Play challenges designer

By Pamela Dyer-Smith
Theatre Arts Department

Kimberly Nicole Wood, who portrays Mrs. Laura Cheveley, tries on costume.

They say that “clothes make the man” and in the University Theatre’s production of “An Ideal Husband” clothes make the woman, too. This period comedy has challenged the talent and skills of the Fresno State Theatre Department’s costume designer M.C. Drake and her staff.

The cast of eight men and nine women will be decked out in some of the most dazzling costumes ever created by the costume shop. The lead women change three times and the men go from white tie and tails to frock coats and cutaways.

Drake began work on “An Ideal Husband in September.” She and her staff of technicians and student assistants have been working all semester on the gowns and dresses for this production, one of several during the semester. The costume shop already has completed work on two other main stage shows.

The design process begins with the script, research of period styles and consultation with the director (Terry Miller). After the production is cast, M.C. prepares renderings of all the characters in the production. Meanwhile the cast comes into the shop for measurements. Once measurements are taken and renderings are approved the staff creates patterns and muslin mock ups for the costumes that need to be constructed.

Each dress requires three or four fittings and takes 20-30 hours of labor before it is finished. The average cost of the dresses for this production is about $200 in fabric plus trims, accessories such as jewelry and hats or headpieces. The women are also fitted with corsets and petticoats the period requires.

For this production nine gowns and dresses are being constructed from scratch. Two dresses are being remade from stock pieces and only one dress was pulled from stock with only alterations to fit the actress. The men’s costumes are a combination of purchased, pulled and rented pieces.

Drake used her training as an artist combined with computer-generated images to render the characters. She also took advantage of the Internet to research the time period and access sources for fabrics and trim that would normally be unavailable in our area.