Dream jobs...
First of all, if anyone still reads this, YES, I'm still alive. I've been writing blog entries in other locations, and keeping myself busy with a lot of other projects. Credit Kevin with inspiring me to come back to write here again (not that he did anything specific to accomplish that...just wrote some good blog entries.)
If you've read this for a while, you may recall an entry WAY back when, saying that one of my dream jobs would be a dresser for Deal or No Deal. No, I haven't pulled down that job. But I have had a very unusual position open up as an on-going sideline to working at the park...
Some friends of mine started a performing group in Salt Lake shortly before Christmas. And not just any performing group...they decided to start up a burlesque troupe. I was highly honored when they ever-so-casually asked me if I'd ever considered designing costumes for burlesque...
I'm not really designing the costumes...to explain just what it is I'm doing, I'm going to arbitrarily assign job titles to people, because it's a small group and somewhat informal. Jen is the artistic director (she also performs in the show, using a stage name)...the two of us consult about what the look for the show is going to be, but she generally goes ahead and picks out just what it is that she wants for costumes.
My job, as a costume designer for this group, consists of taking all these off-the-rack items and turning them into something special and 'costume-y'...which can be anything from adding a belt to hemming stuff up to tacking on a variety of trims, ribbons, and fringe, as well as rigging items to tear away when desired (yet keeping them intact UNTIL they're supposed to rip away). And, occasionally, I get to do some intriguing, creative projects...the last show involved the number 'Gimmick' from Gypsy...and I had to come up with a way to light up Electra's dress. Glad they told me in advance this number was coming up...battery-operated Christmas lights can be a little tough to track down around here AFTER Christmas.
But I'm doing more than just costumes...in their last program, they credited me as 'Production Designer', because I've kind of shouldered the responsibility of making sure that they have something other than just a bare stage on which to perform. The paycheck hasn't improved any with the additional responsibility...it's not a whole lot in the first place...if I was reliant on this job to make a living, I'd be in a world of hurt.
But I'm not. One of the reasons I love this job is that it's a great way for me to cleanse my palate, so to speak...there are so many times at the park when I look at something and say, "Y'know, we could just do it THIS way and it would be so much more effective..." Working with the Voodoo Darlings gives me the chance to either prove that I'm right about such things, or learn why I'm wrong (because sometimes it isn't as easy as I thought it would be).
There's also the fact that this group has a wonderful, close-knit aura to it. It was started by some friends of mine...and it's continued to be a group of friends that have all decided to combine forces to realize a dream or fulfill a wish. We have, for the most part, managed to avoid the kind of politicking that seems to creep into any performance group (there are a couple of exceptions, but those are also people that we've chosen not to work with again...ironically, the ones that have been the biggest source of grief have also been the ones that were most misleading about their level of proficiency...)
And, finally, I get the joy of working with and for people that demand and expect high quality. We've got a couple of good choreographers (also both performers in the group), some very talented singers, and the knowledge that none of us want to be a group of people that are just doing gigs in the bar in Salt Lake...there are groups in SLC already that do that. We hold ourselves to a higher standard than that, and the goal is to, ultimately, keep our schedules full with private parties like the one last night (the Darlings performed at the Utah AIDS Foundation Oscar Night Benefit Party), or to do shows where we rent out a theater (which costs more, but also pays more)...and do an occasional gig at a bar or club in town to keep life interesting.
It's also been a chance to end up working with some USU alums...Brooklyn Pulver was the emcee for the Darlings' first show (while she was on break from her tour with Hairspray), and Arika Schockmel is going to be working with us on a few upcoming shows.
Granted, it's a job I can't tell my family about...Mom gets uncomfortable when I talk about helping girls with costume changes, I can only imagine how she'd react to me expounding on the difficulties of sewing fringe around the obstacles inherent in an underwire bra. But I get the chance to work with some very dedicated, driven, talented people--who just happen to look exceptional in a corset and fishnets. With some luck, it will continue to gain momentum and become a 'staple' project that I can bank on, to some degree.
For now, however, I'm having a helluva good time at it...
After all, who could be grumpy with this kind of work environment? (L to R, using their stage names, are Sugar Magnolia, Lulu LaFleur, Mimi Valentine, Gigi DeVille, and October Mynx)
First of all, if anyone still reads this, YES, I'm still alive. I've been writing blog entries in other locations, and keeping myself busy with a lot of other projects. Credit Kevin with inspiring me to come back to write here again (not that he did anything specific to accomplish that...just wrote some good blog entries.)
If you've read this for a while, you may recall an entry WAY back when, saying that one of my dream jobs would be a dresser for Deal or No Deal. No, I haven't pulled down that job. But I have had a very unusual position open up as an on-going sideline to working at the park...
Some friends of mine started a performing group in Salt Lake shortly before Christmas. And not just any performing group...they decided to start up a burlesque troupe. I was highly honored when they ever-so-casually asked me if I'd ever considered designing costumes for burlesque...
I'm not really designing the costumes...to explain just what it is I'm doing, I'm going to arbitrarily assign job titles to people, because it's a small group and somewhat informal. Jen is the artistic director (she also performs in the show, using a stage name)...the two of us consult about what the look for the show is going to be, but she generally goes ahead and picks out just what it is that she wants for costumes.
My job, as a costume designer for this group, consists of taking all these off-the-rack items and turning them into something special and 'costume-y'...which can be anything from adding a belt to hemming stuff up to tacking on a variety of trims, ribbons, and fringe, as well as rigging items to tear away when desired (yet keeping them intact UNTIL they're supposed to rip away). And, occasionally, I get to do some intriguing, creative projects...the last show involved the number 'Gimmick' from Gypsy...and I had to come up with a way to light up Electra's dress. Glad they told me in advance this number was coming up...battery-operated Christmas lights can be a little tough to track down around here AFTER Christmas.
But I'm doing more than just costumes...in their last program, they credited me as 'Production Designer', because I've kind of shouldered the responsibility of making sure that they have something other than just a bare stage on which to perform. The paycheck hasn't improved any with the additional responsibility...it's not a whole lot in the first place...if I was reliant on this job to make a living, I'd be in a world of hurt.
But I'm not. One of the reasons I love this job is that it's a great way for me to cleanse my palate, so to speak...there are so many times at the park when I look at something and say, "Y'know, we could just do it THIS way and it would be so much more effective..." Working with the Voodoo Darlings gives me the chance to either prove that I'm right about such things, or learn why I'm wrong (because sometimes it isn't as easy as I thought it would be).
There's also the fact that this group has a wonderful, close-knit aura to it. It was started by some friends of mine...and it's continued to be a group of friends that have all decided to combine forces to realize a dream or fulfill a wish. We have, for the most part, managed to avoid the kind of politicking that seems to creep into any performance group (there are a couple of exceptions, but those are also people that we've chosen not to work with again...ironically, the ones that have been the biggest source of grief have also been the ones that were most misleading about their level of proficiency...)
And, finally, I get the joy of working with and for people that demand and expect high quality. We've got a couple of good choreographers (also both performers in the group), some very talented singers, and the knowledge that none of us want to be a group of people that are just doing gigs in the bar in Salt Lake...there are groups in SLC already that do that. We hold ourselves to a higher standard than that, and the goal is to, ultimately, keep our schedules full with private parties like the one last night (the Darlings performed at the Utah AIDS Foundation Oscar Night Benefit Party), or to do shows where we rent out a theater (which costs more, but also pays more)...and do an occasional gig at a bar or club in town to keep life interesting.
It's also been a chance to end up working with some USU alums...Brooklyn Pulver was the emcee for the Darlings' first show (while she was on break from her tour with Hairspray), and Arika Schockmel is going to be working with us on a few upcoming shows.
Granted, it's a job I can't tell my family about...Mom gets uncomfortable when I talk about helping girls with costume changes, I can only imagine how she'd react to me expounding on the difficulties of sewing fringe around the obstacles inherent in an underwire bra. But I get the chance to work with some very dedicated, driven, talented people--who just happen to look exceptional in a corset and fishnets. With some luck, it will continue to gain momentum and become a 'staple' project that I can bank on, to some degree.
For now, however, I'm having a helluva good time at it...
After all, who could be grumpy with this kind of work environment? (L to R, using their stage names, are Sugar Magnolia, Lulu LaFleur, Mimi Valentine, Gigi DeVille, and October Mynx)
posted by Curtis at 7:53 PM
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