Unit 12- task 2.2 / 3.2 production role

 Little Women- My Production Role 

Candidate Declaration - I confirm that the attached portfolio is all my own work* and does not include any work completed by anyone other than myself

Costume

I have decided to help with costume for little women as my backstage role. I think the movie has very specific costume requirements that takes a lot of effort to find for cheap prices. The 1800’s have really beautiful clothing so I’m looking forward to looking into the fashion more. 

i started by researching the fashion of the time so i could get it as correct as possible. Here's the research i gathered from multiple sources; The costume for this show was particularly important because its so specific for this time, there was no crossover between the characters clothes and our clothes and since i'm on the costume team this was a big job for me. Me and the other girls worked alongside Kelly to find the most affordable and time appropriate options. This was the research that helped us find the right costumes; Fashion during the 1860s in America was heavily influenced by the Victorian era in Europe. Women's clothing during the 1860s was characterised by full skirts, fitted bodices, and wide sleeves. Dresses were often made of light fabrics such as cotton or silk, and were typically adorned with ruffles, lace, and other decorative elements. Women also wore corsets to achieve a narrow waistline, and petticoats to add fullness to their skirts. Men's clothing during the 1860s was characterised by a fitted jacket with matching trousers. The style was formal and conservative, with a high collar and narrow lapels. Men also wore waistcoats underneath their jackets, and cravats tied in a bow or knot. Children's clothing during the 1860s was similar to adults' clothing in style, but with simpler designs. Young Boys typically wore suits with short pants, while girls wore dresses with puffed sleeves and wide skirts. Women's accessories during the 1860s included gloves, fans, and parasols. Men wore top hats or bowler hats, and carried pocket watches. The fabrics used in 1860s fashion were typically lightweight and breathable, such as cotton, silk, and linen. Colours were often shades of brown, grey, and blue being popular. Overall, 1860s fashion was characterised by its conservative and formal style, with an emphasis on fitted jackets and full skirts. The use of corsets and other undergarments to achieve a narrow waistline was also a notable feature of the era. Because the girls were poor they wont have as fancy of clothes so they wont have corsets and will have fewer petticoats. There will still be some that they will have purchased when they had money but not enough for everyone. Richer girls like Sally and Belle will have more outgoing dresses that have a corset waist and petticoats underneath.

Here’s a collage of costume’s of each character from the movies, stories and plays:

Since makeup had broken up I also thought it would be my job to design hair for people since I had been doing so much research of fashion of the time so these are collages I made;

Me and Latoya took it the most seriously because were very interested in fashion, we spent most of our free time comparing sizes and prices to find the cheapest options for Kelly so that we still had a budget for the set. costume was the hardest production role because the 1800's have such a specific time that's really important to stick to. i think if this were another show this would've been much easier because you can just text people with a brief idea that they can get from home however, with this we had to find all of it online or on different apps. Kelly didnt mind helping us a bit by finding three outfits off facebook marketplace. we told the boys to bring in their own shoes and black trousers ecause we dont have enough in our budget to buy them for everyone. i also sent the girls a size chart of who they could share shoes with because they also needed to buy their own. this is what i sent them;

 Little women girls, we want everyone to be wearing black character shoes if possible ( I’ll link some below). They are quite pricey so I’ve made this list of who’s the same size so if you need to borrow, message one of the girls ur the same size as to ask. We would prefer if everyone could have their own pair for the ballroom scene but if not black ballerina flats would be fine instead xxx                                             (These are just the people that sent me their size)Size 7-Emie, Jess, Sophia,Pheebs - Size 5 -Bailey, Kadie, Millie T - Size 6- Milly S, Gracie, Freya, Rebecca - Also the first like 20 pairs that come up when you Google them are from move dance but they’ve got really bad reviews so keep that in mind when ordering xxx

and this is the link i sent them - https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B00FQH71G8?ref_=cm_sw_r_apin_dp_N9VHRB2PEEY64F123E2M

i discussed lots of options with the group and kelly and we decided we wanted these dresses for every sister and marmee;

then these are the links to everything else that i sent kelly;

https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/aw/d/B08XV75Y5D/ref=ox_sc_act_image_1?smid=ANGK7VX69FWVW&psc=1

One of them for Jo’s to share☝️size small

https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/aw/d/B0B976QVWX/ref=ox_sc_act_image_4?smid=A17QRPGXYCBF00&psc=1

One of them for megs to share☝️ size medium

https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/aw/d/B0B975DGQ9/ref=ox_sc_act_image_5?smid=A17QRPGXYCBF00&psc=1

One of them for sallies to share☝️ size small (Milly S wearing Kelly’s purple)

https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/aw/d/B081CVL4MK/ref=ox_sc_act_image_3?smid=A1S3O1FAB46FMD&psc=1

Two of these for Amy☝️ one small and one XL

https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/aw/d/B081CVL4MK/ref=ox_sc_act_image_3?smid=A1S3O1FAB46FMD&psc=1

These gloves come in a pair with most of the dresses☝️ we only need four but if we had more ball extras could wear them xxx

https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/aw/d/B08DVC8SV6/ref=ox_sc_act_image_2?smid=A06563521VCGQAW4OTA1E&psc=1

If you haven’t already got a fan there’s one here for £3ish ☝️xxx that’s all ☺️xx

however, Kelly didn't have enough budget until the week before so she just ordered a the ones i sent her as ball and home dresses, two of the big home dresses and used a dress she already had.

Here’s two dresses that Kelly found that we ended up using for the Jo’s;

heres what we ended up with compared to the link, they were still dresses we chose so they fit the theme and character.

act one

act two

Sallie, Ned, Belle, Fred

Ensemble

We just put them in outfits that we had spare at that time in the show and then if a named character needed it in a different part of the show it would be put back for them

Overall, I think being in the costume team for this show was very difficult and time consuming however, it’s a vital part of the play that really makes the show come to life. I’m very proud of the outcome and I think Kelly is too so I’m happy to have been a part of it. I think if we had a better budget and could’ve ordered them on time it would have ran much smoother but it worked out in the end either way.