Curtains
Fall 2013​
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This was the first show I ever costumed! Due to the whole "I've been sewing for only two years and I taught myself via YouTube and Google" thing, I never thought I'd have this opportunity.
I had e-mailed them a year prior offering to help out with a picture of my Snow White commission attached, but I never received a reply. When I heard the school had a new director, I tried again, this time attaching pictures of Mary Poppins, my Elizabeth Midford commission, my Clara Barmaid dress, and my Lavender and Cream Day Dress. No only did they let me help out, I was made head Costume Designer! Well...sole Costume Designer. The woman who had been helping for years left with the previous director. Suddenly, I had eighty-nine kids to dress with zero experience. And I managed to do it! (With a lot of help, of course.)
That's a little less than half the cast...
The show takes place in the fifties, but the characters are putting on a show that takes place in the Wild West. Luckily the Ensemble half of the cast could be pulled from the costume room I inherited. The stage crew half could be brought in from home.
 Wide Open SpacesPhoto by Blur Photography |  The Woman's DeadPhoto by Blur Photography |  Show PeoplePhoto by Blur Photography |
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 Show People |  Show People |
It was a very large cast!
The Main Suspects
Taking on this job meant a whole new challenge. I needed to costume a whole cast of characters so their individual personalities while keeping them grounded in the 50s...using pieces from the disorganized, packed to the ceiling costume room. Pulling costumes was a brand new experience.
 JessicaPhoto by Blur Photography |  What Kind of Man?Photo by Blur Photography |  Christopher BellingPhoto by Blur Photography |
|---|---|---|
 CioffiPhoto by Blur Photography |  It's A BusinessPhoto by Blur Photography |  In the Same BoatPhoto by Blur Photography |
 Bambi and GeorgiaPhoto by Blur Photography |  Grady and NikkiPhoto by Blur Photography |  Cioffi and CarmenPhoto by Blur Photography |
 BowsPhoto by Blur Photography |
The Can-Can Dresses
When you got right down to it, there were only eighteen costumes I had to make from scratch...and fifteen of them were can-can skirts. Fourteen of them needed to be borderline identical. Those fifteen skirts, which was only in one number, nearly killed me. Each one had four rows of handmade ruffles. A single skirt took four hours to make. They weren't all ready until opening night. The girls were wonderful and even worked to subtly change their choreography to showcase them. And you know what? They looked stunning.
 Photo by Blur Photography |  |  Photo by Blur Photography |
|---|---|---|
 Briefcase.jpg |  |  |
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And The Rest...
You know what's really difficult? Making a "sexy" Native American costume within Catholic school standards! This costume almost got vetoed because you can see her midrift! Really.
The original Leading Lady in the show within a show gets replaced after an unfortunate run in with the killer (I'm telling you, this show is wild from start to finish), so I decided the best thing to do is make two separate costumes for "Madame Marian." I decided this for two reason. First, the original, Jessica Crenshaw was a complete diva. I expected that she would be the type to throw a complete tantrum over the more elegant black, white, and red dress and demand that her costume be more showy/tacky. Second...she kinda died in it two days before Georgia, her replacement, had to wear it. I don't know about you, but I'd rather not wear the eyesore clothes someone died in.
As of April 2014, I've worked on ten highschool shows in one way or another. Curtains was an honor and joy to work on. Hands down, my favorite. It's going to be one tough act to follow.
We even got a few nods for the costumes in reviews!
