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James and the Giant Peach by Timothy Allen McDonald
James and the Giant Peach is the story of a young boy named James who, to escape his evil aunts, travels across the Atlantic ocean to New York with a troupe of human sized bugs on a giant peach.
Spider
This costume won the Main Stage Critic's Choice Award at the Colorado Thespian Conference in 2018, so I have many process photos. I created the body of the costume in three parts, the bustle, the bodice, and the collar. Spider was a risque character who was secure in her womanhood and not afraid to stand up for herself and those she loved. She also was a very kind character. To achieve that balance, I created a corset-like bodice with a fluffy, fur collar, and a full bustle with a bow. It anthropomorphized her look and catered to her powerful and kind character.
I drew a pattern on paper, pinned onto the collar of the costume, and then cut it out of faux fur. I sewed it to the collar of the bodice and tacked it down to keep it from moving too much.
Production Photos
I had to alter the pattern for the bodice significantly to get the look that I wanted and to make sure it fit the actress snugly. This process took three muslin mock ups that I altered more and more each time I tried it on the actress.
The bustle was created by layering gathered tulle and tacking it up to hold its fullness. I sewed it to a ribbon which I then sewed to the bodice.
Awards
I took this costume to competition at the Colorado Thespian Conference in 2018 and won the Main Stage Critic's Choice Award for costume construction.
In May of 2019, I was one of the students representing Poudre Theatre that was nominated to win a Bobby G Award. We won in the costume design category for our work on James and the Giant Peach.
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