Meet Sarah Trost of Project Runway
I have a confession to make. I don’t watch much television. This is partly because we have Netflix and can watch nearly anything we want to that way, and partly because we don’t have cable. Yes, I know that’s weird to most of you. But if we had cable, I’m not sure we’d get anything else done (BBC America would be my downfall!).
At any rate, I recently got the chance to interview Sarah Trost, one of the contenders on the current season of Project Runway. For those of you not in the United States, Project Runway is a reality show about fashion designers competing against one another for big prizes. Think Survivor, only with fabric.
Sara Trost
Sarah is out of the running for the show now, but you should still pay attention to what she has to say. Although fashion design and costume design are two distinctly different disciplines, Sarah is primarily a costume designer. She has some fantastic insights into our discipline, so keep reading.
How did you become interested in costume design?
I started making costumes when I was 10, and I grew up on movie sets. I’ve always loved movies and was enamored with films like Gone With the Wind and the Wizard of Oz from a very young age. I love the fantasy element of films…It’s like magic.
How would you express the differences between working in the world of fashion and working in the world of film/television/theatre?
It’s interesting that even though there are fundamental differences between fashion and costume, there also tends to be a great crossover. For me as a Designer, Costume is about creating a believable universe comprised of multiple characters whose costumes blend with each other and their environs. Fashion is about creating a singular look for your target customer, which corresponds to a current season and price point. Generally I prefer Costume Design. The job is much more conducive to my personality type and the variety of projects can be so much fun and take you to so many interesting locations.
Do you have any formal training, or has your training be more experiential?
Both I would say. I have a Fashion Design Degree from FIDM and I have assisted many great designers and Designed scores of films independently. I believe in order to be successful you need a base of knowledge, but the greatest learning occurs with experience. Learning from your mistakes is the greatest accomplishment.
Do you have a method in your approach to designing a show or a particular piece of clothing?
It really depends on the project. If I’m designing a film, I’ll usually research the era or genre then pull inspiration from the dress and particularly music of that time/place. Music I find to be the single most inspirational tool and the first step for me in designing any project…music conveys emotion in such an accessible way.
How do you unblock your creative juices? What happens when you become stuck on a particular problem, how do you get through it?
Again, really depends on the situation. Usually I will put on my headphones and power walk to a solution. If that doesn’t work, it always helps to step away from the situation and completely change gears. I’ll do something that has nothing to do with the problem at hand, and when I come back I have a fresh perspective and can conquer! Haha.
How often do you sketch?
I usually only sketch when I have a project at hand or If I’m particularly inspired and don’t want to forget an idea.
Time Travelers Rendering
How often do you have time to do things that have no relation to costumes, fashion, film or the entertainment industry? Do you mind sharing what they are?
Well, that pretty much cuts out all of my hobbies. Haha. I do find time to do things unrelated to the entertainment industry, otherwise I would go insane! I cook, and especially bake. The other day I made a sarsaparilla cheesecake..it was awesome!! I also love going shooting. I own a shotgun and I grew up with a shooting range on our property. Otherwise I like to take little mini-adventures around the city and the mountains, and I love to take in the occasional car show.
What is your least favorite part of your job?
When people have no understanding or respect for what Costume Designers do, and how important the role of Design is in conveying emotion and the successful overall look of the film.
What is your dream job?
Costume Designing huge action movies, sci-fi, or westerns. I would love to work with James Cameron someday. That or Designing for Tom Jones and ZZ Top. 
Cast of The Guild
How do you balance work and family/personal life?
That’s always a challenge. Luckily my entire family and most of my friends work in the business, which definitely makes the balancing act easier.
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My thanks to Sarah for taking the time to talk with me and for sharing some of her work with everyone here at the Costume Design Blog. And to everyone reading this, keep your eyes open. I have a feeling we’ll see Sarah’s name popping up in credits for some time to come.
Useful Tech Rehearsal Tip
I’m sitting in tech.
It’s for a show that doesn’t have many costume changes so I have plenty of time to not only over-analyze my design, I also have time to find out new ways of multitasking during tech.
There can be quite a lot of downtime while the actors figure out their blocking, and of course sorting out all of the light and sound cues. All of the backstage choreography needs to be figured out as well. So it’s often useful to have a laptop available, especially during the first tech rehearsal.
So the useful bit of information I found out today, is how to change the colors on the screen so that you get the reverse. Black becomes white, white becomes black, and all of the other colors change into strange techno-versions of themselves.
Why is this useful? Because a brightly lit screen annoys some actors (or the Stage Manager who needs you close enough to talk to, but is distracted by the light coming from your computer). My job during tech is to ensure that my design looks the way I want it to look, and to otherwise keep out of everyone’s way unless they need me.
I realize that I may be behind all of you in this new discovery, but it made a huge difference to me, so I thought sharing the tip might be useful to some.
Doing this does limit what you can work on to some extent. You don’t want to try and adjust photographs, and surfing for image research online for your next show could be difficult. But if you need to write emails, or research written material, write notes for your show, or write blog entries… then it works very well.
Here are detailed directions for Mac.
Or if you just want the keyboard shortcut it is CTRL + OPTION + APPLE (with the left hand) and the number 8 key with your right hand.
For those of you who have not yet discovered the awesomeness of Mac computers (yes, I have a bias), there are instructions for Windows machines too.
The real benefit is in not needing to turn the lights down so far on your computer that you are squinting to see what you are working on. Ten hours of that will give you a headache for sure, and no one wants to sit though a tech notes session with a headache.
Now, if only they could come up with a silent keyboard….
What sorts of tricks or tips do you have for getting through tech? Please share in the comments.
Can you design if you don’t know how to sew?
Here’s an interesting question I was asked recently.
Can you design if you don’t know how to sew?
I was talking with my partner about it and realized that I may not be the best suited to answer the question. But here’s a shot.
I like to say that I taught myself to sew. It’s mostly true. I remember doing simple hand sewing for my dolls when I was really small (thanks, Grandma!).
Later, I wanted to make a dress in the 6th grade so my mom helped me pick out a pattern and fabric from the local fabric store and then just answered the questions I had as I read and followed the pattern. I don’t remember it being terribly hard, it made sense intuitively. I think I had to ask what a basting stitch was. And how to do a French seam because the illustrations weren’t very clear.
So because it was such a positive experience, I find sewing very easy and natural. And when someone says they can’t sew, I assume they just haven’t really tried, and they don’t realize that they can.
But this isn’t really to the point of the question, is it?
Can you be a costume designer if you don’t know how clothing is constructed, or if you can’t construct it yourself?
There are certainly people out there who are trying. I’ve run into a number of designers who barely know how to thread a needle (much less a sewing machine), yet they have great ideas and have found other ways to get the costumes together.
It’s important to understand that not all designers sew their own costumes.
I think that to be an effective designer you need to understand the human body and how fabric can be used to hide or enhance the lumps and bumps that are there.
You need to know what fabrics are, how they are different based on fiber content and weaving style, and you need to be able to talk intelligently with the person who is going to build the costumes.
So even if you can’t personally build a 17th Century gown, you need to know enough about how it’s made so that you can tell the shop what you want them to do in order to get your beautiful drawing off the page and into 3D.
On a very basic level, you need to know and understand the following:
- What is a seam? This should be obvious, but there are different kinds of seams, and places where they are effective, and places where they are purely decorative. (A sub-example is that you should know what the difference between a seam and a dart is.)
- How to describe fullness. Why you would choose pleating, or gores, or gathers. Where you use a pleat, and where you use a dart, and why.
- What are the various ways of finishing a hem? What are the ways to finish a neckline. What are the ways to finish a sleeve or trouser leg.
- What is the difference between on-grain and bias cut? There are appropriate times, and there are non-appropriate times.
- What is flat lining and why might you need it? Also if you will need other lining, boning, or stabilizing.
- What is a waist line? What is the bodice? What is the skirt? What are the parts of a suit jacket?
- What is the difference between a welt pocket, a hidden pocket, a patch pocket, and a flap pocket?
- What is the difference between a seam line, finished hem line, and a basting line? (or at least knowing that there is a difference.)
- Where do you want the opening to be in a garment, and how do you want the outfit to close? (eg: zipper, button, snap closures. Side closure, back closure, center-front or off-center closure….)
- What is an appropriate hem length? What is the appropriate “fit” of the period (how tight or loose to the body)?
These are some key questions that any designer should be able to answer, whether or not that designer can actually execute on the techniques. They are key to understanding which costumes will work in a given show, and which will be inappropriate.
In the end, I guess my answer is that you may not actually need to know how to sew yourself in order to be a costume designer, but the knowledge and experience of creating garments yourself can certainly give you a leg up.
What did I forget that you feel is key knowledge? Please, speak up in the comments!
Good Advice / Bad Advice
First the bad advice.
On the flip side, I have been given some good advice over the years.
In the end. . .
Another Round of Questions
I frequently receive emails from students interested in costume design. Sometimes they are asking questions for their own information. Often, however, they have a school assignment that they’re trying to fulfill.
I do my best to answer these questions when I get them, and sometimes I share them here. This is another round of these questions. Enjoy!
Q: What path did you take to become a costume designer?
A: I found myself interested in costume design when I was in High School. I pursued it in College and then after in Grad school, so it’s not so much a path, as a singular purpose in my life so far!
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Q: How did you first become involved in theater?
A: I waited until I was in High School. My older sister is an actress/writer/director and was all through Junior High and High School, so it really took awhile for me to get into it. I wanted to be my own person and not just follow in my big sister’s footsteps. But when I got to H.S., one of my best friends was in a production of “The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe” and she needed help sewing her costume together. I ended up going to some rehearsals with her, and I was hooked.
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Q: What is the most challenging aspect of being a costume designer?
A: For me, the most challenging aspect was/is dealing with everyone else’s personalities and egos. It’s hard for me to bite my tongue and not tell an actress that I don’t care if she thinks she looks fat, I want her to wear a certain dress. Or to not tell a director that their decision to do the play with a certain “feel” is one of the dumbest things I think they could do. But I’ve found that no one responds well when I don’t keep these thoughts to myself, and it stops the process from moving forward in a positive way.
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Q: How do you approach the shows you are working on?
A: I have a systematic approach to reading the script. I have a very organic approach to researching. It depends on how much time I have as to how I approach the shopping/building portion of the show.
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Q: Do you enjoy designing for a specific theme or type of play better than another?
A: I enjoy all kinds of plays. I love highly imaginative shows. I love historical shows. I enjoy modern shows when they are mixed in with other work. (I wouldn’t enjoy doing only one of these for the rest of my career.) and I like an easy show every now and again as a kind of respite from the craziness.
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Q: Is there someone who inspired you to enter this career?
A: I really wasn’t paying attention to theatre or design when I was growing up. (Though I saw “Cats” when I was really young, and LOVED it.) I’ve started watching other designers’ more recently and Broadway designers like David Murin and Jess Goldstein come to mind. In film I like most of the work that Julie Taymore, Colleen Attwood, and Anne Roth have done. And this isn’t to say that these are the only ones!
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Q: Are there any rewards or benefits you have gained from being costume designer?
A: The greatest reward is being able to set my own pace for life (most of the time). And I always find it rewarding to go to opening night and watch the audience response to the show.
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Q: Do you have a favorite costume or show that you have designed for?
A: My favorite show so far has been “The Mystery of Irma Vep” by Charles Ludlam. I did it as my senior thesis project in college. There are only 2 actors and they change characters in 15 seconds at some points, so I asked a bunch of friends to become dressers for the evening. I think it was more fun to be backstage that night than to watch from the house! One was on wigs, one was on tops, one was on pants/skirts, and two were one shoes. The whole thing was choreographed. So much fun – and it’s a great campy show that doesn’t take itself too seriously.
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Q: Are there any special skills you need in order to become a costume designer?
A: I like to say that anyone with desire and a dedication to hard work can be a costume designer. All of the skills you need, can be learned: sewing, drawing, fabric manipulation, color coordination, script interpretation, draping, researching. However, it also helps if you are naturally organized, quick thinking, critical thinking, and relaxed.
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Q: Would you recommend costume design as a career to someone else?
A: Absolutely!
How shopping for shows has changed my life.
I recently received a $100 gift card that was designated for new clothing for me. Since I don’t often get to go shopping just for myself, I was excited to splurge on shopping just for me.
I didn’t have a list of things I particularly needed, so I figured I’d just head out and see what I could find.
What I quickly realized is that my shopping habits have changed.
A lot.
When I entered the first store, I found myself heading straight to the clearance discount racks in the back.
When you have a show budget and are looking for something particular, like a long-sleeved black shirt in the middle of the summer, this is obviously the best place to look. Or if you only have $20 left for a character, and you still don’t have a pair of pants for them, again, this clearance rack has saved my show more than once.
The clearance rack will certainly stretch a $100 shopping spree, but if you have an afternoon and you want something you can wear RIGHT NOW, the out-of-season rack isn’t always the best option.
Suddenly I realized, as I was wandering aimlessly around the store’s main section, that I don’t know how to shop for myself any more. It’s not that I don’t have my own sense of style, or that I don’t know what I like and don’t like. But when the doors are wide open, and I can buy jeans, or a dress, or a pair of shoes, or a stylish handbag, I get lost.
I’m so accustomed to having a list of pieces that need to be purchased with a character and character traits in mind, that when it’s my own self that needs to be “costumed” I don’t know where to begin.
I gave up at the store. It was too frustrating.
I came home and did a wardrobe overhaul – pulled everything out of my closet, and looked for the gaps. (There were a lot of gaps.)
I made a list.
When I returned to the store, it was a lot easier. I knew that I needed this sort of skirt or this sort of blouse, and I could find it. Easily. And, because I know how to shop on tight budgets for shows, I made that $100 go a long way.
In the end, I added a number of nice things to my wardrobe. But I’m still in awe of just how difficult it was for me to find it.
For those of you who have been designing for awhile, do you find it difficult to shop for yourself? Or is it just me?
My Process … Just in Case you were Wondering
I’ve had several questions about my process recently. Specifically asking to see what happens between reading the script and finding the final costume. So I thought I would share one of my shows, at least parts of it, so you get a better idea. And I’ll try and explain what I was thinking between each step – though this was a couple years ago, and my memory blends together what I thought would be good at the beginning and what I thought would be good at the end.
I was asked to work on a new production for the Berkshire Theatre Festival called “Pageant Play.” It was a new script that had had several staged readings in New York so most of the kinks were worked out already. It is a fun look into the world of child beauty pageants and some of the real characters who are involved. There were 4 actors and 6 characters. The largest “concept” of the show was that the children would be played by empty pageant dresses, and these dresses could be man-handled by the moms and the beauty experts without actually mistreating children. They were props rather than people, which was the “thesis” of the playwrights.
So of course the second step was to research actual beauty pageants. Utube is full of video clips, and there was a documentary done a few years earlier called Living Dolls. There are all kinds of resources online for this sub-culture in America, so researching was actually quite easy. Here is one of the research pages I created for the director:
My research for the director
I tend to over research and then when I go back, I can weed out which images still feel right, and which ones no longer fit into the pattern.
From there I usually do rough sketches in pencil, scan them and send them along with swatches of fabric to the director and we have a discussion about what we both feel is important to the character. This may go back and forth for a while, and I would give an example here, but this show, as with most other shows, I ended up painting the rough sketches, and can no longer find the scans on my computer. So you’ll have to use your imagination for a little bit!
Once we both (or all, depending on who is part of the discussion at this point) agree, I paint the sketches, and go shopping for the real fabric. Here’s an important difference though, the fabric I pull for the roughs are from my giant bin of swatches and just give a sense of what I’m thinking for color and texture. The final swatches are usually reflected in the painted rendering.
Here is one of the final renderings for the show. The mom’s name was Pinkie, so both she and her daughter were in pinks. Pinkie is the ultimate Texas stage mom. She was forced to do pageants when she was a child and is still haunted by the ghost of her dead, drunk mother. Pinkie is very strong willed, and treats her daughter’s involvement in the pageants as a business investment, so she is forceful with her daughter, tossing her into a corner of the stage at one point and telling her to “behave”. Pinkie will do anything to advance her daughter’s career, even befriend the competition and then stab them in the back. And she does all of this in heels, perfectly manicured nails, and well-set hairstyle.
My initial rendering of Pinkie
If you compare this to a photo from the show, you’ll see that we made several alterations to the costume after I painted it. I didn’t re-sketch because I was available to the draper almost every day to answer questions, and it would have been a waste of my time. Pinkie is the one standing behind the chair. We changed it to a pants suit, and we lightened the color since the original color I wanted would have clashed with the color the set designer chose for the entire stage.
Pinkie is in the back, standing.
This is a shortened version of the entire process. Hopefully you find it useful, but it’s only one way I work. Sometimes I skip steps, or combine them. These have had varying success rates. But in the end, as long as I am communicating, that’s what is important.
Angel Wings
I’m working on a production of “Parallel Lives” right now, and if you know the show, you know that there are two “Supreme Beings” at the top of each act. These have been interpreted different ways over the years, but most, if not all interpretations include angel wings of one kind or another.
I have an issue with angel wings. They are incredibly expensive, or they LOOK like the cheap party costume that they are. It seems like it is always a struggle to know how to deal with them in an effective way, without blowing the budget on feathers, or having part of the costume look cheap and tacky.
So I was trying to figure out which method would work better for me this time, with limited resources, a very limited budget, and a great desire to make this look high-quality. I found a number of folks online who make angel and fairy wings. These are truly beautiful. And outside my price range. I also found plenty of costume houses who could ship me “deluxe wings” that I’ve used before – cheap. And I found a series of instructions on Instructables . These were also a bit too involved for me, though if I ever get to design “Angels in America” I will probably look them up again!
Instead, I combined several of these techniques into the following:
- Cut out the general shape of the wings in white foam core and attached them together with heavy canvas and several pieces of floral wire. The floral wire was wrapped with tape and then spread and the ends curled so I could actually sew them together.
The start of my wings
- Add shoulder straps. One of my biggest complaints with the pre-fab cheap options, is that they don’t sit well on the back of the actors. They always seem to hang down too low, and the elastic doesn’t actually secure they wings to the back. I used 1-inch black grosgrain so it would blend into the costume (also black).
Another view under construction
- Steam and hot glue feathers ALL OVER THE PLACE! Here’s a tip I used from the instructables website: clean up as you go. I can’t over emphasize this point. I had feather bits all over the house afterwards. They just cling to you and when you get up to use the restroom – there they are. Also, if you want to use several of the larger turkey feathers at the bottom, it helps to get more than you need and sort out whether they are “left” or “right” feathers. And save enough time to steam them back into shape.
- Sew part of a boa across the top of each wing. This can be done very quickly since the weathers will cover up your stitching.
And Voila!
Finished product
The best part of the whole project is that the wings not only stay up at the top of the back (making them more visible), but they are positionable because of the floral wire. They don’t have to be flat across the back, they could be at an angle, or at 90 degrees. Whatever works best for the show.
I won’t say that these weren’t a pain to make, but I learned a lot, kept within my budget, and made the director (and actors) happy. And that’s what my job is all about.
The Finished Mandap
For those of you who are interested.
The completed mandap
The Mandap went up this weekend. I’ll admit, it was truly beautiful in the end.
We used 100% cotton voile with a satin finish. So much softer than silk, a wonderful hand, beautiful drape, I could go on forever….
The swags were double-layers as were the exterior legs. The inner legs were a single layer of fabric, since it was all gathered in, rather than spread out.
It took two hours to set up after the frame was in place.
I’m in love with this fabric. Only problem is it takes a crease well. REALLY well. I spent a good 6 hours just trying to iron out all of the shipping creases before we installed it yesterday.
Anyone out there who knows more about mandaps than I do have any thoughts? I welcome them, since the mandap is outside of my own cultural reference.
Prepping for College (University) – Part 2
Choosing an undergrad program is hard. Looking online and through some trade magazines I get, I realized that most of the really intense programs are geared towards graduate level work. On some level that makes sense, since I firmly believe the best undergraduate education for anyone in the arts is a liberal arts education.
There are hundreds of those out there. Hundreds of GOOD programs out there.
So, the task of narrowing it down, when you already know what you want to major in, ends up giving you a lot of conservatory programs and graduate level programs. I now have a greater appreciation for the frustration and anxiety many high school juniors and seniors are going through.
And the internet has not made it easier. Now you have to sift through some very high-polished websites (and some not-so-highly polished websites) in an effort to get to the bottom of who really offers what you’re looking for.
I list below six American schools that if I were in the college search right now, I would want more info from, and probably do a visit. And since I know some of you out there are in Canada, I found five very interesting Canadian programs as well.
***disclaimer: I have not been paid by any of these schools to list them, or to not list their rivals. I am not employed, have never been employed, nor do I personally know anyone who is employed by these schools. I am not an alumni of these schools (the school at which I did my undergraduate work is not on this list . . . it’s a long story).***
I have listed why I think these schools are unique and why I’m attracted to them. Feel free to discuss and debate in the comments section! Shameless self-promotion of your undergrad program could help the next round of design students out there, but please give specific reasons as to why you’re program is so great.
Theatre schools in the United States
National Technical Institute for the Deaf
I am fascinated and extremely curious about this program. American Sign Language is one of those classes I really wanted to take in college and didn’t. This program works with both deaf and hearing students and has design tracks.
Fairleigh Dickinson University
I like this school because one, it’s close to NYC without being in it. Two, they are set up to send their students to England for a semester to study. And three they have a unique selection of courses in their requirements list. There aren’t many programs out there that have an entire semester’s course devoted to color.
A fascinating program that really allows you to tailor your education. I love their statement and they seem to have a number of “heavy hitters” for faculty. It is exciting in it’s diversity. The one down side is that it is in Vermont (and I LOVE Vermont) – far from a large theatre population center.
This is a program that I’ve met graduates of and they are some of the best designers I know working today. It could be that they were exceptionally gifted, or it could be the program. But this program has direct ties to LaJolla Playhouse so it’s high on my list.
Also an excellent program with well-respected faculty. But what really attracts me to this school is it’s tie to the Huntington Theatre as well as other theatres around Boston. This will definitely give you a leg up on work over the summer and after college, not to mention the hands-on training possibilities you get from working with professionals during the year.
This is a unique program with both theatre and dance. I like them because they seem to provide a balance of classroom learning and practical learning. I really like that they expect their students to spend a semester or a year overseas learning in a different environment. Cross-cultural experiences can be the best learning experiences for both getting out of your comfort zone, and learning empathy for others. And isn’t that what theatre at it’s best does?
Honorable mentions (also worth checking out):
Carnegie Mellon, Vassar, Evansville, Ithaca, Otterbein, Oberlin, Syracuse, Rutgers/Mason Gross, George Washington University, Virginia Commonwealth University, UCLA , North Carolina School of the Arts
Canadian schools
A great place to study if you are sick and tired of school and just want the basics to get out and start working in film and TV. Only 30 weeks of instruction! There aren’t many faculty members, but they are really only giving you the basics, most of your instruction will be after school, and on-the-job.
This sounds like a great place to study the theory of costume design. Or if you are unsure of whether you want to go the fashion design route. The faculty seem to have more experience in research, history, and theory rather than on production, but that could be really exciting. The program description is very enticing.
” . . . we have established a solid reputation for students with a good work ethic, positive attitudes, strong creative and technical skills and broad intellectual capacity.” If this quote from their website is true, then this is a fantastic program. But you have to keep in mind that websites are marketing tools. Worth a trip to the campus at the very least.
This seems to be a very well-respected and well-connected school (upper level students get to work and learn from the Shaw festival and directly with the theatre in Stratford.) On the down side, they don’t appear to have permanent design faculty. On the upside, you could get an even broader perspective from the visiting artists.
This is an interesting training program. Highly professional, with lots of great connections after graduation. I was a little hesitant to add it until I found on their admission requirements page a desire for students who have already taken several non-related university level courses. This is a program I could see transferring into after taking a series of English, Art, History, World Culture, Religion, Biology, Psychology, and Physical Education courses at a different school.
Honorable mention (also worth checking out):
University of Waterloo, Queen’s University, Ryerson University Theatre School, University of Alberta, Concordia University, University of Regina (though their website leaves much to be desired.) The National Theatre School
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No matter the program you choose, remember that in your undergraduate education you should take every opportunity you can find to dip into as many subjects as possible. The thing about working in the arts is that you need to know some physics, some chemistry, some biology, some history, some religion, some philosophy . . . basically some of every discipline.
If I can encourage you in any one thing as you enter your undergraduate years it is this.
Don’t spend all of your time in the theatre!
I love theatre. It’s what I do for a living. But if I had not spent as much time as I did in other buildings and classes on campus, I would not be the designer I am today. Not that I’m the end-all be-all of designers. Not by any means! But I know that when I’m handed The Crucible, I have some small knowledge of the period and know where to start my research. And if I’m handed Porgy and Bess, I understand something of what was going on when that was written and the philosophies and cultural impetus that allowed such a musical to be a hit.
Just learn everything you can, and get your arms around theatre enough to know if you want to really spend your life doing it. It’s not an easy path. Give yourself freedom now. You can live in the theatre when you go to grad school, or when you’ve gotten your first job.
Costume Design Blog
- Meet Sarah Trost of Project Runway
- Useful Tech Rehearsal Tip
- Can you design if you don’t know how to sew?
- Good Advice / Bad Advice
- Another Round of Questions
- How shopping for shows has changed my life.
- My Process … Just in Case you were Wondering
- Angel Wings
- The Finished Mandap
- Prepping for College (University) – Part 2