Playing Dress-Up

Clothes make the man. It is true. Clothes do leave a first impression on everyone that views them. This phrase is also true for costumes. They make life more interesting. They are more charm to Halloween and love. Costumes work at their best in the world of theatre. Without them, the play would not be as effective as it should be. The key is to get the costume in the right element so that effect can work at its best and leave a lasting impression on its audience. Otherwise, the play just falls to pieces right in the whole.

Each type of character has a theme to them. Most of them reality on basic type-casted For example, the princess-type characters are all dressed in silk and light colors such as white, gold, and pink. She is made to look beautiful, clean, rich, and helpless-looking. Not many princesses look dirty with rags, tough with armor, or ugly-looking useless the play calls for it. A knight is dress in armor or noble colors. They are made to look strong, pure, and brave. The only time they can look like a peasant is when the script calls for it. Villains are dressed in black or dark colors with some fancy materials. But this is the standard. The villain can sometimes have a clean-looking and expensive costume. This could fool everyone until the very end. It all depends on the playwright and the script. The personality of the character is not the only thing that plays into costume designs. Time periods and geography are just as important as a character’s personality in the designs. Art has to be accurate in order to deliver a powerful punch. However, these can fall into stereotypes as well. The elements of time, geography, and personality can not escape from the stereotypes of life.

Why is it that there are stereotypes with costume designs to begin with? Why does the princess have to be dressed in a feminine way? Why do the villains have to dress dark? That is how it has always been taught to the general public ever since they were little kids. This is a real shame. It restricts what the designers want to do with the costumes for the characters. But it also gives the designer to break the rules and experiment. But that is only if the playwright and director agree with these challenges. However, it is not too bad to dabble with stereotypes once in a while. Sometimes, art needs a bit of a type-cast to kick it all off. As long as the designer does not get too caught up into the stereotypes and ignore their own creative integrity, they will be fine and make costumes that capture the public’s eyes for decades to come.

Costumes give the characters more charm and keep the audience hooked into the play until the very end. Sure, the designs use stereotypes. But is that not common nowadays with all forms of art? If the designers still keep their creativity in tact and not rely too much on a stereotype, the costume will be stunning and last in everyone’s minds for years to come.