Actor Susannah Wilson plays a sleek and charismatic Richard. Rough around the edges, and not willing to play into the visual opulence that the rest of her family abides by, she opts instead for a dark utilitarian look. Photo by Craig Bailey

A few of my favorite looks from this show on mannequins in the costume shop. Texture and pattern were crucial to this show in order to keep the feelings of opulence, nobility, and authenticity that I wanted on stage while mixing modern with old.

Queen Anne in her opening look, mourning the death of her husband, and the preliminary sketch for this costume. She wears a sheer black veil, held on by the silver circlet. The front of the coat cuts away to reveal a dark brocade skirt underneath. Her satin sleeves drape to the floor and highlight her movements throughout the scene. Photo by Craig Bailey

Actor Abbey May plays the Duke of Buckingham, right hand man to Richard. Her costume fits in the high society world around her, but like Richard, she is based in black. She struts around the stage, flourishing her plum coat with an almost showman-like quality, and is able to play both sides of the court with ease. Photo by Craig Bailey

Richard consorts with the Murderers. These two characters are the lowest we get in the world of this show, and it shows in their lack of cleanliness and style. These two are bumbling thugs who wear it with pride. Actors Susannah Wilson, Hannah Eastman, and Katie Grindeland

A front and back view of actress Emmy Ross in Lady Anne’s detailed coronation gown, helped by hair stylist Kim Berry.

Actress Emmy Ross hanging out backstage after death, wearing the Queen’s tiara and waiting for bows.

Some in process details of Lady Anne’s coronation look- the sleeve detail before being sewn in, and the painted and needlepointed Victorian boots that hide under her skirts.

Some prelim sketches depicting Queen Elizabeth’s gown and Lady Anne’s coronation gown

Actors Emmy Ross and Molly Gilbert as Lady Anne and Queen Elizabeth in the scene before the coronation, Elizabeth in her family’s customary powder blue wool, and Anne in a neutral/purple cloak hiding her underdressed quick change. Photo by Craig Bailey

A close up of the painted skull and crossbones insignia on Murderer 2’s cut off hoodie. The murderers are the comic relief in this show, which gave me a bit of permission to caricature-ize some aspects of their costumes.

Actor Molly Leach in a final fitting for her “Lord Grey” costume. Queen Elizabeth’s side of the family is very opulent; Grey, Rivers, and Dorset are festooned with velvets and embroideries and even the sequined black pants you see here.

My costume renderings for Duke of Clarence, Marquess of Dorset, and Lord Rivers.

The whole family! Queen Elizabeth and all of her children dressed in their light powder blues. The children are the perfect picture of tragic innocence, a slight nod to the blue jackets worn by the Kennedy children. Actors Nicolette Teti, Molly Gilbert, Elena D’Elia, and Fiona Shine Duncan.

1. Queen Elizabeth is clean and beautiful, truly “the painted queen” as she is called. Her skirts get darker and heavier the further in they go, paralleling her demeanor through the course of the show. Queen Margaret appears wild and unkempt, her skirt tattered and stained, boots dirty from travel. She wears a military jacket to intimidate the other players and to invoke the look of a fallen general. Her crown is made of wire- an empty skeleton. Margaret by Valerie Madden, Photo by Craig Bailey

Close ups of Queen Margaret’s skirt and original jacket. I hand dyed every piece of the skirt from scrap fabric around the costume shop, and placed them in the skirt along with dangling beaded appliques and tangles of yarns.

Actor Rachel Brunner playing “Tyrell”. Weaponry and the harnessing that goes with it was a fun challenge on this show. All harnesses had to be in fittings to ensure they worked, functionally and aesthetically, with the costumes we were creating. Photo by Craig Bailey

Prelims of Richard’s battle look; The fabric swatch is for Richard’s “chainmaiI” skirt. I like to refer to the jacket as looking like a “post-apocalyptic ashtray” with all of the debris and burned away fabric. It was designed to make Richard look spikey, dirty, and ruthless. The contrast between Richmond in her golden chainmail and Richard in her burned battle jacket parallels their difference in fighting styles- one is an organized army and the other is guerilla warfare.

A photo of Richard heading to the battle grounds and a Susannah in the full combat gear minus fight crown. While there are spikes and tubes and (fake) barbed wire laid into this jacket at every angle, it is actually built to protect Susannah during the fight. She is knocked on her back multiple times and extra layers of batting inside the coat keep her from hitting hard and from feeling any of the jackets bulky add-ons. She said it was like landing on a pillow! Left photo by Craig Bailey

A progress picture of my work on some vintage football padding found in stock. I liked the shape they created on Richmond’s fighters and the time period they harkened back to. Everything I did to them was removable and easily cleaned for use after the show.

We see the whole “Richmond team” in their fighting garb, including the altered football padding on Dorset and Tyrell. Richmond’s chainmail tunic was originally silver, and was rubbed gold for this show. The red cape (while always part of the design) serves a dual function of protecting the floor treatment when Emily is knocked on her back during the fight sequence. Actors from left to right: Ashley Goverman, Susannah Wilson, Rachel Brunner, Sawyer Fuller, and Emily Elmore. Photo by Craig Bailey

A production shot of bows, featuring the entire cast (sans children) in costume. Photo by Craig Bailey