University of Ghana, Legon.

Literary Orientation to the Theatre - Costume and makeup (THEA111)

What is costume?

The words costume and clothing are synonymous and used interchangeably to
mean wearing apparel.

From clothing, we derive costume for the stage which Babara and Cletus
Anderson (1994) define as being “anything worn on stage whether it be layers of
clothing or nothing at all” It also includes all accessories used by the actor such as
hats, jewelry, bags, mufflers, shoes, fans and all items the actor carries as part of
his/her characterization.

The person that creates stage costumes is called a Costume Designer or a

Costumier and is responsible for designing, planning, organizing, and creating all
the clothing and costumes worn by the actors that appear on stage including the
fabric, colors, and sizes.

The Costume Designer works closely with the director to understand and interpret
"character", and counsels with the production designer to achieve an overall tone.

Costume Establishes-

The Place, Gender, Age, Opposition, Social status, Mood, Time and Occupation-
in a theatrical performance.

1
A representation / mirror of life- costume determines who the character is; nurse,
rich man, prostitute, king, soldier etc.

An imitation of life-

Conflict in costume establishes opposition; warring factions, different teams,

different ethnic groups

What is Make-up?

Make up is a vital element in creating the total appearance of the actor. Stage
makeup enhances the illusion that the actor has become the character.

Eg. Young to old, pretty to ugly, unblemished skin to skin full of warts,
scarification, genetics etc.

The make-up designer works with the costume designer and again helps to
establish setting, as well as character. Effective make up will project the character
and not the actor to the audience.

Application techniques

Corrective, Stippling, Highlight and shadows (contouring)

Three dimensional; - prosthetics, latex,

Masks, False hair; beards, moustaches, bald heads

The make-up designer works with the costume designer and again helps to
establish setting, as well as character. Effective make up will project the character
and not the actor to the audience. The makeup designer also must train as actor,
artist, director, set and lighting designer, psychologist, and know a little anatomy

2
How to determine who looks like what!

• Read for pleasure- enjoy the play

• Take note of number of characters- Group characters e.g. Royalty, servants,

citizens, chorus, soldiers, dancers etc.

• The numbers of some characters are not mentioned in the cast list

• Take note of minute details:-

1. Textual references

* p2 Oedipus. A crowd of citizens carrying…

* p10 Enter Tiresias being led by a small boy

2. What the character says about himself/herself,

*p15 Tiresias- since you have chosen to insult me with my blindness

3. What other characters say about him/her.

* p4. Priest- if not he would not wear that wreath around his head, a laurel
thickly packed with berries.

* p10. Chorus leader-But at Last Tiresias is being guided here…

*P10 Oedipus-…although you cannot see, how sick our state is

3
Status-

P32 Jocasta enters….. accompanied by one or two servants

P37oedipus- that’s right old man. Messenger is old

Makeup-

P49 reference to p47-Oedipus aaaiiii, aaaiii…alas alas, how miserable I am…

(blood on clothes and face/mask)

Ancient Greek costume terms

1. Tragic masks and comedy masks were worn by the chorus to establish the genre
of the play. (Make-up)

4
2. Long gowns were worn by the chorus.

3. Actors wore high platform boots/sandals called korthinoi

5
4. Male and females wore the same garments called chitons

Doric chiton- was fastened with two fibulai at the shoulders

Ionic chiton- fastened with several fibulai at the shoulders

Doric chiton had a cape-like feature called a peplos at the shoulder or waist.

5. Ionic chiton was worn with a himation

6
Himation is a large rectangular cloth similar to the Ghanaian ‘ntama’

Both chitons were tied at the waist with a girdle.

6. Soldiers, small boys and travelers used a cloak-like garment called a chylamys

7. They wore two types of hats, the petasos and the Phrygian cap

7
8. Ladies braided their hair, an influence from Egypt.

9. Men kept their hair long and decorated it with fillets.

8
10. Sandals were made from leather.

Costume symbolism in Oedipus

1. Purple robes for the king-

In ancient Greece, purple was a lavish symbol of social status and wealth, and in
high demand as a clothing dye. Purple Greek textiles were coveted all over the
Mediterranean world and in Persia. All-purple garments were worn by kings and
generals, and society’s elite, including politicians, courtesans, and actors all wore
purple as a sign of their affluence. Purple garments were also used as offerings and
gifts for the Gods as idols were often dressed in purple robes.

9
2, Gold ornaments for royalty

3, Wreath in hair for victory

10
• Colour plays a vital role in costuming, and is a big concern for the costume
designer and must not work against set and light, also, cultural interpretations of
colour are very important in costuming for the theatre. For example in Ghana red
is for mourning or to show that ‘one’s eyes are red’ however in India red is used
for weddings because it is believed to ward off evil spirits. Other elements of
design such as, line, texture and shape, as well as other cultural symbols, are also
used to emphasize the actor’s character.

Symbols of colour, shape and line placed in costume help establish-

• Purity (white)

• Mourning (black/red)

• Masculine- thick, bold, vertical stripes

• Happy- bright colours eg orange, yellows, blue

• Poor- browns

• Feminity- soft curved lines

------------------------------------------------

Try and match the different characters in Oedipus rex to the different
articles of Ancient Greek costume.

11
12