I'm back in Michigan and started to sort though the logistics of producing the costumes for La Boheme. We have an amazing, fully staffed costume shop as well as a 17,000 sq ft costume stock warehouse. Working in academia (and most regional theatres), the first step is to always see what we have on hand to begin with. Our stock is about 20 minutes from north campus, requires an appointment, as well as an open mind for identifying the potential of each piece. You can see a bit about our facilities here:
Our current stock manager, Theresa, continues to keep us well organized.
Most of the cast was measured in the spring and I've been working with our shop manager, Laura, to determine what will be built from scratch, what I'm hoping to find in stock, and what we will buy new and adapt for the show. Right now, it's a big puzzle. Every item used in the show is inputted into our database to track fitting notes, dressing notes, laundry during the show, and strike. At this point in my process, I've inputted a list, but know that things will change as they are found and fit. I was lucky in stock today and found almost everything for our double-cast Marcellos.
Next week, we'll start fittings!
Comments