Project Blog

The wardrobe department is one of the busiest places in a theatre, and there was a lively discussion amongst the team this week about how our new space should be kitted out. Local practitioners Pat Musgrave and Diana Ennis kindly joined us for the debate, and their collective experience in costume design, construction, care and maintenance was invaluable in generating lots of great ideas and very practical suggestions. Wardrobe is where great swathes of fabric will be cut and transformed into voluminous costumes for period drama or pantomime, so a well designed cutting table is essential. It’s the place where costumes are stored whilst under construction, and where actors go for fittings during rehearsals. Laundry is also part of its daily life once a show is up and running, so costume rails have to move easily to and from the dressing rooms. And we have to be prepared for all those little backstage dramas that the public don’t see, like what happens if a washing machine floods? Will there be drainage built into the laundry room floor? Our challenge is to make effective use of the limited space available and ensure that it is well designed, well equipped and user friendly. This means working through every detail, right down to ensuring we have the right lighting and bench design for machinists, and power sockets in the places where they will be needed most!

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