Costumes
Here are some costume notes for the scenes in the show.
Rumor in St. Petersburg – most women and (hopefully girls) will have a scarf to wear wrapped around your head. There are a couple simple videos posted below to show you a couple of ways to wear your head scarf. Some men and boys will also have a neck scarf. Some people will have fingerless gloves.
Stay I Pray you – everyone will wear their Rumor in St. Petersburg costume. Some people will have a jacket change so if you see a nicer looking coat hanging with your costumes, this is the scene that it’s for! You could also have a hat for this scene. Hats will likely be on the hat racks in the hallway so look for them there. There could be a few women’s head scarves in this scene but I’d like very few.
Paris holds the key – obviously you will wear your nicer 20s costumes for this scene. Accessories include pearl necklaces and hats for the women and girls, bow ties or regular ties and hats for the men/boys. For women wearing hats, I do have hat pins available if you need help getting it to stay on your head while dancing.
Neva Club – some of the women have a dress change while some women don’t. Men wear the same thing they wore in Paris holds the Key (unless you’re a Russian Dancer in which case you’ll wear your Russian costume). Kevin would like David Maryanski to wear his tuxedo for this scene. Accessories include feathered headbands, long black gloves, jewelry.
Crowd of Thousands – everyone in this scene should wear what you wore for Rumor in St. Petersburg without hats, sweaters, scarves, or jackets.
Press Conference/reporters – everyone in this scene should wear what you wore in Paris holds the Key.
Finale – ensemble children should change back to their Paris holds the Key costume (unless they are in the Romanov family for that performance).
I know it’s a lot of costume changes. There should be enough time to change in between scenes but it will definitely be busy. We also won’t have tons of extra room backstage so be patient with each other and help each other out.
We’ll have costume helpers backstage during each performance so if you have problems with your costume, find someone on the costume team. Don’t try to fix things yourself!
Also, as a general rule (for those who are new to theater) please don’t eat while in costume. Only drink water (no coffee or koolaid or chocolate of any kind). If you need to eat, change out of your costume or cover up your costume with an apron or shirt brought from home.
It’s going to be so fun to add all the costumes in! Looking forward to it!! – Laura
Please be patient with us as we work through all of the costume needs systematically. This is a big costume show and there are a lot of people to costume. We promise we will get to your costume pieces as we go along. Trust the process!
Underclothing and Shoes
Because of the many costume changes in this show, all actors will need to provide their own modesty underclothing in addition to your typical underclothing. Your modesty underclothing needs to be worn at all times to allow for modest costume changes.
For women and girls, this can be biker/exercise shorts and a tank top or a shaper/spanx. For men and boys, it can be a pair of exercise shorts or even basketball shorts and a tank top or t-shirt.
Adult women, please provide your own pair of character shoes. If you are in the Romanov family or a Romanov dancer, it would be ideal if your character shoes are nude colored but we can work with what you have. Please let us know if you need assistance acquiring your character shoes.
Men and kids may be asked what shoes you can provide from home. We can supply shoes for you from our supply as needed if you don’t have any styles that will work. Men may also be asked about any suits you have from home.
All other costume pieces will be provided for you. You do not need to purchase anything.
Makeup
For adults: We will be using stage makeup for this show. We typically ask that you provide your own stage makeup and that you apply it yourself. However, if you need help with this, please get in touch with us and we can make arrangements to help you.
For Youth Ensemble: You can wear stage makeup if you want to, but you can also use regular “street” makeup. Girls can wear blush and a bit of light colored lipstick (not bright red). If they want to, girls can also add foundation and mascara. Boys only need to wear blush but can add more makeup if desired.
Some people ask where to get stage makeup from. The best option is to go downtown to “The Crazy Neighbor” store in Boise. They can help you get makeup that is matched to your skin tone. A basic Ben Nye kit should do just fine but if you want to get a larger kit it will give you more options. Here is a link to their stage makeup page on their website:
Hair
Men and boys:
Please have your hair neatly combed and styled. Men, please talk to Kevin about facial hair (growing it out, styling it, shaving it). He will tell you the specifics for your character.
Young girls (13 years old and younger):
You can wear your hair pulled back from your face in a half up/half down style or in braids or pig tails. You can also do a 20s style if you’d like to. You will have a poor costume and a 20s costume so it would be great to find something that would work for both styles for the entire show. Just be sure it is pulled back away from your face. I’ll add sample pictures below soon.
Older girls and women:
You will likely need to change your hair during the show depending on the scenes you are in. Everyone will have a poor costume and a 20s costume. Some people will also be a Romanov royal or a military officer or a Russian dancer. Russian influences and 20s inspired is the name of the game. I will add sample pictures below soon.
Dowager Empress’s and Savannah/Anya:
You will be wearing wigs for this show. We will provide the wigs but you will need to prep your hair to wear a wig. If you need help with hair pins or wig caps, please let us know and we can support you.
Hats:
There will also be plenty of hats and head wraps worn in this show. Not in every scene but keep this in mind as you plan your hairstyles.
Here are some hairstyles you can try. I’m pretty sure we won’t be able to fully accomplish a 1920’s look for hair because there are so many costume changes but lots of curls and waves if you can achieve that kind of look would be great. At the very least, having hair pulled back away from your face is the most important thing (so we can see your facial expressions).
