Costume fittings take place throughout the rehearsal period but there is far more at stake than just making sure an actor’s clothing isn’t too tight under the arm.
For some actors the costume is an integral part of how they develop their character’s presence on stage. It is only at the fitting stage that the actors can get the feel of their costumes and how they might influence their performance. Costumes are redesigned and evolve over several fittings. Here you can also find out why the sheer number of costume changes presents an additional challenge for the design team. Many of the actors play several characters and often 10 or 20 actors must change costumes rapidly between scenes.
Costume Designer
Jon Morrell talks about the challenges he faces at this point in the process and the demands of turning his initial designs into workable costumes. Nowhere is this more complex than with the armoured bears. Danny Sapani talks through a
bear costume fitting and explains how appearance is a vital part of creating his character, Iorek Byrnison.
