wear from 1890-1910, which is the late Victorian and early Edwardian Era. This class was more visual than the previous; which I found easier to follow and understand, as I am a kinesthetic learner. Next week we will be seeing first hand historical garments that I can touch and study; I will pay special attention to the seam lines and style of construction because I feel I need to improve my historical accuracy when draping costumes.
Biz of the Biz
This is a graduate class entailing everything to do with the business side of working in the theatre industry. The class started with some really interesting student presentations on three theatres; The New Globe, Wolf Trap Opera Company and Pacific Northwest Ballet. Each presentation explained the business side of the companies and how they were founded, and the staffing and economics of each theatre. Previous to this class I wrote my résumé using my notes from the USITT conference session and sample résumés from other students. In this class we were then given another presentation on how to create a professional résumé, as I had already written my résumé I was able to apply the new advice to improve my growing résumé, Next week I will take my résumé in and Wendy, the tutor, will mark it and give me guidance and constructive criticism to improve.
Millinery
This class started with three presentations on tribal masks, the Moulin Rouge hats and the Venice Carnival masks, which is what they had been studying the weeks before. We then had an in-depth PowerPoint presentation on Fosshape, which is an amazing heat activated material that is easily moulded, shaped and painted and is an extremely hardwearing and strong fabric. I am going to highly recommend this fabric to AUB for masks and millinery. In preparation for the next session I researched elderly faces to create a characteristic ‘panty-hoes’ mask; the more dynamic face the better as the masks are created by stitching tights onto simple plastic masks, backed with wadding. The first stages of building these masks is to use ‘Model Magic’, a sculpting clay, to shape and mould the nose and any other prominent features. This is a whole new technique and skill I am learning so I am excited to see how my mask progresses through the project.
The vast spectrum of classes has kept me excited in each project and improved my skills in each area of costuming. I have mainly benefited from the design based class, as I feel this is my weakest area. Next week I will be taking classes in draping and tailoring, learning new and alternative methods that may contradict or improve those skills I have already gained from AUB.
During this first week I have had a taste of how a costume shop runs during the lead up to production week, as well as gaining new skills in construction and improving my technique in finishing and hemming garments. I spent the week as an assistant stitcher, sewing parts of costumes and finishing garments with snaps, etc. I also spent two days creating a white, silk-dupion robe.
Although the robe was a simple pattern and not complex to construct, I was able to learn new ways of cutting pattern pieces and inserting linings, which save time and labour; an important factor to consider when in the professional industry, ‘time is money’. It was exciting to create my own costume for such an immense Opera and complete my own small projects during this week.
On top of all of these classes and time spent on The Magic Flute, I have also had the amazing opportunity to be part of a workshop lead by the touring Broadway Company of War Horse. Not only is this an exciting, once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, but I will also gain first hand knowledge which I can relate to my ‘Perceptions of Performance’ essay project; where I am exploring the notion of puppetry in theatre and how it has evolved through the decades. This session was a very physical, hands-on class where we experimented with small paper puppets, learning how to understand the movement of puppets and the fundamentals of making a puppet appear real on stage; it is fascinating how quickly a paper puppet can develop a personality. Following this I went to see the performance of War Horse at the Aronoff Center downtown Cincinnati, where I had the opportunity to go backstage and see the horse puppets up close and discuss the mechanics and challenges the performers faced during the performance.
Final Reflection
Overall I have found this week extremely rewarding, inspirational, exciting and overwhelming. I have been involved in many aspects of the production process, as well as attending classes with other students; graduate and undergraduate. I have found the diverse spread of classes and skills helpful to me, as I have been able to get a taste of all areas of costume technology and design. I have developed my skills in drawing and rendering as well as expanding my knowledge into men and women’s costume history. The weekend was the start to the technical rehearsals, where I am working within the wardrobe crew. I have been able to apply my new knowledge from the USITT session on quick changes, as my main assignment involves a 3minute complete costume change for the character Pamina.
At this stage in the placement, I already have many projects I have started. In order to complete all my projects I need to plan my time well and work hard to complete each assignment to the best of my ability. I have already become aware of the workload building up, however, I am conscious that after next week I will have more time to progress within all areas. The Magic Flute has been my main focus during this week and I am excited to continue through the technical rehearsals and on to the performances later in the week.