By Sami DeSocio
One of my favorite parts of being in a show is the day the cast gets to see each other in costume for the first time. Now, unless the show you’re in calls for you to wear things that resemble normal clothes, we’ve all had our weird or uncomfortable costume stories.
While I’ve had my fair share, one always sticks out in my mind, and I actually find I use the memory as an acting exercise when needed. I was playing Wilbur in a production of Charlotte’s Web for children (we were all adults except for a few scattered kids). Due to the fact that this was a kids show a simple pink t-shirt, pig nose, and pigtails just wasn’t going to cut it- especially not for the leading role. Instead, my costume was a head to toe pink plush pig costume. Picture Ralphie at the end of “A Christmas Story”, except a pig instead of a bunny rabbit. I also had plush hooves to cover my sneakers, a rubber pig nose, and a pink hood with a tuft of white hair on top.
This would’ve been all well and good if it weren’t for the fact that it was the dead of August and, on a good day, was maybe 100 degrees in the shade. I always swore I was going to die in that costume. As in all times in theatre, I grinned and got through the show.
Other shows though have asked their actors to get into strange and uncomfortable. Shows like Seussical the Musical, Hedwig and the Angry Inch, and even The Book of Mormon.
But why do we do it? Why do we wear skirts that are sometime so tight they leave bruises, or costumes we just bake in? We do it because of the love we have for our art. The costume is an extension of the character, and to completely embody the character, we need to embrace the costume we are provided or told to wear.
And one big thing, before I forget: Never complain about your costume! Unless it really is causing you to bruise (speaking from experience…darn skirt!), then of course, say something to have it altered. But never, ever disagree, argue, or complain with either the costume designer or the director. The designer is carrying out the director’s vision, and the director has told you to wear it for a reason. Let the director tell the story the way they see fit. Just because you might have one of the weirdest costumes, doesn’t mean you have the worst.
What have been some of your weird or uncomfortable costumes?
The post Weirdest Costumes Ever Worn appeared first on Camp Broadway.
