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Creating my Automata Post #3

On Monday my tech class started to put together our automatas. We put together each side of the box for the automata. Each side has cut out areas. To put the sides together it is basically like a puzzle. When your done figuring out how each side goes together, you use a hot glue gun to glue the pieces together. Once the pieces where glued together we had to let them dry. So far I am enjoying creating my automata.

Starting Automata Post 2

A few days ago Mr. Calvert was teaching and telling us about creating automatas. He showed us some and we all had to guess how they were working inside. He also showed us a few videos about some really creative automatas. For mine I am have clouds go through a rainbow. We started learning how to create them. There are four sides that we have to connect to make a box to create the automata. We also had to go on Vectornator to create circles that will make our automata work. I am excited to get started on making mine!

Starting Tech Post #1

The Second day of technology Mr. Calvert taught and shared the safety rules of technology to my class. These rules are important because there are consequences when you don’t follow the rules. Such as getting hurt or messing up your project. Some of the safety rules include:

1. Slow down, think before you act

2. Tie back long hair, no  baggy clothes and dangling jewelry

3. No talking when using machinery

There are many other rules but I am not going to list them all. I am excited to work on the projects and when I am making the projects I will make sure to follow the technology safety rules.

 

 

Passion Project Post 2

For the passion project I choose to do Latin Jazz (type of dance) because I love dancing and feeling the rhythm of the songs that are played and that I dance to. I also think Latin Jazz is just really fun in general.

Capstone #7: Capstone Share

On Friday the 21st of June, I had my Capstone presentation. The actual presentation was much different from when I was presenting it in front of the second graders. The difference was that the second graders were daydreaming and not really listening but when I did the presentation in front of the parents all of them were staring at me and listening to every word I said.

Since I have lots of experience performing on stage I wasn’t as nervous as everybody else. A lot of the other kids were scared that they would mess up or say “um” a lot. However, I felt confident when I presented mine.

Overall, I think my presentation went well and I am proud of how it turned out. I really enjoyed learning about Broadway costume design. I also enjoyed learning about the other topics my classmates presented. Capstone was a fun project.

Here is the video of my presentation:

Capstone #6: Working on My Final Product

For my final project, I am doing a Ted Talk. I decided to do a Ted Talk because I have a lot of information about Broadway costume design and an Ignite would be to short for me. I would also have more time to speak for each slide and I could have as many slides as I want.

Right now I am working on memorizing my script and practicing my presentation. My presentation is the steps to designing a costume for a Broadway show. In my presentation I list and give examples of every step. As I was practicing a realized I kept on getting the things that I say for each slide confused. I decided to change my photos to go more with to what I am saying. After I fixed that I kept practicing and realized that adding more clear photos was more helpful for me. When I was at home I practiced my presentation in front of my Mom. She gave me some tips to presenting it. Some tips she gave includes speak slowly and clearly, look at the audience and more.

I am happy and feel good about how my capstone presentation has turned out. I learned by practicing that I need to speak slowly and clearly and be calm. I am excited to present my presentation!

Capstone #5: Answering My Main Inquiry Question

For my Capstone project, my class was assigned to write an essay on answering your main inquiry question. My main my inquiry question is “What are the steps for designing a costume for a Broadway show?” I am proud of how my essay has turned out.

Here is my essay:

Have you have ever been to a Broadway Show and wondered how the costumes are designed? My main inquiry question is, “What are the steps in designing costumes for Broadway Shows?” You are probably thinking there are no steps, you just sketch it out on a piece paper, but there are actually multiple steps to designing costumes. Those steps include research, talking to staff, the sketch, consulting the sketch, the sample costume, the final sketch, fittings, moving costumes to the theater,  tech rehearsal and the show.

Research

You might be wondering how do costume designers choose what the costume looks like? They research. Some examples of ways costume designers research include finding things for inspiration or looking at paintings and photos from the period that the show takes place in. The designer will go into broad research about each character to try to establish their personalities through their costume. The costume designer will have a color and fabric sense of each costume. They let the fabrics lead them into what they want the costumes to become. When doing a Broadway Show, Costume Designers always read the script first to get a sense of the show and to get a sense if there will be a need to do quick costume changes and more.

Talking to the Staff

The costume designer will then talk to the director of the show in terms of themes for the show and what message they want the audience to get from the show. The costume designer might also talk to the choreographer to talk about if any of the actors will be doing flips or jumps or if there will need to be any specific dance shoes and more. The costume designer consults with these people so they can create a costume that relates to the time period of the show and to make the costumes comfortable for the actors.

The Sketch and Consulting the Sketch

Once the costume designer has found enough research that is needed, they start with a quick rough sketch. Sometimes costume designers do the sketch on their computer. After the sketch is done the costume designer will find a time to consult the sketches with the director. They talk about how the costume could be better, if there needs to be any changes, and if the costume needs to be more related to the time period. If there are no changes needed, the costume designer will make a more detailed sketch. They will develop the sketch by color, shape and how the costume designer envisions it. The costume designer will usually have a big book called “The Bible.” It is called “The Bible” because they put all of the information of each costume in the book. They usually have 15 – 20 of these books per show. Some things they put inside “The Bible” include the fabrics they use for each costume, buttons (if they use them), a picture of the person wearing the costume, the size and more. After the sketch and information about each costume is done, they will develop the sketch into the costume.

The Sample Costume

When the sketch is done the costume designer will meet with the person creating the costume. They will talk about how they will be made, the fabrics that will be used, and whether there are any special considerations. For example if there is a really big skirt, they will talk about what will be used underneath, if it is a rigid shape, are they dancing in it, do they have to be moving in it and more. Afterwards, the person making the costume will make a sample costume out of cheap fabric, which is called muslin.

Fittings

Each actor has two to three fittings. Every actor gets their own time to come to the show’s costume office.

In the first fitting, the actor tries the cheap fabric version of the costume on so as not to waste the expensive fabric. Sometimes the costume might be re-sketched because there are too many changes that need to be fixed, but if there are no changes needed then they start making the actual costume.

In the second fitting, each actor will try on the actual costume. Sometimes the costume designer will have to restitch the costume because it doesn’t fully fit.

In the third fitting the costume designer will mostly focus on the shoes and accessories. Some accessories include necklaces, earrings, bracelets, hair pieces and more.

The Final Sketch

The final sketch is the sketch that the costume designer and director have decided to create. The final colored sketch shows what the designer wants the character to look like and is usually colored with watercolors or acrylic paints. Once the director has approved each final sketch, the costumes get made!

Moving the Costumes to the Theatre

After the costumes get made they get moved to the theatre. They get moved to a big room where all the costumes are kept or they get moved to the actors dressing room because they have a quick change. When the costumes are moved to the theatre the design process is done.

Tech Rehearsal and The Show

A couple weeks before the show there is a rehearsal called tech. Tech rehearsal is where all the actors are wearing their costumes and the costume staff get to see how it works on stage.  Sometimes the costume staff will discover that the lights are really bright in the scene and the colors of the costumes need to be toned down a little. Then they will repaint them or dye the costumes. After the costumes get fixed, they test them out one more time and from there comes the show.

Conclusion

In conclusion, designing costumes for a Broadway Show is a long process. I think the process of designing costumes for Broadway Shows is very complicated and frustrating, but it is also very rewarding and creative.  As David Kaley, the costume designer of Frozen told me during our interview, “Having a creative eye is the most important thing you need in order to be a costume designer.” After researching this topic, I definitely agree.

 

Capstone #4: Site Visit

On Thursday the 23rd of May, I went to my site visit for my Capstone Project. My site visit was at the Disney’s Frozen Costume Office at Amsterdam Theater. I told the person that I interviewed, David Kaley that I also needed to do a site visit. He offered to let me go to his costume office. I was excited to see the costume office because I saw pictures of costume offices online and now I finally got to see one in person.

During the site visit David told me where everything is placed and how they organize the office.  For example, rolls of fabrics were lined up by character on the shelves and each roll was tagged with the character and name of fabric.   He also showed me a few costumes and let me see all the details of them. David told me in some costumes they even sew in ice packs to keep the actors cool.  I also learned that each actor for the show gets new undergarments for each performance and has three identical costumes so they can rotate the costumes to be cleaned.  In addition, David showed me a giant book that they call “the bible”. They have 20 “Bibles” in all! In these books,they keep the fabric, the sketch, the picture of the person wearing the costume, the buttons that they use and so much more!  This looked like a great way to organize all the costumes. I thought these books were super cool.

In conclusion, I am extremely grateful to have had the privilege of visiting Disney’s Frozen costume office. It was really cool to see all of the hard work that goes into the detailing of these costumes!

Here are some photos:

Drawers filled with Buttons

One of the “bible” books showing a sketch of a Costume

A Troll Costume from Disney’s Frozen on Broadway (This Costume was very heavy)

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