Clothes help tell a story

By Joseph L. Garcia

Theater
Les Miserables
March 11-29
The Theatre at Solaire,
Solaire Resort & Casino,
Asean Ave., Entertainment City,
Parañaque City

LES MISERABLES opens at the Theatre at Solaire later this month, and the cast and crew are already preparing for it full swing.

The musical is an epic saga of redemption and revolution set in 19^th century France, amid a period of inequality. As such, the show’s costumes reflect the ease of life for a lucky few, and a life of grit for the others. Les Miz premiered in Paris in 1980, and since then, has been produced worldwide on tour and in several international productions.

Judith Loxley, Costume Supervisor for the international show tour, recently led guests backstage to view the costumes in Pasay’s Star Theater as the cast rehearsed.

“A lot of our costumes are very authentic,” said Ms. Loxley. She then showed a costume worn by lead character Jean Valjean as a convict on parole, torn up in all the right places. She then moved on to show off the Paris costume of Cosette, the orphan raised by Valjean (who at this point has risen up in the world while still on the run), a rich light green number with a bell-shaped skirt.

“We use a lot of techniques to try and create the fullness in these skirts as well,” she said. “You’re trying to use a style for the 19^th century, but actually put it on a modern-day body shape as well, so there’s a little bit of working with proportion,” she said.

She also noted that while yes, the costumes are historically accurate, a lot of them have to be modified for the stage with simplified lacings and fastenings.

Racks and racks of costumes filled the backstage area, and Ms. Loxley pointed out that the ensemble had the most costume changes, noting that one rack backstage equalled to just one cast member. In all, Ms. Loxley notes that there are 1,500 to 2,000 pieces, accessories included, used in the show. Most of the costumes come from all over the world, with tailored pieces coming from the UK and Spain, Australia, and some pieces coming from New York. “Their style and their design is continous throughout all productions, so this Manila production is exactly the same as what you’ll see on the West End and on Broadway, and in Australia.”

However, she notes, “This is slightly different from the very first production. There’s a lot more color in this production, a couple of different additions, dress-wise, and moments… in the actual show.”

As the tale outlines inequality and strife, several of the costumes will show the struggles of the characters who wear them. For example, while Cosette’s green Paris costume looks divine, Eponine, the poor daughter of petty crooks the Thénardiers, wears a worn out chemise, with spots of brown indicating grime (not actual dirt, but the result of finishing). Ms. Loxley discussed the difficulty of creating something neat and sweet, versus something that would be deliberately ugly. “It’s the same… when you’re working with something that’s quite beautiful like Cosette’s… there’s a lot of technique… back in the day that they… actually used.”

“Equally as much time-taking is something… that the convicts wear.”

She showed off pieces to be used in the “Lovely Ladies” number, which is sung by prostitutes. Here, elaborate corsets were deliberately damaged to show the hard life of a streetwalker. Ms. Loxley then went on to discuss how to achieve true squalor in costume — which does not mean just giving an actor a sloppy outfit. “We actually think about what that [character] would’ve been through, what they would’ve been doing while they’ve been wearing the clothes, and then just knowing the elbows would’ve gone first, knees… griminess around here,” she said, motioning to the waist, “where they put their hands, so we use that as our base, and we have a look onstage, under the lights, and then we keep adding to it.”

Tickets to Les Miserables are available at Ticketworld ().